Popularization of the Economy Seeks Balance, Not Equality

Note: In the nearly ten years that have elapsed since the notion of the popularization of the economy was first introduced in our country, it has been beset by numerous ambiguities. Is this term a novel concept within economic science? What is its relationship to the Resistance Economy? How does it stand in relation to the free economy? Does it entail downsizing the government? What is its relationship to socialist economic systems? We put these questions to Dr. Hamidreza Maqsoudi. Having obtained his doctorate in Economic Sciences from Imam Sadiq (a.s.) University, he currently serves as Head of the Department of Islamic Economics at the University of Qom. His professional record includes directorship of the Qasd Think Tank, scientific advisor to the Minister of Cooperatives, Labour and Social Welfare, advisor to the Head of the Administrative and Recruitment Affairs Organization of the country, and head of the Macroeconomics Office of the Plan and Budget Organization. He maintains that the popularization of the economy is clearly distinct from privatization and by no means signifies the downsizing of the government. In his view, the popularization of the economy bears a direct relationship to the theory of economic systems concerning ownership. The full text of Fiqh-e Moaser’s exclusive interview with this economist follows:

The Relationship Between the Popularization of the Economy and Privatization

Fiqh-e Moaser: What is the relationship between the popularization of the economy and privatization?

Maqsoudi: Popularization, or privatization, means that ownership must be placed in the hands of the general public. Privatization carries a narrower meaning, namely the marketization of ownership. This very point constitutes the significant difference between the popularization of the economy and privatization. Privatization of the economy means the marketization of the economy and the transfer of the economy to the private sector. Under privatization, those able to benefit from its advantages are those who are, in technical terms, market actors and who possess sufficient financial capacity to purchase the state-owned asset in question. Popularization, however, means that the economy is placed at the disposal of all the people and that all the people benefit from its advantages — both those who are capitalists and those who belong to the weaker strata of society. In popularization, governmental transfers do not necessarily proceed through market logic; for instance, a plot of land is granted to a person who has married, and it makes no difference whether that person is poor or wealthy, able-bodied or disabled, and so forth. Rather, by the mere fact of marriage, a plot of land is granted to that person. This logic is not the logic of the market, yet it is an instance of the popularization of the economy.

Furthermore, in political economy, the difference between popularization and privatization is even greater. From a historical perspective as well, there exist numerous differences between privatization and popularization, some of which have been noted above.

The Popularization of the Economy and the Resistance Economy

Fiqh-e Moaser: What is the relationship between the popularization of the economy and the “Resistance Economy”? In certain statements of the Leader of the Revolution, these two concepts appear to be used interchangeably. Is this indeed the case?

Maqsoudi: One of the pillars of the Resistance Economy is the popularization of the economy. The Resistance Economy is an economy in which the general public owns the means of production. That is to say, the relationship between the Resistance Economy and the popularization of the economy is one of absolute generality and particularity (ʿumūm wa khuṣūṣ muṭlaq), with popularization constituting one of the components of the Resistance Economy. The Resistance Economy possesses further components beyond the popularization of the economy — for instance, that the economy be endogenous, knowledge-based, independent, and capable of meeting its own needs.

Is “Popularization of the Economy” a Novel Term?

Fiqh-e Moaser: Is the “popularization of the economy” a new term within economic science, or does it possess a background and a body of literature within this discipline?

Maqsoudi: Throughout history, wherever there has been discourse concerning the ownership of the means of production by the people, the popularization of the economy may be traced. This occurred both during the rule of Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s.) and at certain other times as well. Of course, in some economic systems this epistemic line is absent. In the socialist system, for example, popular ownership is fundamentally negated.

The Popularization of the Economy and the Expansion of Cooperatives

Fiqh-e Moaser: Does the popularization of the economy mean the expansion of cooperatives and the assignment of a maximal role to them, or does it carry a broader or different meaning?

Maqsoudi: Any factor capable of granting the general public even a modest degree of power with respect to the means of production directs the economy toward a people-based economy. In a cooperative economy, one factor of power is added to the people; yet even within a cooperative, each individual holds a different voting weight from others depending on the share he possesses. Consequently, a cooperative economy does not necessarily amount to the popularization of the economy and is distinct from it.

The Standing of the Popularization of the Economy Within the Islamic Economic System

Fiqh-e Moaser: What is the standing of the popularization of the economy within the Islamic economic system? Is the popularization of the economy interpretable solely on the basis of the economic system of Islam, or may it likewise operate within other economic systems?

Maqsoudi: To answer this question, one must first determine the relationship between the economic system of Islam and ownership. In Islam, we have no unlimited ownership. Martyr al-Sadr, Martyr Mutahhari, and Martyr Beheshti did not accept boundless ownership and admitted it only on condition of adherence to the Sacred Law and the rulings of jurisprudence. The very fact that khums and zakat attach to wealth signifies a limitation upon its ownership; that is, the Lawgiver divests the individual of a portion of his ownership over his property.

In view of this, Islam naturally has no difficulty with popularization, though it does not accept it in a boundless form. With regard to other economic systems, likewise, we cannot issue a general ruling and declare that it is acceptable or unacceptable in all of them; rather, each economic system must be addressed separately.

Popularization, the Free Economy, and the Role of the Government

Fiqh-e Moaser: Does the popularization of the economy mean advocacy of a free economy and the diminution of the government’s role, or does it bear no necessary connection to this?

Maqsoudi: The popularization of the economy does not mean the downsizing of the government, nor does it mean a free economy. In a free economy, certain groups enjoy the liberty to prey upon the people and to seize as much of their wealth as they can; the popularization of the economy, by contrast, seeks the equitable distribution of ownership among the people. Popularization, therefore, is entirely distinct from advocacy of a free economy. Likewise, popularization does not mean the downsizing of the government. It is true that, under the popularization of the economy, the monopoly of ownership is divested from the government; yet this does not mean a reduction in the scope of governmental intervention. On the contrary, in order to bring about the equitable distribution of ownership among the people, the government must intervene to the maximum extent, defend the rights of the people, and, where necessary, transfer its own frozen resources to the people.

The Difference Between a People-Based Economy and a Communist Economy

Fiqh-e Moaser: What is the difference between a people-based economy and a communist economy, which is founded upon the equality of individuals in benefiting from resources? What have been the experiences of socialist countries with the popularization of the economy?

Maqsoudi: In socialist and communist economies, we have no popular ownership. In this type of economy, the people are fundamentally not owners, and the divestment of the people’s ownership is advocated. The socialist economy seeks to arrive at general benefit through the negation of ownership; the popularization of the economy, however, pursues equality in the possession of the means of production — that is, it supports balance rather than equality. This point has likewise been noted by Martyr al-Sadr.