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As we are entering the 21st century the world
we live in is facing too many changes. The developments in science and technology
are the most important factors causing these changes and speeding them up. Therefore
a concept which we began to use everyday of our lives has occured named as "globalization".
Moreover this concept is introduced us as the symbol of the new millenium that
is also called "The Information Age".
The aim of this work is to inspect the problems occuring with globalization,to
view some different opinions about it and to consider about how to behave to
this situation as a person and as a nation while this concept is becoming an
unavoidable fact.
What is globalization,how did it occur?
The word "globalization" comes from the word "global" which
means "involving all the world". But to understand this concept we
have to take a glance at the past 20 years.
Our daily lives have changed in a very uncommon way in the last few years. By
the inventions that can be told as "revolutions" in communicating
systes,transportation and industries which are the results of the incredible
developments in technology and scieces,it became very easy to reach information
and other people when you compare it with the past. High-processing fast computers,electronic
circuits,internet,intranet,e-mail,speedy transport vehicles,machines that can
produce large amount of goods in very short periods of time are only a few of
these inventions.
With the light of these developments boundaries between countries began vanishing
and so that the governments began to lose their influences while firms or sometimes
individuals gained importance. As a result some new concepts occured like international
laws,human rights,one-world economy...
Therefore in this changing world some groups occured which are glad of these
changes or indisposed about these changes and great arguements began between
them. A good example to this is the WTO meetings which were planned to made
in December but put off because of the disagreements and protests.
United Nations Industrial Development Organization Report
Though the main function of globalization is to spread welfare all around the
world,the report of the UNIDO shows that it's not possible to say that things
are going as it is wanted to be...
UNIDO's 12 June 1999 dated report shows some striking statistics about globalization.(1)
While it had been expected to spread welfare all around the world,the numbers
told about the reality that the distance between rich and poor is increasing
The distance between the richest %5 and poorest %5 is increasing:
-The rate that was 30 to 1 in 1960 increased to 60 to 1 in 1990 and now it is
reported 74 to 1
-The income of 80 countries decreased instead of increasing in the last 10 years
-World's richest 22 peoples fortune is equal to the %41 of the world's total
population's fortune
-The poorest 22 countries in the 174,are all African countries (2)
The report also takes attention to the internet,the symbol of globalization.
The Internet is described as "a sword with both sides sharp" and it
is said:
"Millions of people meet in the international communication net,but most
of them are educated,white,rich men;others are discriminated. While an American
is able to buy a computer with his 1 monthly salary,a Bangladeshian has to work
8 years to buy one."(3)
The ending of the report is pesimist too:
"The rules of the globalization must be rewrited. The recent developments
point that there is a dangerous polarization between the ones that benefit from
the new system and the ones that have to suffer the results of the system."(4)
Globalization and Environment
Without doubt the biggest problems that occured with the developments inthe
last years are the environmental problems. Industrial and chemical wastes,nuclear
danger,the pisonous gases spreading through the atmosphere,vanishin forests
are only some of them.
The human nature is always proud of being the only living creature that can
valuate the past and envisage future with his intelligence but the environmental
problems and losts in the last quarter of the century brought our mind some
qustion marks...
Did the human intelligence defeated to the greed of dominating the nature which
he live in or did le lose his envisaging future talent?
Nowadays,the damaging and destruction of natural and cultural environment with
his own hands directs himself to face all the things he caused again by himself.
We have already began to pay for what we have done to the world,our living source...
In 1999,International Environment Organizations
determined the 55 problem that is "aching world's head" one by one.
On the top of the list there are global-heating,nuclear danger and ethnic-religious
fights. If you ask for solutions,their answers are: There should be new build-ups,World
Government and World Constitution must be created.(5)
Meanwhile the Newsweek magazine emphasizes that what destroyed the world is
the "globalization" palaver. Last year rich people donated the poors
45 billion dollars while the money spent for arming was 1 trillion dollars!
Today,all the world leaders accept that the countries that exploit their nature
are dragging to social and cultural caoses. The number of refugees because of
environmental problems is in record levels with 25 millions. In the last 50
years the area of the forests all around the world decreased from 60 billion
hectares to 3.6.billion hectares.(6)
What can be done? President of United Nations Economic and Social Council,Paulo
Francesco Fulci arranges the suggestions: "Green Interpol and environmental
offenses law courts in Lahey shoul be created,environmental militaries and business
world should work together hand to hand. Also private and public sectors and
states should also cooperate."(7)
Different views to globalization
Is "globalization" an USA dominant?
Prof. Dr. Gülten Kazgan claimed that globalization is created by the USA finance
system in the Traditional Economy Week which is organized by the İstanbul University
Economy Faculty every year. She critisized the system as:
"Globalization is not a creation ofthe economists but Usa finance world's.
