Anali Hrvatskog Politološkog Društva (Jan 2011)
Modern Democratic Left and Economic Crisis
Abstract
Political left, notably social democracy, implies acceptance of market economy and parliamentary democracy, as a political framework within which the interests of large sections of the population could be preserved. Does the modern political left have a chance to revive, after the global economic crisis? We believe it does. The core idea of social democracy is the idea of equality. It is the growing inequality that could help the return of social democracy. In Croatia, during transition, there was predominantly the process of neoliberalization, and the democratic left accepted a neoliberal economic agenda. Currently Croatia has a structural economic problem and deep recession. Due to the global crisis, the democratic left in Croatia should abandon economic neoliberalism. Macroeconomic policy decision-makers in Croatia should reject orthodox policies, and it is necessary to implement heterodox economic policies. There is an urgent need to achieve a new (post)Keynesian consensus, a new combination of post-Keynesian economics and social democracy
