Globalization: A Blessing Or Threat?

Globalization: A Blessing Or Threat?

Globalization: A Blessing Or Threat?

The world was never this much integrated as it is today. The man of today’s era cannot imagine the world working without this interconnectedness. From economic to political to socio-cultural to technological subjects, this world is linked. With each passing minutes to hours to days to months to years, we are learning something from each other. For many, globalization has taken over the process of nationalism. If the world is being known as a global village today, then it is only through the process of globalization- mixing of everything. An ideal global village gives the picture of a community free of all partialities and where people from all races, culture, and religion live with affection.

 In this world of unrest, if people are interacting and learning to live together than it can only be attributed to the process of globalization. With terrorism and nastiness taking over the world, the only hope left for peace is through globalization. People, organizations, and states are intermingling to bring back peace and harmony in the world.

No matter how much apart one area from the other is, we still have got tools that connect us. Economy, politics, culture and above all technology has got a share in binding us.  Each above aspect of globalization provides us with a different and clear definition.

According to Johannes Varwick, ‘Globalization is the increased interdependence and integration of different world economies’.

Klaus Muller writes, ‘The dynamics of globalization is driven by economic factors but its most important consequences can be seen in politics’

 There are many international organizations and multinational corporations that are working to promote the process of globalization like UN, UNICEF, WWF, WTO, CARE, IMF, and WHO. Globalization has helped in improving communication access. Countries have gotten platforms where they can connect and make themselves heard. Technology has provided the leaders of the world with a platform like Twitter where they can communicate better, faster and effectively.  Globalization promotes free trade and with no barrier to the export/import market, innovation and creativity gets pace plus countries get to engage with each other more. In addition, it creates more employment opportunities and brings more skilled labor and resources to the host country. The greatest benefit globalization serves is that it has made it easier for us to learn about the cultures, customs, languages values and traditions of other countries.

Keeping its advantages apart, like everything there are some drawbacks to globalization or we can say more drawbacks than benefits. Although it is spreading rapidly and gearing up the smaller countries to take the pace and move with the world, it is also harming the notion of nationalism there. As big countries are achieving their interests with the help of globalization, the smaller countries perceive it as a threat to their civilization and culture.

Critics argue that with globalization taking place, multinational companies are dominating in various countries leaving the local firms at disadvantage. With the same corporation working in different places, the factor of struggle is drifting away. It is becoming the reason for the decrease in the number of jobs. It can be said that the kind of globalization we are experiencing today is hitting the middle-class workers by taking away their jobs and opportunities from them.

One of the aims of globalization is to cut off the gap between the wealthy and poor nations but according to statistics, 90% of the planet’s resources are disbursed by the world’s 20 richest countries only. With the economies of smaller countries being controlled by powerful nations, the national sovereignty of those states is being challenged. 

As Schumann Martin says, ‘The unchaining of the world‘s market powers and the weakening of the state’s economic power’.

An example of how the concept of globalization is being destroyed can be understood through the ongoing China-US trade war. It can be easily seen that both countries are fighting for technological and economic dominance in the world.

 Even if we talk in the aspect of politics, the wealthiest countries control the system for instance organization like United Nations and IMF that involves almost all of the world’s countries as members are mostly work on the directions of better-off countries. Similarly, WTO was created to ensure that countries trade freely and interact smoothly however with each passing moment, it can be seen that it is working for developed nations rather than developing one.

Furthermore viewing globalization from the aspect of technology, we see that it provides us with unlimited wonders as the media channels and social media make us informed of the outer world. However, seeing the barriers and bans on media in various areas of the world and the flow of false information on social sites even by many renowned newspapers offers us an opposite image of globalization. One false news about a certain country leaves a bad image of that country in the eyes of the world. Sadly, the sites that were created to help people and countries stay connected today are damaging their relations. Control of media by powerful people is restricting cultural expression. For instance, CNN, BBC, and Al-Jazeera are the ubiquitous television networks that are being followed all around the world. But unfortunately, it has been suspected many a time that these newspapers are becoming more state-owned than international. The same news coverage differs between media outlets. And almost all of the newspaper either national or international, they are becoming more conservative than liberal.

Taking into consideration the above, can we conclude that we have reached the point of globalization where people and countries are actually working to live together or is it being used by affluent countries to rule over the smaller one.  Nothing can be as fruitful as globalization for humans to live a composed life but only if we understand the real meaning of globalization. Learning to live together does not mean only to enter a country and make it work like you wish but it means learning and respecting each other’s traditions, values, cultures, and histories. While globalization has benefited many countries, the unequal distribution has also deprived many of opportunities. Globalization should not be used as a tool to rule over the world or to increase your own interests but rather it should be used as a source of nearness.

 The international institutions like the UN, WTO, and IMF should work on their own with transparency and fairness.  These institutions, that were created solely to help needy nations and bring them in pace with the developed, needs special reforms today. In the end, it should be understood that nothing can take place of the state. There was a reason why borders were formed, and removing them means giving up on its culture, values, and geography. The state must always act as the main performer and globalization should play its role in connecting the states through its main tools like technology, trade, cultures, and politics rather than creating distance between them.