The reproduction of democratic neo-liberalism in Argentina? Kirchner’s solution to the crisis of 2001

EMILIA CASTORINA

Montreal

Conferencia; ISA Annual Convention; 2011

International Studies Association

The aim of this paper is to explore the process of capitalist recomposition (2003-2007) that followed the crisis of 2001 in Argentina. While the restructuring was successful in taming social conflict and reviving accumulation it also produced new contradictions. The paper argues that these contradictions are the outcome of the specific form of accumulation during this period, which does not represent a genuine break with the neo-liberal era but rather a re-articulation and reconstitution of neoliberal policy in a somewhat more progressive form. this involves a brief historical analysis of democratic neo-liberalism from Menem to Kirchner (1989-2007) and how Menem and Kirchner’s neo-populisms proved to be effective and efficient in disciplining and controlling popular classes after major economic crises (hyperinflation in 1989 and default in 2002) based on forms of state control/integration of popular sectors that by no means involved broad-ranging re-distributional measures. In fact, social inequality has been a persistent feature of their economic policies and yet they were able to prevent redistributing wealth/income from the concentrated (and internationalized) fractions of capital to popular sectors, mostly because targeted policies of poverty alleviation (as opposed to universal policies of distribution) enhanced a social assistance apparatus that enables to reproduce forms of concentrated accumulation at very low “social” costs. This may be successful in the short term but, at the same time, problematic in the long term when the reduced fiscal capacity of the state caused by economic recession (neo-liberalism is characterized by recurring crises) becomes unable to nurture the system of social and political domination that prevents social conflict, thus giving rise to cycles of protests.