UN Tribunal for World Debt? (Insider Report).(United Nations proposes International Debt Court)(Brief Article)

Here it comes: a new campaign for an International Debt Court (IDC), an International Bankruptcy Tribunal (IBT), or some such creature. The advocates: the one-wonders at the New York Times, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Wall Street, and the Council on Foreign Relations. The massive debt crisis and the likelihood that other debtor nations may follow Argentina into default necessitates an institution of this kind, they say. The plan was floated in an article by Daniel Altman in the Times on January 6th entitled, "A Country in Chapter 11? Yes, but...."

"Argentina alone owes $141 billion, mostly to the IMF, the World Bank, other countries and institutional investors," noted the Times. What to do about this? Create and empower a new UN institution, of course. Mr. Altman tells us the IMF "recently suggested offering countries the same sort of bankruptcy reorganization procedures, through an international tribunal, that are available to companies and municipalities in the United States." This would mean, naturally, investing the new institution with broad governmental powers. No problem; the folks at the IMF, World Bank, and UN have never ...