The Turkish lira has fallen to its lowest level since 2018. Due to the corona crisis, the central banks have repeatedly adjusted the key interest rate. Erdogan's government is reaching its limits.
- The measures against the coronavirus pandemic * cut a swath across the world's economic systems .
- The economic consequences in Turkey are catastrophic. The Erdogan government's scope for action is limited.
- The country was stricken before. The Turkish lira is now on a critical downward slide.
- Here you will find the basic facts about the corona virus *. You can also see the current number of cases in Germany as a map * and the current developments in Germany *. The most important thing about the topic is also on our Facebook page Corona News.
Update of May 2, 2020 9:54: In Turkey a cruel discussion on the relationship of the coronavirus with the homosexuality flared.
The president of the Turkish religious authority Diyanet Ali Erbas , who is known for his conservative interpretation of Islam, deliberately pillorized homosexuals in his first sermon on the month of Ramadan by attributing the outbreak of the coronavirus to homosexuality and celibacy . "It rots the generation and brings disease". Islam curses homosexuality, according to the top Islamic scholar in Turkey.
The Ankara Bar Association then accused Erbas of degrading people and targeting them. The statement was also outraged by civil society groups, lawyers and secular politicians. Erbas committed a hate crime and opened the door to discrimination, the main tenor.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, however, stood behind Erbas and said that his statements were correct , but only binding on Muslims. Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gül also defended Erbas. The senior public prosecutor's office in Ankara has meanwhile launched an investigation into the capital's bar association, partly because of degrading religious values.
Meanwhile, the human rights organization is also demanding
Human Rights Watch
(HRW) urged the government to end the branding of lesbians and gays. A statement released on Friday said: "The government of Turkey should ensure that all of its representatives refrain from comments that stigmatize lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transsexual people, as well as people living with HIV, and who take risks expose to be persecuted and attacked. "
HRW also criticized the support of the highest government circles for "hateful" statements. That is " extremely worrying ". In addition, the investigation against those who oppose such "homophobic statements by government officials" must be dropped immediately, continued HRW.
Many people also accused Erbas in the online networks of causing discord in the middle of the corona pandemic. The Ankara Lawyers' Association accused Erbas of inciting hatred of lesbians and gays. The Diyanet Authority operates mosques in Turkey and appoints imams.
Homosexuality is not prohibited in Turkey. However, activists always complain of discrimination.
Coronavirus: Turkish lira crashes dramatically - Erdogan threatens the worst
First report from April 29:
Istanbul - The Coronavirus Pandemic * has a dramatic impact on affected countries. The economic damage * is not yet foreseeable. Experts agree that the 2008 financial crisis will be tougher.
In Turkey , the consequences are already evident. The country was previously badly hit financially - due to political disputes with the United States.
Coronavirus: Turkish lira crashes dramatically - Erdogan threatens the worst
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan regularly imposed curfews for a few days in the 31 cities affected, including Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir, in the wake of the Corona crisis. For weeks he had only imposed this restriction for 48 hours. Finally expanded to a three-day cycle.
The Turkish lira is meanwhile under massive pressure after numerous interest rate cuts by the Turkish central bank. On Tuesday, up to 7.62 lira was temporarily paid for one euro. This was the last amount that had to be paid for one euro in late summer 2018 when violent currency turmoil as a result of a conflict between Turkey and the United States caused the Turkish currency to plummet to a record low .
Coronavirus in Turkey: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
© AFP / FETHI BELAID
Corona crisis in Turkey: scope for measures in the corona crisis is severely limited
In August 2018, the record price of 8.12 lira was paid for one euro. Since then, the Turkish currency has tended to be under pressure. The lira exchange rate also approached the 2018 low on Tuesday in trading in the US dollar . In the afternoon, a dollar was temporarily traded for just under 7 lira. As a result, the exchange rate was only slightly below the record value of 7.23 lira, which was temporarily paid for one dollar in August 2018.
Market observers also point to a tight household situation . This limits the government's measures in the corona crisis. The Turkish central bank recently cut interest rates again. The key interest rate had been reduced by 1.0 percentage point to 8.75 percent last week. It was the eighth rate cut since last summer when the base rate was still 24.0 percent.
Turkey hit by Corona: The Erdogan government's room for maneuver is limited
The Erdogan government's market policy room for maneuver is slowly reaching its limits. Even more: Experts see Turkish monetary policy on a risky path. On the one hand, the effects of the corona crisis and weaker inflation due to low oil prices speak for lower interest rates. On the other hand, key interest rates have long been well below the inflation rate.
The lack of economic power also has unexpected consequences. This is how dolphins keep finding their way to the Bosphorus.
Dolphins on the Bosphorus. ❤️
The animals can be seen again after driving and fishing bans in the course of combating the corona virus . # Turkey #Istanbul pic.twitter.com/s3BCzpYlSq
nai / dpa
