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In Lebanon, plunged in full economic crisis, the situation becomes “out of control”

2020-07-10T19:09:18.317Z


According to Michelle Bachelet, High Commissioner for Human Rights at the UN, Lebanese people "risk dying of hunger because of this crisis".


In Lebanon, a country plagued by the worst economic crisis in its history, we must "act immediately before it is too late". This cry of alarm was uttered this Friday by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. According to Michelle Bachelet, the situation "is rapidly getting out of control" and some of the most vulnerable Lebanese "risk starving to death due to this crisis," she said in a statement.

Almost half of the approximately four million Lebanese live in poverty and 35% of the working population is unemployed. The ras-le-bol started in October 2019 a new protest movement against the political class unchanged for decades.

In recent months, tens of thousands of Lebanese have been dismissed or suffered wage cuts. The national currency is in free fall, as is purchasing power. And savers do not have free access to their money, the banks having imposed draconian restrictions on withdrawals and transfers abroad because of the scarcity of the dollar.

Refugees among the most exposed

“The economic crisis, coupled with the Covid-19 epidemic, affected all of society. Many have lost their jobs, have seen their savings disappear before their eyes, and have lost their homes, ”recalls Michelle Bachelet. "And as often in this kind of situation, it is the poorest and the most vulnerable who suffer the most," she said.

Among the most vulnerable are some 1.7 million refugees, mostly Syrians, and 250,000 migrant workers, who have lost their jobs and are homeless, says Michelle Bachelet. "It is important in these difficult times to reassess the way we treat migrants", she continues, calling for the protection of all, "whatever their origin or their status".

The economic crisis in the small country of the Middle East is also aggravated by a delicate political context exacerbated by the tensions between Hezbollah, an ally of Iran who dominates Lebanese political life, and the United States.

Placed in default, Lebanon adopted a reform plan at the end of April to negotiate aid from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), likely to restore some confidence to other donors. But the talks are stalling, after more than two months and 16 sessions of negotiations between the Washington-based institution and the government of Beirut. "The IMF has left the negotiation session," said a Lebanese negotiator, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Two divergent estimates

Another Lebanese source close to the case castigates the louvoisements of Lebanese officials. "Nobody (among them) wants reforms", however, demanded for decades and deemed "urgent" by Michelle Bachelet. “Each faction fights for its personal interests and lets the country sink. "

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Carelessness is not surprising, in a country subscribed to repeated crises and where parties are used to endless bargaining. The Lebanese leaders themselves are accused of profiting from a system riddled with patronage and bribes. There is "a very powerful lobby" ready "to burn the country to avoid exposing all that it has committed," accuses the negotiator.

To date, Beirut is hoping for about $ 10 billion in IMF assistance. But during the negotiations, a parliamentary committee and the government even diverged on the estimate of the public deficits, those of the Central Bank and those of the banks: from 60,000 to 241,000 billion Lebanese pounds (tens of billions of dollars). The IMF asked for a single assessment and asked "to stop taking them by boat."

Source: leparis

All news articles on 2020-07-10

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