CAPITALISM'S ACHILLES HEEL Dirty Money and How to

Spreading Prosperity 355
turn of the millennium, without dramatic success. Reneging on debt may
become necessary, but before this step is taken we should first move in the
direction of balancing the scales of justice.
The challenge put forward to the World Bank in Chapter 7 contributes
to this process. An estimated $500 billion of illicit proceeds flows out of developing
and transitional economies into western coffers every year. I called
on the World Bank to produce its own estimate, forewarning that its figure
could be higher. Appreciating the magnitude of illegal outflows from poorer
countries into richer countries is a key element in understanding the ridiculousness
of the debt issue.
Parallel with this effort, careful consideration needs to be given to a basic
question: Is debt repayment by poorer countries in the best interest of
our shared global community? Specifically, the Secretary General of the
United Nations should pose this question and name a Panel of Eminent Persons
to address the issue. The panel, similar to the international group that
helped achieve majority rule in South Africa, should be drawn from among
people who have demonstrated a broad global view. And it should produce a
clear conclusion: Out of developing and transitional countries, debt repayment
is or is not a contributor to the common interests of humankind. With
clarity on what benefits both debtors and creditors, this issue can begin to
move forward.
To serve on this Panel of Eminent Persons, the following are recommended:
Vaclav Havel, former president of the Czech Republic.
Joseph Stiglitz, economist and Nobel Prize winner.
Bono, debt expert and humanitarian.
Vargas Llosa, Peruvian writer.
Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa and Nobel Prize
winner.
Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and former UN high
commissioner for human rights.
Fujio Mitarai, president of Canon Inc.
Bill Gates, global humanitarian.