THE NEW URUGUAY

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MONTEVIDEO, Oct 1 2004 (IPS) - Uruguay has passed through one of the most dire crises of its history, which called into question the values on which our society rests and was painstakingly built by previous generations, writes Jorge Larranaga, National Party candidate for president of Uruguay. In this article for IPS, Larranaga writes that the priorities of the next government must be job creation, decentralisation of the government bureaucracy, rejuvenation of the country\’s system of production, education, regional integration, and participation in the international arena. Four principles will guide a National Party administration: a reaffirmation of the principle of equal opportunity for all Uruguayans; making a top priority the satisfaction of the needs of the least well-off sectors of the society; the restoration of intergenerational solidarity; and transparency and honesty in all public service. A collective project of this nature must include all Uruguayans and be lead by an organisation that has true credibility. The National Party, which was founded with the country itself and represents, and has always represented, the true modernisation of Uruguay, has the credentials to realise the shared hopes of the people. I know that I am up to this daunting task.

It is often said, and I agree, that a country is a tradition and a project. It is a tradition because it represents facts and circumstances that shape the people of a given area. It is a common history that translates into commonly-held values and a certain outlook shared by the society over time.

A country is above all the sense of belonging to a spiritual community. This concept of tradition, or of the best of tradition, cannot be denied and must be integrated into any social process, particularly any process of change.

The Republic of Uruguay has passed through one of the most dire crises of its history, which called into question the values on which our society rests and was painstakingly built by previous generations. The country was blighted by unemployment, paralysis of the system of production, the collapse of the health care system, the marginalisation and rupture of the family, as well as the emigration of thousands and thousands of Uruguayans. This crisis generated -and how could it not have? – a sense of profound desperation about the future of the country.

Faced with this state of things, the next government, which will take power March 1, 2005, will have to, with the greatest urgency, put in place active government policies to lay the foundations for a new plan for co-existence and the recuperation of our national identity. Its focus must be the following priorities: job creation, decentralisation of the government bureaucracy, rejuvenation of the country’s system of production, education, regional integration, and participation in the international arena.

An undertaking of this scope requires reasonable, and achievable projects, not fanciful proposals. With this in mind we have presented to the Uruguayan public the platform of the National Party and an array of proposals which includes the 2005 Uruguayan Consensus, Science, Technology, and Innovation, the Proposal of Youth for Youth, the Plan for Integral Development, and the New Education.

On the other hand, an election platform with this breadth and content must present as well the underlying principles that will shape and guide public policymaking. For the National Party, these are:

– a reaffirmation of the principle of equal opportunity for all Uruguayans;

– making a top priority the satisfaction of the needs of the least well-off sectors of the society;

– the restoration of intergenerational solidarity;

– transparency and honesty in all public service.

A collective project of this nature must include all Uruguayans and be lead by an organisation that has true credibility. The National Party, which was founded with the country itself and represents, and has always represented, the true modernisation of Uruguay, has the credentials to realise the shared hopes of the people. I know that I am up to this daunting task. (END/COPYRIGHT IPS)