Jubiliee Victories
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Jon White
Apr 29, 2009, 4:09:51 PM4/29/09
to Our Home Group North, njvine_justice
Hey everyone,
--
Jon White
When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist.
- Dom Helder Camara, former Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, Brazil.
I thought I would share some good news in the midst of bad news all around us. This is from the Jubilee USA campaign who strives to have the good news of Jubilee to the world in the form of crippling debt relief for poor countries.
They are a great organization.
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In early December, Jubilee USA submitted recommendations on international debt and development issues to the Obama transition team.
I am happy to report that of the six policy recommendations we made for the First 100 Days of the administration, three policies have been adopted. These are:
1. Immediate debt cancellation for Haiti. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on April 15th that the US would pay Haiti's debt service payments until it receives cancellation.
2. Support Liberia's efforts to reach an agreement for debt cancellation from its commercial creditors. On April 17, with US support and financing, Liberia announced it reached a deal with its commercial creditors to clear $1.2 billion dollars in odious debt.
3. Include full funding for debt relief in its first budget request. In its budget outline submitted to Congress, the administration indicated it wanted full funding for our debt relief commitments.
These are great victories that are the product of some great advocacy and organizing by Jubilee supporters across the country.
Celebrating our victories when we win them is critical to sustaining our energy for the long-haul! But as a longtime Jubilee supporter wrote me yesterday to say, "With all these victories, can we stop talking about the debt crisis soon? Unfortunately, that is not the case. In fact the global financial crisis is squeezing poor countries harder than ever before and the IMF is projecting a renewed debt crisis.
I am happy to report that of the six policy recommendations we made for the First 100 Days of the administration, three policies have been adopted. These are:
1. Immediate debt cancellation for Haiti. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on April 15th that the US would pay Haiti's debt service payments until it receives cancellation.
2. Support Liberia's efforts to reach an agreement for debt cancellation from its commercial creditors. On April 17, with US support and financing, Liberia announced it reached a deal with its commercial creditors to clear $1.2 billion dollars in odious debt.
3. Include full funding for debt relief in its first budget request. In its budget outline submitted to Congress, the administration indicated it wanted full funding for our debt relief commitments.
These are great victories that are the product of some great advocacy and organizing by Jubilee supporters across the country.
Celebrating our victories when we win them is critical to sustaining our energy for the long-haul! But as a longtime Jubilee supporter wrote me yesterday to say, "With all these victories, can we stop talking about the debt crisis soon? Unfortunately, that is not the case. In fact the global financial crisis is squeezing poor countries harder than ever before and the IMF is projecting a renewed debt crisis.
Thanks to God who always cares for the least of these, even when no one else is paying attention.
Jon
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Jon White
When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why the poor have no food, they call me a communist.
- Dom Helder Camara, former Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, Brazil.
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