PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

Renew campaign to relieve Kenya's Debt.
by Mark Bradleo Yokim Monday, Mar. 28, 2005 at 2:43 AM
mbyokim@care2.com Carnegie, PA

Over the past 20+ years, Kenya has accrued a debt that now toatals over 9 billion US Dollars. Due to corruption of former leaders, there has been a call since 1996 to releave these debts.

"NGOs maintain that irresponsible lending to previous governments in Kenya is the main cause of the debt burden -and that donors should be held accountable for this by being obliged to write off debts." Not grant more loans.

Earlier this month, Wangari Mathai, has reissued the call for Global Debt Relief in Kenya. After winning the Nobel peace prize last year for her work with the Green Belt Movement, Ms. Mathai is planting a new seed of hope this spring.

With the Bush administration trying to plant one of its Military Industrial stength leaders as President of the IMF, Paul Wolfowitz, we all should be renewing our commitmen this spring to Earth Day and Social Justice this year by lifting the voice of Kenya's poor.

What can we as Pittsburgher's do to help? Will you plant a tree this spring just as Ms. Mathai has done for the past 30 years, facing death threats for her work to alleviate the the abuses of the environment, her Gov't, and all African Women? Will you attempt to stop them planting of Military gardens of globalization, with a Bush as the seed Father and a "Wolf" as the fruits of that Labor?

These are questions I must ask this Easter.

"Where flowers bloom, so does hope." Lady Bird Johnson

Sources:
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0302-03.htm
http://www.ipsnews.net/africa/interna.asp?idnews=23098

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