Germany's role in World Economy

By: Bikal Dhungel

Germany has the Europe’s largest economy since 1900. Many multi-national companies originated here and are still world’s leading exporters. Henkel, a company with its history of chemicals and consumer products like washing detergent powders was founded in 1876. BMW was founded in 1917. All 30 companies listed in the German Stock Exchange ( DAX: Deutsche Aktien Index ) are involved in international operations. Most of them are well known to the world. Companies like Adidas, Daimler, Nivea ( Beiersdorf ), BMW, Lufthansa, DHL, Mercedes Benz, Siemens, Volkswagen, SAP are the symbol of quality for the world, that strengthened the idea of ‘Made in Germany’. Handful of other companies like Porsche, Audi, and Opel etc played a vital role as well. Due to this idea of Quality, Germany established itself as a world leader in export. Large part of its GDP comes from Export. The main trading partners are the countries within the European Union but also the US, Japan, China and India. 

Being the largest economy of Europe, Germany is also the motor that keeps the European Union running. Recently, when most of the southern European countries are struggling due to debt crisis and economic difficulties, the healthy growth of Germany has given them some hope. A large portion of southern European Youths have found Germany an attractive location for employment opportunities because in countries like Greece and Spain, youth unemployment rate is as high as 50%. Due to the freedom of movement within the European Union, the youth mobility in Europe is immense. Six new members of the European Union mainly the Eastern European countries also enjoy this right of movement since May 2011. This caused the even more inflow of people to Germany. Due to this growth and the availability of employment, these youths are being able to help people back home. 

In the international level, the total German Foreign Direct Investment has reached record levels, mainly in China. German investors are discovering China as an attractive destination for investment. Germany is not only an export champion with its total revenue of 1.5 trillion Euros from export, but it also imports the goods worth 1 trillion Euros yearly. Hence, its weight in the world economy is huge. 

This massive involvement in the world economy also makes it vulnerable. Any instability of economy in any part of the world comes at the cost of German economy. The recent recession that started in 2008 caused the decreased demands of German goods worldwide. Consequently, the economy went down by roughly 6%, making it one of the hardest hit countries due to the recession. It is still unclear how long it takes to come back to the level of 2007 but the economy is growing with an accelerating rate. Number of employed people reached the record levels of roughly 42 million ( in its total population of 82 million ) 

Germany is especially famous for its idea of ‘Ordnung’ ( Order  ) and discipline, also in the economic system. It is a member of International Monetary Fund, OECD, World Trade Organization etc and has a big voice in the international decision making process.  The heroes behind this success are not only the Corporations and businesses but also the hard working citizens of Germany are equal shareholders and their efforts are supported by strong political and economical stability. 

Legacy of Lies: The Propaganda of Social Justice

By: Bikal Dhungel 

In the eve of Nepal going to be declared a Federal Republic based on ethnic identity, the credibility of those who struggled for social justice and equality seem to have had no base. The so called ‘Peoples War’ cost over 13,000 lives. It was in fact a war that was supposed to bring few master minds into power to build personal fortunes.  Nepalese living in rural parts who had no idea of justice and equality were brainwashed and forced to take part in armed struggle that left the country even more paralyzed. 

First of all, believing that Communism will solve the problem had been a great mistake. It is a failed model. It failed in China, it failed in the Soviet Union and it failed anywhere else. Not only it failed, it left an everlasting wound, that we will have to work hard for decades to come to achieve the state that would have been there if Communism didn’t exist. What the passionate communists hate to accept is also that Communism actually killed more people than World War I and II combined (Black Book of Communism). The killing fields of Cambodia, Stalin’s terror and the torture from the Mao’s hand still remains a fresh memory to many. Promising the dreams of equality and fairness, Communist leaders took the power in many countries, sometimes with violent means and once the job was accomplished, they eventually turned to a terrible dictator smashing the opposition, pressing human rights and freedom and created a political dynasty followed by their own family members. An example of this promising story can be seen today in Cuba.  

Maoist leaders in Nepal promised solidarity, equality, end of poverty, end of torture, end of the domination by ruling class and other principles of Communism in the Soviet Union and Mao’s China. However, if these principles are enacted, it is in fact not a bad idea. Soviet Union had an international national anthem which covered all soviet republics. Unfortunately, these principles are impossible to hold. This will finally lead to the collapse of whole system, as we have seen in 1991. 

The question is not either or not accepting Communism and Maoism in Nepal, the question is, if it is still a good model to lead a country. China itself rejected it and moved towards market economy almost three decades ago. Understanding the potential of growth and prosperity, the Chinese premier Deng Xiaoping brought market reforms, as a result of which China grew with double digit for over a decade. It has quadrupled its per capita income and today stands as the second largest economy in the world only after the United States and the largest in Asia. So, how rational is the idea of our Maoist and Communist leaders to go to back to Communism and Maoism? Is it their stupidity or is it just the only way remaining to come to the power? The latter seems viable. The recent clearing off of the dwellers around Bagmati River in Kathmandu justifies this fact. 15,000 people were forced to move after the bulldozers wiped off their houses. The interviews of these people conducted by local television verified that many of these dwellers had been Maoist fighters during the civil war. These people had political protection. They were used to bring the party leaders to the government but once their dear leaders were living in ministerial palaces; their homes were cleared off ignoring the struggle they did to make the Maoist journey to the government possible. 

