Global movement wins debt cancellation for Haiti

In a remarkable victory for the millions of people around the world who have called for cancellation of Haiti's foreign debt, United States Treasury Secretary Geithner and the finance ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) countries have all publicly stated their support for debt relief for Haiti. The finance ministers agreement will cancel tens of millions of dollars a year in debt service that Haiti was scheduled to pay to international financial institutions.

Geithner's statement came in response to a campaign by U.S. and global civil society groups, Haiti solidarity organizations and faith leaders that culminated this weekend with the delivery of over 400,000 petitions calling for debt cancellation and grants, rather than loans, for Haiti. More than 80 U.S. faith, labor, and human rights organizations, as well as 94 members of Congress sent letters to Secretary Geithner, urging him to negotiate debt cancellation.
The international campaign for debt forgiveness for impoverished countries, known as the Jubilee movement, has succeeded in winning the cancellation of more than $100 billion of debt for dozens of countries, resulting in significant improvements in the living standards of people in those countries.

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