Blame

[Lam Lie Sum]

Hey Third World Debt Team,

I was just wondering on what your view is on the blame of the issue.

In your website, you have mentioned both sides of the matter but did not take a stand. Maybe you could tell us what your stands are on this matter?

Thank you.

Lie Sum

[Nicholas]

Hi Lie Sum

In the course of our project we never really meant to take an explicit stand; rather we felt that it would be ideal if readers could examine the arguments we posted and take their own stand on the issue.

That being said, I personally am for debt cancellation. Given the realities of the current situation it will be long before Third World nations will have the capability to repay the loans -- let alone provide for their own citizens. Remember that debt overhang is a real problem for many nations -- in fact the interest alone can sometimes be greater than the GDPs of entire nations. In the best interests of the Third World and its development debt forgiveness is necessary - permanently crippling it through debt isn't going to recover the money any faster than allowing it to develop and someday perhaps even repaying these loans.

Just my two cents worth (:

Nicholas

[Lam Lie Sum]

Hey Nicholas,

Sorry but I don't think you answered my question.

I was asking who do you think the blame lies with, Third World Nations or the investing First World Nations?

Thank you

Lie Sum

[Nicholas]

Hi Lie Sum,

Sorry for misintepreting your question.

I actually take the stance that First World Nations are to be blamed for the crisis. The Third World Nations were not experienced in crafting plans for their own economies, thus the plans they undertook were bound to fail. Instead of just investing capital alone, I feel that First World Nations should have guided the Third World Nations in structuring their plans, allowing the plans to succeed.

That being said, the Third World Nations are not totally innocent in the matter. They should have had experienced failures from the plans they undertook beforehand, and learnt that they were actually unable to properly handle the capita invested in them. Hence, they should have asked for help instead of just asking for plain cash.

Thank you

Nicholas

[Bob]

Hello Third World Debt Team,

I feel that the blame is on the structural adjustment policies that were put in place in the aftermath of the debt crisis. They caused the current situation in the first place. The polcies gave rise to downfall of the economy, and ultimately caused the country's inability to repay it's debts.

What is your take on the blame being put on the structural adjustment policies instead of the Africans themselves?

Thank You :)

Bob.

[canxiang]

Hi Bob,

the structural adjustment policies are definitely a factor that led to this crisis. However, it cannot be the sole factor for this crisis. It can be argued that the willingness of the Third World countries to accept the loans even though they knew they could not pay off the debts caused the structural adjustment polices to take place.

Cheers,
Canxiang

[PigsCanFly]

hrm......but dont you think that without debt the third world countries would have ended up in an equally bad state?

[dracularevenge]

gd pt pigscanfly....

actually u can say tt 3rd world would hv ended up liddat, look at their corruption, bad govts, instability, wars etc...

they may nt hv succeeded even w/o debt