替代的选择应是一家南方银行,而并非金砖银行 埃里克·杜桑(Éric Toussaint)第四国际《国际观点》(International Viewpoint) 埃里克·杜桑深知发展金融中的利害关系。作为1990年成立的取消第三世界债务委员会(CADTM)的创始人,这位比利时政治学者曾经在厄瓜多尔政府的授意下直接参与南方银行的启动工作。尽管这个实体目前处于停滞状态,杜森先生仍然认为,2007年由七个南美国家发起的这个项目是替代世界银行的进步选择。与之相反,他对由五个主要新兴经济体宣布成立的投资银行深表疑虑。 [《信使报》(Le Courrier)日内瓦] 问:被称为金砖国家的新兴国家宣布,他们要建立一个替代世界银行(WB)的新银行。这对发展而言是个好消息吗? 埃里克·杜桑:任何替代世界银行的选择都将是个好消息,但我并不相信这个银行符合这种情况。这五个金砖国家是新兴的资本主义经济体,他们的所作所为是试图维护他们的利益,就像传统的大国们对国际货币基金(IMF)和世界银行的控制一样。新的开发银行(NDB)通过承诺不设置结构调整方案等附加条件而脱颖而出,其强调贷款和民主的原则:一国一票(但在多大程度上将遵循这一原则?)。作为一个替代选择,它是远远不够的。这纯粹是两害相权取其轻。 问:总之,我们是要将一个屈从于华盛顿的世界银行换成一个服务于中国帝国主义的新发展银行(NDB)? 埃里克·杜桑:我们可以从巴西经济学家瑞伊·毛罗·玛连尼(Rui Mauro Marini)关于准帝国主义的讨论中寻找我们的线索,在这个意义上,这些国家,尤其是巴西和中国,在发展中国家进行大规模投资是为了服务于它们的政治或经济利益,而不是为了资金受援国的发展。它们与美国等真正的帝国主义者区别是,除了俄罗斯以外,它们还没法诉诸军事手段。
埃里克·杜桑:2007年宣布创立南方银行(BOS)本来是一个充满希望在的迹象。当它创建之初,我曾参与过厄瓜多尔政府立场宣言的起草过程,随后根据总统拉斐尔·科雷亚(Rafael Correa)的请求参与与了由来自七个创始国的部长组成的委员会。厄瓜多尔和委内瑞拉对于这个机构的设立是有一个清晰的远景,希望增加就业和促进南美洲大陆一体化,以及推动一些非常具体的项目,诸如医药行业的通用(非专利控制)产品、南美国家间铁路重联计划和本地车辆合作生产,这将意味伴随着产业和技术突破产生更少的污染。而苏克雷(Scure)可以成为一种共同使用的替代(美元)的地区货币。它还进一步提出本地区最大的外汇储备国应与其他国家分享资源的构想。这是一个综合性的项目,该项目考虑人民群众的利益,并可以很容易地扩展到中美洲和加勒比地区,特别是它旨在实现政治透明——政府收支、外部审计——和民主政治。作为替代世界银行的选择,它应该树立了一个榜样,因此必须是雄心勃勃的。例如,不像他们在世界银行的同行, 南方银行的官员是不享受司法豁免权的。 不幸的是,南方银行迄今还没有启动。从它建立以来已经七年过去了,但没有发放过任何贷款!委内瑞拉政府已宣布南方银行将在2014年底之前投入运行,让我们密切关注。
埃里克·杜桑:他们是否能设法商定合作项目?有人可能会问,是否这五个国家联手只是为了像传统的强权显示他们可以做到这一点。事实上,在我看来,这五个国家很少有共同的利益。
埃里克·杜桑:显然是的!仅中国就拥有超过3万亿美元的外汇储备,而且它不知道该怎么办。这是一个巨大的金额,几乎相当于发展中国家总外债的两倍。把这些钱中的很大一部分已经投资于美国国债。中国是美国最大的债权人。同样,巴西和俄罗斯也有非常庞大的外汇储备。只有南非很难筹集100亿美元资本用于银行启动(编者注,这是除50亿美元储备基金外的启动基金。)
埃里克·杜桑:南方银行已经处于不良状态之中......但是,不管有没有巴西,南美仍具有金融资产开始这个项目。我认为巴西应该为目前的僵局负主要责任。这个国家有它自己的发展银行经济和社会发展国家银行(BNDES),并对国外有巨额投资。在南美洲,其地位等同于美洲开发银行和世界银行对本地区的贷款!巴西的优先目标是发展经济和社会发展国家银行(BNDES),参加南方银行只是为了搪塞潜在的竞争对手。 问:这一失败和阿根廷和委内瑞拉目前的财政困难是否表明拉美独立的梦想是遥不可及? 埃里克·杜桑:当初查韦斯提议建立南方银行时,这个项目听起来绝对合理!可能认为不惜任何代价巴西也必须包括在内是一个错误的假设。然而,大多数美洲大陆的国家已经证明,他们可以排除新自由主义共识。新的结构,如为我们的美洲人民建立玻利瓦尔联盟(玻利瓦尔)当前在发挥作用。厄瓜多尔、玻利维亚和委内瑞拉已经决定从世界银行的国际投资争端结算中心(ICSID)中退出。此外,在这些国家开发自然资源的众多国外各大公司现在要缴纳更多的税。当谈到这些国家的实际潜力和未来面临的挑战,这仍然是不够的,但我们还有时间。这在未来两年应该会引起强烈的反响。一些国家的政府官员也正在推动向这个方向发展。 如果没有的话,恐怕南美将面临严重的财政困难,类似于1982年拉美债务危机的形势正日趋明显。 问:是否有早期预警迹象? 埃里克·杜桑:是的,美国计划提高2007-2008年金融危机期间大幅调低的利率。这将使债务再融资成本变高,全球原材料需求下降之际,这正在威胁南美国家的收入。恐怕这些国家会在未来两三年意识到,他们在过去的十年里错过了一个很好的机会发展出一套替代性的金融工具以对抗北方国家的决策。 Economy: “The alternative would be a Bank of the South, not the BRICS Bank” www.Internationalviewpoint.org, by Éric Toussaint Éric Toussaint knows what is at stake in development finance inside out. Founder of the Committee for the Abolition of Third World Debt (CADTM) in 1990, the Belgian political scientist was directly involved in launching the Bank of the South at the behest of the Ecuadorian government. Even though this entity is presently at a standstill, Mr. Toussaint still believes in this project initiated in 2007 by seven South American countries as a progressive alternative to the World Bank. On the contrary, he has doubts about the investment bank announced by