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JUBILEE DEBT CAMPAIGN NEWS AND ACTION UPDATE
December 2007
In this issue:
DISAPPOINTMENT AS UK PAYS UP AT WORLD BANK
DEBT AND HEALTH BRIEFING LAUNCHED
WHAT WE'VE DONE IN 2007...
PLANS FOR 2008
GET MORE INVOLVED
NORWAY WITHHOLDS WORLD BANK FUNDS, UK DOESN'T
Campaigners have expressed disappointment at the UK government's decision last week not to withhold any World Bank funding over the harmful conditions attached to debt relief. Despite the best efforts of over 10,000 campaigners, Norway was the only country to withhold any funds in protest at the World Bank's continuing practice of forcing economic policies on poor countries. The UK had promised a tough stance, but paid up in full.
Full story: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/offthehook
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NEW DEBT AND HEALTH BRIEFING
Debt and Health, Jubilee Debt Campaign's latest briefing paper, was launched on World AIDS Day on 1 December. Produced with Health Unlimited and Oxfam, the briefing looks at the impact of the debt crisis on access to healthcare in poor countries, as well as the positive results for health provision of the debt cancellation that some countries have received.
Download it: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/health
Other Debt and... papers: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/debtand
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WHAT WE'VE DONE IN 2007...
Another year of debt campaigning is drawing to a close, and we want to say thank you for all your support in 2007, and your continued action for economic justice for the world's poor.
This year we have drawn the world's attention to the problem of "vulture funds" - companies that try to make huge profits out of buying up cheap poor country debts. In April, Donegal International
won a $15.5 million award in London from Zambia, which qualified for debt cancellation in 2005. Without campaigner pressure and media interest, this might well have been a much larger amount. We are now pressing for changes in the debt relief system to prevent vulture funds from operating.
Countries that have had debt cancellation in 2007 include Sao Tome and Principe, which completed the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) process in March, as well as Afghanistan and the Central African Republic, which entered the process and so received some interim debt relief. Liberia has also finally had its arrears cleared and so 'qualified' for debt cancellation, and will soon begin the long HIPC process.
In October campaigners participated in the first Global Debt Week. A major focus of activities was on the Lift the Lid campaign on irresponsible lending and illegitimate debts, launched earlier this
year. Following Norway's historic cancellation of some debts on the grounds of lender responsibility in 2006, Ecuador launched the world's first official debt audit in July. Meanwhile, both the World
Bank and the United Nations have begun to engage with the concept of 'odious debt', and the G8 has committed to developing a 'Charter of Responsible Lending' for the future.
You can look back on these and the other major debt stories of the year in our news section at:
http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/news
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PLANS FOR 2008
In May 1998 70,000 people formed a human chain in Birmingham to demand that the G8 drop the debt. It was a historic moment in the economic justice campaign. Ten years later some debts have been cancelled, and many lives have been transformed. But the debt crisis is not over.
On Sunday 18 May 2008, we are inviting people to gather once again in Birmingham, to celebrate what the campaign has achieved and demand further action on debt. Please put the date in your diaries now - further details will be available in the new year.
More information at: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/journey
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GET MORE INVOLVED:
- Browse and order campaign materials: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/materials
- Become a Debt Activist: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/newsletter
- Registered your group, school or congregation: http://www.jubileedebtcampaign.org.uk/signup
- Join Jubilee Debt Campaign on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2219421440
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 | | Vulture Funds | | This morning (26/11/09), the Republic of Liberia was taken to the High Court in London by two Vulture Funds seeking to make large profits on a debt dating back to the 1970s.
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 | | Put People First: G20 Counter Conference | | In March, we marched in our tens of thousands to demand the G20 Put People First. But so far the G20 has only tinkered round the margins of the global economy, in an effort to return to business as usual.
On 7 November, as the G20 returns to the UK ..
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 | | The other credit crunch | | Could there be a more timely week for it to be Global Debt Week? As the global financial turbulence continues, campaigners around the world are mobilising for a week of action against reckless lending, which has affected developing countries ...
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| A Fairer Way of Dealing with Debt | | Almost daily we are seeing what rich countries can do when faced with a debt crisis. Hundreds of billions of pounds have been made available in recent weeks to bail out western banks whose reckless lending has been found out.
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| Jubilee Debt Campaign - July Update | | New Loans are not the Answer, Over 10,000 chains delivered to UK government, Pick up the Pace: UK responds to campaign, $347m of Togo's debt cancelled, Forget Jay Z - Glasto was all about the Debt, Contact details.
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| Time to drop Suharto's arms debt | | When Indonesia's former dictator General Suharto died last week, one
injustice he didn't take to his grave was his debts. Nearly ten years
after his removal from power, Indonesia is still paying back billions
of dollars to the rich world.
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| Take urgent action for Liberia | | Request for people to write or email Alistair Darling to use his influence to break the deadlock among the IMF shareholders who have been discussing the issue for more than 18 months.
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| That was the week that was | | Campaigners new and old have just finished taking part in a global week of action on debt, reminding politicians, the media and the public that despite progress in recent years, the daily injustice of poor country debt is far from resolved.
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| JUBILEE DEBT CAMPAIGN ACTION ALERT | | Last year your campaigning helped get Hilary Benn to take a stand at the World Bank. He withheld £50 million in protest over the conditions attached to aid and debt relief, which made the Bank sit up and take notice. We need to do it again.
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| JDC Updates | | Opportunity to lobby the UK government to put its money where its mouth is with regard to damaging conditions enforced by the World Bank when making loans.
Also the opportunity to lobby Donegal International and the "Vulture" funds and Zambian debt.
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