The Influence of Government on Globalization - Essay Example

GLOBALISATION Globalisation is not a nostrum. It may the participant nations to sustain shocks in some situations. Globalisation changes certain elements of lifestyle, because some tastes and consumption preferences are laid over during the trade affairs. Arresting the flow of ideas, goods and commercial products has considerably caused stagnation and impeded the growth and development of any nation. This fact is realised in the present century and globalisation is the out come of such realisation. But the inner fear of 'technological leakage' and profit reduction in the minds of political leaders and barons make them obstruct the mobility of both the consumers and their employees. The development thrust of globalisation arresting the movement of people is to be controlled in terms of its speed only. Such control is in the hands of the political forces. Involvement of politicians and their policy decisions play an important role in global trade. Considering the cultural and social implications of globalisation in every country the political top brass either exercise complete control or allow free flow of foreign trade. This fluctuation has its impact on globalisation creating restriction of movement of people and their labour. Since movement of people is their fundamental right, placing hands of pressure on it will retard development of a nation. As far as speed is concerned, globalisation helps much in the development of a country in a speedy manner, lubing the economic friction within the nation. The entire global population is divided into two on globalisation. One group defends and the other opposes the new phenomenon. Defenders are filled with only speed of implementation while opposing group has so many cards in their chest. Economists doubt whether globalisation brings wealth at the price of inequalities. Cultural Marxists worry about the capital drift and historians assume that globalisation will not acquire any archival importance. (Arjun Appadurai, 2001, pp1) The first large scale 'denationalisation' programme of the post-war era occurred in 1961 in Federal Republic of Germany during Konard Adenauer's regime. Major stocks of Volkswagon were sold through public share issue. When Mrs.Thatcher came to power again in 1983 re-election, privatisation programme accelerated dramatically and annual proceeds from asset sales approached 5 billion. (Sudir Naib, 2004, pp138-139) Productivity certainly brings about self-reliance. However the essence and fragrance of it can be felt only at the completion of production and its usage. During the process of production, mobility of labour and individuals tend to reduce the speed of production. This makes the executives and administrators to resort to modalities such as throwing sops and doles to citizens with a view to divert their attention only to the business. Albeit enjoying the tastes of such free aids, restriction on their movement causes mental imbalance in individuals leading to upsurge. People and political parties of leftist ideologies make use of this situation to their advancement. They paint the entire globalisation as something unwanted or misleading. Globalisation has to be conceived correctly first. Allowing globalisation effects on the economy is secondary. As a hypothesis globalisation is a device, which can be harnessed by any country for the internal and international development. Since trade is the main aspect of globalisation, interaction between nations becomes plausible. Hardships arising at the hour of social and cultural mingling generated by globalisation must be dealt with separately. While handling such issues it should be borne in mind that globalisation is not the crux of the problems but the problems are the spin-off of its implementation. Outright application of globalisation in all fields naturally leads to some problems. Following IMF regulations, the Mexican government reduced many of its food subsidies in 1982. This landed in the increase of 180% of minimum wage and 224% increase in basic food price. During 1984 almost 60% of its population were unable to consume meat for want of minimum wages. (George Philip, 1988, pp110-111) While fixing productivity-linked wages, the workers' environment and their working conditions are not given due consideration. This leads to inequality in wages. Fixing scales of pay may be easing the hardship of the working class. But it is not a permanent solution, since apart from wages there is an urge for recognition in workers. The urge cannot be simply be satiated by extra remuneration, which is not accepted and understood by many of the employers. Almost in all nations trade union activities are centred on this point only. HOW GLOBALISATION WORKS The development forces of globalisation are marked by their fluidity in terms of location, production and trading patterns. This fluidity facilitates the essence of globalisation reach even the remote rural area of a nation stopping the movement of people from their places. The effect of space-time compression created by globalisation empowers only the decision makers and people who can exert influence to have mobility and structures for fast communications.1 In case of agricultural production, the movement of people from their original place is not necessitated. But in this case also people tend to move from their places to market their products. Such movements render them a sort of fulfilment in their endeavour. In trade there are only two types of people get involved -- the sedentary producers and mobile sales executives. Indulging in any one type of activities for a long time make people monotonous. All-rounders are content as they can switch over from one type of activity to another at their will. This is the point where globalisation is misunderstood. Introduction of new technologies has drastically reduced the manpower2 and consequently the importance of labour. Mobility at the time reaping