Friday, August 19, 2011

Why India Incs, FDI Fed REFORMIST Media and Corporate Imperilaist AMERICA Support Anna Hazaare and the Marxists Follow Suit? Why Excluded Enslaved Communities Fail to Understand the Conspiracy? Why Civil Society and LPG Mafia Rule Chose Ramlila Maida

Why India Incs, FDI Fed REFORMIST Media and Corporate Imperilaist AMERICA Support Anna Hazaare and the Marxists Follow Suit? Why Excluded Enslaved Communities Fail to Understand the Conspiracy? Why Civil Society and LPG Mafia Rule Chose Ramlila Maidan to Stall MULNIVASI Rally Demanding OBC Head count and Protesting Economic Reforms, Ethnic Cleansing and Anti People Repressive Policies?Just see how India Incs react and Proactive NGOs, Media INFLATE the RSS Brahaminical Hegemony Zionist Global Order Backed Relaunched Anti Reservation, Anti Constitution Movement!

Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - SEVEN HUNDRED TWELVE

Palash Biswas

http://indianholocaustmyfatherslifeandtime.blogspot.com/

http://basantipurtimes.blogspot.com

18/08/2011

US not behind Anna's agitation: Senator McCain

New Delhi: Amid allegations by a Congress spokesman that the US was behind Anna Hazare's agitation, US Senator John McCain today said America neither gets involved in such agitation nor has any intention of doing so.

He also described Indian democracy as "strong and successful" which will be able to address the current domestic "disputes and conflicts", saying the current protests were "expression" of a democratic system, which may not be one of the most "pleasant experiences."

"The US does not involve itself in what is taking place in the world's largest democracy and neither it has intention," McCain said when asked about speculation that he cancelled his political appointments following the comments by Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi suggesting the US was behind Hazare's agitation.

Referring to a remark by US State Department Spokesperson urging India to allow peaceful protest", Alvi had yesterday alleged that "it is for the first time that the US has said something like this and put pressure on the government to allow Anna to run his movement.This has never happened earlier. This is a big question on which we have to think and discuss seriously."

Source: PTI
Image Source: AFP

Why India Incs, FDI Fed REFORMIST Media and Corporate Imperilaist AMERICA Support Anna Hazaare and the Marxists Follow Suit? Why Excluded Enslaved Communities Fail to Understand the Conspiracy? Why Civil Society and LPG Mafia Rule Chose Ramlila Maidan to Stall MULNIVASI Rally Demanding OBC Head count and Protesting Economic Reforms, Ethnic Cleansing and Anti People Repressive Policies?Just see how India Incs react and Proactive NGOs, Media INFLATE the RSS Brahaminical Hegemony Zionist Global Order Backed Relaunched Anti Reservation, Anti Constitution Movement!
India Inc on Friday extended support to social activist Anna Hazare in his fight against corruption, stating it is "sick" of the menace.

India Inc.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

India Inc. is a common term used by the Indian media to refer to the formal (comprising government and corporate) sector of the nation. It employed 7 per cent of the workforce in 2000^[1] and contributed 60 per cent of the nominal GDP of the nation. The informal sector consists of 44 million non-farm enterprises as per recent labour survey.

The Companies Act 1956 allows a variety of formations in the mixed economy of India.. The Ministry of Company Affairs estimates that as of 31 October 2005, there were 712,800 companies registered in India (excluding foreign companies) as detailed below:

Category	Non-government	Government	Total
Private companies limited by shares	628,957	612	629,569
Public companies limited by shares	78,473	724	79,197
Companies limited by guarantee	3,530	7	3,537
Companies with unlimited liability			497

There were 821,212 companies by the end of 2009. Almost one-fifth of these companies were head quartered in Maharashtra, another one-fifth in Delhi and one-eighth in West Bengal.

[edit]See also

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^ 28m workers employed by 400k companies in 2000

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"We support any such movement by anybody, including Ramdev and Anna Hazare, to reduce corruption soon... We are sick of corruption," leading industrialist and Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj said.

