Erneut Proteste im Libanon

Angesichts der verheerenden wirtschaftlichen Lage sind im Libanon erneut Proteste ausgebrochen:

Protests have broken out in Lebanon once again in response to the country’s deteriorating economy and the dramatic devaluation of the Lebanese pound. The International Monetary Fund offered aid to Lebanon on the condition of government reforms, which can only be fully enacted when a new president is elected.

Over the last three years, the Lebanese pound lost more than 97% of its value against the dollar, and its value further declined by 15% on Tuesday. One US dollar is currently worth 140,000 Lebanese pounds. One week ago, a dollar was worth 100,000 LBP. Less than four years ago, in September 2019, a dollar was worth 1,500 LBP.

According to a report by Human Rights Watch, 80% of Lebanon’s population is living in poverty following the country’s economic meltdown in 2019. The economic crisis was further exacerbated by the Port of Beirut explosion in 2020 and general corruption and government mismanagement.

“You wake up in the morning having a specific amount of money to pay [for something], but by the time you arrive, it’s not enough anymore because [the currency] already lost a percentage of its value,” said Mohamad Radwan Al Omar, president of the Lebanese Assembly for Inclusive Development and representative adviser to Lebanon for MediateGuru’s Global Advisory Board. Al Omar told The Media Line that after an economic crisis, the economic situation in a country usually starts to improve. In Lebanon, though, this has not been the case. “With the central bank’s regulations, the Lebanon crisis plane has been falling down for almost three years now without crashing,” he said, adding that the economic instability “is much worse than the final crash.”