Even more disturbing fact today is that Maoists and Communists can think of dividing the country into federal states based on ethnicity. Communism rejects any ethnic status, caste, religion and considers everybody as equal and perceives to inflict international solidarity in theory. Nothing has been heard from the well qualified leaders from Nepal. Additionally, the opinion of the majority, not to divide Nepal according to ethnic identity, has been ignored. 

Federalism itself is a fantastic form of governing. The most successful democracies in the world are ruled by this model. The United States, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Brazil, Argentina are some handful of examples. These countries are decentralized and are highly developed. Switzerland, despite its four official languages, German, French, Italian and Romansh, and slightly different culture in all the states, it has been successful in maintaining peace and become one of the most stable countries in the world. However, these countries mentioned above have been historically stable. They have a highly industrialized economical base, a robust economy, a large number of educated people and more or less homogeneous people with same language except in Switzerland. Nepal has none of these qualities. Nepal is a mixed hub of over one hundred indigenous languages; it has a complicated geography, relatively less number of literate people and even less number of highly educated people. Additionally, it has been encircled by problems of poverty, lack of health care and infra-structures. Bad governance has made the scenario look worst. In the given case, federalism based on ethnic background will definitely have a catastrophic end. Similar examples could be seen in countries that are in the same level of Nepal economically, namely Nigeria and Ethiopia. 

Ethiopian ethnic division has failed to solve the national issues such as poverty, unemployment and ethnic violence. In 2011, Ethiopia still had 50% unemployment rate. Defense expenditure and fiscal deficit has increased since the division. Rifts between ethnic groups throughout the nation haven’t improved. On the contrary, displeasure with the central government posses’ constant threat of jeopardizing the inter-state relations and the danger of further splits. The splitting of Eritrea left Ethiopia landlocked, hence worsening its potential of international trade. This also caused a war between two nations killing over 70,000 people. 

The defining question should go, why is federalism necessary? The ultimate goal of federalism is the fair economic growth of all territories of a nation. The tools for this growth are in fact not ethnic federalism rather a heavy investment in education and infrastructures. Ethnic States certainly provide some additional governmental positions to locals but it would hardly generate overall growth that makes substantial changes. In case of further dangers of split, the central government should increase the defense budget, as the scenario depicted in India. 

However, it is true that in present context, various ethnic groups in Nepal are stranded. The previous governments showed almost no efforts to raise their issues. As a result, there is growing tension among the few ruling classes. To solve these issues, Ethnic Federalism is a wrong answer. The right answer is, education for all, anti-discrimination laws to hinder further stranding of minorities and a sustainable investments in agriculture. 

In the political level, all political party’s aim should not be private gains, rather a service for the nation, to bring it up through sustainable development. Sticking to failed models and claiming to write history in the cost of human lives is indeed wrong and foolish. The promises of Maoists were meant to break and now it is already broken into many pieces that will certainly never be recovered. Hence, the motto of Nepalese people should be “No to Ethnic Federalism, no to Communism and no to Maoism “.

Controversy of Swiss Banking System

By: Bikal Dhungel 

Swiss Banking System is a matter of top secrecy. No other country is more in criticism than Switzerland when it comes to banking and money laundering. Granting a welcoming gesture to tax evaders, Switzerland remain the top guilt in the eyes of many governments, especially its European neighbors for having the most controversial and mysterious banking system. 

Switzerland has a long history of unique banking system that goes back to the eve of World War II. A friendly country that is neutral in world affairs, Switzerland is successful in maintaining its sovereignty from the worldly events. It is not the member of European Union or the OECD (Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development) and until 2002, not even the member of United Nations. Being the member of EU would have pushed it into the pool of countries where Switzerland would lose the sovereignty that it maintained in the last 80 years. 

Banking is an important part of this sovereignty which has a history in it. After the expulsion of Jews in Germany by Adolf Hitler, those with vast fortunes could keep their wealth in Switzerland without letting known to any third party about the amount. By this way, the Swiss banking system played a good role in saving the fortunes of minorities prior to World War II. But this is not the only reason behind the establishment of Swiss Banking.  

But what is so mysterious about the Swiss banking? Why normalizing this system is in top agenda? In fact, similar to its northern neighbors, Switzerland has three types of Accounts, Current accounts, Saving accounts and Numbered accounts. The third one, Numbered accounts is the one which is most controversial. Clients are given an ID number instead of names, which makes it impossible to know how much money somebody has and whom it exactly belongs to. Having an account however doesn’t directly mean that it is for tax avoidance. Majority of the 8 million Swiss people have bank accounts in at least one of the banks or financial institutions. They are not tax evaders. They are just a normal citizen like everyone else. 

