Governments like the British Labour Government has expressed itself in favour. Since the previous Conservative Government of John Major was glad to announce its annulment of debt of countries like Mozambique, this is not revolutionary.
Nor necessarily is the next intiative of the World Development Movement, a non-charitable offshoot of Oxfam.
Jessica Woodruffe, their head of campaigns, states "The poorest of countries are only granted debt relief if they agree to IMF Structural Adjustment Programmes. These policies have led to cuts in social spending, price hikes and rising unemployment." But aid and investment is being increasingly linked to SAP's...
She quotes Opa Kapijmpanga from the African Network on Debt and Development:
"There is a perverse and cruel irony in any debt relief scheme that depends on governments implementing policies that push their people even deeper into poverty."
These points will not be new to many subscribers to LBO-talk. What I would value hearing is whether WDM is right, that enough momentum has built around debt relief to move the campaign forward to SAP's.
If so what are the points of leverage? What cracks can be exploited in the world domination of finance capital which demands a level playing field - in its interests - despite the powerful tendency of capital to uneven accumulation?
Chris Burford
London