As long as their property and positions are not affected
Lebanon's politicians will continue to evade until sanctions are imposed on them
Michel Aoun, President of the Republic and Hezbollah's ally.
Reuters
Since October 2019, the civil uprising against the entire political system has begun.
Reuters
Salameh was considered the valve of stability in Lebanon, but it is now under investigation in France.
Reuters
picture
No one knows when the economic and financial crisis and the debt and banking problem in Lebanon, which the World Bank described last month as one of the three worst recessions in the world since the mid-19th century, will end.
After the Corona pandemic, and the huge explosion that occurred in the port of Beirut, last August, many Lebanese do not feel that there will be any improvement in their lives, given that the elites of the corrupt families that rule this country, will agree to form a government, let alone a measure No vital repairs.
A senior Lebanese economist said: "It is clear that the political class does not have any incentives to cooperate and put the interest of its country at the top of its priorities, and therefore it has stifled Lebanon's economy."
isolated mafias
It seems that the sectarian mafias that rule Lebanon are isolated, with their billions illegally collected, from the misery, hunger and poverty experienced by the poor and the drowning middle class whose bank deposits have been confiscated, and the local currency has lost 90% of its value, since October 2019. As for those who deposit their money in dollars They are deprived of access to their accounts, because of an insolvent banking system, because it has lent all its hard currency to a bankrupt country, and to a central bank that cannot pay. And the size of the economy shrank from $55 billion in 2018 to $33 billion last year, according to the World Bank, which believes that 55 percent of the country’s population lives below the poverty line, and the economy could shrink this year by 10 percent, but the economy is shrinking very quickly. Very difficult to calculate.
Many depositors have lost their savings in a closed banking system, since October 2019, when the civil uprising against the entire political system began, which led to the overthrow of the government, and the other government fell after last summer's explosion, which resulted in the destruction of entire neighborhoods in central Beirut.
The bankers and politicians, who deal with almost all the major banks, got very rich because of a very high interest rate and a central bank that adhered to banking standards.
At a time when international banks elsewhere were trying to understand negative interest rates, Lebanese money changers were hiding huge amounts of suspicious profits, and after Lebanese banks lent 70% of their assets to the bankrupt Lebanese state, leaving a hole in the banking system, which the state identified as Equivalent to $83 billion, those banks still claim they can repay.
money escape
In addition to the above, international estimates say that about $17 billion exited Lebanon in 2020, while Lebanese officials say that about $16 billion exited Lebanon in 2019, although it is assumed that there is complete control and control over the funds deposited in banks.
This political stalemate, with the country without a government since the Beirut explosion 11 months ago, is the last chapter in the quest for gains by Sunni and Shiite Muslims, Christians, and Druze among the 18 religious sects recognized in the state, in addition to the many parties.
In addition to all that comes Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shiite movement, which is allied with the Amal Movement, which is also a Shiite movement, in addition to the Christian Free Patriotic Movement, headed by General Michel Aoun, who is also the president of the republic.
Hezbollah has tight influence over the security forces and the army, controls the majority in Parliament, has the right to block any decision on government appointments, and is determined not to risk its very important Christian alliance, and now serves as a shield for the elite that stole Lebanon's money and left it in a state complete impotence.
These political and financial families are demonstrating, in cooperation with international donors and the International Monetary Fund, while they are procrastinating, in an attempt to create inflation in Lebanon and its banks as a result of debts, at the expense of all the poor except for the wealthy Lebanese. In April last year, the government rolled out a rescue plan that would protect 90% of domestic and international depositors, officials say. But this plan has been rejected by bankers, politicians, and Central Bank of Lebanon (Central Bank) governor Riad Salameh, which the World Bank described last December as a "deliberate depression", and diplomats and country insiders say there is almost no discussion of the crisis. Currently, the dominant factions in the state are focusing on the upcoming elections and prolonging their presence in power.
There is a growing conviction inside and outside Lebanon that the elites will continue to evade as long as their bank accounts and property, most of which are outside the country, are not affected, or are not subject to any travel ban sanctions.
Europeans are working to impose sanctions on those who obstruct the formation of the government, and are involved in corrupt practices.
The European Union as a bloc could face obstacles from the Hungarian Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, but there is nothing to prevent European countries from acting individually.
France is now investigating Salama, who was at the center of the collapse, and Switzerland, and possibly the United Kingdom, could follow.
As for the United States, it is still hesitant about the central bank governor, who is seen as the valve of stability, and one of the American officials said: “We do not know whether it is the safety valve or the bomb on the table.” But Washington began targeting key politicians last year, and all ways did not work. that has been used with Lebanon so far, and perhaps the use of sanctions can bring Lebanon closer to a solution.
David Gardner ■ International Affairs Editor
International estimates say that about $17 billion came out of Lebanon in 2020, while Lebanese officials say that about $16 billion left Lebanon in 2019, although there is supposed to be complete control and control over the money deposited in banks.
• The sectarian mafias that rule Lebanon are isolated, with their billions illegally collected, from the misery, hunger and poverty experienced by the poor and the sunken middle class whose bank deposits have been confiscated, and the local currency has lost 90% of its value since October 2019.
Follow our latest local and sports news and the latest political and economic developments via Google news