Protestors attempt to prevent the vehicle of the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Elie Ferzli from accessing the Parliament in Beirut on April 20, 2022. (Credit: @sarkhatalmudiein)
BEIRUT — For the second consecutive day, activists and bank depositors protested on Wednesday against the capital control draft. They protested in Downtown Beirut, blocking the road leading to Parliament in an attempt to prevent deputies from reaching a joint session for the Finance and Budget Committee along with the Administration and Justice Committee, the National News Agency reported.
Here’s what we know:
• The committee members are due to discuss the bill, which will introduce exceptional and temporary restrictions on bank withdrawals.
• The draft law on capital control aims to legalize and standardize banking restrictions put in place at the beginning of the economic crisis in 2019. The law’s approval is one of the conditions required by the International Monetary Fund, to implement the preliminary agreement reached with Lebanon last week, which would provide the country with $3 billion over four years.
• Responding to depositors’ fears, on Tuesday, Prime Minister Najib Mikati said, “the government's priority is to preserve the rights of depositors,” during a meeting with a delegation from the Association of Banks in Lebanon at the Grand Serail.
• More than 80 percent of Lebanese live below the poverty line, and depositors are struggling to withdraw enough money to meet their needs due to current banking restrictions.