Jubilee 2000

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Logo of Jubilee 2000
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Logo of Jubilee 2000

Jubilee 2000 was an international coalition movement in over 40 countries calling for cancellation of unpayable third world debt by the year 2000.

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Concept

The concept came from the biblical idea of the year of Jubilee, the 50th year. In the Jubilee Year as quoted in Leviticus, those enslaved because of debts are freed, lands lost because of debt are returned, and community torn by inequality is restored. It aimed to wipe out $90bn of debt owed by the world's poorest nations, reducing the total to about $37bn.

Activism

Among the supporters of the movement were musician Bono of U2, Muhammad Ali, Bob Geldof, Youssou N'dour, Thom Yorke and others.

The movement seemed to reach a surprising critical mass in the UK with in 1998 G8 Summit when 70,000 people protested peacefully in the centre of Birmingham. At subsequent G8 meetings in Cologne, Okinawa and Genoa debt was very much on the agenda.

Post-Jubilee 2000

It was always intended that Jubilee 2000 would disband at the end of 2000 and this it did. However, offshoots such as the Jubilee Debt Campaign were formed from the ashes, campaigning for governments to make good on their promises. The Debt issue is one of the targets of 2005's Make Poverty History Campaign.

Jubilee Research at the New Economics Foundation, located in London, took over from Jubilee 2000 in 2001 and now provides in-depth analysis and data on third world debt.

See also

External links

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