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Proceso 1143
May 4, 2005
ISSN 0259-9864

Índice

Editorial: Old and new economists

Politics: The Latin American nationalism

Economy: Reflections before the International Labor Day

Editorial

Old and new economists

During the eighties, the Salvadoran economists shared with their colleagues from other disciplines –political analysts, sociologists, historians, psychologists and writers- a series of characteristics that went from sociopolitical commitments to dress codes. Besides some exceptions, the Salvadoran economists of the eighties knew what the speech about fairness, justice, and equality was all about. They did not necessarily belong to the left wing, but they could not resist to call the attention on the obstacles brought by a stagnated economy that depended of other factors: exclusion, marginality and poverty. For them, the problems of the Salvadoran economy were structural conflicts -concentration of property and wealth, wage depression, low labor qualification, dependency of the primary exportation, etc.-, a subject not to solve with temporary reforms that only delayed the necessary changes in the structure of both property and income.

This was certainly a committed speech, but it was also a lifestyle. The economists who had these ideas were harsh critics, not only of those who professed the opposite ideas, but also of those who bragged about their wealth and privileges. Their flag was austerity, an austerity that had to be reflected by his appearance -for example, a beard, neglected hair-, and by his clothes -simple and gawky outfits-. This was the way of being sociologists, writers, historians, and psychologists: the economist was synchronized with them -in his preoccupations and in his lifestyle-, with his colleagues of the social sciences.

In the nineties, in an almost insensible manner, a select group of economists began to act differently. Their speech began to change; the critics against the stagnated economy transformed themselves into good reviews, in the beginning, hidden away in their discourses, and later, in open statements about the goodness of the free market, privatization, and the commercial treaties. This was done in the name of science -a hermetic science, sustained in indecipherable economic models -, as opposed to the ideology in which earlier, according to them, their discipline was trapped.

The speech of some economists –just like the one of their colleagues in the field of social sciences- has changed, but their behavior, their dress codes, and their way to mix, socially speaking, have also changed. Ostentation -exclusive brands of clothing, residences, vehicles, trips and vacations- has become their inseparable companion. If in the past wealthy people were the most despicable beings, now it is not only necessary to support them in their initiatives of economic expansion, but to admire them as well and, as much as possible, to emulate them.

The most critical economists of both the seventies and the eighties saw in a masters’ and in a doctorate’s degree an opportunity to contribute in a more qualified manner to end with the negative factors created by the prevailing economic model; during the nineties, many economists do see in those academic degrees a mechanism of access to certain benefits and influences that they never even dreamt about. Certainly, only a few economists have managed "to prevail", but those that have made it are the ones that represent the profile of today’s successful economist, that is, the new economist: graduated abroad (preferably in American or British universities); adviser of the government, company consultant; member of regional institutions; an exquisite taste in clothes; with access to fine automobiles, expensive trips and restaurants; and connected to powerful people and institutions. Some of the economists in the past did have access to these goods and privileges as well; however, for the most analytical ones, that was not the most important goal of their professional life.

For the successful economists of today, that achievement is not a private matter, but a public triumph; the most important news media can prove this, for which some economists of the country (and some of the foreign ones) are true oracles that must be consulted whenever the economic problems -often created by their advice- threaten to crackle the neo-liberal model that has prevailed in El Salvador.

In short, anyone could think that the ambition, the influences, and the success projected by the prosperous economist only affect those who professionally move in their scope of influence. Nevertheless, his image of an ambitious, an influential, and a successful professional is also projected to the rest of the Salvadoran society. This message is clear: economic knowledge is important for those who have it -masters and doctors- know how to make the most convenient connections, that is, how to get acquainted with those who hold the economic and the political power. The search for success is something good and, if power is the key to success, knowledge must be closely connected with power. Obviously, those who do not have the knowledge –those who are not privileged intellectuals with superior academic degrees will have to offer what they have to the powerful people, even if it is just submission.

As the poet Oswaldo Escobar Velado says, "that is how lies walk among us. The same way as the attitudes of the irresponsible ones. The same as the fictitious world where they sing like a canary with tuberculosis, three or four poets, employees of the government". However, in our case, this is not about poets, but about some economists that by following the game of the government and the game of the business elite have forgotten the small value of a science turned into a servant of power. The economists that have their arms twisted by power should win back the analytical spirit that has characterized the best moments of their discipline; however, they will not be able to do it while they remain trapped in the fictitious world of neutrality, the lack of commitment with the less fortunate -that is, most of the Salvadorans-, the ones that have been stricken by the present economic model, and while they keep offering their speech to the best bidder.