 A potent force behind the billions of deposits in the Swiss accounts, if not trillions, is in fact not the confidential system of Switzerland, rather its political stability, its neutrality and the faith in its currency Swiss Francs. Switzerland remained neutral during World War II, it has no military presence in foreign soil, it is not the member of any foreign military alliances like the NATO and Swiss Francs is one of the most stable currencies in the world. 

The international transaction is pegged into US dollars but in the recent time, it was also subjected to the fear of inflation. This resulted in the discussion of switching to Euro, a common currency of 17 countries of European Union. This was also entangled with difficulties proven by the Greek crisis as well as the crisis we are facing today in southern Europe. But in Swiss francs, investors and depositors have trust because it has proven its stability in the past. Thus depositors from the whole world prefer Switzerland as one of the safest places to put their money. These are the potent forces that attract people towards the Alps, not only the secrecy of depositors in Swiss banking system. 

Additionally, the confidentiality is also guaranteed by law.  Article 47 of the federal law guarantee the security of the depositor by explicitly mentioning that those who give the account details to any external party can be sent to prison for up to 3 years or will be imposed a penalty of 250,000 Swiss Francs. So, the bank employees remain faithful fearing the consequences.

However, it is true that time and again many sources reveal the millions deposited by dictators, politicians, and business men in Switzerland. These amounts are often made by illegal means. But in many cases, the Swiss authorities have even frozen the deposits. The deposits of former dictator of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi had been frozen by the Swiss canton, which has the sole right to give information to a third party in a certain condition. The deposits of Hosni Mubarak’s son had been frozen. The authorities are playing their part to disclose the secrets about suspicious bank accounts. Hence, blaming Switzerland as a country that gives amnesty to dictators and corrupts is baseless and absurd. 

The deciding question of our time should also go; if revealing the secret of Swiss banking system also solve the problem that are encountered by it. In case of the abolition of this system, the depositors will simply take their money out to other tax heavens like Cayman Islands, Singapore, Lichtenstein, Andorra or Hong Kong. Hence, it will just push the problem further. This gives Switzerland an incentive not to change its banking policy. And why should Switzerland do this if a big portion of its national income is generated by banking sector? This is same like proposing to impose tax on financial transactions that the British will never support. The UK has a big financial industry; hence it would block any policy that backs the tax on transactions aimed to curb speculation. Similarly, the Germans would never accept a tax in Bockwurst, a traditional food in Germany. So, demanding only Switzerland to give up its Banking System while letting others to take the fruit of their advantages in other sectors which are not adorable for the rest of the world at the same time is similarly unfair. 

Either Switzerland will give up its whole Banking secrecy for the sake of international cooperation is a big question as roughly 7% of Swiss GDP is generated by banking sector. Still, this policy is slowly moving towards a transparent banking system. 

Recently, Switzerland negotiated with German government and agreed to give information about those who evade tax in Germany and deposit the money in Switzerland after the German authorities received information about such people. The agreement also included that their fortunes will be taxed as high as 41% in Germany. 

A similar agreements was signed between the Obama Administration and Swiss government few years ago when American money, allegedly evading tax were thought to be deposited in Switzerland. However, fearing the economic consequences with the United States, Switzerland decided to agree on the demands made by Obama administration that it will help to find out American tax evaders seeking asylum in Swiss banks. 

Today’s world is more globalized than ever. This also makes the movement of people and even businesses easier. Hence, there is a high mobility of people internationally. This also has negative sides.  A national decision making in the issues like disclosing the banking secrecy, introducing financial transaction tax etc would have no effect nationally. It should be done in international level. Sweden imposed the tax in financial transactions and the result was, all the investors moved to London. More powerful international bodies should step-in to bring policies that will be ratified by nation-states in order to solve the problems we are facing in financial industry, international politics and environment. It is hardly possible to have a common tax policy in the whole world with uniform rate but it is possible to reveal how the depositors made the money and what we can do from it. This time, such deposits could be taxed and the fund could be used to fight global problems like poverty, climate change and illiteracy. A similar policy was proposed by NGOs who claimed that along with such deposits in tax heavens, also the discoveries of natural resources in offshore areas that does not belong to any country is subjected to be deposited in Global Fund to fight global problems. Unfortunately, some countries rallied with Warships to bury their flags in these regions to claim the territories. This idea however is fantastic. This shows a humanist way to deal with worldly problems being ethical citizens. 

There are enough funds available to solve the problem we face today. They are only in the wrong hands or are not divided fairly. Vivid examples could be seen in the tax heavens where trillions of wealth is deposited. Sooner or later these islands should accept the solidarity with the remaining world. Switzerland, despite having a long history of Bank secrecy, is slowly revealing its secrets and disclosing the information about such accounts. Agreements with Germany and the United States are two examples. Other tax heavens should follow the suit and finally give the information about tax evaders to the global community and play their part to solving the global problems.

