Way back in 2006, I call for an end to ecologically hostile finance system with reasons and movements across the world for the same. Describing concrete examples, hurdles , there is called for respecting the inter-faith common commands against usury.

1. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
Transforming World Bank, IMF and WTO for social equity, ecological safety and
distributive justice for renewable resource based livelihoods
Dr. Muhammad Mukhtar Alam
Monday, March 06, 2006
The context
Anti-globalization protest defines our times as much as there are endeavors for
globalization of the movement of capital and technologies, labour and services,
consumption and production patterns. Globalization of the non-renewable resource
based consumption and production pattern has been indicted to be responsible for
increase in the emission of green house gases. Millennium Development Goals has been
signed along with several other documents that call for action for ensuring justice for all
and ensuring an era of peace with justice. In India, Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (Keep the
promises campaign) and a group of organisations organized a South Asia Peoples
Summit Against Poverty in September 2005 where declarations reflected the demands of
the people, marginalized all over the country. Special sessions were conducted on
globalization that called for scrutiny of the foreign capital in the country while describing
World Bank, WTO and IMF as part of the “unholy trinity” that is presiding over the
misery of people and destruction of planet. Declarations of the People Summit Against
Poverty have been shared with UN. Civil Society organizations have organized several
events under Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP). There is a global UN
campaign for realizing millennium development goals with calls for debt cancellation and
debt forgiveness for realizing millennium development goals. Events have been planned
all over the world calling for debt cancellation. Oxfam has led a campaign for debt relief
and trade justice. Some announcement for debt reliefs were made but then the same was
proposed for deduction from the grants that were to be provided under the official
development assistance. It can be seen that debt relief is not a sustainable solution as
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2. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
there is no guarantee that unsustainable debts will not be created in the future.
Therefore, there is a need to get beyond the call for debt cancellation and work for
addressing the root cause of indebtedness within and among the nations and institutions.
This paper will focus on the following:
 Addressing the root cause of indebtedness
 Establishing linkage of the usurious finance system with the ecologically hostile
development paradigm promoted as part of globalization of the prescriptions of
the economists of Washington consensus and protected through the formulation
of security doctrines that does not care for the ecological implications of the
globalization of unsustainable consumption and production patterns.
 Protecting the ecologically sustainable livelihoods as part of poverty reduction
 Establishing local and global solidarities of action for transforming the finance
sector
There are evidences supporting the case of the transforming the processes and
redesigning the mechanisms that ensure freedom from indebtedness. It is important to
seek redress of the root cause of the indebtedness. Forgiving the debts and transforming
the debt to aid could be one time solution but ensuring protection of the local resources
and revenue receipts from taxation in the highly indebtedness nations is critical for
preventing the outflow of hard earned foreign exchanges. This can be done only through
freeing the debt from interest as interest based debts will continue to be a reason for the
outflow of the hard earned foreign exchanges and chronic indebtedness of the nations.
Thus freedom from interest based debt and money is a critical step for addressing the
root cause of indebtedness of the poor and developing countries that also form the
group of highly indebted countries. It has been also established that continuation of
interest bearing debt based financing is ecologically hostile. Creation of the infrastructure
without having a guaranteed supply of the energy is also ecologically hostile. This makes
it imperative that international and national finance sector is transformed. Considering
the above, the paper will attempt to address the following questions:
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3. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
 Why there is a need to transform the finance sector and transform World Bank,
IMF and WTO
 What is being done at the global level towards transformation
 What is being done at the national level
 What can be done
 How to strengthen the movements and get results
Reasons for transforming the finance sector
Evidences are mounting indicating the need to transform the finance sector radically
though there is not much discussion in the civil society about the ways transformation
can be effected. Even the left has no clue, as they are more content with demonizing the
capitalist order. Based on the learnings from interaction with the e-forums and
movements globally , I would like to cite the following reasons for transforming the
World Bank, IMF and WTO.
