Tightening the debt noose
U.S. bankers are using the AIDS crisis in Africa to
tighten the debt noose around the necks of some of the
poorest countries in the world.
Trying to sound generous, the U.S. Export-Import Bank
announced July 19 that it would offer $1 billion a year in
loans to sub-Saharan nations to "fight AIDS." But read the
fine print and the generosity melts away.
First, these are loans, not aid or reparations. And they
carry a stiff commercial interest rate, which is now around 7
percent--not even the discount rate sometimes offered to
countries unable to pay more.
Second, the money has to be used to buy U.S. drugs and
medical services. In other words, this is just another boost
for profit-hungry U.S. drug companies, whose medicines to
treat AIDS complications can cost between $20,000 and $40,000
a year in the U.S.
Even if the drug prices were set way below the usual
market rate--which the drug companies have to do since
generic medications sold in other countries are much, much
cheaper--a yearly regimen would cost around $2,000. That is
"more than four times the average per capita income in many
of the worst-afflicted countries," according to the July 19
New York Times.
The Clinton administration will announce soon whether it
will spend another $60 billion on a "missile defense" program
denounced around the world as the start of a new arms race.
That $60 billion should instead be given to the countries hit
hardest by the AIDS epidemic to design their own health care
and infrastructure programs--the only way to turn around this
deadly disease.
Cancellation of the debt owed to imperialist banks,
reparations and donation of all urgently needed AIDS
drugs--that's just the beginning of what the U.S. bankers and
industrialists owe the people of Africa.
--D.G.
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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