Activist Geldof criticises Australia's foreign aid

0 Comments | AFP, November, 2007

SYDNEY (AFP) — Singer and activist Bob Geldof blasted Australia's foreign aid as "embarrassingly pathetic" on Monday as he accepted a new role as honorary ambassador for the eastern city of Brisbane.

Geldof, the Boomtown Rats singer turned anti-poverty campaigner, said Australia spent less than 0.5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on foreign aid -- saying that was a "tragic" amount given the booming economy.

"It's embarrassingly pathetic. In fact, it's one of the meanest in the planet," he told reporters.

He added that it was "way behind the rest of the developed world."

"For a country that keeps boasting about its huge growth, which is absolutely correct, you should boast and be proud of it, is 99.5 percent not enough for you?"

Geldof...