Globalization increased the conflicts between countries and societies and destroyed
the social justice balance. Under the name of privatization publiv investments
are striked and USA dominance is insisted as international laws."(8)
Polarizations between people
According to the old undersecretary of State Planning Organization,Orhan Güvenen,the
most important problem that globalization will bring is the differeces that
will occur between the ones who will be able to reach the information and the
ones who won't be able to. "This situation will cause serious results.
The individuals,parts of associations or societies that won't reach to information,will
be out of system and polarizations will occur. In the first 10 years of 21st
century this problem must be solved."(9)
The "key of success" in the 21st century
Shahid Yusuf who was the president of the team which prepared the 1999-2000
World Development Report of the World Bank,foresees that "Globalization
and municipalazation are unavoidable. The success of a country in the 21st century
depends on how it'll manage these two forces."(10) He also stated to the
three main subjects that global cooperation focused on which are "trade,financial
flows and biodiversity and climate changes"
The copresident of the European part of the World Bank,Jean-François Rischard
defines the "rules of the game" of the new world system as:
"The four main rules of the new system is being fast and swift,perfect
communication because of the economies that don't recognize boundaries,being
effective on learning and developing information,and finally,hiper-competition.
The two big powers in the next 20 years will be population explosion and economies
that 'unknow' boundaries."(11)
Other views to globalization
Another problem that occurs with globalization is the language problem. The
president of Private Language Education Association,Bora Göker speaks as:
"Because of the vanishing boundaries with globalization,a foreign language
is becoming indispensable. Without it,it is not even possible to find a job.
In Turkey,there are about 500 private language cources but it is a question
mark that who and how much can benefit from them..."(12)
The leader of the Catholic world the Pope 2nd Jean Paul states uncontrolled
globalization and technologic developments and claimed that there is a danger
of creating a soulless world and history in the 3rd millenium.
Turkey and globalization
Today there are two main flows in the world. The first one,globalization is
seen at welfare societies which have already strengthened the nation-state model.
The second flow,nationalism finds place in states that haven't made the nation-statemodel
or that made it late. The second kinds of states are mostly at the bottom of
economic scalas. But there is also another group that can be told 1.5th which
are not too much and show a 'midde place' view. They sometimes show themselves
as global and sometimes national. Turkey is a member of this last group.
The same arguements that appeared all around the world also appeared in Turkey
too. But there is a different point in Turkey;privatization which is a very
sensitive subject. To show the sensitivity of this subject here are some words
of the writer Kurthan Fişek who has an anti-global approach:
"Today,the only problem of Turkey is unemployment;thats why etatism occured.
The government made what capital coudn't. %60 of Turkey's economy is out of
records,the rate of unemployees is %11-12. The rate of employees taken out by
privatization is %40. Then what will privatization bring? Just for 5-10 billion
dollars,unemployees will shift to unrecorded economy and illicit money... Turkey's
national and international debts are known,budget deficit is known so what can
privatization bring us? We may save the day,but what about future?.."(13)
Another anti-global Mümtaz Soysal describes globalization and Turkey's situation
as:
"In an international disorder like the top %20 of world population having
%85 of total income while the bottom %20 having %1.5,the miserable people of
Africa either throw themselves to South and West sides of Europe by trying every
way or spoiled West's appetite. N ow in Turkey because of the dissociation of
income is more and more damaging,the people of Turkey first shifted to radicalclericalism
in the suburbs of Mersin,İzmir and İstanbul then to the doors of Germany by
bringing trouble,racism and enmity feelings to other people"(14)
A chance to globalization
Inspite of all the problems and arguements about globalization it is clear that
it became really an unavoidable fact. Infact didn't we make it all happen? Anyway
from now on we want it or not,the world is changing that way so we must stop
complaining about the problems and situations and began to find solutions. While
struggling for it also we should carry out the best Turkey optimal of the new
system.
If Turkey wants to cope with the new age,it has to join this flow too. Globalizing
shouldn't be comprehended as the end of states. The politics Turkey will follow
as a developing country has great importance at this point. The government has
to think carefully and foresee future before making decisions because the role
that the government takes on will be vital and may change the fate of it's nation.
The changing world should be watched carefully and must be avoided from quick-decisions
without thinking.
I believe,not soon but in the future globalization will bring many good results.
We mustn't forget that the concept globalization which mostly the bad sides
of it 'strikes eye',is a very new concept. It is true that system has serious
problems but it doesn't mean it will always be like that,we must get rid of
this obssession. The situations that seem to cause danger now,may change and
problems which culdn't be solved yet by states,may be solved by global-union
in the future,it may be an economic problem,environmental poroblem etc.
Isn't it good to be a world citizen instead of being a state citizen,while the
humans have the same value in every part of the world with the same rights.
Developing with welfare alltogether,giving back to the world what they have
taken from it.I believe no matter how the beginning of it was bad,globalization
is a great step taken which will carry the human being to the world which he
always dreamed of... And I support the idea of giving a chance to globalization
by trying to correct the mistaken parts of it...
Okan Gökçe