wfn.org | U.S. churchwomen press for debt cancellation

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

December 3, 1998	Contact: Linda Bloom·(212) 870-3803·New York
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HARARE, Zimbabwe (UMNS) -- A 125-member U.S. delegation to the World
Council of Churches' Ecumenical Decade Festival in Harare, Zimbabwe, has
called for total debt cancellation for very impoverished countries.

The delegation, which included United Methodists, targeted its Dec. 1
letter to President Bill Clinton, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton,
U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and the presidents of the
International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

They are being urged to "take steps toward the complete cancellation of
debt for the most heavily indebted countries as a first step in changing
the unjust economic policies which govern our world."

The letter reflected one of the four priorities of the Ecumenical Decade
of the Churches in Solidarity with Women, the end of which was being
celebrated at the Nov. 27-30 festival and the experiences of 50 U.S.
participants who had visited 10 African countries before the event.

"We saw that the people of Africa suffer greatly because of the unfair
burden of debt, which drains their economy," the letter stated. 

The delegation pointed out that many of the original debts had been
paid. "It is only because of the unjust hikes in interest rates during
the 1980s that debts increased so dramatically, making payback almost
impossible."

The Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) implemented by the
International Monetary Fund and World Bank to reschedule loan payments
"have further devastated the social and economic fabric of Africa and
other regions. The SAPs have resulted in less spending on basic human
needs such as health care, education and food subsidies. Furthermore,
Structural Adjustment has forced many small subsistence farms to change
over to export cash crops."

Because African women are the primary agricultural producers, the debt
burden has fallen most heavily on them and children, the letter said.
Families are torn apart as parents seek work, eroding the cultural and
social fabric of life.

"In this 50th anniversary year of the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights,
we call on you to ensure that U.S. policies do not violate the human
rights of our global sisters and brothers. It is our responsibility as
the world super-power to lead the globe in respecting and protecting the
basic dignity of all of God's people," the letter concluded.

United Methodist News Service
(615)742-5470
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