I have no way of knowing, of course, whether this man is personally culpable for any of the abuses heaped upon the poor by many in his class. The good news is that the debacle of statist policies and the collapse of Eastern European socialism has stimulated much soul-searching throughout Latin America and the rest of the underdeveloped world. Simply put, the lessons suggest that free trade, free markets, free prices, private property rights and a legal environment conducive to entrepreneurial activity produce economic growth from which the poor can benefit. The government does have a role to play, but not the intrusive one it has sought. It must provide predictable and accountable governance and secure law and order.
Development is a formidable task, to be sure.
These diverse countries share similar, market-friendly economic policies. Unfortunately some have been marked by political authoritarianism. But economic success has produced more prosperous and self-confident citizens who apply strong pressures for reform. Democracy movements are underway throughout East Asia, and Chile returned to civilian governance just a few years ago. The bad news is that, in their public policy advocacy, many Christian organizations have continued to argue for models of development that have oppressed, rather than liberated, the poor.