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Politics

The Latin American nationalism

The political ideologies that came from Europe have influenced the political, the social, and the economic configuration of Latin America, from the period of its independence to the present time. It is enough to remember the echo that the ideals of the French Enlightenment period had on the discourse of the "fathers of the independence" of our subcontinent, to have an idea about this determinant first European presence. In addition, the nationalistic ideas are part of these ideological contents that have shaped the Latin American landscape. These ideas are present throughout all the social, the political, and the economic history of the subcontinent. However, the same ones have adopted different shades according to certain historical moments or according to the particular international conjunctions. All of the political sensitivities have declared, according to the moment, a certain nationalism. The left wing as well as the right wing can be recognized in this political ideology.

The nationalism of the right wing
With a factor that can be described as a nationalism of the right wing, the Latin American people tried to face the reality of organizing the power. Strongly imbued with an European antecedent in which -within the framework of the creation of the States-nations- the subject of the national identity occupied a space of first importance, after the different processes of national independence, the Latin American leaders began to vindicate their idiosyncrasy, their identity, and the cultural features that make them different from the countries that conquered them.

As a corollary of this situation, they also begun to demand a certain level of political and social organization that would allow them to find a social integration system for the new nations. A nation, in this context, is understood as a community of individual properties, that belong to people that are partially connected, almost "naturally", by a geographic space, a language, a culture and, in some cases, a set of well-defined physical features.

But this conception soon contradicted the flagrant economic disparities between most of the population and the leaders. It is possible to say that the discourses about the national identity and about idiosyncrasy, leaded by the nationalistic sectors, did not promote an economic integration of the marginalized sectors of the region. The external economic scheme did not contribute to it either. The social integration was completed and the nationalistic speech soon became a poor ideology, in the worse sense of the word. In this context, the acid test for the classes of leaders was the dilemma to design a political system that would keep the socioeconomic fracture or one that would reconcile the masses and the elites (an economy that would consider the integration of the masses), in a new nationalistic project.

There is no doubt that it was decided to control the actions of most of the population. The people were not able to enjoy the considerable economic benefits produced in the region. The highest expression of this political design is the oligarchic regimes that governed in the different Latin American countries after independence was achieved. They presented together a nationalistic demagogic speech with a scheme of an authoritarian political power and that was not democratic from an economic perspective.

In addition, in this context, the power supported by the arms becomes a constant temptation. This, evidently, responds to the lack of consensus that has surrounded (since day one) the political activities in the region. The dominant social classes find in the military institutions the best trick for the defense of their economic interests. The tradition of coup d'états or the continuous intervention of the army in the political world, finds its origin in this incapacity to reconcile the interests of elites with those of most of the Latin American population.

Not even the anti-oligarchic political movements managed to get rid of this socioeconomic fracture, present from the beginning in the Latin American countries. In addition, the product of the alliances between the popular sectors and the middle-class intellectual movements ended in what it is known in the history of Latin America as the nationalistic movements of the left wing. This type of nationalism, on the other hand, went from an anti-imperialist struggle to a revolutionary nationalism, in the context of the fights of the left wing for the restoration of Communism in the region.

The anti-imperialist struggle
Although the anti-imperialist movements represent a different approach, different than the left wing and in a certain way, far enough from the oligarchic regimes that the sub continent knew after its independence, there is no doubt that they must also be considered as a form nationalism. The only difference is in the fact that this is more of an aggressive form of nationalism, and with a higher level of determination to fight against the foreign interests. On the other hand, in the beginning of the 20th century, once again Europe appears. The anti-imperialistic feeling is nourished, mostly, by the publication of the book of Lenin, which considers imperialism as a superior stage of Capitalism.

Consequently, the anti-imperialist movements are going to be organized around the defense of the national cultural patrimony, the natural resources, etc. Nevertheless, it was necessary to hope for the arrival of a revolutionary nationalism to see the total development of this source of ideas.

A revolutionary nationalism
A revolutionary nationalism can be considered as the highest expression of this crusade of the left wing movements to vindicate the national interests. Somehow, it represents a fusion between the anti-imperialism and the nationalism of a rising left wing at the beginning of the 20th Century.

The main demands of this nationalism of the left wing focus in solving the socioeconomic fracture of Latin America. For that reason, the universality of education and culture will be considered as the main program to be adopted. In addition, they promote the industrial development of the countries in order to be able to compete with the hegemonies. At the same time that they caused the birth of a class of national businessmen able to defend the interests of their respective countries. The political instruments to act against the negative factors vary from an increasing level of social organization to demand the satisfaction of their requests (made by the leaders) to the establishment of populist governments, in whose election the military played a crucial role.

In any case, the populist governments, even if they managed to make some achievements, did not solve the problems connected with the differences in the Latin American societies. On the other hand, they institutionalized the corruption and friendly favors as a way to do politics. In addition, they did not contribute either to settle the controversial debate about the authoritarian political culture of Latin America. The military keep having the last word in the national life, although, in this conjunction, by defending the popular interests.

