Neoliberalism: An increasing gap among incomes and tax gifts to Capital
Evolution of low and high salaries since the 1960s
The May 1968 general strike in France led to a considerable increase in the minimum wage over 15 years
We do not have room to sum up the evolution of income inequalities over the last two centuries. We shall limit ourselves to highlighting the evolution in France since 1968. The May 1968 general strike in France, and the Grenelle accords that followed it, led to a considerable increase in the minimum wage over 15 years: “The purchasing power of the minimum wage accordingly increased by more than 130 percent between 1968 and 1983, while the mean wage increased only by about 50 percent, resulting on a very significant compression of wage inequalities. The break with the previous period was sharp and substantial: the purchasing power of the minimum wage had increased barely 25 percent between 1950 and 1968.” [1]
On 11 April 2021, Guillermo Lasso (52,4%), the right-wing candidate, defeated Andres Arauz, the candidate supported by Rafael Correa and part of the Left, by 52.4% vs 47.6% in the second round of ballots for the presidential election. Lasso was elected thanks to the division of the Left, since a significant part of it, which has become deeply diffident of Rafael Correa, called for a null vote. Votes on the popular side, that represented a clear majority in the first round of February 2021, were divided, which made it possible for a former banker to be elected president. The situation is serious for an opportunity to break away from Lenin Moreno’s brutal neoliberal policies has been lost. Former banker Lasso, though critical of Lenin Moreno’s positions out of sheer electoral calculation, will continue in the same harmful direction: a deepening of neoliberal policies, submission to the private interests of Big Capital, particularly of Ecuador’s powerful banking sector and of the
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Latin America has once again entered a period of strong social and political turbulence
Interview with Franck Gaudichaud
Franck Gaudichaud recently wrote and coordinated two collective works drawing a critical assessment of “progressive” political attempts to challenge neoliberal hegemony in Latin America. In this interview, he considers the social and political dynamics of the recent period, and also current issues in the region. The interview was conducted by Rosa Moussaoui, journalist and senior reporter for the newspaper L’Humanité.
What is the common political thread to what you call the “progressive experiences” of the early twenty-first century in Latin America?
Series: 1944-2021, 77 years of interference from the World Bank and the IMF (Part 28)
The World Bank did not Foresee the Arab Spring Popular Uprisings and still Promotes the very same Policies that triggered them 12 April by
In 2021, the World Bank (WB) and the IMF will reach the age of 77. These two international financial institutions (IFIs), created in 1944, are dominated by the United States and a few major allied powers that act to generalize policies contrary to the interests of the people.
The WB and the IMF have systematically lent to states in order to influence their policies. External debt has been and still is used as an instrument of subordination of debtors. Since their creation, the IMF and WB have violated international covenants on human rights and do not hesitate to support dictatorships.