(Eqtsad)- The Kurdish Self Administration forced big amount of tax on people and workshops’ owners, which pushed them to leave the northern city of Efrin near Aleppo city.
“Running away from taxes which turned me into a “worker”, to them, I have left Efrin to Nile Street in Aleppo, as the self Administration forces huge amount of taxes on us” an owner of clothes workshop in Efrin he talked on condition of anonymity.
He added that Self Administration forces taxes in unfair chaotic manner, without any criteria or limits. “moreover, there is no electricity, we buy it from generators which sell it by amber, all money we pay is only for letting us move from and inside Efrin”.
Local sources mentioned that many workshops’ owners have left the city of Efrin due to unbearable high taxes, to regime- controlled areas of Aleppo.
Abdul-Rahman Aabo, member of central committee of Kurdistan Democratic party of Syria in Efrin city confirmed that fact, adding that since 2012, when the Syrian regime handed the city to the Kurdish Self Administration, it followed tough policies and put unfair laws at political and economical levels to collect as much money as possible.
He detailed that Self Administration have forced taxes on workshops and even on small shops and fields, especially olive fields and olive oil mills.
The member of Kurdistan Democratic party detailed that the Administration has forced about 300 cans of 20 liters capacity of olive oil capacity on each oil mill, Besides that they forced each workshop to pay tax ranged between $700 and $1000.
Aabo explained that the goal of those procedures is destroying the industrial aspects of the city in order push people, especially young men, to leave the city for particular agenda they follow.
Dr. Ahmed Yusuf, Head of the Economic body and Efrin University distinguish between real taxes and those “royalties” forced by the Self Administration, since real taxes are the practice of the economic bodies which forces only small amount of money as customs on goods and they can be applied on other areas regardless of controlling forces.
Moreover, he explained to Eqtsad that due to war and exceptional conditions in Aleppo for the last 5 years, most workshops and small factories moved to Efrin due to relative stability. But after the relative improvement in conditions in Aleppo, many workshop moved back to Western side of the city.
“In Efrin and due to movement of industry and small projects besides improvement in agriculture, the city witnessed a significant economic jump”, Dr. Yusuf detailed adding that more that 30% of new building happened in the last 5 years, added to workshops for making shoes, clothes, canned food and batteries. (Reporting by Mustafa Mohamed)
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