Uruguay Repays $630 Million to IMF

[bemildred]

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) - Uruguay said on Thursday it was repaying US$630 million (euro520 million) to the International Monetary Fund, clearing ahead of schedule all its obligations due to the Washington-based lender for 2006 in a sign of the country's improving economic health.

The South American nation, which still owes the IMF US$1.6 billion (euro1.3 billion) in outstanding debt, is working to leave behind the deep economic crisis that began in 2001 as recession struck neighboring economic powers Argentina and Brazil.

"Uruguay will save $8.4 million (euro6.94 million) in interest" through the early payments, Economy Minister Danilo Astori told a news conference.

He was flanked by a top IMF official, Agustin Carstens, who lauded Uruguay's progress since the crisis, saying the country had embarked on a "successful" economic restructuring plan that was triggering robust growth for the third straight year.

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[RUMMYisFROSTED]

1. 1/3 of their "debt" gone.

Smart politics, Uruguay.

Firmly remove the beast from your back.

[Peace Patriot]

2. Yes, yes, yes, YES! Argentina is also getting out from under onerous IMF

debt, this year, I believe, with considerable help from Hugo Chavez. The regional plan is to throw off these debtors and never ever get in hock to the US-controlled IMF/World Bank again. Uruguay is one of the many South American countries where a huge and profound leftist revolution has occurred--also in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Bolivia and soon Peru (and also Mexico). And these governments have common themes of self-determination, regional Latin American economic, political and security cooperation, help for Latin America's vast poor population, and anti-US imperialism.

I only hope they realize that, once they've gotten past the debt and moved into surplus, then the Bushite/global corporate predators will zero in to devour their surpluses like ripe fruit to be picked--just as they did in California, a well run state that had accumulated a $10 billion surplus--that's when Enron and the other Texas energy sharks moved in--and later, what they did to the U.S. as a whole, after Clinton put the country in the black. An $8 trillion deficit that's going to come out of your hide and mine, and those of our children's children.

The South Americans seem to learn well from their past. I don't know how they will guard themselves against future looting, but one good strategy is already in place: TRANSPARENT elections, the result of long hard work by grass roots activists, local civic groups, the OAS, EU election monitoring groups and the Carter Center. US voters, take note! We have much work to do here, to rid ourselves of the NON-TRANSPARENT election theft machines that the Bushites have imposed on us, with the "Help America Vote for Bush Act," engineered by the two biggest crooks in Congress, Tom Delay and Bob Ney--a $4 billion electronic voting boondoggle that corrupted and destroyed our election system, with two Bushite corporations, Diebold and ES&S, being the major beneficiaries (and Bush, of course.

Throw Diebold and ES&S election theft machines into 'Boston Harbor' NOW! --and then maybe we will be able to use our tax money for the common good!