Tamil Justice

ABC (28/06) – IMF Grants Third Tranche of $2.6 Billion Sri Lanka Loan

The International Monetary Fund will pay out the delayed third tranche of a $2.6 billion loan to Sri Lanka, saying the government was planning to tackle its weak finances in the 2010 budget to be announced on Tuesday.

The IMF in February had delayed the payment after the government missed its 2009 deficit reduction targets and said that domestic budget borrowing — consistent with a deficit target of 7 percent of gross domestic product — was exceeded by a substantial amount.

“Despite the weaker-than-programed 2009 fiscal performance, the government’s 2010 budget proposal, if carried out, would significantly address past fiscal slippages,” Naoyuki Shinohara, IMF deputy managing director and acting chair, said in a statement after a review of Sri Lanka’s economic performance.

Reuters – Interview – IMF concerned on Sri Lanka’s weak fiscal position

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday said Sri Lanka’s weak fiscal position is a concern for medium-term macroeconomic stability and fiscal reforms in the 2010 budget will be key to its $2.6 billion loan.

“The fiscal position is weak and this is a concern for the macro economy over the medium term,” Koshy Mathai, the IMF’s resident representative for Sri Lanka, told Reuters in an interview.

The IMF delayed the third tranche of the island nation’s loan as the $42 billion economy overshot the end-2009 budget deficit target. An IMF mission is expected to visit Sri Lanka next week to review the disbursement of the next tranche of the loan.

“The disbursement of the next tranche is linked most importantly with the budget. What we looking for is the budget and meaningful steps towards reducing the deficit and also doing it in economically sensible way,” he said.

(Reporting by Shihar Aneez; Editing by Miral Fahmy)

Reuters – IMF delays third tranche of $2.6 bln Sri Lanka loan

By Shihar Aneez

The International Monetary Fund said on Thursday it is delaying the third tranche of a $2.6 billion loan to Sri Lanka after the government missed its 2009 deficit reduction targets.

IMF officials told a news conference that Sri Lanka’s domestic budget borrowing — consistent with a budget deficit target of 7 percent of gross domestic production — was exceeded by a substantial amount.

“It would be more than 1.5-1.75 percent than the target, but we haven’t seen the final number yet,” said Brian Aitken, the IMF mission head to Sri Lanka. “The third tranche will be delayed and completed when the budget is formulated after the election.”

The central bank had earlier said that the $40 billion economy likely missed 2009 budget deficit goal of 7 percent set by the IMF as a condition for the loan.

The third tranche is worth around $318 million of the remaining loan of around $2 billion and was planned to be approved this month after considering the island nation’s commitment to the IMF targets.

Sri Lanka has not presented its full year budget for this year due to two national elections in the first four months. The parliamentary polls are scheduled on April 8 after President Mahinda Rajapaksa won his re-election on Jan. 26.

“We agreed with the government under these circumstances, it makes sense for us to re-engage in a more comprehensive way following the elections and formation of new cabinet, in the context of a new budget,” Aitken said.

The third tranche review will be completed in May, he said.   More

Avaaz.Org – Drop Haiti’s Debt

As Haitian families search for survivors and relief rolls in, Haiti is still staggering under $1 billion in old debts racked up by unscrupulous lenders and unelected governments of the past.

But in recent days, a worldwide outcry has grown to cancel Haiti’s debt — and while some key lenders are rumoured to be holding out, the IMF and some key governments have indicated that debt relief could be within reach.

More pressure is needed. The petition below will be delivered to the IMF and G7 finance ministers at their crucial meetings in coming days — sign and spread the word:

Petition to Finance Ministers, IMF, World Bank, IADB, and bilateral creditors:

As Haiti rebuilds from this disaster, please work to secure the immediate cancellation of Haiti’s $1 billion debt and ensure that any emergency earthquake assistance is provided in the form of grants, not debt-incurring loans.

SIGN THE PETITION HERE!

Emergency Rally For Haiti - 5pm Thursday January 28 Sydney Town Hall

Cancel The Debt, Aid Not Occupation, Reinstate Democratically Elected President Aristide

Cancel the Debt

Haiti, perhaps the poorest country in the western hemisphere is where about 75% of the population “lives on less than US $2 per day, and 56% — 4.5 million people — live on less than $1 per day”.

Decades of neoliberal “adjustment” and neo-imperial intervention have robbed its government from investing in its people or to regulate its economy. These policies worsened the impact of the recent earthquakes because Haiti lacked even basic infrastructure, instead paying IMF loans.

Haiti owes approximately $1 billion to the International Monetary Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank, and a handful of others. These organizations are using Haiti’s tragedy as a money making opportunity. The “aid” they are giving is only a loan, which must be repaid, at interest. This loan will be on top of the $890 million in loans that Haiti owes the IMF, a coalition of the rich. This debt, which has already been paid through decades of exploitation by multinational corporations, must be cancelled to end Haiti’s vicious cycle of poverty and build badly needed services.

Reinstate Democratically Elected President Aristide

Haiti’s democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, and his government (elected by some 75% of the Haitian electorate) was overthrown by an internationally sponsored paramilitary coup in 2004 that killed several thousand people and left much of the population smouldering in resentment. It was replaced by a U.S backed feeble and corrupt government.

