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Jubilee 2000 Campaign Debt relief agreements have been reached by the IMF/World Bank with six heavily indebted poor countries (HIPCs): Bolivia, Uganda, Cote d'Ivoire, Guyana, Mozambique and Burkina Faso. These are considered to be the most advanced in terms of economic reform. However, there are 20 heavily indebted countries eligible for the scheme, with a further 22 also knocking at the door. The concern now is that no more than six countries will get debt relief by the year 2000, a very disappointing figure. There is also a fear that the levels of debt relief may not be adequate to enable countries to escape the debt crisis. Break the Chains Jubilee Pack available from: Debt and Development Coalition, All Hallows, Drumcondra, Dublin 9. Tel./Fax: (01) 857 1828.

EU Response... to Phone-Tapping Article in Last Issue As regards the phone-tapping article I have some reservations. While agreeing with your criticisms of the Third Pillar decision making process, this is not a good example. The item which you refer to as a law is in fact a "resolution" which is not binding. If you read the actual Resolution (attached) you will see that the tone of it is much different to the Statewatch interpretation. It also acknowledges the supremacy of National law in this area. Tim Kelly, Head of Information Services, European Commission Representation in Ireland.

Fairtrade Coffee The Fairtrade Mark is given to coffees that return a fair price to the growers. There are now four coffees witht the Fairtrade Mark available in Ireland: Bewley's Direct, Cafedirect, Percol Fairtrade and Equal Exchange. The number of outlets for these coffees are increasing all the time, including: all Bewley's Cafes, all Superquinn stores, and some Quinnsworth stores. If your supermarket is not stocking it, ask the manager and volunteer to distribute leaflets promoting it when it comes in. Leaflets and support available from: the Irish Fair Trade Network, 17 Lower Camden Street, Dublin 2. Tel / Fax: +3535 1 475 3515. E-mail: iftn@connect.ie

New Statewatch Documentation Centre Statewatch, the London based civil liberties organisation, has launched its new documentation centre SEMDOC Statewatch European Monitoring and Documentation Centre. It offers:- 1. Access to documents, reports and other material; 2. response to enquiries by phone, fax and e-mail; 3. to carry out searches and provide print-outs on specific subjects from Statewatch's in-house database. Requests for information: SEMDOC, PO Box 1516, London N16 OEW, UK. Fax: (00 44) 0181 880-1727.

Irish Budget '98 This was the best opportunity any Minister for Finance has had in a generation to reduce the divisions in Irish society. This opportunity has been squandered. Budget '98 had more in common with Thatcherite Britain in the mid-1980s than with any commitment to tackle social exclusion. CORI Justice Office.

Irish Breeding Sows Most Irish breeding sows (the mother pigs who produce piglets for the meat industry) spend their lives pregnant and tethered by a short metal chain. They have no bedding to root in or lie on, only a slatted concrete floor. The tethering system is so cruel that the European Union has decided that it will be illegal to keep sows in tethers after December 2005. Before the ban takes effect, Irish pig producers must decide on an alternative system. Right now most producers are planning to switch over to the sow stall system. Like sows in tethers, sows in stalls have no freedom to walk or even turn around. They may develop skin and foot lesions and often perform meaningless, repetitive motions such as chewing on the bars of their stalls for hours at a time. Sow stalls cause just as much suffering as tethers and should be banned as well. There are workable, humane alternatives. Pregnant sows can be kept in groups, indoors and outdoors. Join the Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) campaign: CIWF, PO Box 206, Cork. Tel.021-272441 Fax: 021-274984 E-mail: ciwf@indigo.ie

Worst-of-the-century climatic extremes Droughts gggggggggggggggSouth and Eastern UK gggggggggggggg1990-1992 gggggggggggggggggggggg California gggggggggggggggggggggggg1990-1993 gggggggggggggggggggggggPeru ggggggggggggggggggggggggggggAugust 1990 gggggggggggggggggggggggSouthern Africa ggggggggggggggggggg1992-1993 gggggggggggggggggggggggUS Northwest ggggggggggggggggggggMay 1992 gggggggggggggggggggggggQueensland gggggggggggggggggggggg 1993-1994 gggggggggggggggggggggggGreece ggggggggggggggggggggggggg Summer-Nov. 1993 gggggggggggggggggggggggNortheast China gggggggggggggggggg 1993-1994 Wildfires gggggggggggggggMongolia ggggggggggggggggggggggggMay 1990 gggggggggggggggggggggggIndonesia ggggggggggggggggggggggg October 1991 ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff gggggggggggggggggggggg Siberia and Poland ffffffffffffffffffffffffAugust 1992 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffZimbabwe fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffSeptember 1992 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffSydney, Australia ffffffffffffffffffffffffJanuary 1994 Floodsfffffffffffffffffffffffffff Eastern Australia ffffffffffffffffffffffff May 1990 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffSoutheast Iran fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffFebruary 1991 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffChina: Yangtze ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffMay-July 1991 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffThailand and Cambodia ffffffffffffffffffAugust-Sept. 1991 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffCuba ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffFebruary 1992 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffPapua New Guinea fffffffffffffffffffffffJune 1992 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffPakistan: IndusfffffffffffffffffffffffffffffSeptember 1992 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffUS Midwest fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffJune-August 1993 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffNorthwest EuropeffffffffffffffffffffffffffDecember 1993 fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffSouthern China fffffffffffffffffffffffffffffMay 1994 gggggggggggggggggggggggUS Southeast ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffJuly 1994 gggggggggggggggggggggggNorthwest Europe ffffffffffffffffffffffffffJan-Feb 1995 gggggggggggggggggggggggStorms Bangladesh (139,000 dead) ffffffMay 1991 ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff Samoas (Cyclone Val) ffffffffffffffffffff December 1991 ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffUS East Coast ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffMarch 1993 ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffMadagascar (Cyclone Geralda) fffffffffffFebruary 1994 Source: J. Leggett (Ed.), Climate Change and the Financial Sector, Munich 1996.

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