Adi Godrej, the chairman of the Godrej Group, also extended support to Hazare, who has been sitting on a fast-unto-death since Tuesday to press for an effective Lokpal Bill to deal with corruption in high places.

"Industry cannot go on streets. Yes, corporate India does support his cause. We are with him," said Godrej.

Pointing out that corruption cannot disappear from India immediately, Bajaj lauded the efforts of Hazare, saying "something has to be done" about it.

Expressing similar views, the Director General of industry chamber Ficci, Rajiv Kumar, said, "We completely support Hazare in his fight against corruption, which has been denting India."

Ficci's Kumar favours setting up of ombudsman-type institutions to deal with issues of corruption and governance. Earlier, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee appealed to Hazare to end his hunger strike, which entered the fourth day today.

The government has already initiated talks with Hazare on formation of a joint committee to draft the Lokpal Bill, but failed to reach a consensus on some crucial aspects.

Three of the five demands raised by Hazare and his supporters have been met by the government. These are formation of a joint committee with five members each from government and civil society, immediate setting up of the panel and bringing the Bill in the Monsoon Session.

However, the government did not agree to the demand of issuing an official notification for the constitution of the committee.

The possibility of passage of Jan Lokpal Bill by August 30 as demanded by Anna Hazare is unlikely, sources in the Government and Congress said tonight.

The sources noted that the Lokpal Bill, introduced by the government in the Lok Sabha, was currently before a Parliamentary Standing Committee which has got to do a lot of due diligence before it could give its recommendations.

The sources ruled out the possibility of two bills being taken up by the Committee and Parliament at the same time.

The Committee has so far heard only Hazare and his associates, they said, adding even the mandatory advertisement calling for views has not been issued yet.

The sources said the Hazare camp should "understand" the reality and Parliamentary procedures.

At best, the government sources said, Team Anna Hazare can present its draft to the Committee for its consideration and beyond that nothing else could be don at this stage.

Law Minister Salman Khurshid earlier said nobody could be prevented from introducing a private member Bill in Parliament but it should have majority support to be passed.

Anna Hazare on Friday launched his protest fast at the historic Ramlila Maidan giving indications that it will be a prolonged one when he declared that he will not quit the venue till the Jan Lokpal bill is brought.

"We will not leave this ground till the Jan Lokpal Bill is brought," he declared from Ramlila Maidan, the venue of his campaign, after he came out of Tihar Jail and made a three- hour drive from the prison where he spent three nights.

On the fourth day of his fast, the 73-year-old Gandhian looked totally fit when he ran a short distance in Rajghat to escape from rain though he had lost three kg of weight since Tuesday. He came out of the jail this morning after reaching an agreement with government for holding his hunger strike for 15 days.

Both outside Tihar Jail and at Ramlila Maidan, he made a brief address to his supporters in which he said that the second freedom struggle has started for liberating India from corruption.

"There was a revolution in 1942 because of which the British had to quit India. But the loot and rowdyism have not stopped. That is why the second freedom struggle has begun. "Do not allow this torch of struggle to be put out whether Anna is alive or not," he told the cheering crowd at the spacious Ramlila Maidan.

After refusing to come out of Tihar Jail despite unconditional release on Tuesday and some hard bargaining, he extracted from authorities permission to hold his protest for 15 days from the 25,000 capacity ground instead of J P Park.

Police had initially given permission to Hazare to hold the fast for three days from August 16 in JP Park with a crowd restriction of 5,000.

Earlier in the day, Hazare's associate Arvind Kejriwal said the protest would go beyond 15 days depending on how the government responds. Team Hazare has been campaigning for adoption of its Jan Lokpal that will cover Prime Minister, higher judiciary and conduct of MPs inside Parliament besides other provisions.
Jan Lokpal Bill: Fasting Anna Hazare calls for 'revolution' as thousands rally
Enthused by the nationwide support for his anti-corruption campaign, civil society activist Anna Hazare Thursday vowed to be on fast till a strong Lokpal Bill was passed and called for a "transformation" of India.

