Mandela joins anti-poverty drive
31 January 2005
Nelson Mandela is throwing his weight behind an international campaign to "Make Poverty History". He will be addressing a crowd of thousands in Trafalgar Square on 3 February before addressing the finance ministers of some of the world's leading industrial nations.
Nelson's Column is to be wrapped in a white ribbon, the symbol of the campaign, for the event.
The campaign, launched earlier this year, is an effort to persuade the British government to take a lead in tackling world poverty in 2005. A coalition of over 200 charities, campaigns, trade unions, faith groups and celebrities is behind the campaign.
The campaigners believe that the British government has an unprecedented opportunity to influence world leadership in 2005.
Mandela will meet with the finance ministers of the G7 group of leading industrial nations (USA, UK, Germany, Canada, Russia, Japan, Italy, France) while in London.
In addition to the G7 meeting, the
British government will host the G8 (G7 plus Russia) summit in July, and assume the presidency of the European Union (EU) in the second half of the year.
Tearfund.org, part of the coalition, believes that the UK government's voice "will have added importance at international meetings" and that "there is a real prospect of progress being made on many development issues".
The campaign has already received the support of UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown.
Oxfam's Adrian Lovett, part of the Make Poverty History coalition, said that Mandela's presence in London would send "a clear signal from one of the world's greatest heroes that 2005 is the year when we strike a huge blow against world poverty.
"His presence is not only a rallying cry to the public to get involved, but serves notice to rich countries that the world will not put up with false promises, delays and hollow sound bites", Lovett added.
"This has to be the year that rich countries take
action and increase their aid budgets, reform the rules of trade, and finally end the debt burden that is destroying the livelihoods of millions of people."
SouthAfrica.info reporter
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