Saw this posted on another forum, I'm not yet sure of the source, but it's an interesting take on the problem of making poverty history in Africa:
"In the midst of this comes ‘Live 8’, a music concert organised by Bob Geldof and Bono, campaigning to ‘make poverty history’. Their agenda only offers legitimacy to the corruption of the Bush-Blair agenda. Commenting on the debt relief package of 11 June Geldof praised it as "a victory for the millions of people in the campaigns around the world" and Bono called it "a little piece of history". They have ignored the enforced liberalisation and privatisation conditions attached that have historically and will in future create more misery for the people of Africa. Their campaign to ‘make poverty history’ makes a superficial call for debt cancellation but ignores the systemic drive to privatise industry, open markets, and dominate Africa through capitalism. As such it can never solve the serious political and economic crisis in Africa. It colludes with the G8 governments who have simply replaced the old fashioned human slavery with modern day economic slavery. The free market has killed more people in Africa than wars have ever done, and the ‘make poverty history’ campaign mostly ignores the free market, instead focussing people on the superficial aspects of debt relief and modifications to trade rules. Socialists, who do attack capitalism, have no long term constructive solutions to offer from their godless philosophy and offer no hope for the people.
The hope for Africa and elsewhere lies in the Islamic Khilafah or Caliphate. The heritage of Africa with respect to Islam and Khilafah dates back over 1400 years. The famous Islamic historian Ibn Khaldun says that the name Ifriqiya was derived from Irfiqos bin Qais bin Saifi, a ruler of Yemen. Muslims first went as refugees to the land of al Najashi in the time of the Messenger [SAW]. Africa under Islam was not the disaster it is now.
Islam has a unique way of looking at the economy that means that wealth does not accumulate in the hands of the greedy few, and yet it does not discourage enterprise and trade. For example its company law does not allow the existence corporate monopolies that dominate and eat up smaller competitors. Trade flourished in Africa under the Khilafah and could do so again. The proof of this is that places like Zanzibar made their names as famous centres of trade during that era. Furthermore, Islam totally forbids loans with interest hence making it impossible to exploit the people through it; something that has lead to the deaths and misery of millions of innocent people. The Islamic system positively encourages wealth circulation and forbids hoarding in the hands of greedy individuals and corporations.
These things show a fundamental difference between the Islamic solution for Africa’s poverty and that of the west. The most optimistic solutions of the west to ‘make poverty history’ may cancel some debt but global capitalism will remain inherently greedy for Africa’s wealth and resources and will always concentrate it in the hands of a few. Reliance on the voluntary generosity of the few in the hope that the wealth trickle down to the masses will, as ever, fail. Islam has a system that encourages business and enterprise but obliges the state to undertake specific measures that ensure poverty is solved by distributing the wealth widely"
"In the midst of this comes ‘Live 8’, a music concert organised by Bob Geldof and Bono, campaigning to ‘make poverty history’. Their agenda only offers legitimacy to the corruption of the Bush-Blair agenda. Commenting on the debt relief package of 11 June Geldof praised it as "a victory for the millions of people in the campaigns around the world" and Bono called it "a little piece of history". They have ignored the enforced liberalisation and privatisation conditions attached that have historically and will in future create more misery for the people of Africa. Their campaign to ‘make poverty history’ makes a superficial call for debt cancellation but ignores the systemic drive to privatise industry, open markets, and dominate Africa through capitalism. As such it can never solve the serious political and economic crisis in Africa. It colludes with the G8 governments who have simply replaced the old fashioned human slavery with modern day economic slavery. The free market has killed more people in Africa than wars have ever done, and the ‘make poverty history’ campaign mostly ignores the free market, instead focussing people on the superficial aspects of debt relief and modifications to trade rules. Socialists, who do attack capitalism, have no long term constructive solutions to offer from their godless philosophy and offer no hope for the people.
The hope for Africa and elsewhere lies in the Islamic Khilafah or Caliphate. The heritage of Africa with respect to Islam and Khilafah dates back over 1400 years. The famous Islamic historian Ibn Khaldun says that the name Ifriqiya was derived from Irfiqos bin Qais bin Saifi, a ruler of Yemen. Muslims first went as refugees to the land of al Najashi in the time of the Messenger [SAW]. Africa under Islam was not the disaster it is now.
Islam has a unique way of looking at the economy that means that wealth does not accumulate in the hands of the greedy few, and yet it does not discourage enterprise and trade. For example its company law does not allow the existence corporate monopolies that dominate and eat up smaller competitors. Trade flourished in Africa under the Khilafah and could do so again. The proof of this is that places like Zanzibar made their names as famous centres of trade during that era. Furthermore, Islam totally forbids loans with interest hence making it impossible to exploit the people through it; something that has lead to the deaths and misery of millions of innocent people. The Islamic system positively encourages wealth circulation and forbids hoarding in the hands of greedy individuals and corporations.
These things show a fundamental difference between the Islamic solution for Africa’s poverty and that of the west. The most optimistic solutions of the west to ‘make poverty history’ may cancel some debt but global capitalism will remain inherently greedy for Africa’s wealth and resources and will always concentrate it in the hands of a few. Reliance on the voluntary generosity of the few in the hope that the wealth trickle down to the masses will, as ever, fail. Islam has a system that encourages business and enterprise but obliges the state to undertake specific measures that ensure poverty is solved by distributing the wealth widely"