A Truckload of Nonsense, by George Monbiot

[The2ndWheel]

http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0614-22.htm

An aura of sanctity is descending upon the world's most powerful men. On Saturday the finance ministers from seven of the G8 nations (Russia was not invited) promised to cancel the debts the poorest countries owe to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The hand that holds the sword has been stayed by angels: angels with guitars rather than harps.

Who, apart from the leader writers of the Daily Telegraph, could deny that debt relief is a good thing? Never mind that much of this debt - money lent by the World Bank and IMF to corrupt dictators - should never have been pursued in the first place. Never mind that, in terms of looted resources, stolen labor and now the damage caused by climate change, the rich owe the poor far more than the poor owe the rich. Some of the poorest countries have been paying more for debt than for health or education. Whatever the origins of the problem, that is obscene.

You are waiting for me to say but, and I will not disappoint you. The but comes in paragraph 2 of the finance ministers' statement. To qualify for debt relief, developing countries must "tackle corruption, boost private-sector development" and eliminate "impediments to private investment, both domestic and foreign".

[Matilda]

1. When I heard Bush saying earlier this week that debt relief

was conditional on African countries instituting "reforms", I
thought, here we go - more privatization, less welfare. Trust
George Monbiot to be the one to spell it out for us, but is anyone
listening?

I congratulate Bob Geldof for having his heart in the right place,
but I'd like to see him get up and demand "unconditional" debt
relief, loud and clear.