Lebanon, pushed past the brink of collapse, has been suffering from a historically high inflation that has thrown 75% of its population under the poverty line. Necessities such as food, petrol, medicine and even ink and paper are scarcer every day. Lebanon’s predicament is largely attributed to a political class that has dominated parliamentary elections since the 1990s. A nation in pain hung on to the frail hope that the upcoming election would bring critical stability and pave the way towards change.

In an outrageous and blatant attempt to obstruct the election, officials had complained that shortages of paper and ink needed to print ballots, could cancel the upcoming elections. AnNahar had a historical role in protecting the sanctity of free speech and Lebanon’s fragile democracy. As the newspaper strived to stay true to its essence, it was imperative to prevent the sabotaging of a decisive and long-awaited election.

How could we allow for a ridiculously trivial excuse, the shortage of paper and ink, to deprive an entire nation of its democratic rights? And so, AnNahar decided to go silent for the first time in its 88 years of existence.

On February 2nd, the daily newspaper did not go to print. Instead, the paper and ink that were to be used for that day's edition were instead used towards a greater cause - the printing of voting ballots. Trucks delivered that day's supply of paper and ink to the government’s printing associate.

With this move, An-Nahar would send the Lebanese government a powerful message, showing the world that none of their reasons would validate any attempt to take away a decisive election from the people of Lebanon.

Lebanon has long prided itself on being one of the few democracies in the Arab world. However, it is home to a fragile and manipulable one that has needed protection over the years. As the country anticipated the 2022 election, we saw the cornerstone of our democracy being threatened right before our eyes.

AnNahar had always outspokenly stood up for the rights of the Lebanese people and paid the ultimate sacrifice for the sanctity of free speech. It would not, at any cost, quietly condone the sabotaging of rightful elections.

How could we save democracy when all we own is the power of ink and paper? This time, we saw an opportunity for our supplies themselves, rather than our words, to brighten our democracy’s grim prospects. We would go paperless so the people can remain voiceful. On February 2nd, we were not saving ink and paper, we were saving democracy.

AnNahar was established in 1933 by the Tueni family and characterized by a liberal orientation, which, without denying its Arab roots, looks to Europe and the West as a political and cultural reference point. It has a long history of standing with the Lebanese people in the face of adversity and for being outspoken against injustice. In fact, the newspaper’s history is riddling with retaliations, including the assassination of its editor-in-chief in 2005.

Once the number one newspaper across the country, its circulation has been steadily declining since the beginning of the 2000s at a rate that has even outpaced the total decline of the publishing industry; placing AnNahar in second place after AsSafir.

As Lebanon found itself going through a political and economic crisis, with necessities getting scarcer every day, the government menaced to cancel a decisive parliamentary election due to an absurd reason; a shortage of paper and ink necessary to print election ballots.Thus, in an intentional strategic approach to the challenge, AnNahar, Lebanon’s leading newspaper, decided not to print its February 2nd edition and instead send the unused paper and ink for the printing of ballots.

As a result, that morning people walked to empty newsstands were they only found a QR code that directed them to the online version of the newspaper explaining the cause behind the issue. AnNahar’s creative take on the problem would generate the country’s new symbol of democracy: empty newsstands that speak louder than words. It didn’t cost a thing to save democracy, our paper and ink were enough to give people hope. A hope of living in a country that protects their freedom of speech and political rights.

On February 1st, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief announced the next day’s special Election Issue, inviting people to be on the lookout for it.

But the special issue of An-Nahar was never printed. On February 2nd, there was no physical newspaper to purchase. Instead, people walked to the newsstands to find empty racks displaying a single message: The ink and paper intended for today’s edition has been sent towards the printing of voting ballots for the 2022 election. A QR code directed people to the newspaper's online version, which explained the cause behind the issue that never went to print.

The newspaper also stirred up conversation online, with powerful social content.

An-Nahar called upon publishers, press companies and printing factories to rally around the cause to exert undeniable pressure on the government. Competing publications also printed the An-Nahar ad, calling for the safeguarding of our elections.