A Brief History of Economic Development

By: Bikal Dhungel

The world is changing rapidly. In the last sixty years it has seen miraculous developments. Coming out of the ashes of World War II, Western Europe has established itself as the most stable region of the world. Totally destroyed Japan, having been the victim of the only atomic bomb in human history, which killed hundreds of thousands, has established itself as the strongest economy of Asia, and second only to the United States worldwide. We have seen the rise of South Korea, which had the equal per capita income as Mozambique in late fifties. Today South Korea stands as a developed country. We have seen the growth of China when Mao Zedong went. From Deng Xiaoping to Xiang Jemin to Hu Jintao, it kept its economy open and recently overtook Germany as the third largest economy of the world. China is on the way to become the second largest economy. India, from the early ninetees, took similar policy. India grew when the world economy was in downturn. The rise of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries has re-shaped the world order. Mexico proudly declares itself as a North American country today and no more intends to turn back to its old identity as a Central American country. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been good for Mexican economy as they can sell their products in the United States and Canada now. Indonesia shares similar story. Even though it was runned by one of the terrible dictators of the world, Suharto, he brought liberal policies in the country encouraging Privatisation, Free Trade and more Market Liberalization. After the Asian financial crisis of 1997, people lost faith in him and finally toppled him. Growth was felt in other parts of the world as well. Moreover, the emergence of computarized technologies, World Wide Web, digital technologies etc have reshaped the world.

Nepal, however, did not change much. Even though it enjoyed the modern developments from other parts of the world, it could not establish itself as a country capable to adopt such changes. There are many things to blame. Ill adviced policies of the past, weak justice system, ineffective education policies, nepotism etc are just handful of things.

In Nepal due to misguided economic systems and policies of the past, the investments are frequently being discouraged. The original sin did not start with the change of government, nor will it ends after a new system will be installed. No lessons were taken from the countries of Latin America and Emerging Markets like Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.

Since the late sixties, South Korea has been growing with almost six percent per year and in the end of the Millenium, established itself as an Asian dragon. Latin American countries also reduced trade barriers and motivated free trade. They invested heavily in education and concentrated in future based successes.

However, it is not a reason to be sad. Nepal has a huge advantage as well. Nepal lies between India and China. China is heading forward with double digit growth since three decades and it continues to grow. China also overtook Germany as world‟s third largest economy and the largest exporter. Its cheap labour cost is the motor to growth, but also opening up the economy, free market and trade. The landscape of China is also changing because of millions of people from rural china migrating to the coastal cities. China will also overtake Japan soon and once more become the major Asian power.

Abroad, China is also accelerating. Chinese investment in Africa is so vast that it‟s very hard for any other country to take its role. China has money and Africa has resources, so they trade. Barter trade is often a good solution for the Chinese, African Oil vs. Chinese infrastructure developments. From highways in Angola to ministerial buildings in Ruanda, China has become Africa‟s best friend in it infrastructural buildings. The south-south cooperation between Asia, Africa and South America is increasing day by day and these once „developing countries‟ have become major partners in global issues today. The Chinese government mentions that about 500 million people have been brought out of poverty since opening up the Chinese economy, which represents the same size as the total population of the US, Germany, Great Britain and Italy combined. A huge number of people are turning from poor to the middle class. More and more people are being able to afford European goods, making vacation abroad and live a high quality life.

India grew as well, with an extraordinary rate. After opening up its economy in the early nineties, it flourished. India has the resources. It has cheap labors and other comparative advantages. India is also one of the largest foreign direct investor in Europe and North America. As China, India is looking to Africa for resources, and their trade too, is increasing. Once the bread basket of the British Empire, India appears to be a great empire today. A vast majority of Indians educated in western countries are returning, they are bringing the skills with them and using it in their country of origin. India has developed itself as space technologist, sent recently a shuttle to the space. India is a nuclear power and its military is largest among the world.

China has around 60,000 students currently enrolled in the US universities and 20,000 enter the programs every year. India sends thousands every month. When this generation returns home, even more growth will take place.

This development of India and China is good news for Nepal. Nepal will definitely be affected by this growth. There will be spill-over effects. There are resources in Nepal but due to the lack of proper transportation facilities, they are not in a condition to be transported. As giant economies, China and India will certainly help Nepal to build infrastructures and make use of its resources. Nepalese people will find China and India an attractive place for employment. A huge flow of immigrants is possible. Currently, millions Nepalese are employed in India. India does not require visas for Nepalese citizens. China does. Chinese policy till date is to employ rural Chinese first and they have a restrictive immigration policy.

It is also in Nepal‟s interest that China and India both are democratic nations. A democratic country cannot try to impose autocratic policies in the weak neighboring country. China presently has a one party political system. It liberalized its economy when Mao died but the government remains the same. This government stays hard lined in many issues, like Tibet policies and is reluctant to change a lot. Nepal would obviously profit from a democratic and economically powerful China.

It is also up to Nepal to make the most of the economic developments of China and India. It should learn from China and India, which were both developing countries but within few decades, presented themselves as huge powers. Nepal should seek advice from India and China and work towards being a prosperous nation. The stability in the region is profitable for all.

