Attendees at the Jubilee Scotland People's Debt Tribunal at the Scottish Parliament yesterday voted overwhelmingly for the cancellation of $3bn worth of unjust debt owed by the Philippines to the World Bank.

The event, hosted by Jubilee Scotland with the support of Sarah Boyack MSP, illustrated the need for a fair and transparent process to deal with the growing problems of global debt.

The jury of MSPs, members of the public and students studying at Edinburgh University, heard from Lidy Nacpil, a campaigner who fought against the Marcos dictatorship, as well as expert witnesses from Heriot-Watt and Stirling universities. The World Bank representative was played by an actor, scripted exclusively from World Bank documents.

Ms Nacpil, representing Jubilee South, spoke of the problems caused in the Philippines due to huge amounts of foreign debt. She also condemned the original loans which were given to Ferdinand Marcos, a dictator who committed huge human rights violations against Filipino citizens and left the country with $28 billion of debts while amassing an estimated personal fortune of $10billion.

“This is a call not for charity, but for justice”

she said during the proceedings of the People's Debt Tribunal.

James Picardo, director of Jubilee Scotland said afterwards:

“Today, Scottish citizens have shown their commitment to justice for everyone suffering from unfair debt. This People's Debt Tribunal has demonstrated that a fair and transparent process is a real possibility, and that Scotland can pay a lead role in finding an answer to the problems of unjust debt.”

Notes:

The Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos is estimated to be the most corrupt in history. During his rule from 1965 to 1986 he personally accrued an estimated $10billion . He left the Philippines with $28billion of debt.

Jubilee Scotland campaigns for an end to unfair debt and is supported by groups across Scotland. Their current Defuse the Debt Crisis campaign is calling for Scotland to promote itself as a seat of arbitration for unpayable poor country debt.

Jubilee South is a network of popular organizations, social movements, religious groups and debt campaigns in over 50 countries of Africa, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean

For more information or interviews contact James Picardo on 0131 225 4321 or 07787322426