Although these various measures increased the
currency in circulation, prices did not inflate. To the contrary, studies found that in
provinces in which the national money supply was supplemented with local
currencies, prices
actually declined compared to other Argentine provinces. Local exchange systems allowed goods and
services to be traded that would not otherwise have found a market.
This
salutary effect was also observed in Bangladesh. "With
Bangla-Pesa," says Ruddick, "we've seen that a circulating community-backed
interest-free credit is a low-cost, effective way to increase local liquidity
and decrease poverty."
The
defendants just need to prove that in court. A crowd-funding
campaign is being used to raise the money urgently needed for their defense.
The link for contributions is here. To sign a
petition begun by a delegation at The Hague supporting the Bangla-Pesa, click here.
Jamie Brown contributed
to this article.
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