6.2.4 Consequences of Economic Freedom
6.2.4 Consequences of Economic Freedom
For example, in 2000, the people of Bolivia
rioted, creating a national state of emergency when their water supply was privatized. At the insistence of the World Bank, control of their water supply was sold to international corporations. Household water costs increased to $20 per month in homes
where the average income was only $70.
Does economic freedom affect us all equally? Think about what you learned in Social Studies 10-1 about the legacies of imperialism. You may recall that Europeans settled in North America and established mercantile colonies in Africa, Asia, and South and Central America. They settled the land, removing Aboriginal people from their homelands. They extracted resources and encouraged local farmers to produce cash crops such as cocoa and coffee instead of food products that they could feed to their own families. The profits from these ventures went to the world's first multinational corporations, such as the Dutch East India Company-and to the governments of the colonizing nations.
These injustices have led to long-term issues worldwide.
Corporations are certainly not evil. They employ workers and provide profits to shareholders. They produce goods and services used by people in all walks of life. In fact, most people work for corporations and benefit from the purchase of their products and services. If we in liberal democracies truly value economic freedom, then corporations have the freedom to grow and expand. With money comes power.- List some of the unanticipated consequences of promoting economic liberalism.
- What particular aspects of liberalism helped create these unanticipated outcomes?