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Globalisation, causes for demonstration against
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Globalisation There are a number of key drivers for demonstration against corporate globalisation. A plethora of definitions for globalisation exist. These range from positive definitions such as “a decoupling of space and time, emphasising that with instantaneous communications, knowledge and culture can be shared around the world simultaneously.” (Anthony Giddens, cited at http://www.globalisationguide.org/01.html, 21/08/2002) through to more negative definitions such as “a worldwide drive toward a globalised economic system dominated by supranational corporate trade and banking institutions that are not accountable to democratic processes or national governments.” (http://www.globalisationguide.org/01.html, 21/08/2002) The definition of globalisation used for the purpose of this essay is: The term globalization captures elements of a widespread perception that there is a broadening, deepening and speeding up of world-wide interconnectedness in all aspects of life, from the cultural to the criminal, the financial to the environmental. At issue appears to be 'a global shift'; that is, a world being moulded, by economic and technological forces, into a shared economic and political arena. (Held, McGrew, Golblatt & Perraton, 2002) One of the most significant objections to globalisation (as defined above) is that it allows people to be taken advantage of. The ethos of consumer sovereignty bestows power on the consumer to influence the behaviour of all suppliers, not least of which are multinational corporates. The constant demand for lower consumer prices motivates corporates to search for ways of doing this, while still maintaining the necessary quality. This constant demand from consumers for lower prices is often with little regard for the consequences of delivering the same products for a lower price. However, Deeds and Enderwick (1997) suggest that consumer sovereignty does not truly exist unless a free, informed and responsible choice is enabled. This more holistic view of consumer sovereignty encompasses the ability for consumers to assume socially responsible behaviour if they so choose. The situation where communities and workers are taken advantage of is enabled through differing laws that exist in different countries. Labour laws are one important area where legislated constraints vary from nation to nation. Not all countries have minimum wages that are as generous as they are in developed countries. Furthermore, the concept of a maximum number of hour working week is often not applied in developing countries. Governments of developing countries, in their eagerness to attract foreign investment and business, often do not consider the social cost of exploiting workers in their countries. Examples of such exploitation of workers that can occur in developing countries include child labour and sweatshops (Roddick, 2000). Objections levelled at globalisation based on its ability to allow workers to be abused arises also from the fact that often the end consumer has no visibility of the abuse.
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