Nepalese people should not leave it to the politicians to bring all change that is necessary. Change should never be a top down policy. It is the task of politicians to create a room for economic development and provide the public with necessary tools to deal with it but it should be the hand of private sector to undertake the greater share of development. Lessons should be learnt from all over the world to build Nepal and to create economic growth. Economic growth can only help to resolve the problem of our society, namely, poverty, under-nutrition, access to sanitation and clean drinking water, better health care and education. These things are the key to growth and development. Nomatter it is China or India or Brazil or Turkey or Russia, their very first steps towards development were these factors, which, in turn contributed to accelerate their growth. The role of the normal citizens should be, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”; John F Kennedy.

Forgotten People of Tibet

By: Bikal Dhungel 

Tibet has been an independent country in history, except for some time as a part of China. It has one of the world’s oldest cultures. Tibetan culture is unfortunately vanishing due to the current political turmoil. 

With the invasion of Tibet from the Peoples Republic of China in 1950, there has been political instability in the Himalayan region. China controlled the region which resulted the rebellion, killing tens of thousands of Tibetans and the 14^th Dalai Lama fled to exile. According to Central Tibetan Administration, approximately  1.2 million people died of voilence, starvation and many different reasons what the Chinese authorities deny. During the peroid between 1959 and 1979 the population of Tibet was reduced by one million but during the same period the Chinese population almost doubled. It gives a clear fact about how many Tibetan deaths were there.Thousands of other untold stories might be hidden inside the stones all over Tibet which the world will never know. 

Even in the start of 21^st century, the behaviour of China is same as it was in the fifties. According to the NGO ‘Save Tibet’ website, the tibetans are denied most fundamental human rights including freedom of speech, expression, freedom of movement and the right to self determination. United Nations Development Programm (UNDP) ranks Tibet lowest in human development index among the provinces of China. Whole economy is based on tourism and the subsidies by the central government. Optimists believe that the Railway link between Qinghai and Lhasa would help the economy to grow but the initial motive behind this project was to ease the Han Chinese migration to Tibet. Han chinese are the largest ethnic group in China. In a nation of  over one billion people, if only ten million of them migrate to Tibet, the tibetans will be a minority group in their own country and the local culture will be extinguished. This process is on the way and it is obvious that the Han Chinese will bring their culture with them. Chinese authorities also claim that the railway system will bring more economic advantages and promote tourism but either it would be helpful for fragile Tibetan ecology, its not clear yet. The opponents of this railway link claim that this system will only help the Han Chinese already living in Tibet. His holiness the Dalai Lama told ‘wait and see’ to his people but precaution is obviously better than cure. Tibetans have to do something before its too late. In their context, once the Chinese control Tibet with absolute majority, its impossible to gain the power back again. Tibet could not be won by revolution, neither peacefully. The Dalai Lama’s philosophy ‘getting Tibet’s autonomy back being the part of China without voilence’ seems crap. China is just waiting for his  death and do not even really response on what he says. The future Dalai Lama would not probably win the world’s sympathy like the current Tenzin Gyatso. So, it might be more difficult to pull the world’s attention towards the himalayan culture. By that time, the Chinese will even gain more control over Tibet and may build transportation facilities to bring more people there. 

There should be no opposition if Chinese people wants to migrate to Tibet but the tibetan language and culture should be preserved. Their language should not be replaced by Chinese in the schools. Old Buddhist monastries should not be destroyed in order to wipe-off Buddhism from Tibet.

 Foreign Journalists are also banned from entering Tibet occasionally because the Chinese government fear that they will spread the anti-chinese sentiments throughout the world. Journalists are also obliged to have one police officer to accompany them and show their reports and journals to the authorities which in the western world seems impossible.

Finally , before the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing, Tibetans and Free Tibet activists  got an opportunity to inform the world about the situation inside the country. Protests starting from the Olympic Torch in Greece through London, Paris, San Fransisco and many different cities , the activists were successful in informing the world about the real torture the innocent Tibetans are facing. Tibetans in exile also tried to hinder Olympic Torch relay chanting ‘stop killing in Tibet’ or ‘Free Tibet’.  The disturbances in Paris and the french support for Free Tibet even resulted in the boycott of French goods in China. Later, last year the chinese authorities invited Dalai Lama’s representative for dialog but it was not fruitful and was just next to nothing. Free world believes that the Chinese did this just to close their mouth for some time and on purpose, failed to agree in anything demanded by the Dalai Lama.  Many other attempts for Dialog has been created after that but all of them ended without conclusion. Tibetan exiles are often frustrated with China and claims the unwillingness of chinese to talk in this matter. They are willing to take violent actions against the chinese rule which the Dalai Lama strongly oppose. 

