Depositors protests at Beirut Justice Palace, March 1, 2023. (Credit: Mohamad Yassin/L'Orient Today)
Demonstrators and members of the Cry of the Depositors association held a sit-in Wednesday morning in front of Beirut Palace of Justice, demanding the return of bank deposits of Lebanese residents, who are unable to withdraw their savings due to the illegal restrictions imposed by banks.
"In Lebanon, the judiciary is in a coma"; "Illegal circulars from the Central Bank mean continued humiliation and theft from depositors"; "In support of a transparent Lebanese judiciary"; "Stop the circulars and Sayrafa platform," are among the sentiments written on protesters' placards.
A protester's placard, photogrpqahed during a March 1, 2023, Beirut sit-in, reads 'Illegal circulars from the Central Bank mean continued humiliation and theft ftom depositors.' (Credit: Mohamad Yassin / L'Orient Today)
Speaking at the sit-in, a member of the organization, Ibrahim Abdallah, said they were ready to "go through all necessary steps, including escalation, to achieve their goals," namely to sue the banks and the "corrupt" in order to recover the deposits, according to the National News Agency.
"The lack of interest of officials, politicians and bankers in this case pushes us to internationalize our cause," he added.
"The bank deposits have not evaporated. They have been transferred to other accounts," he said. Despite restrictions that prevent most Lebanese from accessing their savings, officials are accused of having transferred large sums abroad since the beginning of the crisis.
"What we want is to get our deposits back on the basis of a clear and precise timetable," Abdallah continued, "not through a capital control law aimed at stealing people's funds."
This demonstration was organized in response to drastic restrictions on the withdrawal of deposits that banks impose since 2019.
The collective Cry of the Depositors has already organized several sit-ins and actions against banks in the past several months.