April 27, 2005

GENEVA – The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has called for a verification of the compatibility of foreign debt with human rights.

In an oral statement to the 61st Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, March 14-April 22, the LWF emphasized: "Foreign debt affects the daily lives of so many people around the world, and is not just a question of economic calculus." The statement was delivered by a representative of the LWF Office for International Affairs and Human Rights.

The LWF welcomed the increasing international attention being given to the unsustainable foreign debt affecting human development in many countries around the world. According to the LWF, the key issue was not an analysis of the sustainability of debt service obligations, but of the legitimacy of the debts themselves. This was the basis of work being done by LWF member churches in Latin America and many other partner organizations.

"Loans made to dictators without any guarantee of democratic accountability and for purposes that were plainly not for the public benefit are clearly illegitimate," the LWF stated.

The LWF nevertheless welcomed the Commission's contribution to the foreign debt policy debate. In a resolution in 2000, the Commission had noted that economic structural reforms arising from foreign debt should not undermine fundamental rights such as the right to food, education, and adequate health care.

Lutheran World Information
By Barbara Schneider, youth trainee in the LWF Office for Communication Services.