1. Increasing demands on the state to ensure equity and ecological
sustainability- Following the demands of the movements and scientific assessments
ensuring ecological sustainability and global equity of the consumption and
production processes has been accepted as a key consideration and sustainable
development paradigm has been accepted to be part of the development policies of
the nations that have signed the millennium development goals. Realization of the
millennium development goals for sustainable consumption and production cannot
be achieved without decelerating the consumption of fossil fuel based services and
utilities. This is needed for meeting the challenges of the climate change and
addressing the Kyoto Protocol emission targets. While technology transfer, clean
development mechanisms can have impact, it is important to get the required
reduction in the global emission of the green house gases through transforming the
consumption, production, budgetary allocation and foreign direct investment (FDI)
patterns. Eliminating generation of debt-based money is an important way to
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4. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
minimize the flow of money in the economies of North and South. It is important to
stabilize the currency values and ensure protection to the ecologically sustainable
sources of livelihoods across the world. An unprecedented heating of economies is
being offered as the vision for growing economies such as India and China without
realizing the limits to the sustainability condition of the exhaustible resources. There
is guarantee for ensuring sustainability of the GDP growth rates as there is no
guarantee for the supplies of energy for fuelling the transportation systems based on
fossil fuel based energy.
2. Increased debt service obligation due to the charging of the compound
interests- debt service obligations of the nations in South and North need to be
eliminated for ecologically sustainable growth and for liberating resources for
ensuring access to basic services. Some years ago India had to pay more than 40% of
the tax receipt for servicing the debt. The money could have been used for
developing infrastructure for providing basic services. This is applicable to many
nations of the South that are advised to reform their economies for attracting more
and more FDIs while being compelled to the repay the debts through getting more
loans under various stabilizing mechanisms. Charging of compound interest for both
short tem and long term loans needs to be avoided as this is responsible for the
outflow of the foreign currency and tax receipts /local resources that are vital for the
ecologically sustainable development needs.
3. Creation of fiat money/ usurious money is accelerating globalization of non-
renewable resource based consumption and production patterns. Profit motive
being the key drives all the operations of the World Bank, IMF and other regional
banks such as Asian Development Bank. Making profit from want is presented as a
legitimate reason for charging of interest even for the creation of productive and
ecologically sustainable capacities in the developing countries. It would be important
to liberate banking and finance from usury and charging of the interests. This will
have salutary effect on the movement of capital, as lots of capital will be lost due to
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5. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
the deletion of usurious money from the books of the accounts. Banks will have no
incentive for charging interest on the loans.
4. Globalization of the discontent due to the impacts of climate change- more
and more people are suffering from the impact of climate change that has been
induced by the emission of inequitable consumption of the fossil fuel based services
and utilities across the cities that are experiencing various sorts of globalization.
Differential responsibility for addressing the climate is a hurdle that needs to be
addressed. Exclusion of China and India has been resented as the countries with
higher emission levels are called for meeting the targets while the developing
economies are provided time. Deletion of the usurious money from the system will
have a significant impact on the development financing and analytic and advisory
outputs will be geared for ensuring social equity and ecological sustainability while
catalyzing civil society and political action for simultaneous adoption of consumption
patterns that are ecological friendly and social equitable with focus on the ecologically
sustainable livelihoods. John Bunzl www.simpol.org has been advocating the
principle of simultaneity for meeting the global challenges and this is need for sharing
of the interest free loans at interpersonal, national and global levels.
5. Interest based debt financing with freedom for deregulated banking creating
inequitable prosperity and unsustainable accumulation of wealth. Usurious
finance system is responsible for over accumulation of wealth in some countries that
are benefiting some of the corporations. Instances of distributive injustices galore
and they fuel the call for ensuring the divide for the consumption pattern within and
between the regions and populations groups. Debt relief has been accepted for some
countries that are highly indebted. Uganda is an example where sustained growth has
be projected with the freedom from debt service obligations. Accumulation becomes
unsustainable as there are growing economic divide within the countries that protect
usurious institutions. Also accumulation of nonrenewable resource based wealth is
transitory.