the benefits of a business or trade is the most crucial part of globalisation. Until production is achieved, the mobility is in one direction; that is, from point of supply to point of demands. The opposite flow of money takes place after the point of delivery. In global marketing, markets of exchange are a must to facilitate this movement. Some developing countries and emerging nations find it difficult at this crucial stage and are put under the risk of getting affected of their own internal developments. (Nicolas V Gianaris, 2000, pp1) The Internal conflicts among the workers no longer takes place on the grounds of competition, because competitions in the trade are not met with workers-substitutes by stake holders now a days. Their tentacles reach any where in the world to get their results fetched. One of the six 'commandments' of Prof. Ricardo Petrella of University of Leuven as quoted by Robert Went in his Neoliberal Challenge, Radical Changes says: "Thou shalt drive away thy competitors out of business, since otherwise they will do it to you." All scrupulously follow this mantra invariably. (Robert Went, 2000, pp 2) So it is in the hands of administrators and executives to run the show efficiently. The third amendment to the Indian Patent Act of 1970 has placed the Indian Pharmaceutical big shots in joy, since a lot of foreign Pharmaceuticals companies begin to outsource the research and development of new drugs to India. Mr. Dinesh B Mody, the chairman of Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council gladly acknowledges that 71 drug manufacturing units of India are approved by the US Food and Drug administration and 40 units are approved by Medical and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency of UK.3 Because of the economic and social differences among nations, the anticipated speed in production and quality of services may not be achieved sometimes to its fullest satisfaction. By accounting such differential factors in appropriate manner a well-developed network can be formed. And this formation of a versed network is the worthwhile segment of globalisation. BPO centres are the outcome of this network. Prior to the implementation of global trade, strike was handled with a sense of fear and uncertainty by all the three concerned - the administration, the workers and the trade unions. Trade unions feared uncertain participation by employees. Workers feared the reprimanding actions by the administration and the administration on its part feared the major population of workers participating in strike. But now the fear has evaporated completely, although the term 'strike' still lives in the realm of workers and employers. The credit goes to only globalisation. MOVEMENT FACTORS A society is bound to flourish only when the people interact with each other extensively. When the communication system was feeble, the mobility of citizens was relatively high. Since globalisation, the scene has changed. Communication becoming the main target of globalisation and related trade/economy to form a 'global village', the physical movements of the individuals are heavily arrested causing psychological unrest in them. Such restless minds are inculcated that earning ' good bucks' alone is creativity. Thus globalisation is an inevitable phenomenon in which executives capable of doing result oriented jobs are spawned. Employers - the livlihood makers-and people -the livilihood seekers-move in search of one another to unite for the sake of production and the resultant benefits. Employers search for low-price, qualified-skilled people and people search for owners who will afford to considerably. (Dr. Yazali Josephine, 2003, pp68) Although globalisation effectively extends the boundaries of nations, the geographical boundaries are still maintained by the developed countries only to stick on to the practice of mobility restriction. This is done out of fear of 'international leakages' of homeland technologies and innovations. (P J J Welfens, 1999, pp 5) To safeguard financial and economic realm against the imperfection in the technology markets, this type of mobility restriction is justified. Before arresting the movements of the workers, globalisation has already arrested the movements of consumers as a whole in a society, nation or country. The trade oriented concessions, gifts and entertainments bring the common man to a standstill allowing him to hit only two buttons - to opt in or to opt out. Labourers and employees are then picked from this benumbed mass. They are allured with productivity linked perks and wages. Since no employee or labourer is aware of his trade's profile, the working mass is in dark about the actual proportion of the productivity linked perks and wages awarded. Inter state mobility is normally either denied or restricted for want of clearance from high level policy making crew of the states. However intrastate mobility is let free depending upon the availability of conveyance, vehicles and tracks. Both the state owned and private transport system are controlled and regulated by the states only. Labour problems in private owned systems are sometimes swallowed and sometimes spit. The stakeholders either simply yield to the employees or more simply eject them out to further wend with. This knowledge and strength, they get out of experiences from their corporate chums. For reasons to be disclosed, the tentacles of global trade have not yet sensed the intrastate mobility in any part of the world. But the governments have well been handling the problems in transport field. The authorities are bold enough to use globalisation know-how for legitimating their hard stands on workers. The recent recession on the part of striking employees of transport field in USA is a typical example. Globalisation has virtually dismantled the bipolar world and has given way for the emergence of multi polar world. The dominance of super powers over relatively poor countries and nuclear threat are