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Economy

Reflections before the International Labor Day

During the International Labor Day, several organizations marched by the streets of San Salvador declaring their irritation because of the economic policies of the ARENA administrations. In this movement there were also young college students and salesmen of the informal sector, who demanded substantial changes in the economic direction of the country.

At the other end we find the opinions of the right wing. They consider that the celebration of the International Labor Day is an opportunity that different popular organizations take advantage of to alter the public order and to damage the private property.

The reality of labor in El Salvador
In Capitalism, the suitable form through which the people would have to satisfy their material needs is earning a salary. Unless one has a certain amount of assets and productive resources to put them to the disposition of others and labor -like businessmen can-, the most natural thing to do is to look for a particular way to obtain the amount of income required to satisfy a person’s needs.

Neo-liberal Capitalism cannot even face the total supply of labor in the economy. The national economy is stagnated and its slow operations do not allow it to absorb the total amount of labor supply available in the country. The people who do not find a job get involved with the economic activities of the informal sector. There are also people who, in spite of working at the formal sector of the economy, get unfair salaries and that is the reason why they must dedicate part of their spare time to other economic activities that provide them with a better income level.

The economic model should be able to generate enough wealth to bring a sense of well-being to all of the citizenry. But that is not enough, it is necessary that the citizens are able to find a job. Before the failure of the model, the people must look for informal ways to get a job. That is why, the growth of the informal sector and the unemployment level are directly are related, and this shows the failure of the prevailing economic model.

Between 1996 and 2002, the average growth rate of the economically active population (PEA, in Spanish) was 2.71%. Between those years, it is interesting to see that the variation rate between 2001 and 2002 was negative, that is, the PEA decreased in absolute terms from one year to next. This is connected to the small growth of the economy that reached one of the lowest levels in the first years of the new century. At the time, an institutionalized fixed type of exchange did not minimize the external impact of the decreasing dynamism of the global economy, mainly the one of the U.S.A.

The bad situation of the labor market also can be corroborated through the average unemployment rate in the period between 1995 and 2002, when it was a little more than 7%. In other words, after the stagnation period that the economy went through in 1996, the unemployment rate has practically remained as a constant. The possibilities of reduction have exclusively to do with people who, despite the fact that they have a qualified educational training, end up as part of the informal sector, or as part of the formal sector with a low remuneration level or without access to social benefits.

The situation of the women
In the labor market there is also a gender discrimination problem. In the country, even when a woman has a college degree, her income is way below the one obtained by a man in the same position. This is an unpleasant situation, mainly if it is considered that women, as the population increases, keep becoming the only supporters of their homes.

The information gathered in the 2003 Multiple Purpose Survey of Homes indicated that the differences in the wages established for men and for women keep growing apart. Therefore, it should not seem odd to find men who are remunerated twice as much as women, when both genders have the same level of education.

As for the unqualified labor, the wage differences between men and women can be considerably lower, but even so, these people are the ones subjected to the worse tasks in the country. They accept these conditions because they need to support their families, since many of them are the only supporters of their home.

According to the document “The situation of the economy and labor in the maquilas in El Salvador: a gender analysis of the CEPAL”, 80% of the population in the sweat shops are women between the ages of 20 and 26 years old. A little more than half of this 80% is forced to work overtime, that is, beyond the legally established 44 hours per week. This is because the supervisors of these companies demand certain production goals pre-established by the owners of the maquilas. There is also a 47% that suffers with respiratory diseases, caused by the inadequate ventilation conditions in this type of companies. In addition, 40% of the sweat shops in the country are reported for unfair treatment, threats of dismissals, wage reductions, and physical violence.

An increasing number of home female leaders, the existence of noticeable wage differences between men and women, and the precarious conditions of work, are enough factors for the State to establish policies to improve the favorable conditions of women in the country.

Labor perspective for the young people
Between 1995 and 2002, annually, 30,000 people went looking for a job for the first time. During 1996, when a strong economic depression took place, this number increased to 40,000 people. This information involves the people that are old enough to start looking for a job (PET, in Spanish). For the period in question, this sector between the ages of 15 and 19 decreased from 225,000 to 182,700 people. This means that there was a reduction of 18.8%.

In the employment market of professional young people the situation is not pleasing either. Given their socioeconomic situation and their opportunities to travel abroad, most of them consider as an alternative to look for a job in the U.S.A. or another country because of the high unemployment level. This does not encourage the growth of the national productivity level and promotes the Latin American phenomenon known as "brain getaway".

These are some of the reasons why the population is upset. The right wing has a reduced vision of the problem, which does not bring any solutions to it. Hopefully the State might be able to face these social demands, which, in the end, are nothing more than a reflection of the critical situation that most Salvadorans live in. As it can be noticed, these are not unfounded demands, they are a clear expression of how diverse sectors are affected by the economic crisis of the country.

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