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6. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
6. Dispossession of the poor due to non-payment of interest based loans within
and between the nations- many among the poor and dalits have lost their small
landholding for paying the usurious loans collected from the moneylenders in the
rural areas. Situation in the urban area may be slightly different where access to
public health services is relatively better. Shaheed a construction worker got a serious
injury in the head and he succumbed to death as medical attention was not provided
in time. Sajnu got his leg dismembered due to lack of medicine in right time for small
wound in the leg. Bhikhan, the father of Sajnu in a village called Kishandaspur
(Bihar) in Bhagalpur district and had to sell his land for meeting the medical costs for
his son. There are many poor and dalits who are suffering and losing their
smallholdings for meeting the medical costs in the various states of India. Arif a
young boy is suffering from ulcer and his parents had to take a usurious loan of
Rs.18,000,- for meeting the medical costs. Arif is suffering from peptic ulcer and his
father has taken a usurious loan for meeting the medical cost. Aseer , the father of
Aseer and Darudni his mother are working hard as sharecroppers for meeting the
cost of his son and they are using the hard earned food grains to pay off the usurious
loans .His parent may not be able to pay all the amount and his hard earned
livelihood as a sharecropper will be needed to pay for the loan he incurred for
meeting the medical costs .There are millions of such cases where poor and dalits are
feeling the burnt of the privatization of the medical assistance services and lack of
access to affordable medicine and public health delivery services. It is likely that
millennium development goals for health may not be achieved if access to quality
health care is not ensured and poor are not freed from pawning their meager
resources. Farmers have committed suicides in the several states of India, as they
have not been able to pay the usurious loans. Formation of the union of wives of
such farmers named All India Widow and Destitute Women’s Movement is a
testimony of the peoples suffering. They demonstrated in Delhi and met Sharad
Pawar, the Union minister for Agriculture, Government of India. Indebtedness of
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7. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
the nations similarly dispossesses and deprives the nations of the vital resources and
tax receipts that could be used for providing basic services.
7. Ecologically hostile development paradigm is getting accelerated application
eliminating renewable resource based livelihoods- Usurious finance system is
responsible for the generation of fictitious money that is being pumped in the
ecologically sustainable economies for projects that are ecologically not sustainable.
This is being done through arguing for more foreign direct investment and then
creating a better regulatory environment for investments. This has been part of most
of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers that have been done for obviating the
critique for the structural adjustment programmes that were launched in early 90s
after collapse of Soviet Union.
8. Instituting interest free transactions across the world for ensuring
environment sustainability and ecological safety – For those who have been
convinced of the need to remove usury from the transaction of value at various
levels, it is important to transform the institutions that are involved in shaping the
investment patterns across the regions and continents. There is a need to
communicate on the eliminating permission for private money lending through
charging of usury. There is need to communicate that all men and women believing
in God and the Day of Judgment must stop charging interest on the money that has
been lent. There is need to educate the future generations through including this in
the curricula at all levels. There is a need to eliminate usury and interest from the
loans. This could be one of the major demands of GCAP as it is easier to convince
for interest free loans then debt cancellation by all the nations that are highly
indebted. Returning the principal amount is easier and more dignified. Even so,
forgiving debt is itself a virtuous act.
Actions at the global level
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8. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
1. Global Justice Movement www.globaljusticemovement.net argues that
usury is not necessary. They have based their conclusions on the need to
generate interest free loans for productive capacities. Rodney Shakespeare and
Robert Ashford base their conclusions on the work on binary economics. Dr.
Muhammad Mukhtar Alam has argued for the need to adopt monotheistic
framework for resolving the disputes and creating a global consensus for
transforming banking and money where charging interests is considered a non-
negotiable foundation. Norman Kurland through advocacy of the Third Way is
calling for the elimination if usurious finance.
