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Photos from Action at World Bank These photos from Thursday's "one-horse race" outside the World Bank, protesting the confirmation of Wolfowitz, give a sense of the crowd of journalists who came to watch. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 11:44 PM U.S. Anti-War Movement Denounces Wolfowitz at World Bank United for Peace and Justice, the largest coalition in the United States opposing Bush's Iraq policy, issued a statement decrying the new, more blatant links between military and economic domination signalled by Wolfowitz's new job. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 09:37 PM Activists Stage One-Horse Race at World Bank
Washington-based activists staged a "one-horse race" outside the World Bank at 10 am on Thursday, just as the Executive Directors were taking their seats, holding their noses, and preparing to consent to Wolfowitz's nomination. Our race reflected the absence of democracy in the process -- only one horse ran -- and he won! Posted by Soren Ambrose at 09:30 PM Wolfowitz is Crowned
The long international nightmare is over -- well, no, it's only just beginning. "The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors today unanimously confirmed the nomination of Paul D. Wolfowitz to be President of the World Bank." So says the press release posted on the World Bank's website. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 09:04 PM Inspired choice.
"Critic after critic howls for the heads of the architects of the Iraq war, and above all for the head of the man the European media call "Paul Vulfovitz," as though he were a villain in a John Buchan novel," writes David Frum - the man who half-coined the phrase 'axis of evil'. Posted by David Steven at 02:22 PM Preposterous carve-up.
Bob Geldof chimes in: "The way that's carved up is preposterous. Posted by David Steven at 02:16 PM We're back!
No, it wasn't a plot - just a surge in traffic that took us over our monthly bandwidth allowance. Posted by David Steven at 02:14 PM EU Ministers duck meeting with Wolfowitz The EU summoned Paul Wolfowitz to Brussels to explain himself, but when he got there he found that only 7 of the 25 member countries sent representatives of ministerial rank, reports the Financial Times. One EU official called the showing "a fiasco" and "truly humiliating." Maybe they just wanted to see if he'd come when they called. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 12:36 AM EU compliant; Wolfowitz resists firm promises
The International Herald-Tribune and Reuters, among others, are carrying the news that Wolfowitz's meeting with EU ministers went smoothly, and that his ratification tomorrow at the World Bank board meeting is assured. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 12:27 AM Up against the wall.
Indymedia is none too pleased by EU support for Wolfie: "Those people criminally involved, in Belgium, the Netherlands (the criminal 'managers') and in the rest of the European Union: all who took part should be remembered as the war criminals they are, even endorsing World Bank atrocities, and as soon as is possible be brought to justice." Posted by David Steven at 05:15 PM All but official. "The prime minister of Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Juncker, made it all but official when he described Mr Wolfowitz as the 'incoming president of the World Bank'," the Guardian writes. Posted by David Steven at 03:05 PM Countdown to Coronation Today -- Wednesday -- Paul Wolfowitz is on his way to Brussels to meet with European development and finance ministers. (The meeting has been re-located from Luxembourg -- some Low Country rivalry apparently.) That "low-key" meeting, which will, it is promised, be followed by no press conference or announcement, takes place the day before the World Bank board is scheduled to vote on his nomination. Acceptance is virtually certain, as is much holding of noses. We also understand that activists will be ridiculing the process outside the Bank as the Directors take their seats. Check worldbankpresident.org for all the latest news. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 04:18 AM Wolfowitz hires "'wild-eyed' conservative as key assistant The Financial Times reports that Paul Wolfowitz has already hired Robin Cleveland to help with his transition from military boss to international bureaucrat. She is described as a well-known ideologue, deeply involved in the Iraq fiasco, and with little experience relevant to development (but hey, that didn't stop Wolfowitz). Cleveland has been accompanying Wolfowitz on his meetings with WB Executive Directors, which is said to have caused "concern" for some at the WB. She has also been linked to some of the Defense Department scandals over the last year, though not as a central player. Although the job is said to be temporary, and she is on leave from her full-time position at the Office of Management & Budget, reports that she has recused herself from any decisions touching on World Bank business there suggest she may be preparing for a permanent move to Wolfowitz's suite. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 04:14 AM French to nominate Jouyet for #2 WB position
Acting quickly on the reported deal the EU made to support Wolfowitz as President of the World Bank, Dow Jones reports (subscription required to view article) that France will nominate Jean-Pierre Jouyet, head of the Paris Club, to occupy a new #2 position at the World Bank. (The Paris Club is the association of wealthy creditor countries that cooperate on debt rescheduling and cancellation for impoverished countries.) "The appointment [...] may temper concerns that Wolfowitz could use the bank presidency as a pulpit to forward U.S. President George W. Bush's global agenda," reports DJ. But as our own David Steven tells DJ, cutting out the Global South from the power equation is a pretty dubious way of doing that. "'The Europeans are stitching together a cozy deal with the U.S. I don't see where that leaves the developing countries and the rest of the world,' said David Steven, a founder of worldbankpresident.org, a Web site dedicated to development issues." The French are quick to reassure us that they're not insisting on Jouyet. "France is open to other nominations too. France would back 'a European or a developing country deputy. This would have to be discussed first with fellow Europeans and then with Wolfowitz.'" Posted by Soren Ambrose at 03:51 AM What do the Germans get? So George sweet talks Tony, and pays off Jacques, which leaves the question - what did Gerhard get? Posted by David Steven at 06:01 PM Jouyet for chair.
We hear that the French will soon nominate Jean-Pierre Jouyet as Wolfowitz's number 2 at the World Bank. This confirms suspicions that Europeans governments were prepared to nod through Wolfie's appointment in return for a tawdry favour or two. Posted by David Steven at 05:35 PM The staff speak.