Addressing thousands of cheering supporters on reaching the rain-drenched Ramlila ground here, after a nearly three-hour journey from Tihar Jail where he had been since Tuesday, the 74-year-old was full of energy as he took a hardline stance on an anti-corruption legislation.

"We will not leave this place till a (stronger) Lokpal bill is passed," Hazare said, urging the young collected at the spacious ground not to abandon the fight against India's endemic corruption.

"This is the start of a new revolution, of a new freedom struggle," declared the soldier-turned-activist whose arrest Tuesday sparked off nationwide protests and put the government in a political fix.

"This torch of revolution should always remain lit. It is not just about Lokpal. We have to bring about a transformation in this country," he said in chaste Hindi. The crowds responded with slogans hailing him.

People, he added, would not tolerate any more the loot of national wealth.

The brief speech, heralding the start of an indefinite fast at Ramlila ground, came on Day 4 of the Anna saga which has left the Congress-led coalition wondering how to tackle him.

Hazare was arrested and sent to Tihar Jail Tuesday when he set out to begin his hunger strike. As mass protests erupted, the government did a U-turn and ordered him released.

But he refused to leave the prison until he was allowed to fast without fetters. Eventually, the authorities agreed to let him use the vast Ramlila ground that can accommodate thousands of people.

As he stepped out of Tihar Jail Friday morning, hundreds of people, many of who had been camping outside the prison for days, cheered even as heavy rains lashed the area.

With a protective ring thrown by police and activists of India Againt Corruption (IAC), Hazare started a journey in an open truck decorated with Indian flags, negotiating his way through massive crowds.

At one point, the procession was two kilometres long. The crowds was made up of people from all ages and varying socio-economic backgrounds.

Accompanied by thousands, it took Hazare nearly three hours to reach Ramlila via Rajghat, where he paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi, and a halt at India Gate, now dedicated to Indian soldiers.

An ebullient Hazare at one stage was seen sprinting away from police personnel at Rajghat.

The crowds appeared quite unmindful of the rain. Some said it was a good omen.

As Hazare stepped out of the Tihar Jail, he shouted slogans of "Inquilab zindabad", "Jai Hind" and "Bharat Mata ki Jai", betraying the fact that he had lost three kilograms since his fast started Tuesday.

Hazare was emotive: "I thank you all for the support. We got independence in 1947 but our fight for complete independence has begun on Aug 16 and we will fight till we manage to get a corruption-free India."

He added to loud cheers: "The fight against corruption should continue whether or not I am alive. It's a people's movementm and you should fight on even after I am gone."

At Ramlila ground, there was a sea of school children, some who had bunked their classes to come out in support of Hazare.

"I have come here to support Annaji and we will get the civil society version of Lokpal bill passed come what may," said Prateek Babar, student of Rajkiya Sarvodya Vidhyalaya School in west Delhi.

Protests against the government version of the Lokpal Bill and in support of Hazare also continued in several cities and towns of India for a fourth straight day.

Team Hazare is bitterly opposed to the government-sponsored Lokpal Bill that excludes from its ambit the prime minister, the judiciary and the mass of government officials.
PSU stake sale only when markets right: Pranab Mukherjee
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Friday said the government would sell its stake in the public sector undertakings (PSUs) only when market conditions were favourable.

"We cannot sell our valuable assets at a condition, at a market situation where we will not get the adequate prices," Mukherjee said in the Lok Sabha.

The finance minister said the proposal of disinvestment in four public sector undertakings - Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Steel Authority of India Limited, Hindustan Copper and National Building and Construction Corporation - has already by cleared by the cabinet.

He said the disinvestment of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited and National Aluminium Company Limited were also under process.

The federal government targets to raise Rs.40,000 crore from disinvestment during the current financial year.

So far it has managed to raise only Rs.1,162 crore by selling 5 percent stake in the

Power Finance Corporation.