2. American Monetary Institute www.monetary.org is seeking reform in
USA . Stephen Zarlenga concluding a recent conference in Washington called for
the need for wider acceptance of the need to reform the monetary system.
Currently he is organizing second conference for this in the city of Los Angels.
Details can be seen at www.monetary.org
3. Local exchange trading system LETS promoting barter followed by
hundreds of groups across Europe www.letslink.org . There is recognition of
the need to promote exchange of commodities and services in real terms rather
than through using paper currency. People are already exchanging services and
commodities in LETS network. More than 250 networks have been formed
across Europe recognizing the evils of the paper currency and eliminating usury.
4. JAK bank (Sweden) calls itself first interest free bank. They are running the
bank based on the principle of cooperation without charging interest. All those
participating in the bank are stakeholders and they are running the bank through
recognizing the peoples need for transaction of value rather than for being part
of the enterprise where peoples need are exploited for generating usurious profit
for some of the stakeholders.
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9. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
5. Islamic banking (banks following the commands against the usury) is
based on sharing of the losses and sharing of the profits and Muslims
globally are interested in freedom from the usurious finance system. Allah
commands all to forgive debts if possible and stop charging usury. There are
several verses in Qur’an to this effect. There are commands in the Bible and
Sanskrit texts as well. Muslims feel that Christians and Jews should follow the
commands of God in Bible and they should join their forces for liberating
banking from usury. Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs , Jains following the commands
need to oppose partaking of the food obtained through usurious money. Thus all
of us with various religious identities need to say No to usury. Saying No to usury
thus is not only pleasing for God but also for establishing fair deals for fellow
human beings in need. Globalisation of the usurious finance system is responsible
for the ecologically hostile and socially inequitable distribution, consumption and
production patterns. Thus abolition of the ususry from the loans is part of the
negations that are ecological imperative. In Dubai, Islamic Mint
www.islamicmint.com produces e-dinars and it is selling its e-gold products
following the Islamic standards. The e-dinars are produced for fulfilling the
religious obligation of paying zakat better.
6. In London, a campaign called Campaign for Interest free money has been
launched www.interestfreemoney.org for making money and banking
interest free. This indicates the fact that more and more people are joining the
crusade against exploitative usurious finance system. There are more and more
reasons to attend to the call of the movements and call for the need to transform
the institutions and transform the individual mindsets that are supportive of the
usurious finance system.
7. Bernard Laitier conceived EURO and defined the exchange mechanisms. He
has called for the rethinking money in an article that was published in the
Ecologist. He has proposed “terra” to be the global stable currency.
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10. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
8. David Korten , the author of “When Corporations Rule the World” changed
his thesis for pointing out that it is the finance system that is responsible for the
over accumulation of wealth, unstable security environment and accelerating
ecological degradation. In his powerful article once posted at
http://intraforum.com/money, he has called for interest free money. David
Korten has led the anti-globalization movements.
9. www.seektoknow.net/money contains an article produced by Samita Barua. She
has built on the writings of Buckminister Fuller and argues for interest free
banking and money. She writes from a Buddhist perspective.
10.Brettonwoods project is keeping a watch on World Bank, IMF and WTO and
their projects and programmes. There are several movements that are weary of
the machinations of the Bank and Fund though they are not exactly proposing
what the Fund and Bank should. This paper contains the ideas for seeking a
change in the operational principles of banking and finance.
Transforming money/finance in India
1. Bharat Jan Andolan has launched national Movement for the eradication
of usury under the overall guidance of BD Sharma. BD Sharma has extensively
worked on the state of farmers and agricultural credit details the history of
dilution of laws preventing usury in Bihar and other states. He has spoken in the
various forums and has called for national mobilization for liberating the debtors
from compound interest.