The Staff Association 'confidential comment line' has received 1300 responses, of which 8% were favorable or neutral to the appointment (in line with our poll). Posted by David Steven at 07:11 AM "Wolfowitz's strength is that he'll make the bank a tool of U.S. policy"
In his weekly column Sebastian Mallaby, the Washington Post editorial board member and columnist who just weeks ago labelled the Wolfowitz nomination "Christmas" for activists who could now join anti-war and anti-Bank causes (see previous posting), has come on board the Wolfowitz train. Some more of his reasoning: Anyone who detects some slipperiness in Mallaby's reasoning might also be amused by his blockbuster book, The World's Banker, published in 2004, timed for the likely denouement of Wolfensohn's time at the Bank. Apart from the many amusing observations about Wolfensohn himself, the book mounts a deliberately misleading, ideologically-loaded attack on non-governmental organizations critical of the Bank. Because of his relative prominence, or power, at the Post, the book got a lot of attention, advancing Mallaby's project of discrediting the global justice movement. Rebuttals to his sloppy research and analysis were easy to develop, but of course did not achieve the same sort of visibility. Looks like he's getting ready to serve a new master. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 06:51 PM Horse-Trading Continues The Financial Times has a front-page (at least in the U.S.) article today confirming the reports that the EU countries want a European put in a top position at the Bank in exchange for supporting Wolfowitz. As the FT notes, this could mean the awkward downgrading of the current #2, Shengman Zhang, of China. The UK Treasury is quoted as saying that it is "sceptical" of any deal made by the US and EU that leaves out developing countries. But French and German officials seem insistent. The Germans are said to see such a position as making up for the recent departure of Peter Woicke as head of the IFC, the Bank's private-sector division. There has been little speculation about a permanent replacement for Woicke (no www.worldbankvicepresidentfortheifc.org site -- yet) -- so would that mean another German in that slot would satisfy the EU? Probably not. Alex Wilks shines, again, both as the only person willing to be quoted by name, and for his analysis of the meaning of adding a new spot for a European: “This would be a further perversion of the appointment process. It would extend the job carve-up to the top four posts at the World Bank and IMF for Americans and Europeans.” Posted by Soren Ambrose at 06:27 PM Wolfowitz in Indonesia Asked to offer evidence that Wolfowitz has an interest or aptitude for development, the Bush Administration's answer has been to point to his tenure as U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia in the late 1980s. The Washington Post has now researched that era, and comes up with a number of contradictory observations. He was either absent on the human rights issue, or working on it subtly and behind-the-scenes. He was either overly friendly with Suharto or preventing him from profiting from food relief contracts. And so on. The article also features a quote from Emil Salim, who was in Suharto's cabinet in the '80s, but later came to the notice of World Bank watchers when he was chosen as the "eminent person" to chair the Extractive Industries Review. Salim has continued struggling with Wolfensohn to get the EIR's findings accepted. Apparently he and Wolfowitz were friends, but he is now horrified by the Iraq war. The real gem of the article, however, has to be this episode from Wolfowitz's time in Jakarta: "He won third prize in a cooking contest sponsored by the country's leading women's magazine, Femina, appearing in its glossy pages in an apron and explaining his secret for Madame Mao's chicken." Posted by Soren Ambrose at 06:16 PM UK academics against Wolfowitz The Financial Times today prints a letter opposing Wolfowitz's candidacy from a large number of UK academics, including large numbers from the Institute of Development Studies in Brighton, the Centre for Development Studies in Leeds, and the University of Oxford. Notables highlighted among the signatories include Sir Richard Jolly and Ha-Joon Chang. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 06:05 PM Riza whispering campaign.
The whispering campaign directed against Wolfie's partner, Shaha Ali Riza, continues. According to Freerider, who mostly blogs on investment ideas, Riza was fired from her last job because she was "a complete nut case": "was fired because she verbally attacked two of her colleagues at a Monday morning staff meeting, and she was politely told to shut up, the Monday morning staff meeting is not the place to air grievances. "A few days later she was fired. Then, after that, she showed up at a board meeting, walked in, sat down, and proceeded to sit through the entire board meeting even though she was no longer an employee and had no reason to be there. She was sitting next to me, and I thought she must have had some reason to be there, but then afterwards when management went ballistic I realized that, yes, that was strange. "She once chewed me out because I didn't put an invitation in her mailbox. I was about to give her a piece of my mind, like, "Listen lady, why don't you take your Oxford degree and figure out how to use your email," but I just laughed it off and chalked it up to her complete nuttiness." We can offer no confirmation of these allegations - so handle with extreme care. As Soren noted earlier, some report a great deal of respect for Riza and her work... Posted by David Steven at 02:37 PM The Horse-Trading Emerges from the Shadows. Two articles in Sunday newspapers open up a little more dicussion on what the White House is offering to its allies in exchange for their support of Wolfowitz's nomination. An interview with Wolfowitz in the Washington Post seems to confirm the news first broken by Alex on this page -- that the European ministers will demand that a new #2 position at the Bank be created for them to fill. And a piece in The Guardian (U.K.) revives reports that the U.S. has promised to back Pascal Lamy for the top post at the WTO so long as France supports Wolfowitz. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 07:56 AM World Bank confirms meeting to vote on Wolfowitz The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors issued a statement on Friday confirming reports that it will meet on March 31 to make a decision on whether Paul Wolfowitz should be World Bank president. The U.S. has never been formally challenged on its "right" to name someone to the post, but it remains a possibility. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 07:44 AM From Inside the WB: Discontent over Riza We hear from Bank insiders that Shaha Ali Riza, whom Paul Wolfowitz has been dating for a couple of years, is not popular with her colleagues. As acting manager for External Relations and Outreach in the Middle East/North Africa region of the World Bank, she is to some degree the institution's public face on that region. Her personnel file at the Bank reportedly contains several complaints about her job performance as well as about a certain "lack of people skills." This, we are told, is part of what is behind the World Bank Staff Association's relatively more open disagreement with the U.S.'s choice. The WBSA raised loud complaints a few years ago when Wolfensohn named Nick Stern as Chief Economist. Several staffers pointed out the Bank's strict anti-nepotism laws should have prevented that move, since Stern's brother was on staff at the Bank. Their complaints were never addressed seriously. It should be noted that at least one civil society organization believes that Riza is one of the most effective gender experts working at the Bank. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 07:23 AM Left or right. Spurred on by Wolfowitz's appointment, there's a quite a ding-dong on the web about whether the right or left have the best ideas about development. "On those few occasions when [Conservatives] think about the subject, conservatives recite a stale catechism of clichés based on virtually no research or experience," writes Fareed Zakaria in Newsweek. Nick Schulz disagrees: ""That Zakaria stuff is an outrage. He has no idea what he’s talking about. All the interesting ideas about development in recent years have come from the political right or from non-ideological folks (Hernando de Soto, William Easterly, etc.)." Posted by David Steven at 05:36 PM Wolfie Jokes A growing list of jokes is doing the rounds at the World Bank... All employees will have to wear a helmet with a a digital camera when at work. All employees will have to attend to the salute to the US flag at 6:00 am in the hall of the MC. The WB motto will be changed from "Our dream is a world without poverty... " to "Our dream is a world without poor people ... We will move all of them to Guantanamo" The conditionality guidelines will be streamlined to only 1 article:"You do what we tell you otherwise we invade you." All WB public works contracts to be attributed to Halliburton after transparent and fair bidding process. The cafeteria will carry only Meals Ready to eat. Initial orientation of new recruits will be in Bagram Base in Afghanistan The Health room will be abolished. Staff will use the Veterans Hospitals Any response to an order from a superior will be "Sir, Yes Sir". Rough hazing of female recruits will be introduced Planning for project implementation after loan signature will be abolished. "If post victory planning was not needed in Iraq why would it be elsewhere.." Senior Management will travel to and from work by helicopter Only Senior Management will be issued flak vests Ordinary staff will be issues shirts with a target pattern printed on the back Shuttle bus services to the Pentagon will be offered on the hour every hour Shuttle bus services to the CIA will be maintained Staff on mission will only be allowed to travel on Boeing aircraft. Upon return from mission staff will not be allowed to claim for reimbursement of entertainment expenses unless such expenses were incurred at an approved US franchised fast food restaurant. Posted by David Steven at 12:53 PM Shaha Riza sets tongues wagging.
We're still getting lots of mail from inside the World Bank about Shaha Riza. Apparently this article from a British tabloid is doing the rounds on the internal email, while the Arab News describes her as "one of the most influential Muslims in Washington". Posted by David Steven at 12:47 PM Blair Knew of Plan to Nominate Wolfowitz. The Financial Times reports that UK Prime Minister Tony Blair was informed in February that President Bush wanted to nominate Paul Wolfowitz for the World Bank presidency. "The Poodle" earned his nickname again by agreeing to go along with the idea, and by keeping it a secret from other European officials, including his own finance minister (Chancellor of the Exchequer) Gordon Brown. "Mr Blair's discreet support gave President George W. Bush the confidence to know that Mr Wolfowitz, the deputy defence secretary and an advocate of the war in Iraq, would not face united opposition from the World Bank's European shareholders," reports the FT. It goes on: "The UK Treasury, the British foreign office and officials in other European capitals remained in the dark, according to UK officials. Following a report in the Financial Times on March 1 that Mr Wolfowitz was a leading candidate for the US nomination, a senior UK Treasury official telephoned his US counterpart. The US Treasury dismissed the story, according to British officials. A British diplomat, who contacted the administration, was told Mr Wolfowitz was not in the running." While the article does not claim that no other Europeans were told in advance, it does note that Schroeder (Germany) and Chirac (France) first heard about the nomination when Bush announced it.
