In this documentary produced by Centro de Derechos Económicos y Sociales (CDES), the Women of Plan de Vida Fenashp in Ecuador, the Federation of Indigenous Organizations of Napo (FOIN) and the Union of People Affected by Chevron-Texaco (UDAPT) tell the story of their lives as women in their communities facing fiscal austerity as a consequence of high debt service payments.
The TV programme “Debt and repercussions on the marginalised” was broadcast on 23 June 2022 on Diamond TV Zambia. Panellists included Chama Mundia from JCTR and Mendai Imasiku from the Non-Governmental Gender Coordinating Council.
This programme was replicated as a radio show on 5FM Radio Zambia on 23 June 2022. Panellists included Chama Mundia from JCTR and
Claudia Pollen from the Consumer Unit Trust Society. You can listen here to the radio programme.
To the tune of Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, Philippine tax justice groups denounced mining corporations singing “Are You Really the Santa Claus They Say You Are?” in a rally in front of the Bureau of Internal Revenue last November 19.
♫ A bearer of gifts, they say, you are
But what a pittance, they turn out to be ♪
Are you really, the Santa Claus they say…
The campaign for tax justice in the extractive industry in the country is part of an economic justice agenda that includes the call to make taxes work for people and the planet.
“Rewrite the Rules, Make Taxes Work for Women” is a theme song produced by the Asian People’s Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD) for its campaign on tax and gender justice. The song urges listeners to make taxes work for women and to “rewrite the rules that oppress us.” It is inspired by the calls of women that have intensified with the deepening inequalities across the globe amidst the Covid19 pandemic, economic recession, and, climate emergency.
Performed by Meggy Katigbak, the song was launched on 17 March 2021 during a CSW65 (sixty-fifth session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women) NGO Virtual Parallel Event called “A Tapestry of Women’s Voices Fighting the Multiple Crises.”
The song seeks to inspire solidarity and action. It is to be shared, sung, amplified. We would appreciate if you let us know how you’ve used the song or the music video.
CHORUS
Rewrite the rules
Make taxes work for women
Rewrite the rules
Make taxes work for women
VERSE I
Society, for centuries
condemned us-brutally fit us
into a mold they shaped for us
one that they always formed for us
Women have struggled, toiled, and fought
We have fought to be seen and won-
We have won the right of suffrage
We still have many fights to win
VERSE II
I grow the food and cook the meal
But have no place at your table
That’s the rule, you say, that’s the rule
But life should not be so cruel
Who set the rules, it’s you, you say
All the care, work, and taxes I pay
From what little that I own
But where does my money go?
VERSE III
Every day, everywhere, we pay
Taxes to eat, to heal, to die
You bury us in taxes
You rest on our belabored backs
Now we shout “tax the rich, not the poor!”
Rewrite the rules to make them right
For justice and equality
Rewrite the rules, we want them right!
BRIDGE
Rewrite the rules that oppress us
Make taxes work for women’s rights!
Zambia became the first country to default on its sovereign debt as a result of Covid-19. What are the implications of this development in the context of the recently announced G20 initiative for a “Common Framework for Debt Treatments Beyond the DSSI”? Is Zambia a herald of things to come to other developing countries? How is the crisis affecting the lives and livelihoods of the Zambian people? Join us for a discussion on these issues.
Moderation:
Panelists:
Respondents:
Organised by: JCTR, Afrodad, Eurodad, Jubilee Debt Campaign UK, Erlassjahr.