2. South Asian People Summit Against Poverty called for transformation of the
“unholy” trinity of World Bank, IMF and WTO – Peoples Summit Against
Poverty was organized on 3-4 September and there was a special session on
globalisation. Prof. Babu Mathew had drafted the concept paper with the input
from the people’s movements. Recommendations included scrutiny of the
foreign capital, transformation of the policies of World Bank, WTO and IMF.
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11. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
3. Arundhati Roy has been writing extensively on the need to transform
institutions through exposing the working of World Bank. Her writings and
participation in the movements of the oppressed and displaced are part of the
expressions of the strong opposition to the globalisation of the ecologically
unsustainable development policies across the world.
What can be done
1. Build solidarities of action and communication for transforming the
finance sector – Considering the criticality of the millennium development goals
, it is important to free the resources for investment is sustainable social
development projects that help men and women in preserving ecologically
sustainable livelihoods across the nations and regions. Governments, networks,
civil society organisations, movements, citizen groups and clubs all need to call
for action against usurious transaction. A Global March/Movement for
Transforming Finance Sector is proposed for discussing suitable actions all
over the world.
2. Call for transforming functioning and principles of banking and money- It
is important to call for transforming World Bank, IMF and WTO and make them
ecological friendly and socially responsive. Considering the call for elimination of
usury from the transactions across the religions, it can be seen that responses are
for the pleasure of God as well and thus in the best interests of all.
3. Seek consensus for the unified proposal for World Bank, IMF and other
key banker of bankers-Islamic movements, liberals, democrats, Muslims,
Greens, Left, faith leaders and all need to unite for generating the mass
movement for a unified proposal for transforming institutions. As per the
established procedures, first and foremost is to generate acceptance for the
proposals that are ecologically sound and that serve the best interests of future
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12. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
generations. The consensus can be generated for liberating debts from simple and
compound interest. God fearing men and women leading the governments and
organization will have not difficulty in accepting the proposal. Those who do not
believe in the merit of abolishing usury can be persuaded for abolishing usury
considering the ecological limits to globalization of non-renewable resource based
consumption, production and urban planning patterns.
4. Include the demand for transforming money and banking in all the
communications related to poverty reduction- Millennium Development
Campaign has been focusing on the goals 1-7 and call to the funding consortiums
have been made for increasing aid for the nations as part of goal number 8. It is
extremely unlikely that goal number 7 for ensuring environment sustainability will
be met unless there is a global adoption of interest free banks and debts.
5. Combine the learning of secular and faith based perspectives for making
money and banking interest free-The work of Rodney Shakespeare and Robert
Ashford on binary economic analysis has proved the need to get rid of usury.
Global Justice Movement recognizes the importance of Islam-submitting to the
commands of Allah. Binary economic analysis is a secular analysis and it has been
concluded that interest is not necessary. Muslims will be the happiest if they have
to deal with usury free local/regional/national/international transaction
neighborhood. It is only men and women who have not faith in the commands
of Allah who will resist the communication based on the need to seek best here
and in hereafter through eliminating usury from the transactions. Pious Jews,
Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Zoroastrians, Buddhists and Jain are equally cognizant
of the commands against charging interest for loans in the related Sanskrit texts.
Following the dictum of not loving things that one does not like for oneself, ones
own relatives and dears one , it is likely that all of us following various religions
will stand up against the usury and call for abolition from our own transactions
and from the transaction of institutions.
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13. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
Strengthening movements safeguarding futures
1. Environmental sustainability is linked with the development model –
globalization of fossil fuel based consumption and production pattern is proving
deadly for ecological safety. There are many evidences for the same. Increased
intensity of the cyclones are linked with global warming that is directly related
with increased emission of green house gases. Globalization of ecologically
hostile development paradigm supported through usurious finance system has to
be halted, as it is responsible for creating socially inequity in the consumption and
production patterns at the global scale. Delhi is an example of a city that is
experiencing the same. Metro project has consumed lot of space that had trees
while there is no guarantee for the supplies of energy in the future. India has been
forced to vote for an immoral position on Iran for securing nuclear energy with
the assistance of the US and other countries controlling the supplies of Uranium.