India Inc on Anna Hazare's campaign against corruption‏ - YouTube
*	www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzsf0ezDRmI3 min - 9 Apr 2011 - Uploaded by ndtvprofit The anti-corruption movement started by socialist leader Anna Hazare has taken the nation by storm but conspicuous by their absence have ...

India Inc supports Anna hazare‏ - YouTube
*	www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTPL9rtyrWc2 min - 8 Apr 2011 -Uploaded by timesnowonline India Inc on Friday (April 8) joined millions of Indians in supporting Anna Hazare's call for a fight against corruption. Hero Honda chief ...

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The Anna Hazare-led anti-corruption protests reverberating across the country are a hot topic in drawing room conversations. Now, they seem to be resonating in India Inc's boardrooms too.

An ET poll of 43 CEOs heading mid- to large-cap firms across a range of sectors showed that a vast majority in India Inc believed the government had mishandled the protests. And this has hurt business confidence in the country, already reeling under a deadly cocktail of policy inertia amid political drift, rising interest rates, a slowing economy and worsening global economic landscape.

"Such agitation... affects business confidence. India is integrated with world economy and any agitation results in drop in investment flow. That will affect growth and restrict job creation," said KP Singh, chairman of India's biggest real estate company, DLF Ltd, adding that the government had made a mistake in trying to stop the agitation on the first day.

"Agitation is a natural phenomenon in a democracy. You should not stop agitation. Let them do whatever they want to do. However, it should not be allowed beyond a point," Singh pointed out.

Thirty-six among those polled said the government had mishandled the situation, with 26 of them saying the mishandling had adversely affected business confidence.

An overwhelming majority of the business leaders - 37 of 41 who answered the question - said they did not think the government had done enough to stamp out corruption. Four said the government was doing enough while two declined to answer this specific question.

Hazare's three-day-old fast has paralysed New Delhi and almost brought decision-making at the highest echelons of the government to a halt. The Gandhian leader was arrested on Tuesday and released the same evening, but the government's plans dissolved into chaos and confusion after Hazare refused to leave jail if he was not given permission to fast.

As per a compromise formula worked out early Thursday morning, the government agreed to allow Hazare to fast for 15 days at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan. He is now expected to proceed to the ground from the city's Tihar jail on Friday morning.

The snap poll to gauge corporate India's mood on the protests and its handling was conducted on Thursday. Thirty-five of the business leaders polled said that they supported the agitation. Many declined to be identified and were assured anonymity so that they could give frank answers.

The Anna Hazare agitation comes at a bad time for the economy and the corporate sector, which is facing rising interest costs, sluggish growth and increased competition. Many reform measures are stuck and key bills dealing with relaxation of land acquisition norms are yet to be passed.

Industry is also waiting for the government to relax FDI norms relating to retail and allow multinational firms such as Wal-Mart and Carrefour to set up full-fledged operations in the country.

Most CEOs told ET that the government had misread the national mood and mishandled the situation, and it must now try and reach an acceptable compromise on the main reason for Hazare's agitation - an effective Lokpal Bill. "Hazare has been effective in raising dissent and the government has alienated the people," said Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO of Bangalore-based biotech firm Biocon. She said the next 15 days should be used to re-draft an all-inclusive Lokpal bill.

The issue of the corruption has been high on the agenda of Government, industry and civil society.

The issue of the corruption has been high on the agenda of Government, industry and civil society. CII believes that this is high on the priority of the Government and is receiving attention at the highest level. Industry believes it has a strong role to play in fighting corruption and therefore, CII has already developed the first version of the "Code of Business Ethics".

CII will continue to play an active role in ensuring high standards of ethics, probity and transparency in business conduct and would advocate the same for government processes and policies.

http://www.indiainfoline.com/Markets/News/CII-Statement-on-Anna-Hazare/5222535472

FICCI concerned over Hazare's arrest
K. BALCHAND
SHARE · PRINT · T+
Committing themselves to fighting corruption, industry bodies on Tuesday seemed concerned over the arrest of civil rights activist Anna Hazare and his team members. They hoped that the government would act in a manner to balance and strengthen democratic institutions and conventions.
Reacting to the arrest of Team Anna members, Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Harsh Mariwala maintained that while Parliament's right to determine the nature of legislation and change in law was supreme and sovereign, the Constitution did guarantee individual freedom of speech and assembly.
Mr. Mariwala said democratic vibrancy and strong institutional framework were prerequisites for investment. They needed to be preserved and reinforced, he said.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said it would continue to play an active role in ensuring high standards of ethics, probity and transparency in business conduct and would advocate the same for government processes and policies.
Pointing out that it had evolved the code of business ethics, the CII said that the issue of corruption was high on the agenda of the government and was receiving attention at the highest level.
Keywords: Confederation of Indian Industry, CII, Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, FICCI, Anna Hazare arrest, Anna Hazare fast, JP Park, Jan Lokpal, anti-corruption movement, India Against Corruption, civil society, Parliament boycott, judicial custody, Team Anna
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2362687.ece

'Anna Hazare's movement is anti-social justice, manuwadi'

Avijit Ghosh, TNN | Aug 19, 2011, 09.53PM IST

NEW DELHI: The anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare has found huge support across the country. But several prominent dalit activists, intellectuals as well as those writing regularly on dalit issues have severely castigated the movement. They say it is casteist in nature and against representative democracy.
Dalit columnist Chandrabhan Prasad says Team Anna seems to have a profound contempt for constitutionalism. "The Anna Hazare phenomenon is leading us to the rejection of representative democracy itself. The movement is an upper-caste uprising against India's political democracy. That apart, vesting so much power in the Lokpal, a non-elected person, could lead to a dangerous situation," he says.
Hyderabad-based dalit-bahujan thinker Kancha Ilaiah offers similar views. "The Anna movement is an anti-social justice, manuvadi movement. The Dalits, tribals, OBCs and minorities have nothing to do with it. We oppose it," he says.
Dalit activists insist that corruption means much more than just bribes and kickbacks. "For us casteism is corruption, caste-discrimination is corruption, not filling up reserved seats as per constitutional norms is also corruption. Is Anna and his team willing to talk about all these?" says Anoop Kheri, coordinator of Insight Foundation, that helps Dalit and adivasi students in higher education.
Adds Rajesh Paswan, a JNU doctorate in Hindi, "The movement has raised fears among Dalits, adivasis and minorities that similar methods can be used to create laws against them in future."
Kheri feels that the idiom used by protestors has a distinct casteist tinge. "The language, symbols used by the movement clearly reflects its upper caste Hindu nature, a very rightwing Hindu patriotism is being used to get the entire country against corruption. And as a dalit, I have a problem with it," he says.
The activist also feels that rather than seeing corruption as a social problem that needs comprehensive social churning and cultural changes to fight against, those involved in the movement want everybody to believe that only politicians are corrupt. "This is a false premise, very escapist and also dangerous for our democracy," he says.
The activist is also sceptical about the efficacy of the Jan Lokpal bill. "In a democracy we don't want anything that appears extra-constitutional, someone whom the masses of this country have no say in electing or disposing of. Democracy in India might be highly flawed but it is the only weapon in the hand of the marginalized to challenge the status quo. Whatever rights we have got, we got from democracy, and not from any self-styled 'civil society', Kheri says.
D Shyam Babu, former fellow, Rajiv Gandhi Foundation offers a slightly different perspective. He believes that the movement is not anti-Dalit. "It is basically a mix of misplaced patriotism, ego and total disregard for established authority," he says.
A positive outcome of the movement, he says, is that the government can no longer take people for granted on the issue of corruption. "But the flip side is that there is a thin line between 'popular unrest' and anarchy. This is also habit-forming in the sense that whenever a group finds a cause to highlight, it only has to enlist the services of some 'Gandhian'. Don't forget Dr Ambedkar's caution against 'satyagraha' as the 'grammar of anarchy'," says Shyam Babu.
Many protesters have named the ongoing battle against corruption as the second freedom struggle. Ilaiah differs. "This means they are recognizing Jaiprakash Narayan's 1974 anti-corruption movement and VP Singh's similar movement in 1989. Both these movements had ideological basis of socialism and social justice," he says.
Prasad also counters Team Anna's claim of representing civil society. He says, "The real question is: has India really evolved into a civil society? Was South Africa a civil society in times of apartheid? Was US a civil society in times of slavery? Was England a civil society in times of serfdom? If the answer is no, then can India with the caste system still in place, be called a civil society?"
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Anna-Hazares-movement-is-anti-social-justice-manuwadi/articleshow/9664784.cms
AUGUST 18, 2011, 8:16 AM IST

