Foreign aid -- L-għajnuna barranija

While still in Malta, I remember Maltese governments used to delight in, amongst others, negotiation and later announcing agreements with foreign countries offering assistance to the country in the form of substantial grants of money, low cost loans or donations of machinery, like patrol boats.  Front of mind for his ability to play country against country to almost create a queue of countries offering this assistance was Dominic Mintoff, who obtained such assistance from Italy, Libya, China and others.

 

Today, Malta itself offers assistance to other countries, and this is clear evidence of the substantial economic development of the country.

 

Charity is an extremely positive attitude, characteristic of the social life of humans, and a fundamental aspect of the largest religions in the world, such as those of the main monotheistic beliefs: Christianity (tithes), Islam (nisab and zakat) and Judaism (tzedakah), and other religions (Buddhism and others).

 

If religious charity reflects the merciful and altruistic answer to the human need, I have no illusion that the charity of one country to another is based (or only based) on altruism, that is that one expects nothing in return.  It is evident, for example, that with low interest loans, or even no-interest loans, one is expecting at least the capital back.

 

This does not mean that these kinds of loans are not useful to the beneficiary country, as if invested wisely projects can be implemented to the benefit of the respective people at a lower cost than if loans were to be made at commercial rates.

 

However apart from all this, there are strategic and geo-political considerations as well.  In the example I mentioned earlier from Malta, one can look at the then foreign aid and military guarantees by Italy and Libya as a game in which they were buying their country’s influence in a strategic location in the middle of the Mediterranean.

 

Why am I mentioning all this?

 

In these last few weeks, in Australia there was a consistent commentary and expressed concern about aid from China to several small countries around Asia, like Vanuatu, Sri Lanka and others.  The criticism that was being made was that aid consisted generally of low interest loans for significant infrastructural projects, such as ports, which leave the country in debt, with a question make on what would happen if the debt is not paid back.  This commentary suggests that China offers this finance as a lure for the indebted country to lose control of its assets, especially if it cannot repay its debts.1

 

I say this may well be true, but what is new in this?  Are the Chinese the only devils?

 

Let us say you borrow money from a commercial bank to buy a property for your home.  If for some reason you aren’t ready to make the agreed repayments to the bank, do you have any doubt that the property will be foreclosed and resold and you’d end up on the streets?

 

Did not Western countries lend large sums of money (for the period) to third world countries – Latin America, Africa and Asia, leading to the crises of the eighties and the nineties, and initiatives to renegotiate the debt terms and even, in some cases, to their being wiped clean?2

 

So now we need to remain vigilant, lest some country with a red flag entice some Pacific island states to take on some debt, as this could found down the track to be too heavy a burden and an unnecessary dependence on a country whose motivations are less than clear.  Perhaps this country could have strategic military intentions, who knows?

 

Therefore, Australia has just announced a foreign investment facility worth $2 billion for infrastructural projects in the Pacific, where this financing will be done by grants and – wait for it – loans!3  A few days later, Australia announced it would be developing a military base on Manus Island together with the United States.4

 

Those in glass houses cannot throw stones!

 

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Meta kont għadni Malta, niftakar li l-gvernijiet Maltin kienu, fost l-oħrajn, jieħdu sodisfazzjon li jinnegozjaw, u iktar li jħabbru, ftehim ma’ pajjiżi barranin li joffru assistenza lill-pajjiż f’forma ta’ għotjiet sostanzjali ta’ flus, self b’imgħax baxx jew għotjiet ta’ makkinarju, bħal dgħajjes ta’ sorveljanza (patrol boats).  Fuq quddiem fl-abbiltà tiegħu li jilgħab lil pajjiż kontra ieħor biex joħloq kważi kju ta’ pajjiżi li jagħtu din l-assistenza, kien Duminku Mintoff, li ġab assistenza mill-Italja, il-Libja, iċ-Ċina u oħrajn.

 

Illum, Malta toffri għajnuna hi lil pajjiżi oħra, u din hija xhieda ċara tal-iżvilupp ekonomiku sostanzjali tal-pajjiż.

 

Il-karità hija attitudni pożittiva immens, karatteristika tal-ħajja soċjali tal-bniedem, u aspett fundamentali tal-ikbar reliġjonijiet tad-dinja, bħal dawk fit-twemmin monoteistiku Nisrani (deċmi), Musulman (nisab u zakat) u Ġudajk (tzedakah), u reliġjonijiet oħra (Buddisti u oħrajn).

 

Jekk il-karità reliġjuża tirrifletti t-tweġiba ħanina u altruistika għall-bżonn tal-bniedem, jien m’għandix l-illużjoni li l-karità ta’ pajjiż lil ieħor hija bbażata (jew biss ibbażata) fuq l-altruiżmu, jiġifieri li wieħed ma jistenna xejn lura.  Huwa evidenti, per eżempju, li self b’imgħax baxx, jew anke self mingħajr imgħax, wieħed qiegħed jistenna li l-kapital mogħti jiġi mrodd lura.  

