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25 years 7 months ago. IFI policies and positions. ...what the World Bank and IMF require, and how it hurts the poor
The World Bank and IMF adopted new rhetoric about reducing poverty, and linking debt relief primarily to poverty actions in the fall. But countries entering the debt relief process are still facing the same old conditions that have nothing to do with poverty reduction, and can actually increase the hardships of the poor.
Guinea - Conditions for debt relief include: privatization of energy, privatization of telecommunications, deregulation of petroleum prices, removal of subsidies for public transportation (December 1999).
Honduras - Conditions for debt relief include: privatization of telecommunications, liberalization of mining sector, implementation of bank service fees (November 1999).
Here is what these kinds of "structural adjustments" have done, and are still doing, to the poor:
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25 years 7 months ago. IFI policies and positions. Halifax Initiative condemns debt relief conditioned on IMF austerity programs
April 27, 1999
Washington - The Halifax Initiative, a Canadian coalition of social justice, development, faith and environment oganizations, is dismayed by the failure of the international financial institutions to remove structural adjustment conditionality as a requirement for implementation of their debt reduction program.
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25 years 7 months ago. IFI policies and positions. Halifax Initiative condemns debt relief conditioned on IMF austerity programs
27 April 1999
Washington - The Halifax Initiative, a Canadian coalition of social justice, development, faith and environment oganizations, is dismayed by the failure of the international financial institutions to remove structural adjustment conditionality as a requirement for implementation of their debt reduction program.
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25 years 7 months ago. . Congratulations to everyone who made the historic passage of the Tobin tax motion possible! Read more ...
25 years 7 months ago. . Bank bashing ( PDF file )
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25 years 8 months ago. IFI governance. For full pdf, go here.
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25 years 8 months ago. Government of Canada policies and positions, IFI policies and positions. Government action on debts of poorest countries a progressive move
says Halifax Initiative Coalition, and backs Canada to take a stronger position at the World Bank, IMF.
For immediate release 28 March, 1999
Ottawa -- Today's announcement that Canada will cancel 100% of debts owed by the poorest countries in the world is welcomed by the Halifax Initiative, a national coalition of environment, development, social justice and faith groups.
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25 years 8 months ago. . A Feasible Foreign Exchange Transactions Tax
Rodney Schmidt*
Research Associate
North-South Institute
55 Murray Street, Suite 200
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
K1N 5M3
Fax: (613) 241-7435
Program Advisor
Vietnam Economic and Environment Management
International Development Research Centre
40 Nguyen Van Ngoc
Hanoi, Vietnam
Fax: (84-4) 766-0469
E-mail: veem@hn.vnn.vn
March 1999
Abstract
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25 years 8 months ago. . ONE YEAR LATER - What has Canada done about the Tobin Tax Motion? NOT MUCH! Write your MP, the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister before March 23.
On March 23, 1999, an exuberant Parliament passed a motion to "enact a tax on financial transactions in concert with the international community" with all party support by a resounding 164-83 margin. The motion was a strong message from Parliament that the political must regain control of the financial in the interests of the world's common wealth.
One year later, we have little progress to report. While the Canadian motion has sparked debate in Parliaments around the world, there has been little action at home. There have been no public hearings, no follow-up studies, no meetings of experts, in short, no substantive action to move the agenda forward either domestically or internationally.
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25 years 8 months ago. Domestic legislation. Dear
On March 23rd, 1999, the Canadian Parliament demonstrated world leadership when it passed motion M-239 urging Canada to "enact a tax on financial transactions in concert with the international community." This unprecedented action was viewed by many as an important first step in controlling destabilising speculation on financial markets, the wild and anarchic behaviour of which threatens all the economies of the world.
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