Maronite Bishops Criticize Delayed Govt. Formation, Capital Controls
The Maronite Bishops stressed on Wednesday the need to facilitate the formation of a new government warning against any negligence of the people’s demands.
“The mission of the PM-designate (Hassan Diab) to form a government must be facilitated, and the demands of Lebanese people expressed in public squares must not be neglected,” the Bishops said in a statement after their monthly meeting in Bkirki.
Lebanon is without a cabinet and in the grips of a deepening economic crisis after a two-month-old protest movement forced Saad Hariri to stand down as prime minister on October 29.
On the economic crisis and unprecedented “illegal” capital controls imposed by banks, the Bishops resented the measures preventing citizens from using their deposits freely.
They called for an “integrated financial policy to limit the humiliation of citizens in front of banks.”
They also condemned the attacks against some banks.
Since September banks have arbitrarily capped the amount of dollars that can be withdrawn or transferred abroad, sparking fury among customers who accuse lenders of holding their money hostage.
Tears and screaming have become common in banks in recent weeks as citizens accuse lenders of stealing their money.
Some have filed law suits against banks
Source: Naharnet
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