Kenya: Activists drum for debt cancellation

Activists used drama, acrobatic shows, poetry, music and dance to press for total cancellation of Kenya's foreign debt, as the Global Week of Action on Debt drew to a close in Nairobi last Saturday. "G8, we have a question for you: why do you want us to suffer? Why do you want us to perish? Cancel the debts!" sang Hope Raisers, a group of teenage musicians from Korogocho slum. The activists, including the faiths, youth and women's grassroots groups under the Kenyan Debt Relief Network (KENDREN) and the Catholic Economic Justice -Africa, converged on the city's Uhuru (freedom) Park on Saturday. "We must unite and reject the slavery of foreign debt," Nairobi lawyer Ng'ang'a Thiong'o told the crowd. African leaders must also stop stealing public resources and reject development models imposed on their countries by Western nations and lending institutions, such as IMF and the World Bank, Ng'ang'a said. Source: Fides