the five major emerging economies. [Le Courrier de Genève] Q: The emergent countries known as BRICS announced that they want to create an alternative to the World Bank (WB). Is this good news for development? Éric Toussaint: Any alternative to the WB would be great news indeed, but I do not at all believe that this is the case here. The five BRICS countries are emerging capitalist economies trying to preserve their interests, just as the big traditional powers do with their control of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the WB. By promising not to set conditionalities such as Structural Adjustment Plans, the New Development Bank (NDB) stands apart with its loans and its democratic principle: one country, one vote (but to what extent will it be followed?). As an alternative, it’s not enough. It would just be a lesser evil. Q: To summarize, we are going to swap a WB subservient to Washington with a NDB serving Chinese imperialism? Éric Toussaint: We can speak about sub-imperialism taking our cue from the Brazilian economist Rui Mauro Marini, in the sense that these countries, Brazil and China in particular, are investing heavily in developing countries for pushing their political or economic self-interest, not for the development of the recipients of the funds. What differentiates them from real imperialists, such as the United States, is that they have not yet resorted to military means, with the exception of Russia. Q: In your opinion, what would be a real alternative to the WB? Éric Toussaint: The announcement of the creation of the Bank of the South (BoS) in 2007 was a hopeful sign. When it was created, I participated in the drafting of Ecuador’s stand and subsequently in the committee formed with ministers from the seven founding countries, at the request of President Rafael Correa. Ecuador and Venezuela had a clear vision of an establishment which would boost employment and facilitate continental integration as well as involve very concrete projects, such as a pharmaceutical industry for generic products, or the reconnection of South American countries by railways, with local production of rolling stock, which would have meant less pollution along with industrial and technological breakthroughs. The Sucre was to be a common and alternative currency. It further involved the idea that countries with maximum foreign reserves should transfer resources to others. It was an integration project, which considered people’s interests and could easily have expanded to Central America and the Caribbean, especially as it aimed at transparency - Public Accounts, external audits - and democracy. As an alternative to the WB, this should have set an example, and therefore, had to be ambitious. For example, judicial immunity was out of the question for the BoS officials, unlike their WB counterparts. Unfortunately, the Bank of the South ha |
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