Center for Economic Justice,an activist group which aims to minimize the negative effects of globalization, initiated the eBay auction by posting a desktop globe with a coin slot cut in the top. The posting’s headline reads “World Bank — Antiquated (does not work).”
With a starting bid of 30 cents, or, according to the product description, the hourly minimum wage under World Bank policies in Haiti, the site had received 49 visitors by early afternoon. The bid, however, had not risen above 30 cents.The posting coincides with a series of protests planned for the weekend when the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund meet in conjunction with the gathering of Group of Seven major industrialized nations in Washington D.C.
News source: CNN Social and environmental activists have long derided the World Bank, an international lending institution, for championing policies that they say lead to increased poverty and environmental disruption in the developing world.
The bank has argued that its loans for development projects are crucial to modernization and economic growth.
