U.N. nuncio says world debt is an illness that needs to be cured

Published: 2003-10-27

UNITED NATIONS (CNS) -- The Vatican nuncio to the United Nations called Oct. 24 for the international community to deal with the debt issue in a way that would keep the same problems from arising in the future. "The international debt is like an illness," said Archbishop Celestino Migliore. "Unless completely cured, it is bound to recur." Speaking at U.N. headquarters in New York, he said that "no satisfactory solutions" had been found for the "chronic debt crisis" despite all the attention given to it, and the external debt of the developing countries has in fact increased. In recent years, the Vatican has repeatedly urged the international community to alleviate the financial burden of debt that keeps poor countries from being able to use their scarce resources to meet the basic needs of their people. Renewing this appeal, Archbishop Migliore said debt was a moral as well as a technical question because the financial burden it imposes affects the ability of poor countries to offer even "minimum levels of health care and education."

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