L-I: (Fwd) DEMAND TO IMF AND WORLD BANK

["Nestor Miguel Gorojovsky" <gorojovsky@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From:                   peoples@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date sent:              Sat, 11 Mar 2000 14:11:17 +0100
Send reply to:          peoples@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject:                DEMAND TO IMF AND WORLD BANK


*****    DEMANDS TO IMF AND WORLD BANK    *****

This is a call for endorsements of demands that 50 Years Is
Enough Network is making to the World Bank and IMF in relation
to their semi-annual meetings in April.  We encourage broad
circulation and sign-ons by ORGANIZATIONS supporting the
mobilization and/or who support global socio-economic justice.

PLEASE RETURN IT TO :

demands50years@xxxxxxxxx
<mailto:demands50years@xxxxxxxxx>.

PLEASE DO NOT SEND RESPONSES TO THE LISTSERV!



50 Years Is Enough: U.S. Network for Global Economic Justice

OUR DEMANDS OF THE IMF AND WORLD BANK
March/April 2000

On the occasion of the first meetings of the governing bodies of the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in the 21st century, we
call for the immediate suspension of the policies and practices that
have caused widespread poverty, inequality, and suffering among the
world's peoples and damage to the world's environment. We assert the
responsibility of these

anti-democratic institutions, together with the World Trade
Organization,
for an unjust world economic system.  We note that these institutions
are controlled by wealthy governments, and that their policies have
benefited international private sector financiers, transnational
corporations, and

corrupt officials.

We issue this call in the name of global justice, in solidarity with
the

peoples of the Global South and the former "Soviet bloc" countries who
struggle for survival and dignity in the face of unjust, imperialistic
economic policies.  We stand in solidarity too with the millions in
the wealthy countries of the Global North who have borne the burden of
"globalization" policies and been subjected to policies that mirror
those imposed on the South.

Only when the coercive powers of the international financial
institutions
are rescinded shall governments be accountable first and foremost to
the

will of their peoples.  Only when a system that allocates power
chiefly to the wealthiest nations for the purpose of dictating the
policies of the poorer ones is reversed shall nations and their
peoples be able to forge

bonds - economic and otherwise - based on mutual respect and the
common needs of the planet and its inhabitants. Only when integrity is
restored to economic development, and both the corrupter and the
corrupted held accountable, shall the people begin to have confidence
in the decisions that affect their communities.  Only when the
well-being of all, including the most vulnerable people and
ecosystems, is given priority over corporate profits shall we achieve
genuine sustainable development and create a world of justice,
equality, and peace where fundamental human rights, including social
and economic rights, can be respected.

With these ends in mind, we make the following demands of those
meeting in Washington April 16-19, 2000 for the semi-annual meetings
of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund:

1.  That the IMF and World Bank cancel all debts owed them.  Any funds
required for this purpose should come from positive net capital and
assets held by those institutions.

2.  That the IMF and World Bank immediately cease imposing the
economic austerity measures known as structural adjustment and/or
other macroeconomic "reform," which have exacerbated poverty and
inequality, as conditions of loans, credits, or debt relief.  This
requires both the suspension of those conditions in existing programs
and an abandonment of any version of the

Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative which is founded on
the concept of  debt relief for policy reform.

3.  That the IMF and World Bank accept responsibility for the
disastrous

impact of structural adjustment policies by paying reparations to the
peoples and communities who have borne that impact.  These funds
should come from the institutions' positive net capital and assets,
and should be distributed through democratically-determined
mechanisms.

4.  That the World Bank Group pay reparations to peoples relocated and
otherwise harmed by its large projects (such as dams) and compensate
governments for repayments made on projects which World Bank
evaluations

rank as economic failures.  A further evaluation should determine
which World Bank projects have failed on social, cultural, and
environmental grounds, and appropriate compensation paid.  The funds
for these payments should come from the institutions' positive net
capital and assets, and should be distributed through
democratically-determined mechanisms.

5.  That the World Bank Group immediately cease providing advice and
resources through its division* devoted to private-sector investments
to

advance the goals associated with corporate globalization, such as
privatization and liberalization, and that private-sector investments
currently held be liquidated to provide funds for the reparations
demanded above.

6.  That the agencies and individuals within the World Bank Group and
IMF complicit in abetting corruption, as well as their accomplices in
borrowing countries, be prosecuted, and that those responsible,
including the institutions involved, provide compensation for
resources stolen and damage done.

7.  That the future existence, structure, and policies of
international institutions such as the World Bank Group and the IMF be
determined through a democratic, participatory and transparent
process.  The process must accord full consideration of the interests
of the peoples most affected by the policies and practices of the
institutions, and include a significant role for all parts of civil
society.

The accession to these demands would require the institutions'
directors to accept and act on the need for fundamental
transformation.  It is possible that the elimination of these
institutions will be required for the realization of global economic
and political justice.

We commit to work towards the defunding of the IMF and World Bank by
opposing further government allocations to them (in the form of either
direct contributions or the designation of collateral) and supporting
campaigns such as a boycott of World Bank bonds until these demands
have

been met.

*The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is a division of the
World Bank Group.  Also included is the Multilateral Investment
Guaranty Agency (MIGA), which insures private investments in Southern
countries.

SIGNED:

50 Years Is Enough Network
Campaign Against Neo-Liberalism in South Africa (CANSA) -
Johannesburg, South Africa Campaign for Labor Rights - Washington, DC
Ecumenical Support Services - Harare, Zimbabwe Food First - Oakland,
CA (USA) Freedom from Debt Coalition - Manila, Philippines Institute
for Policy Studies, Global Economy Project - Washington, DC Kenya
Human Rights Commission - Nairobi, Kenya LALIT - Port Louis, Mauritius
Nicaragua Network - Washington, DC (USA) Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt &
Development - Harare, Zimbabwe











------- End of forwarded message -------



Néstor Miguel Gorojovsky
gorojovsky@xxxxxxxxxxx


     --- from list leninist-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ---