August 2006
Issue No. 392
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The kingdom of capital
Chris Richards steps into the secret world of high finance.
The banks are made of marble
The true owners of the silver in the vaults.
Banks against the wall
Anil Netto finds out how Malaysian Government money ends up in the pockets of the wealthy.
Transfer the problem
Banks ditch the poor, reports Yvonne Chua from the Philippines.
Confessions of a banker
Together with a whistleblower, Lucy Komisar exposes the offshore operations of the world’s biggest bank.
Give them credit
As the credit card consumes Chile, Lezak Shallat takes stock.
Plastic smiles
The cultural transition from savings to credit.
The bang in the buck
Dheepthi Namasivayam goes in search of banks that refuse to lend to arms traders.
On the people's account
New Internationalist campaigners explore alternative banking and resources.
News, views, and & voices
Currents
Assault on free speech
Government desperate to restrict the spreading rural revolt
Bolivian land returned to the people
Two million hectares have been earmarked for women and indigenous peoples.
Exodus
Iraqis flee in terror from the war on terror
Let the dirty tricks begin!
Vets for Freedom comes under scrutiny.
One laptop at a time?
A small but powerful $100 laptop designed for school children in the Majority World.
Paradise Regained
Chagos islanders resist superpowers
Seriously
Because football is for infidels
Speechmarks
Thomas Alva Edison
Word Power
The language of Majority World healthcare
Worldbeaters
Robert Friedland
Mixed Media
Music
Introducing Etran Finatawa
Music
Ok-Oyot System
Music
Techari
Book
Havana Black
Book
The Servant Problem
Film
Little Fish
Film
The Death of Mr Lazarescu
Southern Exposure
Medallions filled with spiritual spells that might heal the mentally ill, captured by Bangladeshi photographer Md Main Uddin.
View from Lagos
Those who built up Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Ethiopia’s Meles Zenawi as model African leaders are now recanting. But don’t despair, says Ike Oguine – take heart from the civil-society pressure that has exposed their excesses.
Essay: The privatization of Patagonia
Rich foreign investors, including Luciano Benetton and Ted Turner are buying up huge areas of Argentina’s southern wilderness – to the dismay of the local indigenous peoples. Tomás Bril Mascarenhas exposes the new conquistadores.
Big Bad World by Polyp
Spot the greedy bastard in Polyp’s latest cartoon.
Making Waves
Meet Lalo Moreyra, one of the environmentalists fighting tooth and nail against a huge pulp-mill project in Uruguay.
Letter from Mauritius
More on the Chagos Islanders: Lindsey Collen introduces the women who have kept the decades-long struggle alive.
Country Profile: Belize
Belize is a renowned eco-tourist destination for ‘reef and rainforest’ holidays. Tourism has come at a cost though, including damage to the reef, adding to that from pollution and global warming.
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from
THIS MONTH'S EDITOR
As politicians stride down the steps of Parliament House in Melbourne, Australia, looking out over their city for inspiration, they see a horizon dominated by banks. Tall skyscrapers owned by the banks. Big signs advertising the banks. And soon their vista will include the National Australia Bank’s new logo – ‘nab’ – no doubt lit up on the top of some building. I have to admit that this change has impressed me. While I know that those advertising teams just love to advertise everything in small lettering now, the new logo shows truly amazing insight. It reflects what people think about the banking industry generally, which is something that banks haven’t shown much interest in lately. For in everyday language, ‘nab’ means ‘seize’ – the very thing that everyone’s scared the banks will do to their homes if they get into debt and can’t pay their mortgages or overdrafts. It also means ‘snatch’ – which is what happens to parts of our deposits when banks impose their fees and penalties.
Indeed, the logo is an honest portrayal of what other big banks are helping their clients do with the money of whole countries. The stories in this magazine contain capital movements beyond the imagination of us ordinary people – schemes that are robbing governments of staggering amounts of tax. The issues raised in these pages need to be brought to the attention of politicians and acted upon urgently. It’s refreshing to know that the ‘nab’ on their horizon will help to remind them.
Chris Richards
for the New Internationalist Co-operative
chrisr@newint.com.au
Voices from the margins:
Multimedia: video, podcasts, and more.
- Poetry Slam in Zimbabwe
- The House of Hunger poetry slam held in Zimbabwe in 2006, and organised by the Pamberi Trust, showcased young artists performing inspirational work on issues from corporate power to child soldiers. The video features four of the poets.
Published by Pambazuka News.
- Iranian women speak out
- 3 March 2007, London. Women's rights activists marched through the English capital last week to celebrate International Women's Day with a protest against the misogyny of the Islamic regime in Iran and the threat of invasion by the US. Hear the voices of Iranian feminists Azar and Leila Parnian and the sounds of the demonstration as it passed through the heart of the city. Click here to learn more about the campaign.
Produced by Heidi Bachram.
- Raised Voices audio:
- Benny from West Papua on Corporate Power
- Vinayan from India on agriculture
New Internationalist (NI) workers' co-operative exists to report on issues of world poverty and inequality; to focus attention on the unjust relationship between the powerful and the powerless worldwide; to debate and campaign for the radical changes necessary to meet the basic needs of all; and to bring to life the people, the ideas and the action in the fight for global justice.
Except where otherwise noted, images on this site are copyright of the photographer/illustrator or representative agency.Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 License.
