| A market economy in Russia will do without political freedoms The international conference “The Liberal Agenda for a New Century: A Global Perspective,” which opened yesterday in Moscow, was, as the title suggests, intended to draw attention to the liberal movement on a global scale. However, the place where it was held determined the main direction of the participants’ thoughts. The speakers were more interested in the fate of liberalism in Russia than in the triumph of liberal ideas on a planetary scale.
The discussion on whether the end of liberalism has come in Russia was nipped in the bud by Kakha Bendukidze, a member of the bureau of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs. “In order to finish, you must begin,” he formulated his thought very clearly. In Russia, liberal reforms have not yet essentially begun.
According to one of the organizers of the conference, presidential adviser on economic issues Andrei Illarionov, “the net grant to the Russian economy due to foreign economic conditions last year reached 9.6% of GDP, but due to incorrect economic policies, the actual growth rate of GDP was slightly more than 7% " The reason for this, according to Mr. Illarionov, is excessive government regulation. True, it is not entirely clear what, in the opinion of the presidential adviser, happened to domestic industry, agriculture and the services sector all last year. How did they manage to live the entire year without leaving the slightest trace of their presence in the country's GDP?
Reformers from different countries came to Moscow to share their experience in the practical application of liberalism. Former New Zealand Finance Minister Ruth Richardson said that in 1984 her country was in a similar position to Russia. The economy was completely ineffective due to government regulation and protectionism. It took ten years and two governments to completely transform the country. But 20 years later, in a World Bank report in 2004, New Zealand was named the easiest country to start a new business.
Foreign participants, sharing advice, routinely spoke about fears associated with the Russian government’s rollback in respect for democratic freedoms. Kakha Bendukidze recalled the words of the great Russian poet: “Our northern summer is a caricature of southern winters.” In his opinion, similar analogies arise when comparing Russian and Western liberalism.
However, in Russia the principle of compliance of liberal policies with liberal reforms is not so obvious. More than once in Mr. Illarionov’s speech the idea that one without the other is quite possible. Usually in such discussions, Mr. Illarionov warmly recalls Pinochet, who invited the radical “Chicago boys” to Chile. So even an authoritarian regime does not mean the impossibility of carrying out liberal reforms. Moreover, according to Mr. Illarionov, an authoritarian regime does not mean corrupt.
However, at the conference, Mr. Illarionov relied on the experience of more politically neutral countries - such as Taiwan and South Korea.
First of all, according to Mr. Illarionov, in the spirit of liberal economic policy, it is necessary to reduce the share of government spending from the current 35% of GDP to 15-19%. The Korean “economic miracle,” like Taiwan's 8 percent GDP growth for ten years in a row, occurred with government spending at 17 to 23 percent. Yes, in fact, in our homeland, growth, according to the presidential adviser, began only after the amount of government spending was reduced from 40% of GDP in the early 90s of the last century to the current 35.
The recipe is not new, but the simplest remedy is often the most effective. And who can argue with the fact that there are too many bureaucrats in Russia. Calls not to be afraid of political authoritarianism look less convincing. Especially when it is not entirely clear in what capacity Mr. Illarionov pronounces them - as a scientist-economist or as a person working in the Kremlin. And in this case, does he express his personal opinion or a position close to the person to whom Mr. Illarionov gives advice. Vera SITNINA |
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