 |
|
|
|
|
 |
||
|
||
Globalisation is one of the contemporary issues that have become more frequent topics of lively debates in recent years. We can read about globalisation in various contexts and forms, from newspaper articles to scholarly research. Although there is no universal agreement on its definition and components, the word globalisation is being used more often, by politicians, researchers, academics, economists, lawyers, environmentalists, sociologists, and other experts, as well as human rights activists, anti-globalists and alter-globalists. The lack of an internationally accepted definition of globalisation incites controversies about the concept. There are also quite different views on whether or not globalisation is a novel phenomenon. Despite differences of opinion about globalisation, there is no doubt that global macroeconomic tendencies have direct and/or indirect influence on the lives of every one of us; that global development of technology and information is increasingly visible around us; and that decisions of policy makers in the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the World Trade Organisation indirectly influence the possibilities from which we can make choices and decisions. However, what are the effects of globalisation from the human rights perspective? Do all people have equal access to the benefits of contemporary development? Do all individuals have equal access to resources, employment, education, health care, food and water? Do a Cambodian peasant, a female Philippino labourer and a yuppie from New York City gain equal benefits from open markets with free flow of capital and goods across borders? Do high levels of foreign direct investment (FDI) bring development and economic well-being to the receiving countries? How does FDI impact the structure of the labour force? Do foreign investments have the same influence on employment possibilities for women and for men? Do they contribute to improvement of the common well-being? Will privatisation of water, hospitals and schools contribute to better quality of these services? Who will benefit, and who will lose? Do economic and technological development help decrease the number of homeless, hungry, unhealthy and powerless people? Despite enormous, fast technological development, why are there still millions of poor people? What is widening the gap between those who have and those who have not? Why is the gender perspective important in linking poverty with human rights? What is GATS; what is TRIPS; why is it important to know what lies behind these abbreviations? What will citizens get from their country’s membership in the World Trade Organisation? Will they lose or win? What are roles of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in the Globalisation Story? What is neoliberalism? How is it connected with regional security and militarism? What does the Bolkeinstain Initiative mean to us? What are the implications of neoliberal macroeconomic policy and practices on human rights and well-being? Is development based on private capital and profit the only possible path to economic development and human well-being? Are there alternatives to neoliberalism; and, if so, what are they? Is it possible to develop novel indicators of economic development? What is the ‘care economy’, and how is it connected to a national economy? How is unpaid women’s work in their homes linked to economic development? What is ‘gender budgeting,’ and how can it contribute to promotion and implementation of women’s rights? Why have women’s rights become indispensable to researching various aspects of globalisation? These are some of the questions that will be highlights of articles and research present in this web site, written by eminent experts in fields such as economics, law, human rights, women’s rights, sociology, and political sciences. The aim of this online publication, as well as the printed version that will be published twice a year in Serbian and English, is to offer public access to the knowledge and research of experts from relevant institutes and of members of international networks with whom we have collaborated over the years. The web site will be updated twice monthly. In contrast to the richness of expert articles and publications on these issues that characterises the English-speaking parts of the world, in Southeastern Europe such work is rare and insufficiently presented to the public. On the other hand, the transition from the socialistic economies to market economies has already marked both the economy and the population in all of the countries in this region. Willing to accept globalisation or not, being for or against it, is of no consequence – globalisation ‘happens’ to us and around us. Awareness of the complex social processes in progress, as well as of their effects on a National Economy, State, Society, Family and Individual, is the prerequisite for their comprehension. Interdisciplinary studies of development and research on globalisation are well developed in many countries. Thus, for us, living in the region of Southeastern Europe, it is useful to be introduced to and informed about existing expert analyses of these phenomena, their theoretical aspects and analyses of practices and experiences of other countries. To perceive, to question and to comprehend are the first steps toward achieving positive social changes. This inquiry into policies and practices will help us to recognise what happens (to us), whether we are on a good path, and how to move forward if we long for a better, more equitable, more humane world. There are always alternatives, and the choice ours. The best way to predict future is to create it.
Mirjana Dokmanovic,
Bela Orcic,
|
