Africa: Forgetting make poverty history

The UK's Independent newspaper asks if anyone remembers Make Poverty History. It seems a long time ago that some 200,000 people flocked to Edinburgh to rally G8 leaders as part of an unprecedented campaign for global justice. That same day, 2 July, Bob Geldof organised free music concerts in nine countries under the Live8 banner. The demands were straightforward and reasonable: rich countries should boost aid in line with their unmet 35-year-old promises; cancel the debts of the 62 poorest countries; set dates for the abolition of subsidies and other protectionist support to Western farmers, and stop forcing liberalisation and privatisation on poor countries, whether in trade negotiations or as conditions of aid and debt deals. Six days later, in the shadow of the 7 July bombs that ripped through central London, the Gleneagles summit ended to rock-star cheers. But as the millions who signed up to Make Poverty History (MPH) and Live8 rejoiced, inside the upper echelons of MPH all hell was breaking loose. "They've shafted us," a press officer from a British development organisation screamed down the phone. Read the rest of this article from The Independent in the UK by clicking on the URL provided.