 

Dan ma jfissirx li dan it-tip ta’ self mhux utli għal pajjiż li jirċevih, għax jekk jinvestih b’mod għaqli jkun jista’ jwettaq proġetti ta’ fidwa għall-poplu bi prezz irħas milli kellu jissellef b’rati kummerċjali.

 

Imma apparti dan, hemm kunsiderazzjonijiet strateġiċi u ġeo-politiċi ukoll.  Fl-eżempju li semmejt qabel ta’ Malta, wieħed jista’ jħares lejn l-għanjuna barranija u l-garanziji militari tal-Italja u l-Libja ta’ dakinhar bħala logħba fejn kienu qiegħdin jixtru l-influenza ta’ pajjiżhom f’post strateġiku f’nofs il-Mediterran.

 

Għalfejn qiegħed insemmi dan kollu?

 

F’dDawn l-aħħar ġimgħat, fl-Awstralja kien hemm kummentarju konsistenti u tħassib fuq l-għajnuna mogħtija miċ-Ċina lil diversi pajjiżi  żgħar madwar l-Asjafil-Paċifiku, bħall-Vanuatu, is-Sri Lanka u oħrajn.  Il-kritika hija li din l-għajnuna ġeneralment tikkonsisti f’self b’imgħax baxx għal proġetti infrastrutturali sinjifikanti, bħal portijiet, imma li jħallu lill-pajjiż midjun, u b’mistoqsija fuq x’jiġri jekk id-dejn ma jkunx jista’ jitħallas lura.  Dan il-kummentarju jagħti x’jifhem li ċ-Ċina toffri dan l-iffinanzjar bħala l-lixka biex il-pajjiż midjun jitlef il-kontroll tal-assi tiegħu, speċjalment jekk ma jiflaħx iħallas lura.1

 

Jien ngħid, dan aktarx hu minnu, imma x’hemm ġdid f’dan?  Iċ-Ċiniżi biss huma x-xjaten?

 

Ejja ngħidu li int tissellef il-flus minn bank kummerċjali biex tixtri proprjetà ħalli tagħmilha darek.  Jekk għal xi raġuni ma tkunx tista’ tagħmel il-ħlasijiet regolari miftiehma lill-bank, għandek xi dubju li l-proprjetà tittieħed lura biex tinbieh u int tintefa fit-triq?

 

Il-pajjiżi tal-punent ma sellfux ukoll tant flejjes lit-tielet dinja – fl-Amerika Latina, l-Afrika u l-Asja – li wasslu għall-kriżijiet tat-tmeninijiet u d-disgħinijiet, u l-inizjattivi biex jiġu rrinegozjati t-termini tad-dejnijiet u anke f’xi każijiet, il-maħfra tagħhom?2

 

Mela issa irridu noqogħdu attenti biex ma jkunx hemm xi pajjiż b’bandiera ħamra li jħajjar lill-pajjiżi gżejjer fil-Paċifiku milli jidħlu għad-dejn, għax dan jista’ jkun piż li jsibu li ma jistgħux jifilħuh u dipendenza żejda fuq pajjiż li ma nafux x’għandu f’moħħu.  Forsi dan il-pajjiż għandu intenzjonijiet strateġiċi militari, min jaf?

 

Għalhekk, l-Awstralja għadha kif ħabbret faċilità ta’ $2 biljun ta’ finanzjament għal proġetti infrastrutturali fil-Paċifiku, fejn dan l-iffinanzjar isir permezz ta’ għotjiet u – żommu n-nifs – self ta’ flus!3  Ftit ġranet wara, l-Awstralja ħabbret li se tiżviluppa bażi militari f’Manus Island flimkien mal-Istati Uniti.4

 

Min jiskonġra jrid ikun pur!

 

 

1http://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/chinese-aid-to-the-pacific-what-are-the-concerns/, retrieved 28/11/2018

2http://www.grips.ac.jp/teacher/oono/hp/lecture_F/lec10.htm, retrieved 28/11/2018

3https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/nov/08/scott-morrison-to-reveal-3bn-in-pacific-funding-to-counter-chinese-influence, retrieved 28/11/2018

4https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-11-17/us-to-partner-with-australia-and-png-on-manus-island-naval-base/10507658, retrieved 28/11/2018

1http://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/chinese-aid-to-the-pacific-what-are-the-concerns/, retrieved 28/11/2018

2http://www.grips.ac.jp/teacher/oono/hp/lecture_F/lec10.htm, retrieved 28/11/2018

3https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/nov/08/scott-morrison-to-reveal-3bn-in-pacific-funding-to-counter-chinese-influence, retrieved 28/11/2018

4https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-11-17/us-to-partner-with-australia-and-png-on-manus-island-naval-base/10507658, retrieved 28/11/2018