UN Conference on the World Financial and Economic Crisis and its Impact on Development

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the opportunity to contribute to this debate.  I would like to begin by ratifying what was said earlier by my civil society colleague, in the sense that we are here to support this ongoing process, in particular as movements from the global South, because the world financial and economic crisis is gravely impacting the people, the environment, and the countries in which we live and work every day.
 
We agree that this is an especially critical moment for the United Nations to be assuming its responsibilities according to the UN Charter, and we as civil society organizations and movements are prepared to continue to participate in diverse ways. Mr. Bougrov, in his opening remarks, mentioned that many of the shareholders of the International Financial Institutions did not seem to be overly interested in making the kinds of changes that the world community needs.  Certainly those of us who are affected by the policies of these institutions, peoples and popular movements from around the world, are very ready to contribute to the building of new institutions that respond to a new economic, social, and environmental ethos.
 
I would like to refer now to the question of debt.  We would first of all commend the Stiglitz Commission for pointing out that a renewed debt crisis is imminent, as is also referenced in the Conference’s draft Outcome Document, but also and most importantly for highlighting that new resources that must be forthcoming in response to the actual financial, economic, food, social, and climate crises should be non-debt generating.
 
We would like to underscore this point. The world community must recognize that new lending to countries throughout the South, burdening peoples and the environment with a future debt in response to crises that are clearly not of their own making, can only be understood to be as illegitimate as the kind of lending that took place in earlier years to dictators, or for failed or mistaken policies that have had a tremendously detrimental impact on peoples’ lives. This is a time for new resources to be provided as a form of compensation by those who are responsible for the policies and decisions that brought about these crises, including also the repatriation of stolen wealth and restitution of the social, economic, and ecological debts that they have accumulated with the peoples of the South as a result of these same policies. As the international community has firmly recognized in the concept of “polluter pays”, it is unjust and unacceptable that those who suffer the consequences of others’ actions be also forced to pay the price. As the UN moves this process forward, through the Working Committee, the establishment of an ad hoc panel of experts and other initiatives, it should address the question of compensation to the victims and the sanctioning of those responsible.
 
It is also critical that this UN Conference reaffirm the right and indeed the obligation of countries facing debt distress or the burden of illegitimate debt, to take unilateral action to stop or repudiate further debt payments.  This must be recognized as as immediate step that can be taken to ensure that needed resources do not continue to flow out of those South countries most impacted by the present crises.  While it is important to work for the creation of new debt workout or restructuring mechanisms that overcome lender dominance, as the Conference’s Outcome Document proposes, it must be recognized that countries already have sufficient grounds on which to take sovereign action in order to fulfill their obligations with regard to human and environmental rights, obligations that have primacy over any commercial debt or trade agreement. 
 
In closing, we would like also to address the linkages between finance, debt, and trade. We support the call to suspend the negotiation of new trade agreements in the midst of these crises and also to review and revert existing trade agreements and investment protection treaties that now impinge on countries’ policy space, making it impossible for countries throughout the global South to take needed action to stimulate and protect their peoples, their economies, and the environment. In this regard, issues such as commodity speculation and the use of jurisdictional waivers including the ICSID, which favor the interests of capital over the rights of people and nature, must also be addressed by the UN as it continues to bring together the entire international community to redress the impacts of these crises on development and ensure meaningful systemic change.

Coordinadora Internacional/
International Coordinator
JUBILEE SOUTH - JUBILEO SUR

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