Posted by Soren Ambrose at 05:31 AM Graveyard humor in the Bank. An anonymous donor from the World Bank has compiled some of the wittier observations on the fate that awaits the staff under a Paul Wolfowitz presidency. See for yourself ... Rumours have that the new WB President, after being appointed, will announce important changes at the WB: * All employees will have to wear a helmet with a a digital camera when at work. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 11:16 PM Get the full scoop on Wolfowitz. The Institute for Policy Studies' Jim Vallette has done some quick but substantial research into how the man ticks. Take a look at "Wolfowitz in His Own Words" and the Wolfowitz Chronicles, (or, if you're in a hurry, the condensed version) -- an examination of the presumptive World Bank President’s works on oil, national security, development, corruption, human rights, and debt. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 11:07 PM U.S. organizations vs. Wolfowitz U.S. civil society organizations have launched a sign-on letter urging President Bush to withdraw his nomination of Paul Wolfowitz. They're not expecting him to do it, mind you, but do want to make their voices heard. The deadline is quick: Monday, March 28 at 2pm Eastern (North America) time; send your name, organization, and location to signon@nowaywolfowitz.org. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 10:55 PM Petition closes with 1650 signatures. Eurodad has put out a final version of the petition against Wolfowitz. Now with over 1650 signatories (Excel). Sorry it took a while to post all of your names and organisations (thanks for reminders). We had sore wrists from cutting and pasting, and lots of other things to do. Especial thanks to Alessandra (Fontana), Olivia (Debouver) and Lucy (Hayes), who bore the brunt of the work. We have now, a week later than planned, closed the petition. We suggest that people continue to take action, but by writing directly to their head of state or other relevant ministers. Or you can use Pesticides Action Network North America's on-line activism facility to trigger a message to World Bank Executive Directors before their meeting next Thursday. And don't forget to bother your legislators about this - they are the best-placed to put pressure on ministers to say when they knew about the Wolfowitz appointment and what position they are taking. Posted by Alex Wilks at 09:00 PM Bank staff association media splash. Days after we carried the story and full text of the Staff Association announcement the World Bank has told the press about its system for its staff to comment on the Wolfowitz appointment. I detect a defensive tone. "It's an internal website that's designed to be confidential," World Bank spokesman Damian Milverton said. A staff member told Agence France Presse: "it's a way of channelling opinions, rather than having them circulate all over the world." Could this be a subtle reference to worldbankpresident.org, I wonder. As the Staff Association was told by the US government in early February it had no role, why would staff prioritise sending their comments into the black hole that is the internal Staff Association website when they can send us an e-mail, or post directly and publicly to our web forum? Many have done just that, and we thank you. One Bank staffmember told us indeed a few weeks ago that this blog was the best effort so far to open up the murky Bank selection process. Thanks again to all those Bank insiders and others who've provided encouragement and communications. Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:45 PM Acceptance likely but regrettable. Voice of America carries a story reviewing the controversy caused by Wolfowitz's selection. It quotes author Sebastian Mallaby, who has come round to supporting Wolfowitz in the last couple of weeks, saying: "what you are going to see is that the cause of anti-globalization will be reunited with the cause of Iraq war protests and it will all be focused on the World Bank and Paul Wolfowitz." The piece also cites Jeff Powell at Bretton Woods Project and Manish Bapna at Bank Information Center, among other commentators (my interview seems to have hit the cutting room floor, but I can take it). They set out the horse-trading tactics of European governments and argue forcefully that Wolfowitz's experience does not match the job. North-Western University academic Jeffrey Winters sums it all up when he says: "the World Bank was designed as a long-term development instrument and it has actually been abused over the years by the United States and by the European powers as an instrument of foreign policy. One can only expect that Mr. Wolfowitz is only going to deepen that role." Meanwhile, though not carried on Voice of America, I've found two politically diverse further American voices strongly agreeing to disagree with Bush's World Bank pick. Bruce Bartlett in Human Events On-line, 'The National Conservative Weekly': Bill Day, writing in the Talahassee Democrat: "He's certainly no economist. He vastly underestimated the costs of the Iraq war and vastly overestimated Iraqi oil production afterwards". Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:20 PM "A war on the poor". In appointing Wolfowitz to the World Bank, "the US is turning the war on terror into a war on the poor". This is the view of a Palestine-based law professor writing in Al-Ahram weekly. The article recounts Wolfowitz's anger when current Bank president Wolfensohn pulled World Bank staff out of Iraq for safety reasons. While not positive about what Wolfensohn managed to achieve, it says "Wolfensohn can at least reflect on the fact that he did not allow the Bank to lead an intensification of grand injustice". Wolfowitz is much more dangerous, author Curtis Doebbler argues: "if his contribution to the deaths of millions of Iraqis and East Timorese is harrowing, it is worth noting that at the World Bank he could do much greater harm". Posted by Alex Wilks at 01:38 PM Brazil not convinced, but accepting. A report on Wednesday's meeting of Wolfowitz and many developing country Executive Directors in Brazilian paper is revealing. The World Bank presidential nominee was, in a nutshell, smooth and slippery. Brazilian government sources are quoted by Valor Economico (subs) as saying that Wolfowitz was well informed but on tough issues, when not able to give pleasing answers, knew how to dodge diplomatically. Reuters earlier carried a story accusing Wolfowitz of sticking "to a careful script, talking about his passion for development and deep interest in easing poverty". That Brazil seems to have given up any thought of opposing Wolfowitz saddens activists in Brazil and beyond who appreciated Brazil's role in standing up to the US and Europe at the Cancun trade conference eighteen months ago. E-mails have been flying with titles such as "Lula aligns with hawk". The Valor Economico article notes that some, but not all Brazilian officials don't feel that Wolfowitz will be able to drag the Bank in entirely new directions. But it says Brazil's lack of opposition to Wolfowitz is partly because the government does not want to do anything that might reduce the flow of World Bank loans to the country. This concern has certainly had a dampening effect on many