Similarly, in the neighbouring country Nepal, the exiles are often coming to the streets  to protest against the torture and killings of their brothers and sisters back home. In the nepalese capital kathmandu, government even banned anti-Chinese protests because Nepal is highly dependent on China and receives high amount of financial supports from China every year. So, in turn, it does what the Chinese embassy says. Hindus and Buddhists always had a warm relationships, they live under one roof in highly cooperative way but in this matter  with China and Tibet, they can do almost nothing except watching their tibetan friends suffer. Some young tibetans are already frustrated with the non-violence idea of Dalai Lama and they believe, there is no other option than to choose violence to get their homes back. 

Rest of the world also don’t know how to go forward in order to gain tibetan autonomy. There are dozens of Tibet initiatives working actively to support the Buddhist tradition, including Munich based ‘Tibet initiative München e.v’. 

Still, there are many countries that  have no desire to pressure China in this issue. They believe, China is one of the economic powerhouse in the world and pressuring China would harm the business relationship. But we should never forget that our strongest economic well-being has its base in democracy and freedom. The world has globalised and we have to think global. The death of a child in Malawi is not less valuable than the death of a child in France. In democracy, we all have to share, share the pain of our fellow humans nomatter where on earth they live. In the other hand, we should be able to stand up against those who violates our system of mankind using torture  to make others suffer. So, prior to economic relations with the west, china should keep its promise to promote freedom and democracy, specially in Tibet. Only a strong faith in democracy and freedom would lead eventually to economic success of a nation.

Merry Crisis: Are Recessions and Depressions parts of market economy?

By: Bikal Dhungel 

Recession and even Depression has been a frequent visitor. Before 1929, we have no recorded data about the crisis but after 1929, recessions often happened, sometimes in a dangerous way, sometimes just giving a shock for a while but it has been a part of our life. The Great Depression itself, Asian Financial Crisis, Argentinean debt default, Ruble Crisis in Russia, Swedish crisis and so on to name a few. Crisis tends to affect every sector in an economy until the spiral is fully stopped. Economic consequences of these crises are calculable but social consequences however cannot be measured. 

The Great Depression was first felt in 1929 and went on till the end of World War II. Although there is no agreed argument about the consequences, the prominent economists like Milton Freedman and Barry Eichengreen believed that the actions of Federal Reserve, American central bank, are responsible for the mess. Some historians however argue that it was the bank’s failure. Whatsoever, it ended up being a global crisis with varied timing in different countries. The Great Depression had deadly effects in every country, virtually.  Two thirds of international trade slashed which resulted in reduced personal income, tax revenue and profits. Especially the countries that depend on heavy industries and export were hardly hit. Constructions, farming and primary businesses also suffered heavy losses. There was a big question if market economy will really function. Actually it functioned before the crisis and after the crisis when we review it today. However, some diagnoses were required and the financial markets as well as banks had to play the game within a rule. Some policies were taken into action which still continues today. Regulation to cut throat competition was enacted, minimum wages and labor standards were set in order to increase the purchasing power of all citizens. The president of the United States even supported the rising power of Trade Unions which improved the situation of working class by the increase of their wage. The Government and Businesses started to cooperate regarding price and other matters because a recession was a common enemy of governments as well as businesses and it should be a common responsibility to tackle it as well. We have all these rules today and we might wonder how these rules were brought into action but we can hardly believe that it took a Great Depression to enact these policies. 

Major economies of that time took different actions. Japan for example brought an idea of bailing out the banks. The finance minister thought, if the government could help the bank, it would again lend out the money but with tight regulations, and then it might bring the economy into running. This idea proved success and Japan came out of the recession in two years. Hence, it was the first bail out of banks in history. Same policy was taken in yet to come Recessions, every time it was successful. 

In Germany, Adolf Hitler was slowly coming to power. Millions of people were out of work. So, giving them work could bring him to the highest post. He promised 6 million jobs by building the highway and eventually he did it. Though, his initial plan was to transport the weapons. Nationalistic trends were taken which included expelling the Jews with various reasons. The result was catastrophic. It ended with the destruction of Europe, millions of lives and other consequences which we still feel today. 

There was similar effect in industrial powers of that time, the UK, Canada, France to name  few. 

 The second big crisis of our time was Asian Financial crisis, which started in 1997 after the collapse of Thai Baht. It was also seen as one of the most devastating. So called “Asian Tigers” were hit hard by the crisis. Thailand, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore were seriously hit but also China and Japan were hit in some degrees. The crisis started after the Thai government’s decision to float the currency. The hot money, which entered Thailand, also went out of the country overnight escalating the crisis further. The investors then looked for a similar country where the same crisis could arise. Then, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore had to suffer because of 'Domino Effect'. Unemployment rates in the countries mentioned above were around 3-4% prior to the crisis but within few months, it doubled and as a consequence, there were reductions in the value of currencies, stock markets and other asset prices. Businesses collapsed and millions of people were forced below the poverty line. We saw resignations of high profile politicians. Long ruling president of Indonesia, Suharto, also resigned after almost three decades in office. There was rarely a day, the western politicians didn’t praise him for his free market reform, who in fact was a terrible dictator. He made a personal fortune of around thirty billion dollars taking bribes from investors, divided the key industries among his friends, relatives and other sympathizers. During his regime, Indonesia topped the Transparency International list of most corrupt nations for many years. A market reformer however was obliged to end his legacy in the aftermath of Asian financial crisis. 

