Clinton [...the closet communist...] Calls for Sharing Wealth (...after Greeks tell him to stuff it...)
President Asks Prosperous Nations To Help Poor With Internet Hookups and Debt Relief
By TERENCE HUNT
.c The Associated Press
FLORENCE, Italy (Nov. 21) - President Clinton, worrying about 'people and places that are completely left behind,' called on prosperous nations Sunday to spread global wealth by helping poor countries with Internet hookups, cell phones, debt relief and small loans.
'How can we continue to grow the economy?' Clinton asked. 'You can bring investment to the places that are left behind.'
In a spectacular 14th century Renaissance palace with frescoed ceilings, Clinton spoke at a 'Third Way' gabfest with five like-minded world leaders. They talked for hours about how to spread the benefits of the 21st century's global economy and technological marvels.
The Third Way is billed as a middle ground between the politics of the left and the right - a system of governance that promotes entrepreneurs and trade and protects the less fortunate. Joining Clinton were Italian Premier Massimo D'Alema, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.
Before the session, Clinton ignored pouring rain and took a quick walk along the Arno River toward the Ponte Vecchio, a 14th-century structure that is the city's oldest bridge and the only one to escape destruction in World War II.
Later Sunday, Clinton arrived in Bulgaria, the fourth stop on a 10-day, six-country trip. It was the first presidential visit to the former Soviet bloc state and was intended to highlight the problems and the progress of the Balkans.
The tight security measures in Sofia upset many Bulgarians, who said the restrictions were worse than when top Soviet leaders came to town more than a decade ago. Bulgaria has won recognition in the West for its ethnic tolerance and peaceful transition from communist rule.
Clinton spent less than 24-hours in Florence - much to the dismay of his entourage. The city is one of the great art capitals of the world, the place that nurtured Michelangelo, Dante and Leonardo Da Vinci. It also is known for its fashionable shops.
Arriving here late Saturday, the president drew parallels between the advances of the Renaisssance and the changes wrought by the technological age.
Expanding on that theme Sunday, Clinton cited the 'digital divide' of haves and have-nots. 'The people who have access to the Internet and technology have enormous advantages and it has to be closed,' he said.
'I think we should shoot for a goal within the developed countries of having Internet access as complete as telephone access within a fixed number of years,' Clinton said. 'It will do as much as anything else to reduce income inequality.'
Blair praised the meeting as a trans-Atlantic 'dialogue' that will help each leader explain to the voters back home the policies he is pursuing. 'All of us are trying to manage the consequences of change,' he said.
'That's our mantra, that's our pitch,' Blair said.
Jospin, head of a leftist government under pressure to preserve costly programs, cautioned that globalization must not undermine the traditional nation-state.
'We want to place France within the universal current of modernity without allowing France to lose its identity,' he said.
Clinton told his colleagues that developed countries should work to 'get more cell phones and computer hook-ups out there' in poorer nations.
'The people in Africa are no different from the people in America,' Clinton said. 'If you give people access to technology, a lot of smart people will figure out how to make a lot of money.'
He also said wealthy countries should support debt relief for the world's poorest nations. 'It's insane to keep these poor countries spending all their money making interest payments ... They'll never be able to grow and they have no money to buy our products.'
The president also promoted an initiative championed by his wife, Hillary, to provide 'micro enterprise' loans - $50 to $100 - to people in poor urban and rural villages, mostly women, in Latin America, Asia and Africa. He said the United States currently funds 2 million such loans. 'I wish we were funding 20 million loans.'
'I think the rich countries should be funding literally 200 million or 300 million micro-enterprise loans a year,' he said. |