developing country representatives. Posted by Alex Wilks at 01:31 PM Alex sums it up. Our very own Alex Wilks has published a comprehensive and very useful summary of the process and politics of selecting a World Bank President in the 21st century at opendemocracy.net. Includes analysis of the Wolfowitz nomination. Some might quibble that Alex, in contrasting the likely character of a Wolfowitz Bank with the Wolfensohn Bank, veers too close to suggesting that today's Bank has recovered from its old Cold War habits of allowing itself to be used for geostrategic purposes -- i.e., supporting the U.S.'s strategic allies. It's true that a Mobutu probably wouldn't get loans from the Bank now -- indeed he was cut off before the end in the mid-90s. But we should also recall how quickly the Bank orchestrated extraordinary debt relief for Pakistan and Tajikistan after they pledged their loyalty to the U.S. in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 06:17 AM Wolfowitz heading to Luxembourg. Reuters reports that Paul Wolfowitz will head to Luxembourg on Wednesday, March 30 to meet with "European economy and aid ministers." That is the day before the anticipated vote on his nomination by the World Bank's executive board. Until now he seemed to be resisting the invitation, and his office is not commenting just yet. The game may not be over after all. Posted by Soren Ambrose at 05:39 AM Bush's "shake-up-the-world view" The Washington Times has a piece (scroll) arguing that the White House had tapped Paul Wolfowitz for the Bank president job some time ago. It cites Fred Barnes, writing in the Wall Street Journal, saying that "the president knew exactly whom he wanted from the start". A linked article (scroll) in the same paper reports that James P. Rubin, who was assistant secretary of state under President Clinton and an adviser to the Kerry campaign, thinks Wolfowitz is the right choice for the Bank. The reason? Because Wolfowitz can become a champion on capitol hill for more aid. We hear this argument has also been raised by the Wolfowitz camp with European governments. But two cautions. 1) Wolfowitz can always blame Congress's painstaking annual appropriations if more aid does not materialise, and 2) we need better and less politicised aid, not just more aid and the current US administration is not a good champion for that. Posted by Alex Wilks at 02:43 PM NGO tactics questioned. Combative South African author and activist Patrick Bond (bio - PDF) takes on Wolfowitz and Wolfowitz's critics in an impassioned article for Counterpunch. Patrick cites South African activist poet Dennis Brutus, saying "it is crucial for us to up the ante against the system we might term global apartheid. The World Bank is at the nerve center of that system, and will now become a 'War Bank'". Brutus has long warned against the "divide-and-conquer tactics of outgoing World Bank president James Wolfensohn ('Wolfy 1'), who was perfectly willing to fund Bush's illegitimate neocolonial rule in Afghanistan, Iraq and Haiti". Patrick Bond says "the man now labeled 'Wolfy2' has none of his predecessor's talents in softening up NGOs in meaningless 'multistakeholder forums' on issues ranging from dams to mining/petroleum to structural adjustment". Wolfowitz will "add more explicit White House geopolitics to the Bank's noxious recipe". Patrick condemns the tactics of parliamentarians such as MEP Louisa Morgantini and the hundreds of civil society groups who signed the Eurodad petition. Patrick is surprised that many "otherwise reasonable friends of his" signed it. His complaint? "It's the job of robust NGOs to speak truth to power, and to not fear describing the Bank - under Wolfy1 or Wolfy2 - as a tool of imperialism". I think Patrick, an old friend, may be splitting hairs. Our statement talked about aligning the Bank to "US foreign policy". A statement's strength and impact cannot be measured by the number of "-isms" alone. Anyway I am in agreement with Patrick's conclusion, citing Raj Patel and Sebastian Mallaby, that the Wolfowitz appointment represents a mobilising and awareness-raising opportunity. Patel said on his blog, it's now "much easier to see how war and the Bank are linked if the man who's good at one can move to the other without skipping a beat. This helps movement-building, and makes it harder for the media to ignore the links". One issue touched on by Raj, which will certainly come up soon, is how NGOs should and will respond when they are invited to a meeting by Wolfowitz. Raj's view is that "any NGO that tried to get too close would be much more widely seen for the parasites they are". There certainly will be big reputational risk for NGOs seen dining with the Wolf, and a severe danger of legitimising him rather than persuading him. Posted by Alex Wilks at 10:07 AM Bank's poodle?
One website describes us as "a dog-and-pony show intended to demonstrate the warmth and reasonableness of the World Bank and its staff"... Posted by David Steven at 08:19 AM Wolfowitz's to do list. Someone called Saifedean Ammous has been in touch with an interesting message. They "managed to hack into Paul Wolfowitz’s laptop" and found his To-Do List for the Bank. It includes: "Third World governments that can’t pay back their debts to have their Finance Ministers sent to the Repayment Department headquarters in Abu Ghraib". Worldbankpresident.org is pleased to provide you the Wolfowitz list, as supplied by Ammous. World Bank To-Do List 1. Launch preemptive war on poverty; kill all the poor 2. Since the war on Iraq made the whole world a safer place, all countries of the world will have to pay the US back its costs, with interest 3. The World Bank to be renamed ‘American Enterprise Institute-Executive Branch’ 4. No more ‘Structural Adjustment Programs.’ Replace with ‘Regime Change Programs’ 5. Third World governments that can’t pay back their debts to have their Finance Ministers sent to the Repayment Department headquarters in Abu Ghraib 6. Developing countries not to get loans or grants, only private accounts that they can invest in the New York Stock Exchange 7. The World Bank to divest itself from any organization that carries out or supports abortion or contraception 8. Launch preemptive war on AIDS, kill all patients 9. World Bank to exclude all Muslim states from membership 10. “You’re either with us, or you’re with the Central Planners” 11. All countries of the world to have complete accountability and transparency, so that all blame can be pinned on them and the World Bank isn’t accountable to anything. 12. David Duke to be placed in charge of African Affairs 13. Bill O’Reilly to be appointed Chief Economist of the World Bank 14. Pat Robertson to be placed in charge of Islamic Affairs 15. World bank to ditch lending and go into borrowing; generating a $600billion deficit 16. International enforcement of Bush’s tax cuts, all the rich of the world should never pay taxes 17. All loans to developing countries conditional on all their citizens watching two hours of FOX news every day 18. Complete regions of the world to be privatized, only Halliburton can 19. All oceans to be privatized, only Halliburton can bid 20. Forget Kyoto, the atmosphere to be privatized, only Halliburton can
Posted by Alex Wilks at 07:49 AM Post confirms European no. 2 bid.