One the one hand, tribal and forest dwellers are being relocated for industrial
development and defense related projects, on the other hand they are being
relocated for the protecting the wild species. Such policy moves are depriving
millions from access to ecologically sustainable livelihoods that had been available
for millions of years. Apparently globalization of non-renewable resource based
consumption and production is being sought without recognizing the facts that
fossil fuels and such other treasures gifted by God is exhaustible. Dean Steele
supporting the globalization of hydrogen fuelled vehicles calls for preservation of
the hydrocarbons for essential need and not for leisure and pleasure.
2. Movements and institutions need to understand the linkage and call for
transforming the finance sector and transforming consumption pattern as
a global imperative- There is need to understand this linkage and disseminate
across the movements and CSOs. Making loans wipes out the fictitious money.
Transforming consumption pattern through adopting alternative measures for
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14. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
leisure helps in the deceleration of the consumption of the fossil fuel based
energy intensive utilities. GCAP must not promote energy intensive poverty
concerts as that is an ecologically hostile activity. Several organisations
and movements boycotted th same in New Delhi on 4 September. Such
events are hurdles in realizing the MDGs for environment sustainability and they
are part of the copycat atheistic neo-liberal globalisation of leisure use patterns
that include use of energy intensive modes of peoples assemblies for
communication and entertainment.
3. Global call to action against poverty should consider this as part of
consistent communication strategy- GCAP and Millennium Development
Campaign ought to consider the need to free resources for social development
across the regions through abolishing interest based loans and minimizing
budgetary allocation for defense. The Global Compact for realizing the
millennium development goals needs to consider the need to transform financing
for developing through calling for interest free money and debt both for
ecological justice and social justice. Large sums of money for serving the debt
must stop for ensuring ecologically sustainable development across the world.
Money freed can be used for realizing the MDGs 1-7 while ensuring global
partnership and meeting the MDG 8 for a just and ecologically sustainable world.
4. Creating synergy through making this a cross cutting concern- There is a
need to have a united recognition of the need to transforming operational
principles of banking for meeting and there is need to create global mobilization
of people for the same. We can see that interest free loans are good for all. We
will not have to reckon with the violent armed struggles that are responsible for
the loss of lives, We will have ecologically sane development across the world
.We may have an utopia realized here in now that is responsive to the concerns of
collective human security, ecological safety, social justice, global compact for
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15. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
MDGs. We would be ready to meet the interspecies justice and secure an
ecologically sustainable, social just future for future generations and ourselves.
Hurdles
UN system has been advised to identify hurdles in realizing the MDG. It can be seen
that usurious finance system is single most important hurdle along with exhibitionist
consumption patterns that is propelled by the globalization of atheistic neo-liberal
political and cultural ideology.
1. Economists and corporations who are interested in preserving the status
quo- Economists associated with the Washington Consensus process are known
to be forwarding the idea that has been captured by some as market
fundamentalism. Some Greens also think that privatization of all the services will
permit incorporation of the ecological costs as corporations can not run without
the support of the consumers who respond to prices for their consumption
patterns. Even so, we can consider the amount of ecological rucksacks and
footprints that will have to be mitigated if there is no conscious global action for
transforming the World Bank and other bankers. Application of atheistic social
Darwinism for access to the nonrenewable resource based consumption patterns
and status markers will be extremely dangerous in a world where politics of
identity is being played at the global level through subjugating the class and
religion based discourses for local and global governance.
