OCR Text |
Show — The Salt Lake Tribune NATION/WORLD Saturday, April 15, 2000 “Global Economy Leaving ManyPoor Nations Behind é Canceling debt on agenda ofinternational finance meetings WASHINGTON — The numbers are bleak: Worldwide, etapa seo P nations owe $2 trillion to the World Bank, the IMF and other lending institutions, as well as to the United States and other oe poverty today as a decade ago. wealthy countries. charges forward, manypoor countries are loans. Many developmentand financial experts have concluded that continuing to force them to try to pay will only make “This is arguably one of the greatest economic failures of the 20th century,” said Flemming Larsen, a veteran econo- mist at the International Monetary Fund. Many of those poor nations are deeply in debt — often to institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, which had loaned them billions to matters worse. s SCRAEEE left behind. : . é Some of the poor nations are borrowing more money just to pay the interest on their “Theyneed debt relief,” said George Ayittey, an expert in African economics at American University here. “In Africa, they're spending about 40 percent of their export receipts on servicing the debt. That’s a huge amount. This moneycould go into today is draining their resources and hob- education, highway improvements, infrastructure improvements or health care.” While there is agreementon the need to bling their abilities to catch up. There's a growing call to forgive some or all of the debts, one of the points that thousandsofprotesters hope to drive home how much should be forgiven, whether conditions should be imposed on poor countries in return for debt cancellation, Secret Service officers on Friday patrol around White House, where security was tightened for weekend demonstrations. during demonstrations against the IMF and whoshould pay for the debtrelief. launched a plan that would cancel about $60 billionof the $200 billion owed by those 40 mostindebted countries. Congress, though, has balked at ap- help raise them out of poverty. Instead, the interest on the loans alone and World Bank during their annual spring meeting here Sunday and Monday. Even administrators of the twoinstitutions agree that billions of dollars of the debt should be written off — developing reduce the debt, there is not agreement on About $200 billion, or 10 percent of the total debt, is owed by 40 countries that the World Bank and IMFhaveidentified as the worst off. The two institutions, with the support of the United States, Japan, Germany and other wealthy states, have proving funds for the American contribu- tion to a trust fund that would help enable Zimbabwe Squatters Get Mixed Signals From Government ‘THE ASSOCIATED PRESS UNITED NATIONS — Shamed byits inaction, the Security Council accepted responsibility Friday for having failed to stop Rwanda’s 1994 genocide and vowed to do more to prevent another slaughter CHINHOYI, Zimbabwe — At the ominous sound of distant drumbeats, Glynis Purkiss’ gentle smile disappearsin a wave of anxiety. squatters’ drumming has been a near-constant, vi- brating reminderof the fight over white-owned farms President Clinton is asking for an additional $210 million in this year’s budget for the trust fund. On top of that, the administration wants another $150 million in the 2001 budget for the trust fund and $75 million more to continue canceling the direct US.loans. U.N. Admits Failing to Stop Killing in Rwanda THE ASSOCIATED PRESS For the past 10 days her white family’s farm has been occupied by black squatters demanding, at the very least, a good chunk ofland for themselves. The the debt relief. Congress did approve $110 million in this year’s budget to cancel loans that the United States made directly with developing countries. But the trust fund is needed to pay for the cancellation of loans made byinstitutions such as the Inter-American Development Bank. Rob:» CooperThe ‘Associated Press Zimbabwean farmer Arthur Purkiss watches over workers on his Chikuti Estates in the Karoi district, of innocents. In theirfirst formal response to a critical report of the U.N.role in the genocide, ambassadors acknowledged the exposé’s key findings: that world governments lacked thepolitical will to stop the massacre ofhalf a million people and deprived the U.N. peacekeep- 1994, downing of the Rwandan president's plane. The United Nations hada 2,500strong U.N. peacekeeping mission’ in the country atthe time, but gov- ing mission in Rwanda of the re- sources needed to savelives. While no formal statement or resolution was adopted,each of the 15 council members spoke, acknowledging the U.N.failures and ernments pulled out all but a few hundred Tunisian and Ghanian troops after 10 Belgian peacekeep- ers were killed. Rwanda’s U.N. ambassador,Joseph Mutaboba, said the council vowing to do more, particularly with the new U.N. a in Rwanda’s neighbor,Co! An estimated 500,000.