The almost instant success that James A. Baker III has had in his international lobbying to have Iraq's debt forgiven raises an uncomfortable comparison: how little has been done to relieve the African debt that cripples some of the world's poorest countries. Since the mid-1990s, advocacy groups have been pushing for the cancellation of the debt that has left African countries starved of funds to fight AIDS, address poverty and improve education and health systems. Activists charge that the contrast between progress on Iraqi debt and the paralysis of debt-relief programs for Africa reflects the low priority Western nations often accord Africa. "When we started the global Jubilee movement in 1996, the analysis was that debt cancellation happens largely for political reasons," Gabriel said. "That was one of the things we wanted to challenge. We should not have debt cancellation for political interests or out of shallow charity. We were saying this is a question of justice, not charity." (Requires registration)