Free public services from rules of competition

by Dr Vickramabahu Karunaratne

(June 28, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) My column on the global economic crisis has incited a very interesting discussion. Of course some were facetious and some times rude. But many have made interesting and serious contributions. Quite a few have assumed that I have proposed state capitalism as the way out of the cyclic crisis of capitalism. On the contrary what I did was to expose the recent thinking among pundits of global capitalism on containing the crisis. What I mean by state capitalism is state intervention, whether it takes over or not, to regulate, supervise and manage the production and distribution beyond the Keynesian model.

In particular I was commenting on suggestions made by Daron Acemoglu. He has indicated that political competition is based on economic interest and that also represents the clash of social groups. Furthermore he has gone beyond economic rationality to discuss ethics of greed. When a bourgeoisie thinker comes that far in an analysis of economic crisis, then a Marxist has to pay very serious attention to his thesis. Obviously my column is not the place for a serious discussion on economic theory; but I achieved the purpose of starting a fresh discussion. If capitalism in one form or the other is not the answer what is the way out? There were number of discussions organized by the Fourth International to clarify the way out; its international congress and seminar on economic crisis held recently were two of them. One thing is clear there is no solution valid to a particular country. Globalisation has brought all economies much closure to each other as never before. Hence there is no solution for one country.

The depth of the crisis gives a new urgency to the proletarian clamour that “It isn’t the workers and the people who should pay for the crisis, but the capitalists!” This is the cry that has arisen at all the protests against the effects of the capitalist crisis. To handle this demand an emergency social and ecological plan is necessary. The satisfaction of claims arising from this plan requires a different distribution of wealth. If hundreds of billions could be released in a night, then the financial industrial and banking profits and the big fortunes can certainly be taxed to finance employment, wages, public services and social security. Tax havens that the global powers have allowed to thrive in some states or principalities should be liquidated. Simple measures to prevent fiscal dumping and to rationalize taxation on corporate profits must be implemented. But the crisis poses another question: who controls, who decides, who owns? This is the question of public and social appropriation. There is a need to establish a general law: free public services from the rules of competition and establish a public monopoly on strategic public services. Instead of private ownership of the key sectors of the economy, it is possible to implement public and social ownership of these sectors. The banking and financial sector must be unified and nationalised under popular control.

Finally the combination of the economic and ecological crisis leads to an imperative: change the logic, substitute social needs for profit and productivity mania, substitute care for greed. This requires the conversion of entire sectors of the economy to meet socio-ecological equilibrium, like the cars, weapons or nuclear power sectors. The “common good” will be the objective of a balanced, eco-socialist solution that gives a centrality to democratic planning. Some of these objectives appear unachievable in the current social relationship of forces. But the crisis puts radical solutions on the agenda that require a confrontation with the dominant classes. Without defeating the interest of the dominating elites it is not possible to implement a solution.

A popular government

This can be achieved only if the masses consciously participate to make a change. It is necessary to create the conditions for a broad mass self-organized movement to emerge on the political scene and impose a popular government which carries out a social, democratic and non capitalist programme. What sort of party is necessary to take this message?

It should be a feminist, eco socialist party that strongly accepts diversity of human subject. Only such party can facilitate the emergence of a government based on people’s participation. This perspective of a government breaking with capitalism requires non participation in social, liberal and populist governments and rejection of coalition politics. Finally, all these efforts should be made from a socialist, eco-socialist and feminist perspective presenting the broad outlines of an alternative project of society, a new mode of production and consumption, a new conception of democracy, a socialist democracy.