The Washington Post has followed our story of yesterday with a piece indicating that Paul Wolfowitz has agreed that European governments can have a senior deputy position at the top of the World Bank. No names are mentioned. One reason, an unnamed official told the Post, is that the developing countries are aware of the European desire to get the deputy's job, and a Third World challenge to Wolfowitz would only give the Europeans extra leverage. The G-11 grouping of directors representing developing countries met Wolfowitz yesterday. While they are not going to challenge Wolfowitz they issued a very guarded statement after their meeting, indicating that they "are briefing their governments and consulting with them on this nomination." Wolfowitz also met European board members yesterday. No details have yet emerged, except for the fact that Wolfowitz was "humble and charming". The process's politicisation and opacity means that even this high-flown policy analysis had to be provided to the Post on an off the record basis. Posted by Alex Wilks at 06:57 AM A reward for failure. Long-standing White House columnist Helen Thomas considers Wolfowitz's promotion to World Bank president a means for Bush to "manipulat public opinion away from any negative thoughts that the Bush administration messed up by invading Iraq". She recites a litany of misleading statements by Wolfowitz before and during the Iraq war. And predicts: "we won't be getting any apologies or confessions of mistakes about Iraq from Wolfowitz down the road". Posted by Alex Wilks at 06:33 AM Jesse Jackson writes. A comment piece from civil rights activist and former US presidential candidate Jesse Jackson asks if fighting world poverty is "a ping-pong game between the U.S. and Europe, a game in which the poorer nations are not even allowed to enter". He argues passionately that "we must challenge the process, right now, by acting as if the Southern nations matter". The Jesse Jackson piece in full ... IF IT’S REALLY A “WORLD” BANK, THEN LET’S LOOK SOUTH • Democracy program, to open up the WB/IMF systems to the whole world; We must challenge the process, right now, by acting as if the Southern nations matter. Nominate a Southerner. Practice democracy. Cancel the debt. Wipe the slate clean, and let’s start over. Posted by Alex Wilks at 09:08 PM Scoop: Europeans demand number 2 position. I was informed this evening that European governments are trying to negotiate to get a European named as a senior Managing Director at the Bank. A reliable government source who has just attended the European Council discussions here in Brussels said that Europeans are demanding a senior representative "as part of Wolfowitz's team" if the latter is made World Bank president. My view is that such a move would represent a further kick in the teeth to developing countries, who have been told repeatedly they would be getting more representation in the international financial institutions. The credibility of these supposedly multilateral bodies would suffer yet further if their top four positions become allocated on a political basis by the US and European governments. (The number two position at the Fund, currently occupied by Anne Krueger, is a US appointment). The Europeans were claiming to occupy a slight bump of moral high ground on the basis that multiple candidates were belatedly allowed to challenge for the IMF Managing Director position last year. This argument was already failing to convince many. Adopting an "if you can't beat them, join them" attitude to the World Bank, by pushing one of their number forward to a souped up number two position there, would extend the jobs stitch-up and move us further away from a meritocratic selection procedure. Chinese national Shengman Zhang is currently the senior managing director at the Bank, although he does not have the Deputy President status that would apparently be sought for a European. His future would be uncertain if the Europeans have their way. I of course asked my source which Europeans might be thrust forward for this role. I got no reply. One possibility is that the Europeans might look to one of their number who has just been put forward for the UNDP top job. These are: Hilde F. Johnson (Norway), minister for international development; Ad Melkert (Netherlands), current World Bank Executive Director and former minister of social affairs; and Baroness Valerie Amos (Britain), leader of the House of Lords and former secretary of state for international development. Whether one of the above would be prepared to extract themselves from the UNDP race is not clear. But they know they cannot all get it. And we also know, because Kofi Annan has fulfilled his promise of a transparent shortlist of more than one person for the UNDP leadership. Some of the Europeans listed above are interesting and progressive individuals. But would they really believe that filling a number two slot will rebalance the Bank? The argument that wise Europeans will fill the space in order to do the right thing for developing countries is a bit like the argument men used to use to justify not giving women the vote. What do you think of this European proposal? Have your say on our web forum. Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:49 PM Appeal by European economists. A list of leading European economists have signed a statement against the Wolfowitz nomination as World Bank president. It says "at the very least, Mr. Wolfowitz is a highly controversial choice. He has not been supportive of the multilateral institutions and has not demonstrated in the past his support of the development community" and calls for the process to be opened up. The La Voce site also contains (in English and Italian) a strong piece by Alberto Alesina and Roberto Perotti condemning European posturing and hypocrisy about this issue and multilateralism in general. Posted by Alex Wilks at 05:15 PM Free the World Bank. It is not likely to appear on as many placards and T-shirts as "Free Nelson Mandela" did. But an FT piece today argues that the US needs to liberate the World Bank. An opinion piece by Jeffrey Sachs complains of "backroom politics" surrounding the World Bank, which claims to be a leading force in the democratisation of developing countries. The article complains that the US is in no position to exercise moral or political leadership on the World Bank largely because it is a stingy aid donor. The Sachs piece is not nearly as hard-hitting as some of his other recent comments on the Wolfowitz nomination however. He concludes with suggested questions for the presidential candidate, including: 1) "would the candidate champion the call of free-market ideologues to privatise public health, educationand infrastructure, or would he or she agree that increased public finance is vital to ensuring universal access to health, nutrition, water and sanitation, schoolingand family planning?" 2) "does the candidate support a bigger voice and vote for developing countries in the World Bank and International Monetary Fund?" Posted by Alex Wilks at 04:38 PM Very grudging acceptance. Wolfowitz has received semi-endorsements, through gritted teeth, from further European leaders. Few seem prepared to actively support him. Irish Finance Minister Brian Cowen told a Brussels press conference earlier: "the realpolitik of the situation is that in all likelihood Mr Wolfowitz will be appointed as chairman of the bank". German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder also told a news conference "I told him that I believed Europe's enthusiasm would be limited but that the appointment would not fail because of Germany". Italian economy minister Domenico Sinicalco and Polish Foreign Minister Adam Rotfeld did find something positive to say. According to Sinicalco Wolfowitz: "is well-read, competent and likeable". A spokesperson for the cabinet of European Development Commissioner Louis Michel meanwhile confirmed to me that there are no active plans for Mr Wolfowitz to travel to Brussels to meet Mr Michel. Indeed the latter will be in the on a regional work visit to the Caribbean for the next ten days so would not even be available. I have so far had no response to my request for clarification from the Luxembourg government, in its capacity as European Commission President, on where and when a joint meeting with European member states might occur. I think it will be in Washington, perhaps next week. Political blog Not-a-pundit also features a Dow Jones story this issue. Posted by Alex Wilks at 02:53 PM Wolfowitz "to sleep with all Bank staff".
"Paul Wolfowitz has agreed to take extraordinary measures to quell criticism of his nomination as World Bank president, in particular claims of conflict of interest due to his romantic involvement with a World Bank employee," reports satirical site Iconoclast. "However, this morning Wolfowitz held a press conference where he announced his plans to 'sleep with all World Bank staff once my nomination has been approved.' The current Deputy Secretary of Defense said he will sleep with all 10,000 World Bank employees, 'in alphabetical order,' in order that any accusations of favoritism towards his girlfriend be quieted. "Asked by New York Times columnist Maureen Down how long it would take him to have sex with the 10,000 bank staffers, and whether he had the stamina, Wolfowitz took umbrage. 'I'm 61, not 81. And anyway, I didn't say it would be quality sex. I can do about three of them a day, in between my other duties, maybe four or five per day on weekends. If people are interested in threesomes, that may expedite things. You do the math.' " Posted by David Steven at 10:00 AM A thrilling choice.
"Now President George W. Bush wants the head of the World Neocon Conspiracy to lead the ultimate philanthropist's bank," writes Amity Shlaes. "What is he trying to do, destroy these institutions?" Posted by David Steven at 08:50 AM Europeans remain cool. Belgian Finance Minister Didier Reynders is pushing for the 25 European member states to come to a common position on the Wolfowitz nomination. The story issued yesterday by Xinhuanet contrasts the cautious European response to Wolfowitz to the enthusiasm shown by Japan and Australia. It talks of "many reservations being aired in the corridors", and cites Stefaan Declercq General Secretary of Oxfam Solidarité demanding that the Bank selection process "must change". Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:26 AM "A clear-headed military man".