However, the most dangerous crisis after the Great Depression took place in 2008 after the Lehmann Brothers collapsed and others followed. The crisis, starting in the USA, virtually touched every nation. Lots of things were to blame. First and the foremost thing was the real estate boom. The housing market bubbled so fast that everybody could build or buy a house today and sell after several months making tens of thousands of dollars in profit. However, it was a political will in the USA, that everybody should have their own house. The Clinton administration brought some reforms that even the people with low incomes could have a mortgage from a bank. It was then easy to issue loan to the citizens because their houses were the securities to the bank. In 2007, when the housing market began to fall, debtors faced a great risk to default. The mortgage price was going down hence completely stopping the buying and selling. There were huge toxic assets. Second reason was deregulation and easy credit conditions, which was enacted under Bush Administration. Easy credit conditions encouraged subprime lending, which means lending to the business or any institution with very high rate of default or someone with bad history of payments. All these things were foreseeable but still the well known economists predicted that the crisis won’t come or at least not the recession because the US economy was just too big to fall.  At the end of the day, every person who had deposits in the US was hit hard. The financial crisis caused economic crisis and especially the exporting nation’s economy contracted by over five percent. Innocent victims of this crisis were however the developing nations who were dependent on remittances, tourism and other aids from rich countries. High unemployment, fall in tourism due to crisis and the rising food prices again put a big question mark on Globalization. Is it true that in Globalization, the real responsible ones will go free and the poor have to bear the burden at last? Or, are there some more dark sides in the free market economy? The answers are still to come.

 There are also ethical sides of this crisis to understand. If 2 percent more unemployment rate in the western world is more important that the question of life and death of other fellow humans in developing world, there must be something wrong in global justice system and it has to be changed. Specially, the poor should be saved in times of crisis. The responsible ones who started the financial mess should be brought to justice and the innocents should be given help in anyway it’s possible. This is the question of our future. Leaders, current and future should take these kinds of issues seriously and try to solve it with more international cooperation and transparency. It’s hard for the leaders of coming generation, not to address these issues. The people have understood it and we have the most informed public than any time in history. They won’t just let the things go what the previous generations did. So, we should just wait optimistically to see the world created by this ethical generation.

Human Rights and the Poor

By: Bikal Dhungel 

Foreign Employment is not as exotic as it sounds. Every day, four dead bodies also land in Tribhuwan International Airport, the dead bodies of Nepalese who die in foreign soil. They die while fulfilling their duties, in industrial accidents, sometimes in the hands of their employer and sometimes in domestic violence. Governments of the Middle Eastern countries seem to show no interest in such deaths of foreigners and are reluctant to bring the guilty into justice. Where are the Human Rights of these labors? Where are the compensations if there is any? Surprisingly, most of the Nepalese labors that go abroad do not know what Human Rights are. So, these people claiming their rights from their employers seem unlikely. The most defining question of our time goes: What are Human Rights? 

 

Human Rights are the rights that human beings have because they are humans. This includes the right of free expression, right of religion, right of sexual orientation etc. These rights are inherent to every human being living in this earth of every country, race, creed, sex, ethnic origin, color or any other status. ‘All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood’ goes Article 1 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights. So, every person deserves this right. This person might be a poor person, a rich person, a child, an old man, an actor, a doctor, a football player, a singer, a Nepali, an Indian, a Chinese, a German, a Hindu, a Buddhist, a Muslim, an Atheist, a mother, a father , a step-mother, a neighbor, just everybody.  This means, Human Rights are universal. It is for everybody.  

Still, a large portion of this earth is not familiar with even most basic Human Rights. Many are denied these rights every day. People wonder by knowing that there is also such thing called Rights. 

So, what are these Human Rights? Who discovered these rights? These questions are often debated and there is no clear answer about who invented this and when and where they first existed. What everybody agrees on is that if someone belonged to elites or ruling class in the past, for example the Monarchs, they enjoyed their rights. 

However, historians claim that Cyrus the Great, the Emperor from Persia spent some time dealing with Human Rights issues. Cyrus the Great conquered a huge part of South and Central Asia as well as some parts of Europe and Caucasus. His Empire was one of the largest in the world. Cyrus was fascinated by the culture and tradition of the lands he conquered, hence he treated all of them with respect. After he conquered Babylon, Mesopotamia (today in Iraq) in the year 539 BC, he came up with the idea that all slaves should be set free. Furthermore, he claimed that every person could choose the way of life they wish to live, including the right to religion, no matter which. People of that time documented the words of Cyrus the Great in a clay cylinder called Cyrus Cylinder today. This was the birth of so called Human Rights that we know today in broader sense. The idea of Cyrus spread soon after to Greece, India and finally also to Rome. Unfortunately, after Cyrus the Great, Human Rights were almost forgotten for a long time.

