A number of scholars have alleged neoliberalism encourages or covers for imperialism . For instance , Ruth J Blakeley , Professor of Politics and International Relations at the University of Sheffield , accuses the United States and its allies of fomenting state terrorism and mass killings during the Cold War as a means to buttress and promote the expansion of capitalism and neoliberalism in the developing world . As an example of this , Blakeley says the case of Indonesia demonstrates that the U.S. and Great Britain put the interests of capitalist elites over the human rights of hundreds of thousands of Indonesians by supporting the Indonesian Army as it waged a campaign of mass killings , which resulted in the annihilation of the Communist Party of Indonesia and its civilian supporters . Historian Bradley R. Simpson posits that this campaign of mass killings was " an essential building block of the neoliberal policies that the West would attempt to impose on Indonesia after Sukarno 's ouster . " Geographer David Harvey argues neoliberalism encourages an indirect form of imperialism that focuses on the extraction of resources from developing countries via financial mechanisms . This is practiced through international institutions like the International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) and World Bank who negotiate debt relief with developing nations . He alleges that these institutions prioritize the financial institutions that grant the loans over the debtor countries and place requirements on loans that , in effect , act as financial flows from debtor countries to developed countries ( for example , to receive a loan a state must have sufficient foreign exchange reserves — requiring the debtor state to buy US Treasury bonds , which have interest rates lower than those on the loan ) . Economist Joseph Stiglitz has said of this : " What a peculiar world in which poor countries are in effect subsidizing the richest . " The neoliberal approach to global health advocates privatization of the healthcare industry and reduced government interference in the market , and focuses on non-governmental organizations ( NGOs ) and international organizations like the International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) and the World Bank rather than government . This approach has faced considerable criticism . James Pfeiffer , Professor of Global Health at the University of Washington , has criticised the use of Structural Adjustment Programs ( SAPs ) by the World Bank and IMF in Mozambique , which resulted in reduced government health spending , leading international NGOs to fill service holes previously filled by government . He alleges this " new policy agenda " fragmented local health systems , undermined local control of health programs , and contributed to social inequality . Rick Rowden , a Senior Economist at Global Financial Integrity , has criticised the IMF 's monetarist approach of prioritising price stability and fiscal restraint , which he alleges was unnecessarily restrictive and prevented developing countries from scaling up long-term investment in public health infrastructure . He argues this resulted in chronically underfunded public health systems and demoralising working conditions , which fueled a brain drain of medical personnel and undermined the fight against HIV/AIDS , as well as public health more generally , in developing countries
campaign of mass killings
Indonesian mass killings of 1965–66
Neoliberalism