President Aristide, a progressive priest turned president, threatened to help Haiti’s poor enough to earn the scorn of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and both Republicans and Democrats. His government was denied much-needed international funds for development, and his poor followers demonised as chimeres, or “devils.” In 2004, Haiti’s ultra-rich minority worked hand in glove with right-wingers in Washington and Paris to create a case for “regime change”. Aristide has broad support amongst the Haitian people who have called for his return.

Aid Not Occupation

The U.S emergency response has been largely focussed on sending the hugely costly and inefficient US military — a fleet of aircraft and an aircraft carrier. The Obama administration claims it will allocate $100 million in emergency aid to Haiti. The cost of operating an aircraft carrier, including crew, is roughly $2 million a day. Just sending a carrier to Port-au-Prince for two weeks accounts for a quarter of the announced U.S aid effort. While many of the military personnel sent there will certainly be doing actual aid work, given the U.S long history of brutal military/colonial control of Haiti, will inevitably be spending their time ensuring continued survival and control of the parasitic pro-US political elite in Haiti. Haiti needs aid, not a military occupation.

Donations should be made to the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund. http://www.haitiaction.net/About/HERF/HERF.html

Organised by The Latin American Social Forum. Victor Hugo 0425 324 621, John 0413 310 452, 02 9690 1977

Some of these articles are a few days old

WSWS – A grim journey through Sri Lanka’s war zone

Counterpunch – Post-War Internment Hell for Tamils

Guardian – Former army chief to run for Sri Lankan presidency

AFP – IMF sells 10 tonnes of gold to Sri Lanka

The National – Political terrain shifts in Sri Lanka

Financial Times – A peace dividend Sri Lanka cannot squander

AFP – Sri Lanka reserves ‘comfortable’ after bailout: IMF

Reuters India – UPDATE 1-S.Lanka deficit target challenging,but reachable-IMF

NASDAQ - IMF Approves More Funds For Sri Lanka

The International Monetary Fund’s executive board approved another release of funds to Sri Lanka under an arrangement to help the South Asian country avoid a balance-of-payments crisis.

The IMF will release immediately about $329 million to Sri Lanka, bringing the total funds disbursed under the agreement since July to about $659 million.

The agreement was approved on July 24 for about $2.6 billion.

Sri Lanka’s performance under the arrangement is “encouraging,” Takatoshi Kato, IMF Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair, said in a statement. ” Recent economic developments have been stronger than expected, and the near-term outlook has improved.”

However, he added that the country still needs to address “fundamental vulnerabilities.”

AFP – IMF clears Sri Lanka second tranche loan of 329 mln dlrs

The International Monetary Fund said Friday its executive board approved the release of 329.4 million dollars to Sri Lanka, the second portion of a loan to help the country weather the economic crisis.

The IMF said the board completed the first review of Sri Lanka’s economic performance under a 20-month standby loan.

This allows the immediate disbursement of the second tranche, bringing total disbursements under the arrangement to 658.8 million dollars.

“Sri Lanka’s performance under the standby arrangement is encouraging,” said IMF deputy managing director Takatoshi Kato.

“Recent economic developments have been stronger than expected, and the near-term outlook has improved. While the Fund-supported program had helped Sri Lanka avoid a balance of payments crisis, fundamental vulnerabilities remain to be addressed. Strict adherence to the program targets and steadfast implementation of the reform agenda will be essential.”

The IMF approved the program in July to help the South Asian country rebuild international reserves and strengthen Sri Lanka’s domestic financial system.

Britain abstained from voting on the loan after politicians indicated they could not support it because of an ongoing tense political situation.

Britain wanted to “secure long-term peace and prosperity” for Sri Lanka through reconciliation between its communities, officials said in a letter to the multiparty parliamentary groups on Sri Lanka and Tamils.

Human Rights Watch said the IMF should have set conditions on the loan, including demands that the Sri Lankan government help resettle nearly 300,000 Tamil civilians being held in tightly guarded camps.

The IMF loan, under negotiation with Sri Lankan authorities since March, came two months after the end of the civil war with the rebel Tamil Tigers that claimed up to 100,000 lives and left some 300,000 war-displaced civilians in the north.

IMF satisfied with Sri Lanka’s economic performance

The IMF, in a statement at the conclusion of a two-week staff mission to Colombo, said that “recent economic developments have been stronger than expected.”

“The government’s policy approach has been in line with the program, and performance based on the program’s July targets has been broadly satisfactory,” the Washington-based institution said.

“Net international reserves continue to show impressive growth driven by an increase in investor confidence and stronger than expected remittances.”

…A second disbursement of the loan depends on further reviews and approval of the executive board.

Despite an array of criticism against the loan, the IMF succeeded in obtaining the approval of the executive board, its top decision-making body composed of 24 countries or groups of countries, by obtaining the abstention of its biggest members, which had reservations about the proposal.

Inner City Press : Tale of Two Chinas, Protest by Tamils, Artist Feted at UN for Big Paintings and Parents