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Thursday, June 26, 2003Our web site is www.OdiousDebts.org
Debt forgiveness by Patricia Adams, National Post, Canada, June 26, 2003 "Taking Iraq's debts to the Paris Club without establishing their legitimacy ... would be a grave mistake. The Paris Club, which uses western taxpayer dollars to rescue misplaced loans by public lenders, has long been the world's premier bailout agency," writes Patricia Adams, the executive director of Canadian-based foreign-aid watchdog Probe International. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7759 Iraqi debt debate Moscow Times, Russia, June 26, 2003 Russia will not cancel Iraq's debt accumulated during the rule of ousted leader Saddam Hussein, the speaker of the State Duma, Gennady Seleznyov, said in remarks published Wednesday. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7758 U.S. faces daunting task on building Iraqi economy by Rob Lever, Middle East Online, U.K., June 25, 2003 Basil al-Rahim, founder of the Washington-based Iraq Foundation, has its own guidelines for rebuilding Iraq, called the "Phoenix Plan." The plan advocates wiping away a large chunk of Iraq's debts – as was the case with Germany following World War II. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7755 U.S. may spare Bulgaria sanctions over stand on war crimes court Novinite, Bulgaria, June 25, 2003 Finance Minister, Milen Velchev, has talked with U.S. officials about three possible options for settling Iraq's US$1.7 billion debt to Bulgaria: U.S.-offered compensation, partial repayments by oil deliveries, and negotiating a resettlement of the Iraqi debt. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7754 Russia may help Iraq debt burden Business World, Ireland, June 23, 2003 Russia has signalled its willingness to join global efforts to write off or reschedule Iraq's staggering debt burden. Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov told the Wall Street Journal that Russia would "do its part" to help Iraq. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7727 Iraqi debt, like war, divides the west by David Mulford and Michael Monderer, The Financial Times, U.K., June 22, 2003 An international Iraqi debt commission of financial "wise men" should be established to examine all claims and to disallow debt used for state security or military aggression, writes David Mulford and Michael Monderer. Only loans for verifiable economic purposes should be collectable, www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7728 U.S. seeks regional cooperation for vision of Middle East prosperity by Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State Iraq's "debt issue as such" will not be covered at the upcoming World Economic Forum in Amman later this month, says U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs, Alan Larson. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7715 Bush freezing out the world by John Hall, Alameda Times-Star, USA, June 18, 2003 On the question of forgiving debts to free up funds for Iraq's battered infrastructure, World Bank president James Wolfensohn said the common attitude to the United States is, "You bombed it. You fix it." www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/index.cfm?DSP=content&ContentID=7698
A fresh start for Iraq: The case for debt relief by Oxfam International, Oxfam Briefing Paper, May 2003 Oxfam makes a case for treating Iraq’s debt as odious and illegitimate, explaining why ordinary Iraqis should not pay for a debt accumulated by a tyrannical regime borrowed from irresponsible creditors. Also refer to Patricia Adams' comments in her article "Debt forgiveness" which appears at the top of this issue. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/publications/oxfam_iraq.pdf Dealing with Iraq’s foreign indebtedness by Wajeeh Elali, Thunderbird International Business Review, Vol. 42(1), p. 65–83, January/February 2000 Wajeeh Elali proposes a pragmatic debt-management strategy for Iraq. On the topic "Who is to blame?" Elali includes the "imprudent lending practices" of some western and Arab creditors. www.odiousdebts.org/odiousdebts/publications/Iraq_Elali.pdf Odious Debts Online News Service: Odious Debts Online covers the latest odious debts challenges around the world. It also provides updates on important developments in the field of scholarly research and advances in the legal precedents underpinning the Doctrine of Odious Debts. Odious Debts Online is produced by Probe International, a non-profit organization based in Toronto, Canada. Probe International's book, Odious Debts: Loose Lending, Corruption, and the Third World's Environmental Legacy by Patricia Adams (Earthscan UK), popularized the odious debts concept after its publication in 1991. Probe International maintains a rapidly expanding Internet resource and electronic library on odious debts at www.odiousdebts.org. All stories written by Odious Debts Online staff may be reproduced freely, although we ask that you credit Odious Debts Online and provide a link to www.odiousdebts.org.Keep us informed. Odious Debts Online welcomes submissions. Publisher: Patricia Adams Yes! Sign me up to receive Odious Debts Online! To contact the editors, please e-mail: |
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