Strangely Russia's Garegin Tosunian, the president of the Association of Russian Banks, thinks it is "better to appoint a clear-headed military man than a bank-office operationalist". Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:04 AM Letter condemns European tactics. A letter to the Financial Times says the Europeans are playing the Wolfowitz nomination all wrong. It argues "If the Europeans are not pleased, they should come out with a clear and frank No to Paul Wolfowitz, instead of delicate expressions of 'uneasiness' and genteel surprise at 'not being consulted'. Letter-writer Prof Debarati Guha-Sapir continues "Politenesses will cut absolutely no ice in acquiring US support, either for getting Germany into the Security Council or for getting the French candidate to head the WTO. Well, maybe the latter, since the WTO has nothing like the potential the World Bank has to dispense favours". So much for the European governments. What about the Commission? Guha-Sapir argues: "Inviting Mr Wolfowitz to the European Commission to hear his agenda also sends the wrong signals. Frankly, what does the Commission imagine Mr Wolfowitz's agenda to be, given his record?" I also think Commissioner Louis Michel's office was very clumsy in issuing its midlly-worded invitation last week in the midst of the nomination debate. Posted by Alex Wilks at 07:59 AM Japanese scolding. An editorial in a leading Japanese newspaper has a clear message: "Don't use post as a tool to pursue U.S. global strategy". It scolds Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi for giving his support to Bush's nomination immediately rather than in return for US backing for further reforms of the institution. The editorial in Asahi Shimbun says: "as economic globalization advances, there is growing criticism that the U.S. government and the World Bank are working together to impose the American model of a free-market economy on uncompetitive developing countries. If the next World Bank chief creates the impression among developing countries that it is more interested in spreading American-model of democracy than in helping their economic development, the credibility of the organization that has been built up over decades will collapse overnight". Posted by Alex Wilks at 07:53 AM Latest European views. A wire story from Reuters in Belgium quotes various European ministers still not convinced about Wolfowitz for the World Bank president job. And Luxembourg Economics Minister Jeannot Krecke revealed that European governments have produced a paper listing "concern about the way Mr Wolfowitz intends to handle the policy of the World Bank". Swedish Finance Minister Par Nuder made what is perhaps the best diplomatic comment on the nomination so far: "I would like to say that if you can't get the one you love, you have to love the one you can get". The Austrian Finance Minister also sounded a note of caution. Dutch Finance Minister Gerrit Zalm said: "Some countries already know what they are going to do, and some countries will wait until these talks have taken place". But he finished: "I did not see any very negative attitudes so I think he is taken as a very serious candidate". No "very negative" attitudes is by no means a compliment coming from a minister ... but it seems increasingly clear that they have not got the bottle to challenge the US on this matter. The BBC also confirms the negative views that remain in Europe, citing the German finance minister among others and mentioning Wolfowitz's much-trailed trip to Brussels to answer questions on debt relief and other issues. Posted by Alex Wilks at 06:46 AM Bad news for world peace. Writing in Arab News Fawaz Turki comments that "Wolfowitz has a serious credibility problem, and sensitivities abroad are inflamed about the choice". Not good news at all, he continues, for world peace, multilateralism and international understanding By choosing "those two nutcases to speak for the United States at the World Bank and the United Nations, President Bush is not reaching out to the international community but insuring instead that his 'policy wars' will indeed go on. Posted by Alex Wilks at 06:34 AM Disruptive conservatives. "With the Wolfowitz and even the John Bolton nomination to the United Nations, the Bush administration retains its capacity to startle," writes Christopher Hitchens in Slate, "mainly because it has redefined the lazy term 'conservative' to mean someone who is impatient with the status quo." Hitchens finds the position of Paul Wolfowitz in this contest is rather harder to read than many people suppose. "He has long had a close relationship with centrist democrats in the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia. He prizes his Asian contacts and the relationship with moderate Islam that they symbolize." However, Hitchens concludes: "For all this, I don't take it for granted that the nomination for leadership of the World Bank is in the gift of the president of the United States". Posted by David Steven at 06:24 PM Wolfie accountability.
I continue to find it interesting that military officers remain held to higher standards of conduct while civilian leadership is not," writes Lt. Cmdr. Patrick Kolbas (ret.) to the Navy Times, citing the case of a submarine commander recently relieved of his command. Posted by David Steven at 06:20 PM Bye bye Taylor.
Erstwhile favourite for World Bank President, John Taylor, is out of a job. Posted by David Steven at 04:57 PM It's a cakewalk. With Italy now on board, "educated, competent and remarkable" Wolfowitz appears to be making rapid strides towards the Bank presidency... Posted by David Steven at 04:42 PM "Moment of truth" for Europeans. CONCORD, with Eurodad, has issued a press release on the World Bank president issue ahead of the European summit meeting taking place today. It says "this is a moment of truth for European governments and we demand that they do not roll over and accept this provocative US nomination". European governments' responses on the Bank president issue are due to be discussed at the leaders' working dinner this evening. Posted by Alex Wilks at 03:44 PM The imperial Wolf bares its fangs. A statement from Jubilee South "underlines the historical fact that the World Bank continues to be an instrument of the global power structure, and that at the head of that power structure lies the United States Government". It concludes that "the nexus between economic and military imperialism stands exposed". Under the header "The Imperial Wolf Shows Its Teeth" the Southern NGO network says: "other members of the G8 along with the so-called “donors” might pretend to be scandalized at the selection, but the real scandal are the policies and practices of the World Bank/ Washington Consensus of which they too form a part". It continues: "The nomination of Wolfowitz is reprehensible, a man of the Pentagon who is stained with blood and oil, continuing the tradition which ceded to the US the 'right' to name the World Bank’s president". But Jubilee South goes further than some other civil society statements in commenting "what really matters is the policy that is carried out independently of personalities - an ever-faithful institution belonging to a power structure that daily claims the lives of 250,000 persons victims of structural adjustment policies and imperial mind-sets and interests that are dead set against the radical redistribution of economic and social power required on a systemic level". Jubilee South believes that the external debt of the South is illegitimate, that it is an ideological construct that oppresses peoples. It calls on all those concerned to "direct their campaign efforts not simply at reversing that decision, but at decommissioning the World Bank itself". Posted by Alex Wilks at 03:05 PM Reuters misleads on Canada.
