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Saturday, April 28, 2007
To view article, click -->http://fading-hope.blog-city.com/mnc_criminals_feat_coca__cola.htm
Globalization has always been defined as increasing the connectivity and interdependence of the world's markets and businesses. This is often perceived as a good thing which people have embraced. It has after all helped us in many ways from the advancement in the technological and medical field to the increase in the reaping of economic benefits in countries and also not forgetting allowing for a change in culture otherwise known to many as Americanization. However, is globalization all that? Have we just been blindly enjoying the benefits globalization has brought us such that we have turned a blind eye towards the potential downfalls globalization may cause us in the future? This is real. And we can already see the effects of it through the above article.
This article is a fine example of what is happening throughout the world, not just India. It is a problem that many third world countries have to face as they are being exploited by Mutinational Corporations (MNCs). Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) making use of these third world countries has brought both pros and cons to them. When an American company is being set up, in let’s say China, they bring in their technological knowledge and train the locals. When the American company leaves China in the future, the skills that the employees have learnt during their stay will continue to be with them when they look for another job.
However appealing the MNCs may seem, it is in harsh reality that nothing is perfect. If scrutinized carefully enough, attention will be brought to the fact that MNCs actually heavily contaminate these third world countries resulting in serious environmental pollution henceforth affecting the locals there. For example, Japan had set up a copper smelting plant run be PASAR in the Philippines. This plant has reportedly discharged its waste containing large amounts of boron, arsenic, heavy metals, and sulphur contaminants thus polluting Philippine’s supply of water through releasing toxic wastes into the rivers. It is precisely the same reason why fishing and rice yields have sharply decreased. Apart from this, on an even more serious note, research has also shown that this has caused major impacts on the health of the employees and also caused pregnant women working in that area to born out deformed babies.
Also, due to the advancement in genetic engineering, MNCs can now produce genetically modified seeds such that when farmers buy these seeds from the corporations and plant them, they do not produce any seeds for the farmers to plant. These farmers will then have to continue buying seeds from the MNCs which do not come at a cheap price. This will further poverties these farmers considering that their only source of income is through farming and that the MNCs are business companies after all with having the main objective as profiting in mind.
Thus, it is clear for all that it is the MNCs that profit from the whole process of globalization. It is globalization that has allowed the existence of MNCs in these third world countries to thrive. (It is globalization that causes health problems and pollution to the water supply). It is globalization that has allowed for the existence of genetic engineering benefiting the MNCs. (It is globalization that poverties the already poor farmers struggling to make ends meet.)
Janice Fan
Environmentalist and Health ExpertLabels: Environment, Globalization, MNCs, poverty
Globalised @ 8:45 PM
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