Jubilee USA Launches Campaign To Stop Vulture Fund Investors From Profiting Off Debtor Nations in Developing World

We turn now to our continuing coverage of “vulture funds.” Vulture funds are Western companies profiting off buying up countries" debts and then forcing those countries to pay off the debt at a far higher price.

Last week BBC investigative journalist Greg Palast exposed on Democracy Now! how one company is trying to collect $40 million dollars from the government of Zambia after buying one of its debts for $4 million dollars. Zambia claims the company, Debt Advisory International, even tried to bribe government officials by offering to make a donation to: “the president's favorite charity.” Palast questioned the company's owner, Michael Francis Sheehan, about the allegation.

* Excerpt of Greg Palast's BBC report on "Vulture Funds"

An excerpt of a report from investigative journalist Greg Palast. Well just hours after we aired that story a British court ruled on the case. Zambia was ordered to pay Sheehan's company $20 million dollars on its original $4 million dollar debt. The Zambian government says the money will have to come directly from its budget for health and education.

Well, an international campaign is emerging to prevent Debt Advisory International from collecting. One day after the ruling, House Judiciary Chair John Conyers appeared on Democracy Now! The Michigan Congressmember said he raised the issue with Present Bush after hearing Palast's report on our broadcast.

* Rep. John Conyers

Democratic Congressmember John Conyers. In addition to Congress, pressure is also coming from the grassroots. The debt-relief and economic justice group Jubilee USA Network is launching a new effort today calling on Debt Advisory International to drop its efforts to collect money from the Zambian government.

* Kristin Sundell, outreach coordinator for the Jubilee USA Network.

LISTEN ONLINE:
http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/02/20/1523254