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Caretaker government suspends Banque du Liban decision to increase judges' salary by changing the rate at which they can withdraw from the banks
The caretaker government, headed by Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati, announced Monday that it has suspended a controversial recent salary increase for judges, via a mechanism that allowed them to withdraw their money at the rate of LL8,000 to the dollar instead of LL1,500, the state-run National News Agency reported. The announcement halts a recent decision — reportedly by Banque du Liban, although a central bank spokesperson has denied it — to increase judges’ salaries by changing the rate at which they can withdraw from the banks. The move allowed judges to withdraw their salaries at an exchange rate of LL8,000 to the dollar, rather than the official rate at LL1,500. This measure has been criticized as having been implemented without going through the proper channels and as and treating other civil servants unequally.