International debt is something that is stifling human freedom and has disastrous consequences for our global family. The debilitating reality of nations trapped in the consequences of debt creates, in my opinion, another form of slavery. Again, it seems, the poor are providing for the rich. Indeed, the awesome burden of international debt causes, at the most extreme level, a loss of dignity and hope. Debt Slavery Millions of people are condemned to poverty because money that could be used for basic needs such as health, nutrition, clean water and housing is instead channelled to make payments to creditors.
Structural adjustment is used to force poor countries to service insurmountable debts.
Nations have been retooled by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund to embrace free market principles. The result has been increased poverty, ecological degradation, and a net flow of wealth and resources from the poor to the rich. While the debtor nations of the South experience the greatest hardship, paying the government debt in countries like Canada has meant that persons who are poor and marginalized sacrifice the most. Governments at all levels have addressed deficit reduction primarily through cuts to social programmes and public services. Had the government taken a different approach involving lower interest rates, financing more of the national debt through the Bank of Canada, and fairer taxation, these injustices could have been avoided.