Time to tell the G8: We need Debt Cancellation Now!
More than 130,000 Africans die every week from preventable causes, including HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and contaminated water. Yet Sub-Saharan African countries continue to pay about US$12 billion a year servicing debts rather than spending this money on urgently needed health care, clean water and sanitation.
Five years ago 640,000 Canadians and 24 million people around the world participated in the Jubilee campaign calling for the cancellation of low-income countries' foreign debts. Only about one third of the debt relief promised at the 1999 Cologne, Germany G8 Summit has been delivered. Some bilateral or country to country debt has been cancelled. However, multilateral debts owed mostly to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, have increased.
The leaders of the world's wealthiest countries are preparing to meet from July 6th to 8th in Scotland for their annual G8 Summit. The G8 Finance Ministers are arguing over various "debt relief" proposals that will benefit only a few countries adhering to IMF and World Bank conditions. Current proposals by Canada and the United Kingdom would make multilateral debt payments on behalf of some poor countries only until 2015 which would still leave two-thirds of their debt not cancelled in 2015. This is not enough. We need Debt Cancellation Now!
Around the world peoples of all faiths and political beliefs are taking action against poverty and using this moment in time to call for more debt cancellation. KAIROS is calling this a time of grace and opportunity when God challenges us to take decisive action. They invite us to join the call for debt cancellation now and have organized a debt campaign with a letter for participants to copy, sign and send throughout May and June. The letter calls on the Canadian government to advocate for the unconditional cancellation of 100% of the multilateral debts owed by impoverished countries as well as provide additional Official Development Assistance. If you would like to participate but have difficulty opening the KAIROS debt update and letter which is in PDF format, then a copy of the debt letter is included at the end of this section.
During May Scarboro Missions is participating in this KAIROS campaign as well as one organized by the SEDOS Religious Debt Coalition. Like Scarboro, many religious congregations have members who serve in some of these poorest countries and know from experience the devastating effects of unjust debt. Members of the Religious Debt Coalition, including Scarboro Missions, will send a letter calling for debt cancellation and increased aid to each of the G8 leaders, except Russia, as well as the president of the World Bank and the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund.
As an additional act of solidarity in connection with the Global Call to Action Against Poverty and its Canadian campaign Make Poverty History we are called to wear a simple white band on July 1st to symbolize our desire to end poverty.
Visit the KAIROS website for some excellent debt analysis which provides a greater understanding of the various debt relief proposals appearing in recent mainstream media reports.
The KAIROS invitation to
join the call for debt cancellation now
contains an excellent debt update and other materials as well as a letter for participants to send to Prime Minister Paul Martin with a copy to the Minister of Finance. If you have difficulty opening PDF documents, then a copy of the debt letter alone is included below for copying, pasting and sending:Rt. Hon. Paul Martin, M.P., P.C.
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
Dear Mr. Martin,
More than 130,000 Africans die every week from preventable causes, including HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis and contaminated water. Yet Sub-Saharan African countries continue to pay about US$12 billion a year servicing debts that are illegitimate because this money is urgently needed for health care, clean water and sanitation.
Given this ongoing human tragedy how can creditors collect even one dollar in debt service from these impoverished countries?
When you and the other G8 leaders meet in Scotland this July for your annual Summit, Canada must lead a movement to go beyond the suspension of debt service payments until 2015 and instead cancel these illegitimate debts.
We call upon the Government of Canada to lead a movement to:
- SECURE the immediate and unconditional cancellation of 100% of the debts owed to multilateral financial institutions by all impoverished countries that need debt cancellation in order to meet the Millennium Development Goals;
- ENSURE that countries are free to implement their own national development strategies by ending IMF and World Bank Structural Adjustment Programs;
- GUARANTEE adequate financing for impoverished countries including through the dedication of 0.7% of Gross National Income to Official Development Assistance.
Yours sincerely,
cc
Hon. Ralph Goodale, M.P., P.C.,
Minister of Finance
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