‘people, most ofthem minority Tutsis, were killed in the Hutu-sponsored genocide that began after the April 6, could do more beyondpledging to prevent another bloodbath. He called for a “mini-Marshall Plan” to help Rwanda rebuilditself. 100 miles north of Harare, Zimbabwe, on Thursday. simmering throughout Zimbabwe. “We'll certainly be pushed off rather than go.It's worth fighting for,” the 38-year-old former nurse said from the safety of the gated homestead inside her family’s 7,400-acre farm. In this agriculture-dependentcountry of 13 million where 4,000 white farmers own one-third of the productive farmland, thousands of squatters have occupied more than 900 white-owned farms. occupationsas a distraction from the unemployment andinflation crippling the country as it prepares for parliamentary elections. After the court ruling Thursday, Vice President Joseph Msika appealed for the squattersto leave. But squatters may have gotten a different signal from Mugabe. Speaking from a summit in Cuba, Mugabe continued to sounda defianttone despite international criti- The High Court on Thursday backed the farmers and ordered authorities to removethe squatters. But President Robert Mugabe, whohas backed the squat- amendment to seize white-owned land without ters, refused to follow earlier court rulings to remove compensation. them. And police did not appear to be making any movesFriday, though,there were scattered reports of somesquatters preparingto leave farmson their own. cism. He again threatened to use a new constitutional 9 HOUR NO TAX SALE Saturday, April 15th 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. The takeovers continued Friday. White farmers said squatters invaded atleast five more white-owned Mugabe's governmenthasargued thatpolice action properties. The squatters have portrayed themselves as veter- against the squatters — many of whom are armed with ans ofZimbabwe's independence war who merely seek clubs, knives, spears and guns — could triggera civil economic justice. But many are far too young to have war. Oppositionpoliticians say Mugabe instigated the foughtin thebattles that ended two decades ago. N. Korea Honors Late Leader’s Birthday With Calls for Military Boost "THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea marked its biggest holiday Friday with calls to build up its military and economy, hit hard by yearsoffood andfuel shortages. The April 15 birthdayofthe late President Kim I Sung is called “Sun’s Day” in the communist state. Kim died at age 82 on July8, 1994,after ruling for halfa century with a personality cult. His son, Kim Jong Il, took power in communism’s first hereditary succession. 3 “We should always devote ourselves to making the People’s Army into an invincible armed force,” said Yang HyongSop,ofthe Workers’ Party of Korea. North Korea is isolated from the rest of the world economically and politically. It has been relying on outsideaid to feed its people. Yang made no mention of the agreement between South Korea and North Korea to holdtheir first summit June 12-14, a breakthrough that could provide North Korea with economicaid. 5 PIECE DINETTE SET $699 QUEEN SLEEPER ALSO AVAILABLE SOFA, LOVESEAT, CHAIR AND CHAIR SLEEPER aN eS ‘LAMPS, PICTURES AND MIRRORS 20-50% OFF AREA RUGS FROM $299 (AS SHOWNIN WOOL) $799 Congratulations. Your incometaxes are now paid for another whole year. And with any luck, you'll be getting a refund. Meanwhile, at least let us pay your sales tax’. Npt to mention give you some welcome savings on great furniture at San Francisco Design. Furniture. For Life. OUTBACK Butterball Bone-in Limit 6 Phy. Per Pasily CHICKEN BREASTS g. SALT LAKE 2970 Highland Dr. M-F 10-7 Sat. 10-6 467-2701 PARK CITY 1890 Bonanza Dr. M-Sat. 10-6 645-7072 DRA PER 11538So, State M-Sat. 10-6 495-2300 Visit us on-line — www.sanfrandesign.citysearch.com *SEE STORE FOR DETAILS. CO CUVT ECU VOVSCS CEES UUUV ESTUUUUVCRUTeet KNIGHT RIDDER NEWS SERVICE. |