slowly fading. Developing countries play crucial role in this game. The strength and confidence in showing its reluctance to sign the CTBT by India was an example of the effects of its self-reliance acquired by globalisation. The activities of globalising economy and trade are so fragmented that none other than the brass hats knows the profile of the trade in its entirety. Actually the forces of globalisation are impersonal and beyond the control of any individual or group (Malcom Waters, 2001, pp3) In the pre-globalisation era, a business or trade done with the help of a middleman, agent or brokers were considered something unethical. The minority people of such middlemen group were not dignified in that eon, since they were concerned only with profit, money and trade development. Globalisation has considerably increased the number of agencies to such an extent that they even outweigh the number of consumers in some area. This magnification of trading structure has its impact on a society and its culture slowly transforming the needs and traits of the society under concern. Marketing techniques of late eighties are still in vogue. Moreover the techniques are of fruitful use in global trading too. High degree of integration of objectives is achieved by aligning the middlemen and customers in a 'strategic battle group'. Interaction between such selective middlemen and customers facilitates achieving market dominance. A plastic company can join hands with a car assembler to produce orthopaedically correct seating fixtures. Mutual commitments lead to a good relationship via mutual advantage. (Ian Gordon, 1989, pp169) Despite rapid growth and alleviation of poverty in countries like India and China, globalisation has to face challenges from many countries on the ground that it has created inequality and environmental degradation. Recent publication of a research report from World Bank is expected to device ways and means to harness globalisation in better way to mitigate the hardship in more marginalized counties and to improve the life of their citizens.4 Subjugation of subordinate mass over the domination of elite has collapsed after globalisation and resultant growth in economies subsequently leading to criminology and political unrest in many societies. (Jon Rapley, 2004, pp 2-3) The FDI made in Phillipines, Dominican Republic and Costa Rica has made the workers there to shine in their skill. (Theodore H Moran, 2002) The role of immigration in the trade with developing countries increases the skill premium. (Dani Rodrik, Scott Bradford, Robert Z Lawrence, 1997) Italians dumping of their tomatoes killed Ghanna's tomato industry. Similarly European Union, by subsidizing their sugar beet production, stood in the way and stripped the sugar trade of Mozambique. However countries like Brazil, Mexico and India won the battle by prudently subverting the quota system in selected areas. (Peter Heslam, 2004) Access to imported inputs and consignment infrastructures has relatively made China to be in lead over India. (Shahid Yusuf, 2001) Though quota system in cotton textile export is lifted, in 2005, India does not find it easy to beat China for the reasons above. CONCLUSION Whether one individual likes or not and likewise a nation may or may not be supportive of globalisation, it is a great thrust that diffuses almost all the countries of the world. Proper implementation by the governments and performance by the agencies concerned will make globalisation fetching better results for the participants. In a view to reach the low - priced, high -skilled labour, the process of globalisation naturally arrests the movement of people and instead the trade world itself knocks at the door of the employees in the entire globe. Movement of money, the Capital flow, being the axis of the global trade, any country in the arena must invite foreign direct investment and entry of foreign owned banks into their country. Developing countries, which are well knit in their internal economy, are capable of catching the global market although the mobility restriction causes some local headaches for them. Through globalisation we are yet to find new vistas, which directs towards acquiring good relationship between man and the nature. Because many developing and poor countries in the arena of global trading still run the show at the cost of their own internal developments giving very less importance to conservation. Such 'hungry vendors' participation in the global market can be minimised only when FDI inflow into such countries are streamlined with a humane approach making such countries not only commercially involved but also really involved. * * * Reference List- Arjun Appadurai, 2001 "Globalisation", pp1, Duke University Press Dani Rodrik, Scott Bradford, Robert Z Lawrence, 1997, "Has Globalization Gone Too Far" Institute for International Economics George Philip, 1988, pp110-111, "The Mexican Economy", Routledge, London Ian Gordon, 1989, pp169, "Beat the Competition", Basil Blackwell Ltd, Oxford Jon Rapley, 2004, pp, 2-3"Globalization and Inequality, Lynne Rienner Publishers Malcom Waters, 2001, "Globalization", pp3, Routledge(UK) Nicolas V Gianaris, 2000, "Globalization: A Financial Approach", pp1, Praeger, Greenwood Publishing (Peter Heslam, 2004, "Globalisation and the Good", Wm B Eerdmans Publishing). P J J Welfens, 1999, pp 5, "Globalisation, Economic Growth and Innovation Dynamics", Springer Robert Went, 2000, "Globalization: Neoliberal Challenge, Radical Changes, pp 2, Pluto Press (Shahid Yusuf,2001, "Globalization and the Challenge for Developing Countries", Research paper, http://www1.worldbank.org/economicpolicy/globalization/documents/wps2168.pdf.) Sudir Naib, 2004, "Disinvestment in India", pp138-139, Sage Publications, London Theodore H Moran, 2002, "Beyond Sweatshops", Brookings Institution Press Dr. Yazali Josephine, 2003, "Globalisation and Challenges for Education", pp68, NIEPA, Shipra Publications, Delhi, India Read More