2. Men and women who wish to continue the enterprise of discontent
without finding solutions through organizing ecologically hostile
conferences –This is being said considering some patterns across the
conferences that are organized for meeting the global challenges and for solving
the global problems. The work on AIDS can be seen as an example where a faith
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16. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
based communications is prohibited recognizing the need to protect a privileged
position for the adulterers. Meetings of the financing for development have been
organized while recognizing the fact that some issues are not practical. It is likely
that the propositions contained in this paper are described utopian. That is why,
it is important to expand the knowledge base and seek radical solutions.
Organisations such as Action Aid promoting radical solutions are expected to
take the proposal for transforming the fundamental principle of banking and
money for ensuring global stability and ecological safety. It is expected that
GCAP will seize the historic opportunity for advocating and changing the
financing for development through making it interest free. We may have a better
scenario for poverty in the year 2015, if we could ensure that financing for
MDGs is debt free.
3. Political parties that are not aware of the long-term needs – Green Parties
across the world though with a following of the minority are cognizant of the
need to address the ecological challenges. Left do not appear to be arguing
specifically for meeting the ecological challenges as they still appear not to be
distinguishing between the call for distributive justice for nonrenewable and
renewable resource based livelihoods. Even so, outcome of their resistance for
halting the march of atheistic neo-liberal capitalism are eco friendly. They need
recognize the contribution of the faith based political parties such as Christian
democrats, PAS , Hamas and others across who recognize the importance of
seeking eternal well-being for all through promoting the use of faith based
measures. Use of violence by some groups can be seen in the specific social,
political and cultural context. Maoists in Nepal seek establishing of constitutional
democracy (The Hindu, Feb 9-10 2006) with or without the monarchy. They
have been calling for an end to the monarchy for promoting competitive
democracy and seek the change though violent actions if required. There is need
for all the political parties to understand the collective challenges .It would be
useful for colleagues in GCAP and MDG campaign if the conferences were
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17. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
organized for educating the political leaders across the world. It is possible to
generate agreement on the commons for transforming the finance sector as the
call is being made utilizing both secular and faith based arguments. Government
and corporate sector could also organize meetings and discussion for establishing
the argument for transforming the finance sector and consumption patterns.
Governments are responding to the same and the pace can be accelerated with
the formulation of key propositions that are addressing for eliminating the
crosscutting hurdles.
4. Lack of education on the faith-based alternatives- there is significant absence
of education on faith-based alternatives for addressing the issue of poverty,
indebtedness, and development and there are strong resistances globally for the
faith-based alternatives. Author has grown to believe that adoption of the
commands of God noted in the texts of various religious traditions is needed for
facilitating decisions against usurious finance system. There are call for resisting
and opposing the globalisation of the economic system but then there does not
exist articulation and discussion on the faith based alternatives as that is
associated with Samuel Huntington’s thesis on clash of civilizations. There are
assessments of the “postmodern” condition without any prescription for an
alternative form of economic, political, cultural and global governance.
Solutions
1. Institutionalization of the discourse on transforming the finance sector –
This is being proposed considering the need to educate for global action, as we
may not get the results quickly. The ICT enabled communication; capacity
building and dissemination packages will be able to quickly transmit the key
arguments with local actions across the world. Inclusion of the interest free
banking as a theory and practice is an urgent academic innovation that needs
inclusion in the teaching of economics across the world. As of now, there does
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18. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
not exist arguments for interest free banking derived from the faith based
communications as they have been ignored by the atheistic rationalists. Already
there are associations of ecological economists who have been arguing for
rethinking progress. Richard B Norgaard has called for the same through
exposing the myths around the definition of progress. Pavel Kasyanov , the
president of Ecological Economists Association in Russia had been part of
alternative draft of WSSD in 2002 along with the author of this note and Michael
Ellis.
2. Mass mobilization for abolishing usury from interpersonal and institution
transactions –Mass mobilization is need for creating a global consensus for
calling World Bank and other banks for eliminating usury and interest from the
transactions. God fearing men and women will be most forthcoming is
supporting the move as they would not be able to say Yes to usury fearing the
destiny on the Day on Judgment. There are clear commands. More awareness and
communication on the issue will be required for social groups where even faith-
based communication against usury is low. For atheistic rationalists, it would not
be possible to deny the ecological impact of the globalization of non-renewable
resource based consumption pattern. Greens all over the world cannot deny.
