Security forces were unable to disperse a sit-in staged yesterday in front of the Ministry of Agriculture by residents from the Alexandrian district of Tosson. The residents of Tosson have been protesting for 105 days, objecting to the demolition of their homes in 2008 by the Alexandria governorate, allegedly to clear the land for powerful businessmen. The twenty persons staging the sit-in were surprised by the presence of heavy security at 6 AM. Forces tore apart the tents that had been erected by the protesters on the sidewalk in front of the ministry. Officers also pulled down banners hung up to celebrate the advent of Ramadan. Security officers called on the protesters to end their sit-in, gather their possessions, and leave, threatening to detain those who disobeyed. But protesters defied the warning and lay down in the middle of the street for two hours. Officers were obliged to return the protesters back to their sit-in spot to prevent traffic from becoming blocked. Meanwhile, a number of Fayoum citizens staged another sit-in in the same area. They were protesting the governor's decision to expropriate their land (115 feddans) for three years to make way for the installation of a natural gas pipeline intended to support a sugar plant owned by a private company. The protesters demanded that the digging operations on their land stop until a verdict is reached on a lawsuit they have brought against the governor. Two hundred protesters from the Maasra Telephone Equipment Manufacturing Company also staged a sit-in yesterday inside the headquarters of the Egyptian Trade Unions Federation. They were protesting against the delay in the payment of their salaries and failure to meet their demands for transfers to Telecom Egypt. They also complained about the inadequacy of the monthly assistance they receive from the emergency fund run by the Ministry of Manpower and Immigration. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
