| Tooting MP leads delegation to Pakistan to view flood damage and campaign for increased support for flood victims |
| Tuesday, 21 September 2010 22:32 |
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Tooting MP Sadiq Khan has flown to Pakistan to lead a delegation to assess the ongoing flood relief effort in the country, following one of the worst natural disasters in recorded history. The mission, which has been organised by Islamic Relief, one of the DEC approved relief organisations working in the region, hopes to help raise the profile of a major campaign to freeze Pakistan’s debt repayments – which are currently crippling the state’s response to the floods. Sadiq has backed the calls of the poverty campaign group ONE, Oxfam, Jubilee Debt Campaign and Muslim Aid to freeze Pakistan’s $3 billion annual debt repayments for two years, while the country recovers from the damage done by the floods. More than 20 million people have been displaced by the floods that hit Pakistan in July. A fifth of the country is now under water, with 2 million acres of crops destroyed. Thousands of people have lost their lives and millions more have lost their homes. Severe threats of water-borne disease and malnutrition are putting survivors of the initial floods at further risk. With 60% of the population already living below the poverty line, Pakistan will need all its available resources to help it recover from this crippling crisis and to fight long-term poverty. The International Monetary Fund is the institution that oversees debt repayments. By freezing Pakistan’s estimated $3billion annual debt repayment for two years, the international community can give Pakistan vital extra resources to spend on recovery and rebuilding, rather than debt-repayment. Currently every dollar spent on debt servicing is one that could be spent on the flood victims. Strong oversight mechanisms should be put in place to ensure this money reaches the people who need it most. ONE have launched a petition asking the IMF to freeze Pakistan’s debt repayments. So far over 28,000 people have signed it. “The British public have yet again shown their compassion and willingness to act to save lives when disaster strikes. When it come to recovering from floods of this magnitude, every penny counts. I know that the generosity shown by people in Britain and around the world to those suffering in Pakistan is very much appreciated. “But now it’s time for governments to step up and ensure that while people give with one hand, they don’t take away with the other. By freezing Pakistan’s debt repayments, we can ensure that all the available resources go toward recovery from this crisis, and to the people who need it most. “I urge everyone to sign the ONE petition calling on the IMF to freeze Pakistan’s debt repayments.” |
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