For the next 1000 years to come, this idea was kept under the carpet. In 13^th century England, King John accepted that no one can deny the rights of others, even the king himself. The charter called ‘Magna Carta’ required the king to accept that no one can be punished except through the rule of law. Again, in the year 1689, the parliament of England granted the Freedom of Speech, rights of election, and various rights through so-called ‘Bill of Rights of 1689’.  

The French Revolution followed a decade after with longer lists of rights that individuals needed. The monarchy was toppled by the enlightening principles of freedom, equality, democracy and inalienable human rights. The motto of the French Revolution remains the motto of France today, “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité“ ( Liberty, Equality, Fraternity ). The rights were granted to the French people but soon after, the rights of other Europeans were violated by the French military leader and politician Napoleon Bonaparte when he attacked the neighboring countries to expand his empire. Luckily, many countries of Europe were united and defeated Napoleon. Rights became the most important topic in Europe. In Europe, Human Rights was born but unfortunately in other countries, the Europeans raised war, colonized large parts of Asia, Africa, Caribbean and South America and denied the rights of people living there for centuries to come. 

In the so called ‘third world’, Human Rights was spoken first by a man with immense intelligence, called Mahatma Gandhi who campaigned that every people on earth should have the right and not only the Europeans. Slowly, the Europeans accepted that fact. However it was not an easy task granting the rights to others. The two great wars took place. Adolf Hitler killed 6 million Jews only in Germany and millions of other Gypsies, Homosexuals, Handicaps, Immigrants and his political opponents namely the German Social Democrats. Half of the Jewish people on earth were killed. 90 million people died in the world war in total. Never before the full destruction of Human Rights was so near. So, after this disaster, the countries from the whole world came together and formed the United Nations in 1945 whose aim was also ‘… to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person’. This time it was the Rights which were more than the Human Rights mentioned on the Cyrus Cylinder, more than the Rights demanded during the French Revolution, more than the Rights of the Europeans. It was the Rights for everybody. Under the leadership of first lady of the United States and the wife of Franklin D Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, the nations agreed to grant these Rights for everybody.  This set of Rights was named ‘The Universal Declaration of Human Rights’. 

Human Rights are therefore the part of Human Civilization. It took more than two thousand years till every human on earth was granted equal rights. 

But this is not the end. The question goes on, if people have the Rights of enough food on their plate and Rights of accommodation, why on earth 16,000 people die worldwide every day by extreme hunger? Why there are prisoners of conscience?  If there is a right of freedom of speech, why on earth thousands are locked in the prison for expressing their thoughts? If there is a right of Education, why on earth there are over one billion people who cannot read and write? If there is a right of self determination, why on earth there are 27 million people worldwide who are handled as slaves? The answer is simple: The ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ was not ratified as a law when it was signed. Despite many other deals, agreements and accords in the following years, it still remains as a piece of paper that is ignored by almost every nation who signed this agreement after World War II. After the establishment of United Nations they said ‘Never again such war should take place’ but it took place again and again and again and again. Korean War, Cold War, Arab-Israeli War, Vietnam War, Gulf War and the list goes on. Millions of others were killed in Civil wars. Human lives were lost for nasty reasons and Human Rights have been ignored time and again. How could the world let such thing happen? 

Nelson Mandela fought for social justice and basic rights for his people. Even though his country South Africa signed the deal, he had to fight for that right. When Martin Luther King, Junior demonstrated for the equal right for African Americans in the sixties, he campaigned for  respecting the ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ which was signed just two decades ago. He still had to fight for this right that was actually guaranteed by the United Nations. His fight cost him his life. Many people, still today, fight for these rights. The people who fight for basic human rights today are not super heroes, they are normal people, children, mothers, fathers, teachers and individuals who love to be free and who refuse to be silent. These people know that Human Rights are not only the history, they are not only the words written on a paper, and they are not only the speeches, not only the campaigns. They are the decisions that we make daily, the responsibilities that we share every day, to respect each other, to share with each other, to help each other and to protect others who are in need. The question goes, “Where do the Human Rights begin? The answer is, on the exact location you are, at your home, places where you meet people. The places we live, the neighborhoods, the school or the Universities we go to, the factory we work, the fields where we walk in the evenings, the market where we buy things, these are the places where every man, woman and children deserve equal rights, equal opportunity and human dignity without being discriminated. Should these rights have no validity in these places, they also have no meaning somewhere else. 

Denying rights because somebody is a Nepalese, because somebody is un-skilled, because somebody is an immigrant worker is a scandal. If it is still visible in today’s world, there is something wrong with the justice system. Gulf countries cannot punish somebody because they are poor, they cannot deny the rights of seasonal workers because they are too poor to raise voice.  This is the absolute violation of international Human Rights Law. 

The greatest fault is not to be poor, rather it is to be ignorant, it is to deny rights of others, it is to act immoral and it is to lack the feeling of humanity despite having the highest level of education, as some countries show towards immigrant workers.

Source of Data:
The National Geographic Visual History Book
Amnesty International, Timeline of Human Rights