Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debt

• Relevance of dates: the period covers
  1) the IMF IMF
  International Monetary Fund Along with the World Bank, the IMF was founded on the day the Bretton Woods Agreements were signed. Its first mission was to support the new system of standard exchange rates.
  
  When the Bretton Wood fixed rates system came to an end in 1971, the main function of the IMF became that of being both policeman and fireman for global capital: it acts as policeman when it enforces its Structural Adjustment Policies and as fireman when it steps in to help out governments in risk of defaulting on debt repayments.
  
  As for the World Bank, a weighted voting system operates: depending on the amount paid as contribution by each member state. 85% of the votes is required to modify the IMF Charter (which means that the USA with 17,68% % of the votes has a de facto veto on any change).
  
  The institution is dominated by five countries: the United States (16,74%), Japan (6,23%), Germany (5,81%), France (4,29%) and the UK (4,29%).
  The other 183 member countries are divided into groups led by one country. The most important one (6,57% of the votes) is led by Belgium. The least important group of countries (1,55% of the votes) is led by Gabon and brings together African countries.
  
  http://imf.org -WB World Bank
  WB The World Bank was founded as part of the new international monetary system set up at Bretton Woods in 1944. Its capital is provided by member states’ contributions and loans on the international money markets. It financed public and private projects in Third World and East European countries.
  
  It consists of several closely associated institutions, among which :
  
  1. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, 189 members in 2017), which provides loans in productive sectors such as farming or energy ;
  
  2. The International Development Association (IDA, 159 members in 1997), which provides less advanced countries with long-term loans (35-40 years) at very low interest (1%) ;
  
  3. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), which provides both loan and equity finance for business ventures in developing countries.
  
  As Third World Debt gets worse, the World Bank (along with the IMF) tends to adopt a macro-economic perspective. For instance, it enforces adjustment policies that are intended to balance heavily indebted countries’ payments. The World Bank advises those countries that have to undergo the IMF’s therapy on such matters as how to reduce budget deficits, round up savings, enduce foreign investors to settle within their borders, or free prices and exchange rates.
  
  Annual Meeting October 12-18;
  2) the day of the “cry of the excluded” observed in Latin America on October 12;
  3) the G20 G20 The Group of Twenty (G20 or G-20) is a group made up of nineteen countries and the European Union whose ministers, central-bank directors and heads of state meet regularly. It was created in 1999 after the series of financial crises in the 1990s. Its aim is to encourage international consultation on the principle of broadening dialogue in keeping with the growing economic importance of a certain number of countries. Its members are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, USA, UK and the European Union (represented by the presidents of the Council and of the European Central Bank). Finance Ministers and Central Bank Central Bank The establishment which in a given State is in charge of issuing bank notes and controlling the volume of currency and credit. In France, it is the Banque de France which assumes this role under the auspices of the European Central Bank (see ECB) while in the UK it is the Bank of England.
  
  ECB : http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/Pages/home.aspx Governors meeting on October 14;
  4) the anniversary of the assassination of Thomas Sankara, former president of Burkina Faso who called for debt repudiation;
  5) World Food Day on October 16.
• Open letter to governments and financial institutions: https://debtgwa.net/open-letter
• Website, Facebook and twitter.
• Webinars and popular education activities at the national, regional and global levels that will be organized by different participating groups.
• Invitation to share Share A unit of ownership interest in a corporation or financial asset, representing one part of the total capital stock. Its owner (a shareholder) is entitled to receive an equal distribution of any profits distributed (a dividend) and to attend shareholder meetings. on social netwokrs pictures with hashtag #CancelTheDebt
• Invitation to share on social netwoks 10 seconds video with #CancelTheDebt and #DebtAlarm. Ex: https://twitter.com/jeantheoptimist/status/1315667898430558208

CADTM Activities

Pakistan:
Wednesday, October 14 (5pm-7pm (Mumbai):

• Webinar: Zoom session on “Asia Chaining into Debt – Perspectives & Strategies”. Members of CADTM and WMW in South Asia from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal would speak.
  Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82560960316...
  Meeting ID: 825 6096 0316
  Passcode: 224994
• Seminar on the topic of “Mounting Pakistan Debt & Impacts on Women”. Members of WMW and CADTM-Pakistan would be speaking on the occasion. Civil society activists, men/women would join.

Friday, October 16:

• Public demonstration on “Cancel Pakistan Debt – Save the people” in front of Lahore Press Club. Civil society & political activists, students, academics would join.

Belgium :
October, 17-18 :

• CADTM Autumn meeting days: https://www.cadtm.org/CADTM-Autumn-meeting-days-registration-is-now-open