He received the Prince of Asturias Award for Social Sciences in 1992 and the Medal of Merit at Work
Asturian economist Juan Velarde, Professor of Economic Structure and Prince of Asturias Award for Social Sciences in 1992, died this Friday at the age of 95 in Madrid as a result of a fall at his home a few days ago. Velarde was awarded the Medal of Merit at Work in 2013, was a member of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences and Doctor Honoris Causa from several universities. The list of recognitions and awards bestowed on Juan Velarde is as extensive as his professional career has been intense.
He was born in June 1927 in Salas (Asturias). He studied Economics, in which he was the first promotion and obtained his PhD with a Special Prize. He practiced teaching, his great calling, as he confessed more than once, through various universities. And he always combined this with articles and various publications in newspapers and professional journals, in which he reflected his concerns and the results of his continuous studies.
Tireless worker and passionate about the economy, he kept working till the end. Even the corona virus did not prevent him from parking his studies and jobs. The president of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, Benigno Pendás, pointed out that Velarde, along with Enrique Fuentes Quintana, is the great reference for Spanish economists, as well as “an endearing man, a wise man who loved anything and everything interested him.” Pendás took over the helm of the foundation that annually organizes the La Granda courses, whose last edition took part last summer in Avilés Velarde despite his advanced age.
According to Velarde, the greatest virtue of the Spanish economy is “to know that it is impossible to achieve acceptable development without being open to the outside world”. On the contrary, his greatest sin, “to be seduced by romanticism and create on the national map supporters of local approaches based on protectionism and ruptures in the unity of the Spanish internal market.”
When asked once what he thought Aznar, Zapatero, Rajoy and Sánchez had done good and bad in the economy, he answered bluntly: “The one good thing they all agreed on was the acceptance of the relationship with the European Union. With the ‘Aznar-Rato miracle’, the economy grew and inflation was minimal, helping Spain to recover from the massive crisis left by the González government». He was very critical of Zapatero: “He did it terribly wrong; His connections to Ibero-America would have been positive if he had not automatically used them to relate to populist, indigenous and anti-Spanish positions there». On the other hand, he felt that Rajoy “did very well in overcoming the brutal crisis of 2008”; and Sánchez has for now “done nothing but try to exacerbate Rodríguez Zapatero’s mistakes, the maximum being, in my opinion, submission to separatist proposals.”
In 1951 he joined the Labor Inspectorate through opposition, and with number one, and in 1976 he was appointed director of the Institute of Labor and Social Security Studies, a position he held until 1981. Founder of Unión del Pueblo Español (UPE ), later merged into Alianza Popular (origin of the Popular Party), was one of the names the party considered in 1986 to replace Abel Matutes as AP’s head of economic policy. In May 1989, he was appointed vice president of the PP’s Economic and Finance Studies Commission with José Antonio Segurado.
Inflation is back, should we be afraid?, he was recently asked. His answer was firm: “Yes, because, for example, it goes hand in hand with a deplorable economic policy in the aspect of a significant deficit in the public sector; of a wrong labor policy; about the consequences of a terrible foreign policy on the United States and also on the European Union itself, with additions as unfortunate as those of Spanish interests in Africa; because of populism, which cuts economic ties with Latin America; and also a kind of abandonment of possibilities in Asia, as the ties derived from the Philippines, in relation to the United States and Japan, have disappeared in a world region – led not only by China – that Spain could have promoted. Let’s take into account our situation as a link between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, facilitating connections with the European and American area, which is stronger at the moment.”
Chatty, with a privileged spirit, Velarde left a legacy of economic work and involvement in numerous subjects for most of his life.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