Reuters has put round a story that Wolfowitz has "won endorsements from Germany and Canada". The Canadian statement Reuters quoted at greater length, however, says nothing of the sort. It is a guarded comment that "Canada welcomes the nomination of Paul Wolfowitz for the post of president of the World Bank. Mr. Wolfowitz is a very serious and credible candidate. Until such time as nominations are put forward we are unable to comment further". Posted by Alex Wilks at 09:18 AM Further Bank staff rumblings. Former and present Bank staff continue to raise a fuss. Former Bank head of personnel Dr A. P. Williams questions: "should the governments of the world tamely acquiesce in the desire of the Bush administration to hand the presidency of the world's leading development institution as a consolation prize to someone who: would really have preferred to be secretary of defence"? He continues, in a letter to the FT: "there is a high probability that Mr Wolfowitz, being intelligent and energetic but seriously wrong-headed, would do a great deal, not just to one hapless country but to many others besides". Many current Bank staff feel likewise. One wrote today to say "I have yet to talk to anyone who has not reacted with shock and disappointment". As we mentioned previously staff have the opportunity to feed their comments via the Bank's Staff Association, the head of which distributed the following e-mail yesterday. Staff Association Dear Colleagues, Further to the March 17 Staff Association's message, we have met with Mr. The Staff Association has launched a confidential feedback channel for staff to comment on the nomination of Dr. Paul Wolfowitz as the new President of the World Bank. Comments can be posted via the following link: http://sa/feedback/ or through the Staff Association's website. In the next 24 hours, (c.o.b. Tuesday, March 22nd), we will sort and summarize the responses, which will be delivered to the Executive Directors. We will also provide the Executive Directors with hard copies of the comments with ALL identifying information carefully removed. The Staff Association will faithfully communicate to the Board the full range of staff views and concerns, without "spin." We feel this is the most effective way to ensure that staff views are taken into account. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Alison Cave Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:08 AM Democracy and corruption credentials slammed. "Of all former U.S. ambassadors, he was considered closest to and most influential with Suharto and his family," said Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara, head of the state-sponsored National Human Rights Commission in Indonesia has told Associated Press. When Wolfowitz was Reagan's Ambassador in Indonesia in the late 1980s "he never showed interest in issues regarding democratization or respect of human rights," said Hakim. Hakim was then director of the Legal Aid Institute that defended dissidents and sought to free political prisoners, but said: "Wolfowitz never once visited our offices." This will be an embarassment to Wolfowitz who is presenting himself as a constant and great defender of democracy. Anti-corruption work is another source of pride for Mr W. But Hakim reveals: "I also never heard him publicly mention corruption, not once". Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:02 AM "Not smart": Indonesia Post An opinion piece in the Jakarta Post comments that, with Wolfowitz at the helm, "the perception that the World Bank is merely a vehicle for furthering U.S. interests will become stronger". Writer Ari A. Perdana continues continues: "many fear that if he becomes the World Bank president, the Bank's policies will be directed by the U.S. government's interests. Developing countries worry that whatever lending or development assistance they receive will be tied to non-development issues such as international security". The article continues: "The Bank has been trying hard to maintain its image, which has been deteriorating since the rise of the anti-globalization movement in the late '90s. The Bank has also issued revisions to its development approaches in the past half-century. But if Wolfowitz becomes the Bank's president, it would be hard to avoid the perception that the World Bank will become, in Paul Krugman's words, 'an ugly American Bank'". "From the Indonesian perspective, we may be better off having Wolfowitz in the inner circle of the Bush administration as our relationship with the U.S government is more uncertain than that with the World Bank", the piece argues. Perdana respects Wolfowitz "as a person", but that "running an organization like the Bank is different from running the Pentagon", and that the baggage Wolfowitz brings will weigh down the Bank significantly. Posted by Alex Wilks at 06:57 AM Bank staffer begs to differ. We have received a retort to the post earlier that "it could have been much worse". A colleague of theirs responds: "I have never been a person who subscribes to the logic of the lesser of two evils. I find it personally to be the moral argument of the weak and cowardly". Our correspondent continues: "so the argument put forward by the person who described him/her self as "a senior member of the Bank's management team" does not fly with me". "The question I have for this person and others who may adapt that line of reasoning is: Do you believe that the already shaky reputation of the bank can survive, at least for the short term , having Paul Wolfowitz , considering his godfather-like image in Europe and the developing world, as your lead spokesman?. I doubt it very much". "They will have to pay me a whole lot of money to work in your PR department". As on so many other issues, Mr Wolfowitz has not yet declared what he would do with the Bank's External Relations Department, nor payscales. Posted by Alex Wilks at 06:29 PM Schroeder backs Wolfie. Confirmation that German Chancellor, Gerard Schroeder, has lined up behind Paul Wolfowitz, promising Bush he will support the controversial nomination. "People could be pleasantly surprised by his performance as the future World Bank head," he told German TV. Despite Schroeder's none too positive description of the decision-making process "The US president phoned me up to say what he intended and I told him Germany would not stand in his way" it looks like Wolfowitz's approval may be a done deal ... Posted by David Steven at 04:44 PM MPs consider Wolfo "uniquely unsuitable". In the UK, where the government has been facing difficulty getting some legislation through parliament, a strongly worded Early Day Motion has been tabled by David Drew (Labour) and Andrew George (Liberal Democrat). It states: "this House is appalled that the US Administration has chosen to nominate Paul Wolfowitz to the next head of the World Bank; believes that, as one of the architects of the invasion of Iraq, he is uniquely unsuitable to negotiate with the world's poorest countries; notes that he has no history whatsoever of demonstrating any understanding of the needs of those countries; further believes that he is the personification of how out of touch the Bush administration remains in ignoring its global responsibilities; and calls on the Government to take what steps it can to block this nomination." We hope that this will inspire other parliamentarians to table motions and questions, not least to demand to know their governments' positions. There has already been some such activity in the European parliament, in the Netherlands, in Germany and elswhere. Posted by Alex Wilks at 04:00 PM Dutch and Swiss doubts. While many other European governments sadly seem to be leaning in the direction of accepting the US nomination, at least the Dutch and Swiss are still briefing that they are prepared to put up a fight. "It is always elegant to have more than one candidate," Gerrit Zalm, Dutch finance minister, said on the margins of Sunday's European finance ministers meeting. "We now have to judge if he is a capable man." The Swiss Executive Director gave an interview to Tages-Anzeiger (subs) on Friday. When asked if he would support Wolfowitz, he laughed and said "we will see", before agreeing with the interviewer that the Swiss government wanted to test Wolfowitz on his management credentials and how he would distance the Bank from US government policy. Worryingly, though, Germany seems to have folded early. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has put out a statement indicating that he has already pledged his support for Wolfowitz in a phone call to Bush. Posted by Alex Wilks at 02:51 PM European summit confirmation. There has been confirmation from Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker that European governments will discuss the Wolfowitz appointment tomorrow at their meeting in Brussels. And that Wolfowitz will himself come to Brussels soon to inform EU Development Commissioner Louis Michel what approach to development issues he would want to take as Bank president. No date has been determined but it looks likely to be after the decision-making board meeting on 31 March. The European Commission has clarified that its invitation to Wolfowitz - widely reported as an acceptance of his candidature - was in fact intended to be in the spirit of an exploration of views, not an acceptance of a fait accompli. Posted by Alex Wilks at 01:44 PM Soft power.
According to Oxford Analytica, "The Wolfowitz nomination suggests the Bush Administration is seeking a reorientation of the bank... with global security concerns as the overriding agenda." Posted by David Steven at 11:53 AM Exhausted nations.
For Wesley Pruden, Paul Wolfowitz is "a symbol of George W.'s campaign to export equality, fraternity and liberty to the miserable neighborhoods where such values have been permanent hostages to privilege, brutality and oppression." Posted by David Steven at 10:05 AM Post predicts management changes. The Washington Post outlines Wolfowitz's campaign to win over critics. Inexplicably the Post, which has been strongly critical itself, seems to be falling under the Wolf-man's spell, although he has said very little that you would not expect from a clever politician seeking a job. The Post spells out that "Bush's choice of Wolfowitz has drawn opposition from many quarters, mostly focusing on the fear that the move marked a plan to use the World Bank's anti-poverty aid to reward Washington's friends, punish its enemies and advance the Bush administration's ideological agenda". Predictions abound "that demonstrations against the bank, which have subsided in the past couple of years, would erupt anew". Within bank staff, the Post reports "widespread trepidation that Wolfowitz will replace many top managers". As one Bank staffer told us this "will make more room for the guys from the American Enterprise Institute" (a free-market think tank). Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development is among those finding something to welcome, however. She says "there will be a healthy new emphasis on the centrality of political institutions to the development process". Former Bank Managing Director Jessica Einhorn says: "if there is one guy who understands how important strong institutions are, and would have first-hand appreciation for how difficult it is to get them in place, that's Paul Wolfowitz." For those of you with Washington Post on-line subscriptions you can also check out the Tom Toles' cartoon on the Wolfowitz appointment. Posted by Alex Wilks at 09:01 AM Civil society anger.
