Neoliberalism and Class Conflict in Latin America: A Comparative Perspective on the Political Economy of Structural Adjustment

264 Pages·1997·24.85 MB·English

by  Henry Veltmeyer

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Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, England
Neoliberalism and Class
Conflict in Latin
America
A Comparative Perspective on the Political
Economy of Structural Adjustment
Henry Veltmeyer
Professor of Sociology and International Development
Saint Mary's University
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
James Petras
Professor of Sociology
State University ofN ew York at Binghamton
New York, USA
and
Steve Vieux
sometime Visiting Professor of Sociology
State University ofN ew York at Oswego
New York, USA
First published in Great Britain 1997 by
MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and London
Companies and representatives throughout the world
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978-0-333-67422-2 ISBN 978-1-349-25529-0 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-25529-0
First published in the United States of America 1997 by
ST. MARTIN'S PRESS, INC.,
Scholarly and Reference Division,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010
ISBN 978-0-312-16426-3
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Veltmeyer, Henry.
Neoliberalism and class conflict in Latin America : a comparative
perspective on the political economy of structural adjustment I
Henry Veltmeyer and James Petras, with Steve Vieux.
p. em.-(International political economy series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-312-16426-3 (cloth)
I. Structural adjustment (Economic policy)-Latin America.
2. Economic stabilization-Latin America. 3. Social conflict-Latin
America. 4. Liberalism-Latin America. I. Petras, James F., 1937-
. II. Vieux, Steve, 1949- . III. Title. IV. Series.
HC125.V445 1996
338.98-dc21 96-27852
CIP
© Henry Veltmeyer, James Petras and the estate of Steve Vieux 1997
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made
without written permission.
No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with
written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by
the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London WI P 9HE.
Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to
criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The authors have asserted their rights to be identified as the authors of this work in
accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and
sustained forest sources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 I
06 05 04 03 02 01 ()() 99 98 97
In honour of the memory of
Steve Vieux (1949-1996)
friend, scholar, and fighter
Contents
List of Tables ix
List of Abbreviations xi
Acknowledgements xiii
Map of Latin America xiv
1 The Neoliberal Agenda and the End of History?
Part I The Historical and Theoretical Context
2 The Global and Local Dynamics of Latin American
Development 9
3 The Structural Adjustment Policy Cycle 57
4 Intellectuals in Uniform: The Selling of an Ideology 93
Part II Neoliberalism in Practice: Critical Issues
5 Liberalism in Latin America and US Global Strategy 111
(with Todd Cavoluzzi)
6 The Economic Recovery of Latin America: The Myth
and the Reality 123
7 Neoliberalism and Capitalism in Mexico 1983-95:
Model of Structural Adjustment? 139
Part III The Politics of Adjustment
8 Non-Governmental Organizations and Poverty Alleviation
in Bolivia 165
(with Sonia Arellano-Lopez)
9 The Movement of Landless Rural Workers in Brazil 179
10 Class Conflict in the Countryside:
The Lessons of Chiapas 199
Vll
viii Contents
Part IV Conclusions and Reflections
11 The End of History or the End of Neoliberalism? 213
12 Beyond Neoliberalism: What is to be Done? 225
Notes 231
Bibliography 241
Index 257
List of Tables
2.1 External balance, Latin America 1981-9 17
2.2 Economic indicators for selected countries 18
2.3 Income per capita, selected countries 19
2.4 The evolution of real urban minimum wages 20
2.5 The share of wages in GDP, selected countries 20
2.6 Employee earnings as a percentage of value added in
manufacturing, selected countries 1967-89 21
2.7 The growth of poverty in Latin America 21
2.8 Social impact indicators 1980-90 22
2.9 Distribution of household income 1989-90, by quintiles 25
2.10 Index of real wages by sector 28
2.11 Female participation in the labor force, by sector 28
2.12 Index of average incomes in the labor force, by sex and
occupation, for some Latin American cities, 1985 29
2.13 Indicators of macroeconomic development, selected
countries 30
2.14 External debts, selected countries Latin America, 1993 31
2.15 The Latin American class structure 33
2.16 The structure of the labor market in Latin America,
employment by sector 39
2.17 Classes in rural society 42
5.1 Royalties and licence fee payments to US from Latin
America, 1962-93 115
5.2 Direct investment payments to US from Latin America,
1962-93 115
5.3 Interest on US bank loans and other payments to Latin
America, 1962-93 116
5.4 Cumulative US trade surpluses/deficits, by decade with
Japan, Germany and the EC, 1962-93 117
5.5 Cumulative income from Latin America compared to trade
deficits with Japan and Germany, by decade 1962-93 118
6.1 Exports, imports, net capital for selected countries in Latin
America 125
6.2 GNP per capita, Latin America, 1981-90 126
6.3 Percentage exports/GNP, Latin America 126
6.4 Long-term capital accounts, Latin America, 1989 127
ix
X List of Tables
6.5 Long-term resource transfers, Latin America 127
7.1 Economic situation, Mexico 1982 145
7.2 Macroeconomic indicators, Mexico 1982-9 146
7.3 Employment in manufacturing (formal sector) 1981-6 147
7.4 Salinas Regime's pacts with business and labor, principal
measures 151
7.5 Macroeconomic indicators of different
Mexican regimes 154
7.6 Macroeconomic indicators, Mexico 1911-94 156
7.7 Balance of payments, 1988-93 (billions of dollars) 157
7.8 External debt and equity finance 157
7.9 Coefficients of savings and investment 158
9.1 Non-rural median earnings by region, gender and race,
Brazil 1992 193