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what
we want |
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The Debt and Development Coalition Ireland is calling
for:
- The cancellation of debt;
the payment of which undermines people’s
right to secure and fulfilled lives;
and debt which arose from illegitimate and irresponsible
lending.
- The setting up of a fair and independent arbitration
procedure to deal with issues relating to developing
countries debt.
Burden of debt
The burden of external debt continues to weigh heavily
on the lives of millions of people. Desperately needed
resources are flowing out of indebted countries and
into the hands of rich country Governments and Institutions
like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Much of this debt arose from illegitimate lending to
repressive regimes or irresponsible lending by creditors.
Many people's health, their livelihoods, their environment,
and their prospects for secure and fulfilled lives are
destroyed.
- Zambia which is heavily indebted spends more on
debt than on health. One fifth of the adult population
is living with HIV/AIDs. Life expectancy has dropped
from 52 years to 41 years.
- Payment of foreign debt costs the lives of 7 million
children every years accordingto the United Nations
Development Programme.
- Women are thirty times more likely to die during
pregnancy and childbirth in heavily indebted poor
countries than in rich countries.
We in the Debt and Development Coalition Ireland believe
that change is urgently needed.
The DDCI also recognises that the debt issue is a symptom
of a wider problem, namely the unfair relationships
between developing countries and the industrialised
world.
Accordingly, we call for democratic accountability
from international financial institutions such as the
IMF and the World Bank. Policies promoted by these bodies
have a very real and immediate effect on people’s
lives and livelihoods – whether they get to primary
school or how many meals they eat a day.
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