Issue 49
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A Matter of Life
and Debt
Most of us at some stage in our lives will borrow money. Borrowing to buy a home, a car or build a business is something that is a normal part of modern life. Debt can be a good thing if handled with care. Just as individuals need to borrow, so also do companies and countries. Just as some individuals become over-committed and do not have the income to repay their debts so also can this occur with countries. Our backgrounder explores the problem of global debt and how it forces whole nations into poverty.
 
 "Poverty isn't inevitable", says Vatican Official
Bishop Giampaolo Crepaldi, secretary of the Pontifical
Council for Justice and Peace, told the 91st International Labor
Conference that we need to "abandon the mentality that considers
the poor – people and nations – as a burden". –
Zenit
Gap between rich and poor widens
New research at Sydney University shows the gap between the rich and poor is continuing to widen. Australia has one of the world's most prosperous economies but most of its citizens are not sharing the wealth. – The Age
British Caritas targets hypocrisy of G8 leaders
The British Caritas affiliate CAFOD says the G8 leaders
must not be distracted by the Iraqi conflict and the war on
terrorism from tackling the scandal of poverty in Africa. –
ICN
 
We're richer and meaner than we think
Adele Horin puts forward some provocative insights in this SMH piece on the growing divide between the rich and poor in contemporary society. – SMH
 
Jubilee doesn't go away when the calendar changes
Didn't the international effort to cancel the debts of
the world's poorest countries end with the end of the year 2000,
the so-called "jubilee year"? We often hear this question.
People seemed surprised to learn that "Jubilee-Zambia"
is still very active, very public, very pushy, in calling for
cancellation of debt. – NCR
– Fr Peter Henriot, Jesuit Centre for
Theological Reflection, Lusaka
 
 The Jubilee debt relief campaign will be relaunched on
June 29th (Jubilee Sunday). Get involved! Visit: http://www.jubileeaustralia.org
for more information.
 
"For the needy shall not always be forgotten; The expectation of the poor shall not perish forever." – Psalm 9:18
 
Banknotes Galore SBS TV, Global Village, Friday 4 July, 6.00pm
Banknotes Galore – Banknotes for several
different countries are manufactured in the suburbs of Rennes
in France. (From France, in English and French, English subtitles).
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Caritas Latest
Staff from Caritas Australia arrived in the Solomon Islands Friday, August
1.
Mr Jack de Groot, National Director of Caritas Australia, said Caritas Australia supports the regional intervention in the Solomon Islands, while expressing caution that a blanket amnesty is not introduced which allows offenders to go unpunished.
Caritas Australia has released a position paper calling on the Australian government to rethink the proposal to ignore serious crimes committed in the Solomon Islands before its intervention commences.
"Justice is a precondition for permanent reconciliation and peace. Amnesties do not provide justice," Caritas Australia spokesman, Jamie Isbister, Acting National Director said today.
The paper also highlights the growing crisis caused by the increasing number of small arms concentrating in Melanesia, particularly in the Solomon Islands. See the Policy
The objectives of Australia's intervention in the Solomon Islands need to be clarified. For Australia's aims to be justifiable, there should be commitment to the Solomon Islanders which includes the elimination of guns and the flow of weapons, says the latest Caritas Policy brief.
See the Policy
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