Globalization in the Philippines

A.P
Globalization is hard to explain if you don't have a basic idea of economics.
The Philippines
In the Philippines 71.9% of the people are living below the poverty line, and ironically, most of them are from the countryside who produce food for the whole population. 7 million of the population are jobless, while 3.5 million are homeless. There has been an increasing impact of globalization on the Filipino women, in particular. There has been a reduction of permanent workers in favor of temporary and casual workers, replacing pay systems based on working time and length of service by systems based on piece rates. Due to economic conditions, as many as 6 million Filipino workers have migrated abroad to seek jobs. Hong Kong alone has got around 70,000 migrant Filipino women as domestic helpers and entertainers. Reports show that such numbers are on the rise. A 1996 study on Filipino migrant workers described these migrant workers as mostly young women, aged 20-29 years, single, and college-educated.
More recently, the American War on Terrorism has brought the presence of American troops, under the Balikatan exercise, in the Philippines. Many hectares of local peoples land has been annexed by the Government for being used as operational bases for the Joint Military exercises by the Americans. No prior discussions were held with the local people of the land.
Conclusion:
In Asia, globalization has resulted in growing foreign debts of poor countries, the financial crises of 1997 in East Asia and South East Asia, growing inequality within and among countries, unemployment, underemployment, and poverty. Also globalization in Asia has been responsible for social unrest, drugs, growth of the culture of violence, trafficking of people, and neo-colonization that can be called "homogenization and hegemonization".
Globalization has resulted in the reality of unsustainable development, over consumption of life sustaining resources, impacts on environment and ecology, impacts on indigenous communities, and a sharper contrast between the rich and the poor. Needless to say, social tensions borne out of international and intra-national "lifestyle inequalities" will give rise to the mushrooming of global cross-border terrorism, secessionist movements in multi-ethnic societies, and tendencies for the balkanization of states.
However, taking about the problem only will not suffice. The pessimist would tell us that "there is no alternative" (the TINA syndrome), while the optimist would say, "there are thousand alternatives " (TATA). I, am an optimist.
So what should be the role of the ecumenical movement, or in our case, the ecumenical youth movement? As Dr. Samual Kobia has said," The ecumenical movement is called to facilitate people in rediscovering and reinventing their local commons by reimbedding the economy into society and culture; subordinating it to politics and ethics."
There needs to be a new vision, based on biblical paradigms, as "God's agents of change". The logic of globalization needs to be challenged by an alternative way of life of community in diversity. We need to critically analyze development and globalization and help facilitate solidarity and mutuality of people themselves to search for alternatives to the culture of globalization.
As Prof. Kim Yong-Bock, from Korea, says," The people's movements are to preserve, enhance and fulfill life in the cosmos. The people's movement is challenged to accurately read the signs of times, analyze, and visualize the future-in relation with their struggle and movement". He further states, " The people's movement need to struggle for cultural and ethnic identity in the context of globalization, to establish open and strong identity that enriches cultural life." The ecumenical movement is a people's movement. Buddhism rejects greed, Islam advocates justice, Hinduism cherishes life, Confucianism condemns selfishness, and Christianity embraces fullness of life for all.
I feel the ecumenical youth movements are called for the preservation, enhancement, and the fullness of life for all. As the youth we are responsible, and so challenged, to be active participants in the experience of justice and peace, for before peace comes with justice.
I would like to conclude by quoting Mahatma Gandhi, "Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest, and the weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him. Will he gain anything by it? Will it restore him to a control over his own life and destiny? In other words will it lead to freedom for the hungry and spiritually starving millions? Then you will find your doubts and yourself melting away."
Xoxoxoxo

Under globalization, the impact on the indigenous communities is many folds. They are one of the worst effected. Under globalization, it is the tribal indigenous areas that have had to face the attacks of massive developmental projects. These projects ignore tribal communities.

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There are as many as 1 billion people who do not even meet the basic requirements to decently live. Among the 4.4 billion people, that is about 70% of the world population, living in developing countries in Asia and Africa three-fifths live without sanitation; one-third without safe drinking water; one-quarter lack adequate housing. One-fifth live beyond the reach of modern health services; one-fifth of the children do not get as far as grade five in school, and an equal number are undernourished.
On the environmental front, more than 230 million people live in water scarce countries today. Water shortage and contamination kills nearly 25,000 people a day. Nearly 30% of the people in the Third World countries do not have safe water to drink. Diarrhea kills some 4 million children every year. Each year, 12 million hectares of forest (an area almost the size of England) are being eliminated. If continued, by 2010, only 7% of the planet will be left with forests, jeopardizing the planetary ecosystem. More than three billion hectares, almost a quarter of the world's land surface, are at risk from desertification and salinity.
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the Philippines does trade with other countries. irregardless of what we trade and what's traded to us, there's a corresponding TARIFF (or an import tax) that makes imported goods more expensive than local goods. the idea was to ensure that the local goods can be sold here easier because it's cheaper.

Globalization in its strictest sense, is when a country lowers the TARIFFS for the imported goods to compete with local goods... making it virtually cost the same. to make things much more easier for the foreign companies, the government of a country allows them to setup off-shore operations (GAP is made in Cavite, Nike is made inIndonesia, etc) to reduce production costs and gain more profit.

there are two opposing schools of thought regarding Globalization. one believes it creates an open world where local jobs are created and a local brand can be recognized worldwide. the other believes it exploits the poorer countries by taking advantage of their cheaper labor/property costs so jobs from richer countries are outsourced and the local brands will just run out of business.

whoever wrote that article thinks that being Globalized is ruining Manila because he/she believes the effects latter are greater than the former.

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Effects Of Globalization In The Philippines
The Adverse Effects of Globalization in the Philippines
Most modern economist called this "World New Economic Order" that is all States in the world bend themselves to promote free flow of the economy. All country and State open its market with minimal or without any restrictions. Hence, for instance, Philippine economy is freely open for the global market with limited restriction or worst without limitation. For this reason modern economic superpowers, the members of this G7 (e.i., United States, Japan, UK, Germany, France, Canada, Italy) hassle-free to intervene the Philippine economy. This trend is popularly known as the Globalization. It has three elements the privatization, deregulation, and the liberalization.
To explain further the essence of this Globalization, we need to put scrutiny to its three elements. First, the privatization it is the policy wherein the Government Own and Controlled Corporations (GOCC's) where privatized by selling it to the private sector. Second, the