Present situation

Today, the economic model is based on the so-called free market economy. This model has as its objective to make wealthy a few with respect to the majority, the creation of wealth of a few based, not on the production of goods for the benefit of the population but on speculation and the concentration of economic power.  This model favours the development of activity that has monetary profits and disfavours those activities that apparently do not create profit: health, education, access to housing, food, clothes, water, gas, light, communications, public transport, etc.  The Bank administrates this process of concentration.  For example, the parameters of entry and stability in the European construction are fixed by the European Central Bank (ECB), that decide the policies of the different countries that form part or ask to form part of the European Union.  These policies are bringing the dismantling of the Nation States and put at risk public services that were created during the years of social development in those same countries: health, education, pensions, work.

In this context, democracy is being reduced, more than just the political landscape, also in the productive world, submitting businesses and workers to the decisions of the bank and financial speculation.  Today the Bank is the instrument that through its usurious loans converts business people and workers into slaves.  This process will bring, from the Humanist point of view, serious problems for the population of Europe.  Already this process is alive in health, education, and the rights of workers, access to housing, food, clothes, water, gas, light, communications, public transport and in the large financial crises.

EUROPE IN A NEW HUMANIST ECONOMIC MODEL

The creation of the European Union is for humanists a great opportunity to create a Humanist Economy.

What is Humanist Economy?

In the area of economics, humanists aspire for all people to have their basic life needs assured, health, education, quality of life, a home, communication, water, light, gas, public transport, food, clothing, etc.  We also aspire to real democracy in the area of economics.

Humanist Economics will be that science that studies the way in which all the population of Europe have the priorities that we have listed previously.  The EU will put great emphasis in the growth of primary production and the development of real democracy in the productive system, getting rid of financial speculation, without abolishing it, bur rather by taxing it.

Transformation of the Bank as an agency of loans with usurious interest rates into BANKS WITHOUT INTEREST

The financial tool is a key in the management of the economy.  This is not the case with the ECB, the European Central Bank, which is independent from political power, or rather, out of control, and it orientates the decisions of the states.  The economy of New Humanism will modify these financial mechanisms starting with the transformation of speculative money into free money.  For this, the creation of an interest-free public bank is essential.

An interest-free public bank?

For New Humanism the objective of economics is to assure that basic needs are available for all and to increase the well being of people.  And it is for this that the State must guarantee public service and contribute monetary liquidity independently of the supply from the private banks.  So, the loans of this bank will be interest-free, only considering the cost of the administration.  An interest-free public bank will favour the participative ownership of the workers to create new models of business, it will help the social infrastructure of hospitals, schools, parks, streets and housing.

Taxes on financial speculation

In the EU, financial speculation will be taxed to finance the production and coverage of those needs that we define as primary.  Also this initiative will have the objective to put investment into production and quality of life.

Participative Ownership of the Workers.

In Humanist economics, great importance is given to the creation of a new relationship between Capital and Labour.  Until today this rule has been imposed: "profit for the Capital, wages for the worker", to justify the risk of investment, as if the workers did not put at risk their present and future in the ebb and flow of unemployment and crisis.

In Humanist Economics the existing relationship between the 2 factors of production changes considering the same risk between capital and labour.  The humanist option outlines, in the development of "Co-participation of the workers in the management and direction of business", a new road for the business owners, that leaves behind bank debt and for the workers, the possibility to participate in the development of the business, obliging the capital to reach its maximum productive yield and to reinvest the profits in new jobs, avoiding redundancies, closures and the emptying of companies.  The advantages of this model are: to liberate the human being from the slavery of work, redistribute wealth, to allow all to participate in the production, to liberate business initiatives from the usury of the banks and to advance real democracy.

New model of Autonomous Businesses developed within the Humanist Municipal Plan.  How can this model work?

We can start from the neighbourhoods and municipalities, organising a humanist economic experiment in agreement with the neighbours.  In the Humanist Municipal Plan the creation of an organisation is foreseen, charged with getting savings of the neighbours to finance Autonomous Businesses formed by groups of these very neighbours, through a non-profit neighbourhood bank.  These businesses will be based on participative ownership of the workers.  These Autonomous Businesses will live alongside the present model, creating a choice with respect to the established model.

Certainly that there are many more the topics to study in economy, but our proposal is to begin to work on a minimum topics, then we will enlarge.   

We invite all people with humanist sensibility and with pleasure to work on economic topic, to join this Commission.

Actions

• Seminars to explain interest-free banking, co-participation of the workers and the Humanist Municipal Plan, with audiovisual presentations explaining the present situation and the humanist option will be given.  

• The diffusion of this pre-document of the HER will be carried out in all European countries, asking for their participation in the writing of the section on Humanist Economy for the Orange Book, expected in the Autumn of 2004.

• Redaction of regional positionning on conflict in Europe in the economical field

Bibliography

Document of the Humanist Movement "Letters to my friends". Silo.

Introduction to the economics of New Humanism, World Center of Humanist Studies.  Madrid 8,9,10 July 1997-annual 1997

"Mixed Economy", Economía Mixta, Guillermo Alejandro Sullings