World Debt Day Saturday 16th May

A year ago I remember travelling to Birmingham with Louiese to the Journey for Justice where over 1,000 campaigners marked 10 years since the G8 human chain and urged politicains to tackle the unfinished business of the debt campaign. Lots has happened since then and now there are fears that the financial crisis will lead to a new debt crisis for developing countries. This month has seen some significant steps forward for the debt movement. "Haiti and Liberia, two countries we’ve been calling to have debt cancellation for many years, have finally had some of their debts wiped out. In the UK Parliament, meanwhile, a cross-party group of MPs has demanded a law to regulate the vulture funds which profiteer from poor country debt.....At the same time, not enough has changed. Haiti and Liberia have had to wait years for a tiny fraction of the help that some of our banks have been given in a matter of days. Both countries are still waiting to complete the debt relief process and have many hoops to jump through before that can happen. " (Jubilee Debt Campaign)



I read such information and the injustice in our World makes me sick and leads me to rant. Why is there one law for the poor and another for the rich? When we fear a swine flu outbreak we can't act quickly enough or spend money more freely, and yet those trapped in extreme poverty die every three seconds. Does a child born in Africa matter less to God than one born in the UK? Was it young men and women's own fault that they die from poverty? Do we really believe that the West is doing enough? Are we really fobbed off by some action which is really only a meaningless gesture?



For me personally the isssue of debt was the beginning of my journey into understanding more about the injustice in our world. Since then I learn about more and more and more and more justice issues. I could quite easily despair, but I don't because our God is sovereign and our hope rests on him. The following passage from Psalm 37 is a personal favorite and a promise I'm clinging to. " Trust in the Lord and do good, dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Trust in him, committ your ways to him and he will do this he will make your righteousness shine like the dawn the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.... be still and wait patiently for him."