the question now is whether class upsurge, growing peasant leagues, to rest stahility: astronomically 21.40 10р 25p E1.00 of exploitation 95g 45р Africa (Guine) 90p 75р (te. 01-278 9526) "There will not be cconomie take-off in Chile for at least five years. In the menatime every citizen and every public agency will have to put up with the severest economic mensures.
This statement appeared in a recent prospoct of plaagiing innestmonts into a edition of the extreme right-wing Chilean newspaper El Mercurio, whose former director Fernando Leniz is the junta's Minister of Economics They show how even the mosE ardent supporters of the junta have had to admit the appalling depth of the coonomic crisis in -BLI Chile, and at the same tome have had to pustpone any possibility of recovery to the distant future One year after the coup if is now clear that the junta's economic strateay is faling What they hoped to do was to develop the Chilean economy along the lines of the "Brazilian model". But to do this they hau lo take a number of steps, ECONOMIC POLICY First it was necessary insmediately to stabilise the Chilean sconomy, Along with this stabilisation, the junta had to provide the Boss buRr of saraiea aegisie. superprofits for imperialist investors, and Therefore had to ensuro the barbaric superexploitation af the working class in every factory. On the basis of this stabilisation in ampersalist capital from USA, Europo ans Japan as 1s on tais capial toat toe develpment of the economy Is sapposed But things are not going according ro plan for the generals. They ser themscives LEC INOC IACU OERE HER UURR 100g for 1974: But chat Linit was smash od through in only foer months, and it is must lisel thar inflation will be epwands ed 400S tor 1974. Hardty a tecipe for Merover, int tbe tiest three months 0:1974 production bu cof tise al 2H and agricultural production actually OCCIMCU E IRS II WE A EOS ti fact that Chile has to impor: 50% of is petrolcum — which has risen in cost then the dimensions of the economic crisis become clear.
REAL WAGES PLUMMET Only an the anca of ipcreasing the expleitstion of the working class hes the junta heen makine some progress. Real wages have declined by mare than 05% since the coup; and apemployment, which is the juntas answer lo intlation, has saared to 15-205 Ever this has not boon sufficient to draw in the foreign capital which the schersis so desperately need. Clary HOPLANH OOGS DOI JOUS SIMLIS OR COL country with a 400% ralc ef inflation. even if the werking class is sun ect to che MOT MSID ULSA BI TE EOR antly, trom their aount of view any invest ments would nood to he garei to the expor market, and in a situption of deap calg world capitalist crisis no sensible imperialist is rushine to expar d producAsu result nothop bke the necessars and eren il Mercurio must now na Tegenar as OHe dEan tove brars away — a lime-span which in the context of Latin America loday is virtually meningless BOURGEOIS SPLITS The policies Lha. the pencrals lave neen pursuing may nos have solved theis sonoma problems nur iney none suc ceded in daing onc thine - they have oroken ap ine compiele waits which existed at the time of the coup between ail sections of the Chileán bourgeosle and sezeable sectioss of the petty bour ne unta SCCORM SEILEn primarily peared to the capitalst inseress tied most closely to imperialist and the minort export trade Por those Capitlists whes irin interest is the interpal marker ENC HENerS AYE DOLIN, LO CHr EET why the Christian Democrars who moinly represent this section of the bouspeoisic. BASHIS ALCESAL 010.OE to the junts despite the feet that their perty is hurince.
Their main concerns have been aver the contraction of the antennl market due to the massive wage cuts, the complete rooval af import taxes, and the running down of ise State sector which the Christian Democracy largely farmed under Allende's predesewer I Tei tand which provided employeent for many of ils supperters)
At the some time the wide support which the coup rocaived from sections of the Chilear petty hourgeotsie artisans, small traders acid so on ans Largely maporiled. This suppert was hased mainly on the acker that the coup would solve their economic prublems -in particular, that of inflation. In fact, of ceare, many of ther are now wors eff rhan they were ander Allende, and many have also been affected by the repression, whoch they bad imagined would be reserved solcly lor the working class FIRMLY IN CONTROL Thas in paly one year the Chilean bourgeassie has booocie split and nddled with divisions. Bur it would be quite wrong lo conciude that these is any credible alternatie to tho guneralr for fae ruling class, For the time heing the remin firmly in control and de sptir aru out yet reflected in divisions inside the arnist tones Nonetheless the Chilan Cammunist Party hes chosa to interpres these diris Jons as oxidence of the existence of "democratic anti-fascist" sections of the Chilean bourgooisie, and has mede unity with these the first task of the workers organisations. Next weck we shali bo exam ining this stralegy, which was clearly outUned in a statement issuee by the CP in Chile on I May.
GERRY CORBY