Atheistic communists cannot fail in recognizing usury to be the important of part
of capitalism. Buddhists and Jains would not be able to deny considering the
injunctions and exhortations for choosing the right livelihood. Hindus would not
refuse the precepts of dhammapada. (Please refere the article on The History of Interest at
www.monetary.org that has cited commands in the sacred texts across the religions). It can be
seen that with such an understanding , it would not be possible to refuse the
arguments. I think, this ought to be key proposition for the action plan of
GCAP till 7 July 2007. We could demand all the financing for development
to be interest. Make developing financing interest free for MDGs and
poverty reduction globally and locally.
A note for GCAP and MDG campaign 18

19. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
3. Review of the monotheistic perspective for united endeavor at all levels-
This is being suggested considering the appropriateness of the monotheistic
framework for generating united power for transforming financing for
development and then for transforming consumption patterns. Induction of the
standards of piety all in the civil society movements with adoption of prayer and
meditation 5 times is a powerful tool for transforming behavior, decision and
consumption patterns across the world. Promotion of interest free loans saves
lots of poor in India who are approaching the moneylenders for meeting medical
assistance, buying inputs for agriculture and other. Freedom from debt service
obligations provides a lot of resources that can be used for providing vital
medical assistance to the poor who are being left at the mercy of the market
forces. A church movement called Sojourners in US www.sojourners.com is
calling for application of the communications of Jesus Christ (Peace be upon
him) for transforming foreign policy and social security establishment in US.
4. Discussions with the World Bank, IMF and other institutions- there is need
to initiate discussions with the World Bank while seeking global application of
UNDP promoted Sustainability Index for investments in general and FDIs in
particular. There is a need to point out the need for the adoption of internal
coherence in pursuing the development policies. Use of environment impact
assessments needs to be informed more stringently considering the frequency of
natural disasters that are more man made. Ecological audits1 are be made
compulsory each year for the institutions and governments.
5. International meet on the solutions- It is possible for GCAP to decide for
regional conferences for discussing the solutions. UN may be requested to
consider an international meet for transforming the finance sector and
consumption pattern for social justice and collective ecological safety.
1
The proposal for conducting Ecological Audit had been proposed by the author in the meeting of Wada
Na Todo Abhiyan in January 2006 and the author of this note is in the process of developing the
operational procedures for conducting the same.
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20. Interest free financing for MDGs and global ecological security
Governments may be requested to consider the need to present memorandums
to the World Banks for transforming the finance sector.
6. Inclusion in the MDGs- This note has been developed considering the
inclusion of debt relief in the millennium development goals while recognizing
that the relief is a temporary measure. There is need to call for debt free financing
and interest free debts for the realization of millennium development as inequities
can not be addressed without addressing the underlying reason for equity. There
is a need to eradicate the reason for indebtedness within and between the nations
and eliminate the morally abominable, socially inequitable and ecologically hostile
practice charging interest on the loans. Recognizing the criticality of MDGs, there
is need to suggest transforming finance sector and financing for MDGs at least
by 7-7-2007 when globally we will be mobilizing for assessing the achievement of
MDGs.
Reference:
1. Human Development Report 2003, Millennium Development Goals: A Compact
Among Nations to End Human Poverty UNDP
2. Global Justice Movement www.globaljusticemovement.net
3. Islamic Mint www.islamicmint.com
4. American Monetary Institute www.monetary.org
5. Social Watch India: Citizens Report on Governance and Development 2004,
National Social Watch Coalition
6. Interviews with Prachanda, the leader of Maoists in Nepal ,The Hindu, February
9-11,2006
A note for GCAP and MDG campaign 20