Abstract

CASTELLANI, Ana  and  MOTTA, Gustavo. Beliefs and Businesses in Times of Crisis: The State and the External Debt According to the Catholic Businessmen of Argentina (1999-2003). Temas debates (En línea) [online]. 2016, n.31, pp.13-34. ISSN 1853-984X.

The crisis and exit of the convertibility regime was marked by a dispute between various elites based on the direction of economic policy, in which also participated the Argentine Episcopal Conference (CEA). In that sense, the Christian Association of Business Leaders (ACDE) was into a dilemmatic position. This article will examine the political positions of ACDE during the period 1999-2003, emphasizing its correlation with those of the CEA. From the notions of elite and subuniverse of meaning we analyze the representations and strategies deployed by this business corporation through the analysis of documentary sources, taking as axes the State's role in the economy and the external debt. It will be shown that the most heated debate was the proposed papal cancellation of the external debt and that the most radical entrepreneurs positions were held by the Group of Economists. This latter one encouraged the dollarization, wages reduction, abolition of taxes and the creation of the Federal Reserve of Argentina, something unprecedented in the political history of the country. The work will provide new interpretive keys to understanding the complex borderland between the business world and religious beliefs.

Keywords : Crisis; Convertibility regime; Catholic enterpreunership; External debt; State.