Charities and rock stars join forces to tackle world poverty
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《英国医生杂志》
Rich countries should increase aid and make it work better for poor people, cancel world debt, and change the rules of world trade so that they favour the interests of the poor. That was the new year's message to Britain's prime minister, Tony Blair, from a coalition of more than 100 UK charities, trades unions, and campaigners, including rock and pop stars.
Their Make Poverty History campaign, which was launched on 1 January, came as the tsunami disaster in South East Asia brought harrowing television images of the tragedy directly into the homes of those in the developed world, highlighting the conditions of poorer countries.
The coalition, which includes Oxfam, Wateraid, and the World Medical Fund, is calling on Mr Blair to change the unfair trade rules and high levels of debt that hinder the developing world. It is part of a global call to action, a worldwide movement that will come together at key points during 2005.
According to the organisation's report, Malawi spends more on servicing the country's debt than on health, despite nearly one in five Malawians being HIV positive. And in Zambia, debt repayments to the International Monetary Fund cost $25m (￡13m; 19m) more than the budget for education, it says.
The report also highlights the situation in Ghana, where the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have insisted that the country open up its agricultural markets as a condition of receiving aid. US rice now floods the country, and the domestic rice market has collapsed as a result, it says.
Adrian Lovett, 2005 project director at Oxfam, speaking on behalf of Make Poverty History, said: "It is time for the UK government to change key policies and put pressure on other world leaders to do the same. At the end of 2005, Blair and the other world leaders will be judged on whether they delivered a breakthrough."(Lynn Eaton)
Their Make Poverty History campaign, which was launched on 1 January, came as the tsunami disaster in South East Asia brought harrowing television images of the tragedy directly into the homes of those in the developed world, highlighting the conditions of poorer countries.
The coalition, which includes Oxfam, Wateraid, and the World Medical Fund, is calling on Mr Blair to change the unfair trade rules and high levels of debt that hinder the developing world. It is part of a global call to action, a worldwide movement that will come together at key points during 2005.
According to the organisation's report, Malawi spends more on servicing the country's debt than on health, despite nearly one in five Malawians being HIV positive. And in Zambia, debt repayments to the International Monetary Fund cost $25m (￡13m; 19m) more than the budget for education, it says.
The report also highlights the situation in Ghana, where the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have insisted that the country open up its agricultural markets as a condition of receiving aid. US rice now floods the country, and the domestic rice market has collapsed as a result, it says.
Adrian Lovett, 2005 project director at Oxfam, speaking on behalf of Make Poverty History, said: "It is time for the UK government to change key policies and put pressure on other world leaders to do the same. At the end of 2005, Blair and the other world leaders will be judged on whether they delivered a breakthrough."(Lynn Eaton)