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Reflections on a siege economy
Author(s) -
Jenkins Simon
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
managerial and decision economics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.288
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1099-1468
pISSN - 0143-6570
DOI - 10.1002/mde.4090080104
Subject(s) - siege , sanctions , government (linguistics) , flexibility (engineering) , politics , political repression , state (computer science) , isolation (microbiology) , economics , political economy , economic system , market economy , political science , law , geography , linguistics , philosophy , microbiology and biotechnology , management , archaeology , algorithm , computer science , biology
The paper examines the political and economic effects for South Africa of living in a state of economic siege. It points out that most economies already exist in partial isolation, often self‐imposed. The most serious consequence of sanctions will be the granting to the government of a moral licence to react repressively, thus shutting off existing political and economic ‘safety valves’. The net result will be even more stringent political repression, and further resistance to change. The government will find it hard to retreat from this situation, and relax the repression. The result is a society without the flexibility to change.