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Nizar Hassan is a Lebanese activist, journalist, podcaster and social researcher, focused on political economy and social movements, especially concerning Lebanon. He is co-founder of the Lebanese political organization LiHaqqi,[1] which ran candidates for the Lebanese general elections of 2018[2] and 2022,[3] having served as its spokesperson on multiple occasions.[4][5][6][3] He has been a regular author analyzing Lebanese political affairs for the newspapers L'Orient-Le Jour,[7][8][9] The New Arab,[10][11][12] The Daily Star[13][14][15] and Al-Arab,[16][17][18] with contributions to ROAR magazine,[19] Bretton Woods Project,[20] Al Bawaba,[21][22] BirGün[23] or Green Left.[24]
Nizar Hassan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Nizar Hassan Lebanon |
| Nationality | Lebanese |
| Alma mater | SOAS University of London, American University of Beirut |
| Known for | Co-founder of LiHaqqi |
| Awards | Open Society Foundations fellowship, International Labor Union Migration Journalism fellowship, Chevening Scholarship |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Political Economy, Social Movements |
Hassan studied Political Sciences and Media at the American University of Beirut and Paris Sciences Po.[25] He holds a master's degree in "Labor, Social Movements and Development" from SOAS University of London.[26] His dissertation analyzed class and power in the 2015-2016 Lebanese protests.[26][27] He has research works analyzing Lebanese political platforms,[28][29] workers exclusion,[30] the impact of the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon,[31] the 2019 Lebanese uprising,[32] and several short research analyses on various Lebanese issues.[33][34][35] He has worked as a researcher for several civil society organizations,[1] such as the Arab NGO Network for Development[36][37] or the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies,[38] and was selected as panel moderator at the World Bank's Civil Society Policy Forum.[39] For his work, he has received the Open Society Foundations fellowship,[1] the International Labor Union Migration Journalism fellowship[40][41] and the Chevening scholarship.[42]
He is co-founder of the Lebanese political organization LiHaqqi,[1] the first organization to call for protests that triggered the 17 October Revolution.[43] LiHaqqi also ran candidates on the Lebanese general elections of 2018[2] and 2022.[3] He has served as its spokesperson in multiple occasions.[4][5][6][3] Within LiHaqqi, he served on the Public Affairs Committee, Organizational Council, and Economic Justice Working Group.[26] He is the co-host[44] of the Lebanese Politics Podcast[45][46] and the host of the YouTube channel Tafkeek,[47] funded by the Open Society Foundations.[1]
His political analyses have often been cited worldwide when analyzing Lebanese events,[48][49][50] especially after the Lebanese 17 October Revolution.[51][52][53] Referred to as a "protagonist in the contemporary Lebanese scene"[54] and "a central part of the grassroots movement in Beirut",[55] he supports progressive policies on multiple topics.[56] He considers current Lebanese financial crisis a "total economic and financial collapse"[57] because of the lack of access to "basic necessities". He speaks critically of the Lebanese political system, calling it "corrupt sectarian political establishment"[58] and "political clientelism",[59] criticizing the banking sector as "financial oligarchy"[60] and Hezbollah armed strength.[61] He has also been a critic of multiple Lebanese politicians, such as prime minister Saad Hariri,[5][62] prime minister Hassan Diab,[63] or Druze leader Walid Jumblatt.[6]
When discussing the aims of the 17 October Revolution, which he called "uprising of dignity",[64] he expressed support for an interim[65] government of independents from traditional parties to fight corruption[43][66] and save the country, "not save capital".[67] He also supported taxing millionaires to alleviate the financial crisis.[43] He argues "the revolution has not failed"[46] although it did not "achieve a lot".[68]
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