ADB Slammed in International People`s Tribunal

3 May Bali: During ADB`s 42nd Annual General meeting taking place in Bali, Indonesia from May 2-5, 2009, civil society and NGOs from around the world meet together and demonstrate against the project and policies of Asian Development Bank. As a part of programmes, a two days long Asia Pacific People`s Tribunal is being held in Udayana University, Bali while witnesses testify how ADB has violates the rights of the people of the region.

The international tribunal was organized by Indonesian civil society network INFID, Indies, Asia Pacific Research Network, IBON Foundation, Philippines associated with more than thirty organizations from the region including VOICE, Bangladesh.

The multilateral lender has been charged with gross violations of economic, social, and cultural rights of the Asia- Pacific region; civil and political rights; and peoples’ national sovereignty and right to self-determination.

Expert witnesses presented their studies on the impact of ADB loans, policies and projects on the communities in the Asia Pacific. Sonny Africa of IBON, showed that despite the financial crunch, ADB’s profit has consistently increased, with its capital stock of US$54.9 billion in 2008 even larger than the GDP of its poorest 33 underdeveloped member countries.  And while its profit grow by billions, poverty in the region also worsens, and the number of rights violations increase. Among others, Ahmed Swapan Mahmud, executive director of a Dhaka based research and advocacy organization, VOICE presented a case study on Khulna-Jessore Drainage Rehabilitation Project and charged ADB to cause the social, economic and ecological damage and also to aggravate crisis to the life and livelihood of the communities.

The verdict is rendered on 3 May 2009 and this is followed by people`s actions against the lending agency. Members of the jury included a former Indonesian Human Rights Commissioner , a Gwangju Human Rights Prize recipient, a faculty member  and woman activist in Pakistan, two Indonesian indigenous peoples’ leaders and a member of Congress in the Philippines.