The Lebanese government surprised its citizens with the draft budget for next year, which is supposed to be discussed tomorrow, Thursday, in the Council of Ministers, by adopting a “controversial” item that falls under the door of environmental protection, which is imposing a tax on all imported goods, including coffins that contain human remains. The Minister of the Environment was quick to clarify that there was a mistake regarding this item, considering that it could be removed from the budget. Lebanon has been under the most violent economic crisis for years in its history, which toppled its national currency and brought about 80% of the Lebanese below the poverty line, according to the World Bank.
Published on: 09/06/2023 – 17:26
4 minutes
Controversy in Lebanese communication sites with the spread of news about the government imposing a new tax within its draft budget for next year, which is not related to wealth or the import of materials classified as luxury or to monopolies of medicines and foodstuffs. The new tax is concerned with the dead, specifically those who die abroad and whose families decide to bury their bodies in Lebanon.
The Lebanese Ministry of Finance had presented the draft budget law, consisting of 64 articles, to the Council of Ministers a few days ago, and it includes imposing a set of new taxes and fees for the concerned citizens to pay in US dollars. It was decided to study the project as of the seventh of this month.
Guess what they want to do tax???
Over the charged coffins of the dead expatriates, they are buried in their country!!!
My God, I will kill you one by one, and we will pay you praise and thanks to our Lord— Youmna Sherry (@YoumnaSherry) September 6, 2023
What was interesting in the project was the ministry’s placement of “dead bodies” in the category of “imported products”.
According to the draft budget, there will be a consumption tax to preserve the environment that includes all imported goods, including coffins containing human remains.
Of course, the tax caused widespread controversy among Lebanese social media users.
Environment Minister: The error will be corrected by removing the item from the budget
According to the Lebanese “Al-Nashra” website, the Ministry of Finance stated that “this item came at the suggestion of the Ministry of Environment, and it is subject to modification and study, and it is not final.”
The website quoted the Minister of Environment, Nasser Yassin, as confirming that “a mistake occurred, and the employee in the ministry sent an old list to the Ministry of Finance, and we will correct it,” noting that “the intention is not to harm the deceased or his dignity, but to preserve the environment.”
And the minister stated that “all products coming from abroad come in cartons, plastic boxes, or others, and they need to be treated and recycled, and therefore subject to tax. “.
The minister stressed that “the error will be corrected by removing the item from the budget.”
“Bury your dead outside”
Amer, a Lebanese citizen who has resided with his family in Germany for years, called on the Lebanese expatriates to bury their dead in exile, considering that the authorities in Lebanon and the Lebanese regime “have lost the last shred of modesty, morals and responsibility towards a people who are living their worst days because of all of them.”
And the doctor stated, “I am no longer surprised by what may come from news from Lebanon. Lebanese politicians have proven that they have no limits in the field of human rights and immoral transgressions. They come up with tax provisions to throw them on the shoulders of a people who can barely make ends meet. Is this a political class worthy of people taking them seriously?” ?”
The expatriate continued, “There are claimants of responsibility in Lebanon, who claim to know how to run states and impose taxes. This scandal brought them all down and showed them naked in front of their fans and in front of the world… I tell them only one thing: If you are not ashamed, do whatever you want.”
This storm comes at a time when the Lebanese state is seeking to raise its revenues significantly, with the adoption of a number of proposed taxes being collected in US dollars, which opens many questions about the feasibility of “dollarization” of the Lebanese market and the gradual abandonment of the local currency.
Add to this the imaginary increases that have affected a number of service sectors recently, such as electricity and communications, despite their unavailability in many cases, and in light of the almost complete absence of social programs and services that are supposed to be provided automatically, such as medicine and education.
2023-09-06 15:26:02
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