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Globalization: Paradox, Apocalypse
and Redemption—A Response to David Held
-- Amitabh Tripathi
The paper is a critique of David Held’s thesis on globalization. In his attempt to reframe global governance, Held has repeatedly counter-posed the extensity and intensity of contemporary collective issues with the weak and incomplete means of addressing them. This has also been served by Held as the paradox of our times. The paper locates the problem in the underlying assumptions of this apparent paradox with reference to the critical literature on globalization, democracy and global governance. It argues that Held’s normative conceptualization of globalization also informs his proposals on reforming global governance and is oblivious to elements of power in the globalization discourse.
© 2012 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Surviving the Recession: The State of CARICOM Economies
-- Debbie A Mohammed and David Gibbs
CARICOM states have been severely affected by the recent global economic downturn. Many of these states experienced negative or minimal growth due to declining remittances, tourism receipts and investment inflows, lack of export competitiveness or low commodity prices. This highlights the profound challenges which these small, open economies face in terms of their reliance on a narrow range of exports of goods and services, as well as limited markets for these exports. At the same time, intra-regional trade remains relatively low, while net outflows in the form of debt servicing, and import payments remain high. Individual CARICOM countries are seeking to stabilize their economies and look towards some growth in the medium-term through export and market diversification strategies. At the same time, the regional integration process, and particularly the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) regime, which was created to boost export competitiveness and grow regional firms offering a wide range of goods and services, appears to be stalled. As the prognosis for another global economic crisis intensifies, CARICOM countries will need to adopt strategies that boost intra-regional trade, while focusing on market and product diversification. This paper suggests that the institutional and structural issues which continue to impact the region’s export competitiveness underscore the need for greater emphasis on regional collaboration to support national export strategies. A recommitment to regional integration may be a necessary option to increase trade and growth within CARICOM states. © 2012 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Liberal Democracy and Indigenous People’s Rights
and Participation: The Case of Basarwa/San in Botswana
-- Tidimane Ntsabane and Christopher Ntau
Botswana has widely been acclaimed as the oldest and one of the most successful democracies in Sub-Saharan Africa, and an example of economic development, functioning governance and a multiparty democracy, whose exceptionality makes it a hopeful model for other African countries. While the country has done comparatively well in sticking to its democratic agenda, through it improving the social, economic and political conditions of the population, democracy was put to test in the past two decades. Since the 1990s, minority groups, amongst them the Basarwa, have demanded revision of certain sections of the constitution to make them tribally neutral, and have demanded their right to elect their own chiefs and nominate their own representatives to the House of Chiefs. For the Basarwa, however, the right to have access to community structures to express their needs and views regarding land, representation, and conditions of their children’s education has been of primary importance. Given the complex history of their discrimination, they have often come close to demanding alternative avenues for participation in community affairs only to learn that there is only one village kgotla or public assembly, one clinic, one school, etc., which they have to associate with or go back to their nomadic lives, the latter being a futile proposition under modern land and fauna regulatory regimes. This paper, using the historical data, examines the political and civic avenues for political participation available to minority groups in general and Basarwa in particular, and shows that the structural imposition at community level based on the dominant model of the Tswana groups systematically excludes many minority groups, more particularly Basarwa, from community participation. This amounts to the denial of their human and democratic rights. © 2012 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Sea Lines Under Strain: The Way Forward
in Managing Sea Lines of Communication
-- Nazery Khalid
Sea Lines of Communication (SLOCs) are the key maritime passageways that facilitate heavy shipping traffic volumes and host the transportation of key maritime trades such as crude oil. They are characterized by the intensity of their use and narrow passages or ‘chokepoints’ that require ships to navigate cautiously when passing through, for fear of causing accidents that may cause pollution or disrupt the flow of shipping traffic. Any incident in these chokepoints can result in disruption to shipping traffic that can have adverse repercussions on the economic interests of the littoral states of SLOCs and on international trade. Given their vulnerability and importance, it is imperative that SLOCs are managed efficiently to ensure safety of passage for ships and to safeguard the interests of the littoral states and users of the SLOCs. In doing so, a multilateral approach that promotes cooperation, collaboration and capacity building offers the best construct for the optimal management of SLOCs, with the littoral states at the center of such initiatives. This approach, argues the paper, provides the best model for the upkeep of SLOCs, given the global nature of shipping and the multiple, and sometimes conflicting, interests in the sealanes. The paper emphasizes the need for users of SLOCs to shed the ‘free rider’ mentality and take up collective responsibility to maintain and manage the SLOCs based on the principles of international law and in full respect for the rights of the littoral states. © 2012 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Iran’s Nuclearization and Its Implications
for Global and Regional Security
-- B N Mehrish
The paper makes an attempt to analyze the implications and issues in the context of Iran’s nuclear program. According to some experts, Iran is desperately seeking to acquire nuclear technology and weapons. According to experts in the Middle East affairs, the question is why Iran needs nuclear capability as a deterrent. Is it under the threat of ‘regime change’ sought by the US and its NATO allies? Iran’s ambition to become a nuclear power is a threat to regional and global security and has serious strategic implications. The main aim of sanctions against Iran by the US and its allies is to contain the military prowess of Iran. The result of Iran’s nuclear program would be a nuclear arms race in the Gulf region. The Obama administration needs a broader package of political, economic and military measures to provide reassurance of global security in the face of threat of nuclear terrorism. © 2012 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
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