A snapshot of the diverse national civil society statements against the Wolfowitz nomination. Right to Food Movement (Bangladesh): "Wolfowitz is a controversial person for his role in Iraq war and his nomination to head the World Bank has stunned the world". CEE Bankwatch Network: "Mr Wolfowitz's well-known track record of unilateralism is fundamentally ill-suited to a a multilateral institution which must balance the diverse interests of its member countries". Many of these groups also signed the joint petition, and further civil society statements are appearing all the time on IFIwatchnet. Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:39 AM Support from Wolfie's pack.
Earlier, we wondered whether anyone in the Bank was happy at Paul Wolfowitz's appointment. Here's a reply... "And it's time for most observers (staff members included) to give up on the wish-list of great possibile nominations - Clinton, Dervish, Gates, even Powell - since they are just not going to happen. "Fighting Wolfowitz too hard and having his nomination fail would potentially bring a second, worse Bush nomination that the Europeans would not have the stomach to fight a second time. "Carly Fiorina, anyone? Or some addled Texas oilman, "all hat and no cattle"? Perhaps Bud Selig, since, using Bush's logic, the number of professional baseball players at all levels and World Bank staff at all levels are roughly the same? "So Wolfowitz certainly brings more 'pluses' to the table than some of the other potential Bush candidates - a formidable intellect, an independent personality, administrative experience. The nomination has shown conclusively that the intent of the Bush administration is to try to use the Bank as a tool of its foreign policy. Only someone of Wolfowitz's stature and credibility with Bush can fight this - that is, once we at the Bank have partly sucked him in to our agenda." Anyone else? Posted by David Steven at 07:45 PM Africans horrified.
Africans have now started also to raise objections to the World Bank presidential nominee. The Reporter (Gabarone) says the appointment "raises critical issues about the independence of the institution and its ability to give development loans to countries that do not conform to the Americanisation of the world. It is clear that the White House intends to use the World Bank to spread its influence". The Sunday Independent (South Africa) speculates that Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, who heads the World Bank's development committee, might lend muscle to efforts aimed at thwarting Wolfowitz's appointment. The former president of Senegal and now head of La Francophonie, Abdou Diouf, said on Sunday that he was "very surprised" about the nomination. The Congress of South African Trade Unions said that it was "shocked" at the nomination of "such a conservative ... into a position which ought to be advancing the interests of the poor". Sadly Africa has very little say in this matter which directly affects this continent more than any other. Posted by Alex Wilks at 02:41 PM Democratisation obstacles. A former Wolfowitz aide has commented that as World Bank president Wolfowitz would be likely to focus extensively on anti-corruption and democratisation. Stephen Sestanovich, a former aide to Wolfowitz who now works at the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations told the Sunday Times “what has bothered people about the bank for many decades is the concern that it has just fed the preoccupations and prejudices and bank accounts of corrupt elites in backward countries”. He added: “The Bush administration comes at that problem with a particular focus on governance, and even more narrowly on democracy, that is going to stir the place up.” I am wondering if Mr Wolfowitz has had a chance to read the World Bank's Articles of Agreement. They clearly state (Article 6) that Bank staff "shall not interfere in the political affairs of any member; nor shall they be influenced in their decisions by the political character of the member or members concerned. Only economic considerations shall be relevant to their decisions, and these considerations shall be weighed impartially in order to achieve the purposes stated in this Agreement". Posted by Alex Wilks at 02:25 PM Anti-war movement aggravated.
Large anti-war protests yesterday marked the second anniversary of the start of the Iraq war. Organisers of the London protests said "the mood of demonstrators was hardened by the Bush Administration’s nomination of Paul Wolfowitz" to the World Bank. Lindsey German, convenor of Stop The War Coalition, said "the nomination of Wolfowitz, the man who is recognised as chief architect of war with Iraq, will outrage most decent people". She continued: "Wolfowitz is the author of the US policy of terrorising the world militarily and now the US want him to act as the enforcer of US economic terrorism around the world. Their hubris is as staggering as it is frightening and we must continue to resist their extension of their War on Terror". Some 45,000 people turned out to march yesterday in London, and many also marched in other cities in Europe and beyond. Posted by Alex Wilks at 02:13 PM Reopening old wounds. El Universal (Mexico) bemoans the reopening of trans-Atlantic wounds that the Wolfowitz nomination has caused. It outlines the feeling in Berlin, Paris and elsehere in Europe that the administration's choice for World Bank president is a betrayal of Bush's recent promise to consult the Europeans. El Universal considers it unlikely that Wolfowitz will be blocked, however. Posted by Alex Wilks at 01:55 PM Just shut up.
We are told that the bank staff association is under pressure to stifle protest against the Wolfowitz nomination. Haven't received much pro-Wolfie comment yet. Is there anyone in the Bank who is happy about the news? And if you're not happy, how do you think things will settle down if the nomination goes through as expected? Posted by David Steven at 10:28 AM Sackcloth and ashes.
The mood at the World Bank remains funereal, but the mourning is especially spectacular amongst the Bank's Middle East specialists. Senior staff are said to be convinced that, with Paul Wolfowitz at the helm, they will lose credibility with their government contacts. The Bank risks being seen as an arm of US foreign policy. Although I imagine Wolfie is worried as hell by the prospect of leading an overwhelmingly hostile staff, I imagine that he would be quite happy to see a more chilly relationship with certain governments. Expect tough love at best from Bank if your country's on the new President's shit list! Posted by David Steven at 10:24 AM Sachs to intervene?
Jeff Sachs has been invited by Bank chief economist, Francois Bourguignon, to a private breakfast with bank officials and executive directors on Tuesday. Posted by David Steven at 10:05 AM Bank "a disaster". Alan Meltzer, told the Süddeutsche Zeitung that "the Bank is a disaster, and Paul Wolfowitz is the right man to make a change there". Meltzer is not just any old US economics professor (at Carnegie Mellon University) but the author of a Congressional report into the future of the Bank which is widely believed to be the template for what the Bush administration wants from the Bank. Meltzer's comments appear to give the lie the comments by Wolfowitz this week that he would not seek a major re-orientation of the institution. Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:51 AM Wolfo opponents "getting organised". The opponents of Wolfowitz for World Bank president are getting themselves organised and may be able to form an alliance, according to Austrian ORF in two articles. This despite Bush's best efforts to divide Europe once again on an important foreign policy issue. Europe must look to link up with developing countries on this, the piece argues. Posted by Alex Wilks at 08:45 AM Stiglitz explains implications. Joseph Stiglitz has called the Wolfowitz nomination "an act of provocation by America" and called on Europe to stand up and veto it. If not, he fears, "the US will try to push through almost anything it wants." Stiglitz knows what he is talking about, as former World Bank Chief Economist and chair of the US Council of Economic Advisers He comments in an interview with Channel 4's Liam Halligan: "so what if the rest of the Western world is talking about global poverty? The US wants to demonstrate it can do whatever it wants. The only way to hold power, after all, is to exercise power. This nomination is the exercise of power." With a neocon US politician at the helm of the Bank: "good reforms, including efforts to tackle poverty and disease, will be tainted. Governments in developing countries will come under enormous pressure, with elections being fought on whether or not they will kick out the World Bank." "My worry," concludes Stiglitz, "is the World Bank will now become an explicit instrument of US foreign policy. It will presumably take a lead role in Iraqi reconstruction, for instance". Your views? Join our web forum. |