International Relations and Globalisation - Essay Example

International Relations and Globalisation Global initiatives: the World Bank, International Monetary Fund,. World Trade Organization I must say that these powerful and influential international organisations play a role in what globalisation really is, wherein these three huge international organisations have played important roles over national governments all over the world, which it is believed to be able to unify the world because of its scope of power. Globalisation magnifies a new paradigm in the world of political, economic and international relations that is considered as a global village that has the ability to influence governments. To put in simpler manner of explanation, globalisation actually refers to people's increasing awareness and consciousness on the importance of states and societies around the world. In this kind of system, the changes in global or international relations have additional or even more effects and influences on particular countries around the world. For example, the First World Countries empowerment over the Third World Countries where sense of dependency is predominantly present in the Third World Countries. It causes provinces, states, and countries to re-evaluate their role in international relations, for example the creation of free trade area for the market in which it gives huge effects at both of the national or federal level of government have stabilised the states and societal structure, or even worse destroyed the states and societal structure. The creation of free trade area served as an avenue to a secure international organisations' interests because of its competitiveness in world market but its ill effects are alarming. Globalisation effects the empowerment of a world market because it increases and accepts then dominates the national economies of every country. By doing this process there is the loosening up of the original nation or country. By falling to the pattern of dependency, that is being dominated and manipulated by globalisation forces to the extent of losing track of national priorities. This will imply that the dominance of the world market will penetrate over the structures of local production in every country so as to show the presence of Western-type consumerism. Trends of regionalism will it lead to greater democracy? As countries adjust to the process of globlisation, thus creating a boundary over the territorial, political, economic and social concerns of a country. This is manifested in the new global trend of New Reginonalism and Multi-Polarity. The New Regionalism and Multi-Polarity are the same concept. The influential loss of American hegemony and the moribound Communist system in the First and Third World Countries helped in the advancements of this new trend. The new regionalism is a more spontaneous and dynamic process within the regions. It is because the constituent states will now feel the need for cooperation and/or coordination for the discussion of new global challenges arising in the world.. Regionalism is a way of coping with global transformation because once and for all, most states lack the capacity or ability and the means to manage such a work on the global level. It is often described as "open", and it is suitable with an interdependent world economy. However, the idea of a certain degree of preferential treatment in each countries within its regions is showed in the idea of open regionalism. It is a more comprehensive, multidimensional process which can develop unaided nations. This process includes trade, economic development, and environmental, social policy and security matters. In addition, it will be able to help the problem of cooperation from communist nations to non-communist nations by using the new types of regionalist frameworks. Lastly, it forms a huge part of a global structural transformation. The many different types of institutions, organisations and movements which are also known as the non-state actors can also be active and operational at different levels of the global system. In summary, the New Regionalism includes aspects in economic, political, social and cultural. It does not only goes far beyond the scope of free trade. However, the political ambition of establishing regional unifications and regional image seems to be also a primary importance in the aspect of new regionalism. The New Regionalism is linked to globalisation and can be well understood by looking at the different levels and regions in the world. It can not only be understood by citing a single region only because it will not be fair enough to make judgment. It should be defined as a world order concept not local concept only because any particular process of regionalism in any part of the world has systemic analysis on the other regions. In this way, shaping the new world order is being unified. The world regions, the different types of regions, will define the new national power structure. ``The EU will ensure that the issue of human rights, democracy, security, and the rule of law will be included in all future meetings and discussions with third countries and at all levels...''said from excerpt in Guidelines on Human Rights Dialogues (2001). The new development policy strategy gives new consequences because the previous strategy was published in November 2000: the stronger consensus on the Millennium Development Goals, the security context after the terrorist attacks on 11 September and the increased impact of globalisation in a new perspective. Conflict prevention, conflict management and crisis management operations were the European Union's action within the working structure of the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP). In the working framework of its