A POSTCAPITALIST PARADIGM: THE COMMON GOOD OF ...

A neo-liberal globalization has been imposed upon us, supported by a
dominant elite that deifies the free market and weakens the State,
which is relegated to its security and defence functions. Governments
are forced to save the financial system and then, under threats from the
private credit rating agencies, obliged to implement adjustment and austerity
programmes to reduce the public deficit (which has been greatly
increased by the bail-outs).
In Latin America and the other regions of the so-called developing world,
we became familiar with these Structural Adjustment Programmes, imposed
by the IMF and financed by the World Bank, which have had such
catastrophic consequences by increasing unemployment, poverty and
social marginalization, as well as a regression in social cohesion and political
stability. For these adjustment programmes make the workers and
the poorest sectors of society pay the price of a crisis created by the
same financial and speculative groups that continue to accumulate benefits
and wealth, while the States and the people become indebted and
impoverished.
Already for many years the international trade-union movement has
warned that this ‘globalization model’ is part of an unbridled capitalism
(if you will excuse the repetition) that has brought about the accumulation
and concentration of wealth into a few hands and the continuing increase
of poverty and social marginalization.
The CSA, together with the International Trade Union Confederation
(ITUC and the European Trade Union Confederation – ETUC), has been
developing a unionism that, without renouncing the struggle and defence
of the legitimate claims of the workers, goes beyond mere protest
and is taking on the proposal of solutions for the short and medium term.
They want to promote a new economic, social and environmental development
model, based on the human being, work (which generates
real wealth), and scientific and technological development at the service
of the whole of society, preserving the environment, the equality of
rights and opportunities, and gender equity – in other words, integral development.
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