Dear friends,
Greetings from Bangkok! We hope you're safe and healthy.
Our thoughts are with the people of Beirut and Lebanon where last week a deadly blast killed almost 200 people and left more than 300,000 homeless. We were glad to learn that our friends and work partners were not harmed; but the scale of the devastation and loss of livelihoods is heart breaking. This tragedy came on top of the already severe economic, financial, and political crises that have been unfolding for more than a year and the health crisis of the past six months. These had been especially devastating to the migrant workers in the country , many of whom were left without income, homes, access to healthcare and social benefits and, at the same time, unable to return to their countries of origin. It was deeply touching to learn that migrants and refugees have joined the local volunteer workers to carry out emergency support work. As we grieve for Beirut, it is also important to note that this is a tragedy that happened because of a negligent government. Colleagues from Beirut are appreciative of the outpouring of love, grief and the much-needed humanitarian support. But as one of them put it, "We are fighting a repressive system, we were not hit by a natural disaster . As more of us come to this consensus and we find ways of taking the streets again, we will need you to step up and support us from that standpoint; organising marches in front of our embassies, pressuring your respective states, writing our version of the story in your news outlets - we will need nothing short of genuine solidarity."