Common Foreign and Security Policy, the European Union has made a range of different tools and mechanisms promoting human rights, democratisation, and security. Specific guidelines have been designed and implemented to serve as a working framework for protecting and promoting human rights in the Third World Countries. It will also entail swift common action if it’s necessary to do in such case. An example is officially approaching a Third World Country with a demarche on a specific case of human rights violation. They allow the action of rapid and sublimed action at European Union level when individuals in Third World Countries are in danger. By doing this, the European Union intervention is warranted and will help aid the cases of the Third World Countries in every nation in this issue itself. Somehow, it's true to say that European Union's initiatives (accounting for 55% of development assistance, 20% of which is managed by the Commission) is a fine example of a trend towards parity which complements the trends of multi-polarity, though it may not totally lead to democratization at the country level – where poverty still poses as threat to democratisation and its corresponding respect for human rights both the political e.g. the first generation human rights embedded in Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 and the second generation focused on the Declaration of the Right to Development adapted by the UN in 1986. The world dynamic: hanging in the development balance The United Nations Development Program premised development on the purpose to “create an enabling environment for people to enjoy long, healthy and creative lives” and that there are indirect and direct links between small to medium enterprises (SMEs) and human development. Growth apparently is not enough to spur democratisation and the attached human rights both first and second generation human rights. According the UN development agency, people’s participation, private sector development , synergy between private and public investment, access to resource and credit, social and organizational capital and democratic governance needs to be taken cared of, before meaningful economic growth which will accrue to the communities is possible. Presumably, economic growth leads to greater income for the communities and SMEs remain the most viable productive option open to underdeveloped communities straddling the globe. UNDP data suggest that “in countries with unemployment numbers in the range of 30-40 percent, 50 percent and more the employment generating role of SMEs cannot be underestimated.” ("Poverty Eradication and Sustainable Livelihoods"). Furthermore, sustainable human development is viewed by UNDP as empowering to the poor and more important it wealth generating which is equitably distributed. Environmental sustainability expands the concept of human rights to coming generation, that they too would need natural resources and conserving them is intimate to the question of environmental degradation. Of all the factors of human and social development, democratization and greater people’s exercise of their human rights, governance is perhaps the most important. Governance is defined by UNDP as the “exercise of economic, political, and administrative authority to manage a country’s affairs at all levels, comprising the mechanisms, processes, and institutions through which that authority is directed.” But as previously said, not all kinds of governance could lead to greater democratisation or greater participation of the people in community affairs. Presumably under the UN development paradigm good governance is equated with the rule of law and equal justice under the law and recognizes the role of the private sector and the civil society. For the private sector to play a progressive role, a political situation where there is genuine participation, transparency, defined accountability and where social delivery is efficient is a prerequisite to the “achievement of sustainable human development” ("Undp and Governance Experiences and Lessons Learned"). In other words, the quality of governance determines the ability to develop along growth lines which ensures benefits accrue to the people with minimum damage to the environment in consideration of coming generations. This is a critical consideration though straightforward undergoes changes if juxtaposed with cultural and the question of ethnicity. The question of right to maintain “culture” and identity in a world transforming into a homogenous scheme is underscored by sporadic violence though limited in the so-called “hot spots” and localized to certain regions, nevertheless pose a global concern as violence derails development ("Undp and Governance Experiences and Lessons Learned") . Democratisation and the holistic human development according to noble ideals is then not that easy and the world is confronted with these as manifestations of underdevelopment continue to grip many nations in the world. But nevertheless, it would be the people and their communities which will shoulder the cost and work and must necessarily take the initiative and responsibility for their own development, otherwise it will not be sustainable. References: Hettne, B. Globalization, te New Regionalism and East Asia. Accessed from: http://www.unu.edu/unupress/globalism.html#Globalization. Accessed at 20 August 2006. European Commission. The EU's Human Rights and Democrisation Policy. Accesed from http://ec.europa.eu/comm/external_relations/human_rights/ intro/index.htm. Accessed at 20 August 2006. "Poverty Eradication and Sustainable Livelihoods." 2006. "Undp and Governance Experiences and Lessons Learned". 2006. (2006 August 29): Management Development and Governance Division Lessons-Learned Series No. 1.  Read More