Looking at this through human psychology; a man, country, whatever borrows an amount of money that another lends him with the understanding that good faith is involved, and the borrower is left with the feeling of honor on his part and with the resolve when he can he will pay it back. The lender probably knows that this debt will likely never be able to be paid back, but does it anyway so each have “face”. The lender feels humbled that he has helped without sending notices to remind the borrower that it’s been a long time. If something is given to you under these conditions I’m not sure that absolving the debts is best for the borrower or the lender. It will be interesting to see what the World Bank thinks.
As far as someone fasting for 40 days, I hope he has considerable girth to feed him, or they may have a funeral at the end of the 40 days!;)

Well, when some (several?) of the loans were taken out under dictators who made off with a lot of the proceeds and left the country with the debt, I have to wonder if the lender, who should have expected such behavior, shouldn’t be left holding the bag.
This is not like Bill borrowing money and wanting to get out of the debt, it’s all too often like Bill borrowing the money and making off with it and leaving his wife and children to try to pay it back.
There are other reasons for such debt relief but I’ll probably leave it to others to list some more.

I for one have no intention of giving up food (which I enjoy) for forty days so that some countries can skip paying their debts. I think the whole question of countries paying their debts is best left to those who made the loans in the first place, in this case, the governments in question. I think fasting is a useful and Biblical tool, but it is to be used for personal spiritual advancement, not to try to force others to do your bidding. So, pass the hamburgers, please, and let the nations involved collect or not collect the debts owed to them as they are able.

I think that the spiritual leaders are probably prayerfully fasting (and it looks like each for one day) for an answer to extreme poverty.
Many third world countries with legitimate governments cannot afford to provide many of the basic needs of their people because there is no money left in the budget after debt payments are made. No clean water, limited education… If debt is forgiven these governments will be better able to care for their people.
Please go to http://www.one.org for additional information on ideas to eradicate such poverty.

Ditto to the statement that it is hoped that Dumcombe is on the larger size. Fasting 40 days will certainly take a bit of weight off even if he isn’t on the heavy size.
W.C. I agree with your stance on this.

Correction: Should be larger SIDE not size. Sorry.

I appreciate the sentiment and agree with their stance, but the gesture benefits no one really (OK, now my own people will call me a heretic. Sigh)
I genuinely expect no one thought these “debts” would actually get repaid – even when the “loans” were drawn up. What would they use as meaningful collateral? Can we truly foreclose on a country? These are political machinations and this entire charade of repayment is a tissue thin slice of discount balogna. Rather than going through all of this pretense, why not simply accept these financial arrangements are grants. Even if there was a way to extort the money back from the countries, it would surely be at the expense of the multitudes, who had nothing to do with asking for and reaped no benefit from getting the monies.
Fasts for causes mean little unless the money that might have otherwise been spent on food is contributed to the object of their political affection. Given the scale of these “debts” the entire western hemisphere, and most of Europe would have to starve a very long time to make up the difference. And THEN we would have to subsidize our own farmers who would have lost money selling their crops. The insanity of the whole thing just spirals!

“Neither a borrower or a lender be…”
You’re right, jestrfyl. How can we expect these countries to pay back funds when they have nothing. Um, blood from a turnip comes to mind.
The news that these figures are fasting sure brings attention to the cause, though, doesn’t it?

Jeez, that Shakespeare quote wasn’t obvious, was it?? It’s early for me.

A rule of thumb for the World Bank…
The only people/countries who should borrow money are those that don’t need it. If they have oil, they won’t need loans.
If the collateral they have is a wind swept desert, don’t expect to get repaid. The exception is if they come to you with live chickens. You MAY get eggs.
If the leader of the country promises not to use the money you give/lend him for guns, don’t believe him He may not use THAT money, but he will surely use the other money that might have gone for food, but now does not have to.
Fund schools, alternative energy programs, and water reclamation projects. Anything else will go for guns.