Thursday, 11am - A VALE of Belvoir woman who helped organise the Jubilee 2000 Human Chain in Birmingham urging world leaders to write off third world countries' debt, will return to the city this weekend to mark a decade since the event was held.
Mitch de Faria, from Branston, was part of the team behind the event in May 1998, which saw thousands of people assemble to urge politicians attending the G8 Summit in the city to Drop the Debt.
Several 10th anniversary events are being held over the weekend and Mitch will meet other organisers involved in the original Human Chain on Sunday.
She said: "For some of us the event was a defining moment. For those countries that have benefited from debt remission achieved as a direct result of that day's action and all the activities since, it was even more significant.
"Before the demonstration, world debt relief had not been on the G8 leaders' agenda. After the protest by so many had been seen in news coverage across the world, the issue not only went to the top of that agenda but was the cause of a special G8 report - the first in that organisation's history.
"The Drop the Debt campaign has been an incredible success, but action on debt has to continue as there remains $400 billion still to be written off, interest on which costs the world's 100 poorest countries over $100 million every day, precluding investment in health, education and other basic resources."
Mitch is urging anyone who supports the Drop the Debt campaign to go to Birmingham on Sunday to take part in the events.
Find more information on the Jubilee Debt Campaign by clicking here.The full article contains 291 words and appears in Grantham Journal newspaper.
