(March 28, 2000) President Olusegun Obasanjo has called for immediate debt relief for Nigeria, pointing to the fact that his country is at a crucial time in its democratic transition and in urgent need of international support.
Going Beyond the HIPC Initiative: Another Pathway to Achieving Freedom from the Burden of Debt
(March 11, 2000) The HIPC Initiative has been generally criticized for providing too little for too few countries, over too long a time period. Derek MacCuish explains what the criticisms have been focused on and introduces a new program of debt relief.
NSS harass Leuta for attending Dam-Affected Peoples Conference
(March 8, 2000) Three agents of Lesotho’s National Security Service (NSS) have repeatedly harassed Mr. Benedict Leuta in recent months. Leuta is a resident of the Lesotho Highlands who lost land to the recently constructed Katse Dam.
Control of our lives
(February 26, 2000) In the international arena, third world debt is not expected to be repaid by those who borrowed it (ex. military dictators and their cronies) but by the populations whom they oppressed.
Letter to World Bank President from Indonesian Activists
(February 18, 2000) JAKARTA (JP): We feel we have met you, know you and dream the same things as you and many of us have faith in you. We have waited for your coming. We have sent letters to you but the response has been that you are too busy. We have wanted to meet you to discuss our problems and explain what you can do for us, but we are confronted by a wall. Every minute of your time has been organized for you and there is no space left for us.
The impact of debt burden on women
(Febraury 2, 2000) The early 1980’s financial crisis faced by many countries in the
South had unpayable debt service as the immediate cause that was
precipitated by the tight money policies in the rich countries that
drastically hiked international interest rates. The debt debate ignores
the fact that debts were contracted as a result of borrowing by
undemocratic governments that were not mandated by the people.
Dealing with Iraq’s foreign indebtedness
(February 1, 2000) Wajeeh Elali proposes a pragmatic debt-management strategy for Iraq. On the topic "Who is to blame?" Elali includes the "imprudent lending practices" of some western and Arab creditors.
Laos issues new anti-corruption decree
(January 6, 2000) Laotian Prime Minister Sisavath Keobounphanh has issued a decree to combat corruption in the ruling Communist party, the civil service and military, diplomats said Thursday.
Odious debts
(January 1, 2000) There is “no (repeat, no) prospect for Zaire’s creditors to get their money back in the foreseeable future.” – Edwin Blumenthal, International Monetary Fund.
Lesotho bribery case set for May
(December 8, 1999) The multimillion-rand Lesotho Highlands Water Project bribery trial, involving more than 20 international companies and individuals, will begin on May 2 next year and run for five months, the chief magistrate of Maseru said yesterday.
When big dams spell disaster: assessing the Lesotho Highlands Water Project
(December 1, 1997) The Lesotho Highlands Water Project has its origins in the apartheid era. Lesotho Highlands communities are supporting the project, despite the destruction it has caused to their homes and arable land. South African environmental organisations, however, oppose it for various reasons. Steve Rothert explains why this project challenges traditional perspectives about large dams and development.
When big dams spell disaster: assessing the Lesotho Highlands Water Project
(December 1, 1999) The Lesotho Highlands Water Project has its origins in the apartheid era. Lesotho Highlands communities are supporting the project, despite the destruction it has caused to their homes and arable land. South African environmental organisations, however, oppose it for various reasons. Steve Rothert explains why this project challenges traditional perspectives about large dams and development.
Water project’s former CEO in court
(November 30, 1999) Two individuals, including Masupha Sole, and representatives of three international companies, appeared before the chief magistrate of Maseru yesterday on charges of alleged bribery amounting to R22m.
The new mercantilists
(November 30, 1999) One year before mexico touched off the Third World’s debt crisis by suspending payments to foreign creditors, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher rose proudly to announce in the House of Commons that her government had just committed millions to the Mexican government to build the $2 billion Sicartsa steel plant:
Givers and takers
(November 30, 1999) Most Taxpayers in the rich industrialized countries believe, as the Pearson Commission inquiry into foreign aid believed, that “it is only right for those who have to share with those who have not.” Much of the Western World’s sharing, though, has been in the form of loans, not gifts. The Third World has borrowed about one-third of the $400 billion in foreign aid that it has received from the rich countries’ national aid agencies.
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