politics for the 99%

Published on allAfrica, by Marxist Group, Windhoek, March 27, 2015;

PRESIDENT Hage Geingob has established new ministries, among them the Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and SME Development, as well as the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare.

This is evidently in line with Vision 2030 objectives that envisage an advanced level of industrial growth in terms of wide-scale manufacturing, technological improvements and, in general, productive activities … //

… In any case, Namibia ought to take a more critical stance towards the whole notion of industrialisation. Industrial progress mainly benefits the elite 1% of the population who appropriate the wealth. Jobs for not more than 25% of the working class usually get generated in the process of industrialisation, but even this job-creation is not on a permanent basis.

So, this approach does not solve the unemployment crisis.

The country should rather deliberate on a form of expansion that would advance the entire working class – instead of benefiting only the minority. In the short to medium term, the country would actually gain more from a mass literacy programme, a (decent) basic income grant and innovative job creation strategies. We should focus primarily on women’s liberation – in particular a mass literacy programme for women.

The case of the Indian state of Kerala is extremely instructive with regards to the impressive literacy measures for its women … //

… However, in terms of poverty eradication, it would be an affront to the Namibian working class to give them a grant of a mere N$100 or, for that matter, a monthly pension of only N$1 200. A basic income grant of N$12 500 could initially only be allocated to working class women.

In struggling for economic self-sufficiency, the people of Kerala formed cooperatives.

Namibian working class women should similarly be given a chance to set up cooperatives for small-scale food production, clothing manufacturing, brick making, solar panel production, health care, farming, etc.

Namibia ought to implement development strategies that are ecologically-friendly and sustainable – as well as economically self-reliant.

(full text).

Links:

Worst over for Russian economy, time to talk success – economists, on Russia Today RT, March 31, 2015;

EU, demanding deeper cuts, rejects Syriza’s austerity list, on World Socialist Web Site WSWS, by Robert Stevens, March 31, 2015;

Opinion: A Bad Deal with Iran Is Better than None, on Spiegel Online International, by Omid Nouripour, March 31, 2015: Iran cannot be a trusted partner with its support for terrorists, a dire human rights record and it’s denial of Israel’s right to exist. But demonizing the country is not a viable policy. It’s time for the West to reach a nuclear deal with Tehran;

Iraq PM says Tikrit ‘liberated’ after month-long battle, on Mail online, by AFP, March 31, 2015;

Ukraine Interior Ministry was ‘uncooperative and obstructive’ in Maidan crimes probe – EU report, on Russia Today RT, March 31, 2015: The investigation into Maidan violence during Ukraine’s coup didn’t satisfy the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights, says a report from the European Council, adding that Ukraine’s Interior Ministry was “uncooperative and obstructive” ..;

After Syriza: What’s next for Spain? on ZNet (first on openDemocracy), by Marina Prentoulis and Lasse Thomassen, March 30, 2015;

Ruto ICC witness: Murdered by the state? on Pambazuka News, by Ken Wafula, March 26, 2015: Highlights from preliminary human rights NGOs report on the disappearance and death of Meshack Yebei. Human rights groups in Kenya are conducting their own investigation into the mysterious disappearance and death of a man linked to the crimes against humanity trial of Deputy President William Ruto at the International Criminal Court. In their preliminary findings, the groups say Meshack Yebei was murdered in a carefully planned scheme to obstruct justice in the Ruto case;

Trapped By Institutional Logic, on Zvideo (first on Lannan.org), by Noam Chomsky and David Barsamian, March 22, 2015;

Recovery delayed is recovery denied – austerity and democracy in the EU, on openDemocracy, by JOHN WEEKS, Jan 11, 2015: The reason that the German government, Deutsche Bank and financial interests everywhere require tranquilizers when contemplating a Greek election is the clear and present danger that democracy might prove contagious in Europe;
Special Page on openDemocracy: Can Europe Make It?

Der Euro – Fluch oder Segen? – Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Hankel, 45.01 min, von Quer-Denken.TV am 15. Juni 2014 hochgeladen: … Prof. Dr. Hankel — Wirtschaftswissenschaftler und Währungsspezialist – war wohl der ökonomisch kompetenteste Eurokritiker. Er gab Michael Friedrich Vogt mehrere Interviews, in denen er unmißverständlich seine Haltung zur Gemeinschaftswährung Euro und zur Situation an den internationalen Börsen schildert …;
on de.wikipedia: Wilhelm Hankel (* 10. Januar 1929 in Langfuhr bei Danzig; † 15. Januar 2014 in Köln[1]) war ein deutscher Ökonom und Bankmanager. Von 1959 bis 1967 war er Chefvolkswirt der KfW und von 1972 bis 1974 Präsident der Hessischen Landesbank. Er war Honorarprofessor an der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main und Gastprofessor an mehreren US-amerikanischen Universitäten …; /Weblinks.