FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
In the spirit of this Jubilee Year, I urge the international community to work towards forgiving foreign debt in recognition of the ecological debt existing between the North and the South of this world. This is an appeal for solidarity, but above all for justice.
— Pope Francis, Message for World Day of Peace
Montreal, January 27, 2025. In this Jubilee Year, Development and Peace — Caritas Canada eagerly joins with Caritas Internationalis, KAIROS Canada and other partners to raise a voice for debt justice. Responding to the call of Pope Francis and the biblical hope of a Jubilee, people around the world are mobilizing to call on creditors and politicians to cancel unjust debt and put people and the planet before profit.
On December 24, 2024, Pope Francis inaugurated the Jubilee Year by opening the first Holy Door in Rome. In response, Caritas Internationalis launched the international campaign to Turn Debt into Hope. Made up of 162 organizations, Caritas Internationalis is the largest international humanitarian network in the world after the Red Cross.
KAIROS Canada, an ecumenical movement made up of 10 member churches and religious organizations, including Development and Peace — Caritas Canada, is coordinating efforts across the country to invite Canadians into this important moment for economic and ecological justice.
The global campaign invites all people to sign a petition calling for action to:
- Stop the debt crisis now by cancelling and remedying unjust and unsustainable debts without economic policy conditions.
- Prevent debt crises from happening again by addressing their root causes, reforming the global financial system to prioritize people and planet.
- Establish a permanent, transparent, binding and comprehensive debt framework within the United Nations.
Resolving the debt crisis is long overdue. 3.3 billion people live in countries that spend more money on debt servicing than either healthcare or education, stifling development. Some countries have no reasonable way of paying back their debt, trapping them in a cycle of credit and condemning future generations to debt. Foreign debt is also holding back necessary funding for climate adaptation, mitigation and a just transition to green energy.
As a member of the G7 and the president of its annual meeting in 2025, Canada has a unique role to play in prioritizing economic and ecological justice. Development and Peace — Caritas Canada urges the Government of Canada to champion the three points in the global petition and to invite its peer nations to do the same.
Billions of people around the world are being crushed under the weight of ballooning debt, as countries in the Global North continue to exploit the resources of the Global South and Indigenous communities. The interests of creditors and extractive industries should not be placed above the interests of people and the planet. We call on all Canadians to make their voice heard by signing the petition, telling the global community that our system must change. As Pope Francis reminds us in this Jubilee Year, this is an appeal for solidarity, but above all for justice.
For more information or to sign the petition, visit devp.org/debt.
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About Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada
Development and Peace — Caritas Canada is the official international development organization of the Catholic Church in Canada. It works in partnership with local organizations in over 30 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin American and the Middle East to create greater justice in the world and to act in solidarity with the most vulnerable people.
For more information, contact:
Minaz Kerawala
Communications and Public Relations Advisor
Development and Peace ― Caritas Canada
514 257-8710 ext. 328 | mkerawala@devp.org
