Protesters hold a sit in front of Banque Du Liban in Beirut, on Jan. 25, 2023. (Credit: Mohammed Yassin/ L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — Protesters held a sit-in organized by a depositors' rights group in front of the Banque du Liban headquarters in Beirut Wednesday, voicing their rejection of recent circulars as "unfair."
Protester and lawyer Pierre Gemayel told L'Orient Today that the demonstrators are "not only protesting against the circulars but against the lack of action from the authorities who have not even put forward a recovery plan three years into the crisis."
Gemayel added that if the judiciary had "put its foot down 20 years ago and taken action" against the "robbing of the money of the people, the country wouldn't be in the position it's in now."
The central bank on Friday formalized an increased conversion rate for "bank dollars," or "lollars," set at LL15,000.
Among the circulars under fire at Wednesday's protest was Circular No. 151, which allows depositors suffering from restricted access to their foreign currency accounts to withdraw small sums — determined by the banks — in Lebanese lira each month at a rate BDL previously set at LL8,000.
Circular No. 158, meanwhile, allows monthly withdrawals of $400 in cash from the same restricted accounts. It also allows for withdrawals of the equivalent sum in lira, converted at a rate of LL12,000 to the dollar.
The BDL protest comes as gas stations across Lebanon closed on Wednesday morning with long queues forming in front of the few that remained open, as the lira continues its free fall against the dollar, trading at around LL56,000 at the parallel market.
Several roads have also been blocked across Lebanon Wednesday morning by protesters angry over the devaluation.
The lira's fall has also seen rising prices of medicines and food.
In more than three years of economic crisis in Lebanon, the national currency has lost more than 97 percent of its value. Meanwhile, the Lebanese authorities continue to stall in adopting the necessary reforms to halt the country's economic and financial collapse.
Additional reporting contributed by Mohammad Yassin