(February 1, 2006) Although it proudly lays claim as the second oldest republic in the Hemisphere, and the only nation whose slave population defeated a colonial power to become free,Haiti is, and has been, among the worst governed and most undemocratic states. Few places in the world, and no places in the Western Hemisphere, are poorer than Haiti.This paper2 explains why, after consuming billions in foreign aid over three decades, and hundreds of millions specifically for governance and democratization programs, not to mention billions for other programs, Haiti remains politically dysfunctional and impoverished.
Declaration on debt from the World Social Forum
(January 24, 2007) A Declaration on Debt drafted by participants at this year’s World Social Forum in Nairobi, Kenya, last month calls on governments and lenders in the global North to examine loans they have extended to countries in the South and take responsibility for illegitimate debts.
Time to cancel Kenya’s crippling debts
(January 23, 2006) That Kenya’s external debt needs to be cancelled is long overdue. As noted recently by Cabinet ministers and Prof Jeffery Sachs of the United Nations, this debt is crippling the country to the point that Kenya’s ability to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is not just difficult, but it is virtually impossible.
Time to call for debt relief one year after the tsunami
(January 23, 2006) Much of the Indonesia’s debt could actually be classified as odious or illegitimate. The majority of the country’s debt was accumulated during Soeharto’s 32-year regime.
Groups protest Blair’s decision to drop top fraud probe
(January 17, 2007) Earlier this week, 140 international charities, churches and NGOs sent a written petition to British Prime Minister Tony Blair demanding that he reopen a corruption probe into a controversial arms deal with Saudi Arabia.
Nu news could be bad news
(January 11, 2006) Secrecy continues to surround the controversial plan to build a series of big dams on the Nu River in Yunnan province. Now, Chinese media reports suggest the project is set to be rammed through without environmental-impact documents being made public or open hearings held, as required by law.
US legislators oppose debt deal
(January 9, 2006) Some members of the United States Congress have welcomed the debt deal between Nigeria and the Paris Club of creditors whereby Nigeria pays $12.4 billion in return for an $18 billion debt cancellation, but strongly urged the US not to collect its share of the debt from Nigeria.
American lawmakers ask govt to return Nigeria’s debt repayment
(January 9, 2006) A group of US lawmakers have called on the American government to return to Nigeria Washington D.C’s share of the $12.4 billion Abuja is supposed to repay to its creditors.
US lawmakers call Nigerian debt ‘odious’
(January 7, 2006) Anti-debt campaigners and some U.S. lawmakers are calling on the Bush administration to return debt arrears owed by Nigeria and to let the African nation spend the funds on health and education through a World Bank-sponsored fund.
Legislators to Bush administration: let Nigeria spend money on health, not debt
(January 5, 2006) “Much of Nigeria’s debt can be considered odious given the fact that the original loans were made to authoritarian regimes – many of which were then looted while interest and penalties accumulated.”
Fine words but corruption soars
(January 5, 2006) Corruption deals in Africa are getting bigger. The crooks are getting smarter and doing ever greater damage to Africa’s economies – sucking out resources meant for health, education and clean water.
Cuba waging fight against corruption
(January 5, 2006) Some predict that the anti-corruption campaign will be a watershed in the history of the Cuban Revolution.
China launches site to report corruption
(January 5, 2006) China is putting its marathon anti-graft crackdown online, launching a Web site for the public to report corrupt officials.
Odious debt: the terms of the debate
(January 1, 2006) View report
Bono aid is making Africa sick
(January 1, 2006) Andrew Mwenda’s position echoes the concerns of an opinion piece written earlier this year by href=”http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2092-1964947,00.html”, the travel writer and novelist. Theroux, who worked as a Peace Corps teacher in Malawi during the early 1960s, maintains that despite years of foreign aid the once promising country of Malawi is now a failed state.
Patricia Adams
Dai Qing
Fan Xiao
Lawrence Solomon
Mu Lan
Probe International
Lisa Peryman
Probe Media
Other News Sources
Probe International 