India Digest: Congress Hints at US Hand in Anna Hazare Protest

By WSJ Staff

Here is a roundup of news from Indian newspapers, news wires and Web sites on Thursday, August 18, 2011. The Wall Street Journal has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

Congress Hints at US Hand in Anna Hazare Protest: The 'foreign hand' made a return to the Congress's lexicon nearly four decades after the party had dubbed the JP movement as a handiwork of external forces. (Source: The Times of India)

Banking Doors Set to Open for India Inc: Indian companies may have reasons to rejoice, as the Reserve Bank of India is likely to allow some of them an entry into the banking space. (Source: Business Standard)

Family of Slain Activist Demands CBI Probe: The family of slain Right To Information (RTI) activist Shehla Masood accused the police on Wednesday of selling a suicide theory and demanded a CBI probe into her death. (Source: Hindustan Times)

New National Policy on Education Coming: Even though his Independence Day address did not elaborate on its mandate, sources in the government indicated, the recommendations of the proposed commission should add up to what could be a new National Policy on Education. (Source: The Hindu)

Justice Sen Plays Victim to a Rapt Rajya Sabha: Facing an impeachment motion, Calcutta High Court judge Soumitra Sen, who appeared before the Rajya Sabha today, claimed that he was being made the "sacrificial lamb to cleanse the judiciary", and that the allegations of misconduct and misappropriation of funds against him were part of a predetermined move to remove him. (Source: The Indian Express)

Beetles Sing the Blues for Indian Basmati in US: Indians travelling to the US will no longer be able to carry premium rice such as basmati and sona masuri for their friends and relatives there, with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) clamping down on the practice. (Source: The Financial Express)

http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2011/08/18/india-digest-congress-hints-at-us-hand-in-anna-hazare-protest/
Opening Bell 19 August
As Anna Hazare sits on a fast, Mumbaikers have to brace up for hungry pangs. The dabbawalas in Mumbai are reportedly going on strike in support of Anna Hazare's movement.

R Sree Ram

New Delhi: As Anna Hazare sits on a fast, Mumbaikers have to brace up for hungry pangs. The dabbawalas in Mumbai are reportedly going on strike in support of Anna Hazare's movement.
Meanwhile, another storm has hit the battered global equity markets. Concerns about the health of European banks and eventual impact of a slowing global economy on corporate earnings are leading to selling in equities.
Overnight, US stocks tumbled on fears of another recession. Investors sold stocks of companies that are most tied to the economy. Shares of Bank of America and Citigroup Inc fell more than 6% on concerns about growing debt contagion in Europe. The S&P 500 at 1,140 lost 4.46%.
The overnight sell-off has led to a weak opening in Asian stock markets. Investors are selling stocks that derive a majority of their earnings from the global markets. Toyota Motor Corp, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Commonwealth Bank of Australia lost over 2% each. The Nikkei at 8,753 is down 2.13%.
The negative sentiment has also sent crude oil prices lower. Brent crude fell 0.5% to $106.45 a barrel on speculation that fuel demand might fall.
Expect the positive momentum to continue in Suven Life Sciences stock. The company has received four product patents for its new chemical entities. These will be used in the treatment of various central nervous system disorders. Read more...
A SAIL-led consortium has reportedly appointed International Mining Consultants to help bid for an iron ore deposit in Afghanistan. The deposit is estimated to have 1.8 billion tonne of iron ore reserves.
The finance ministry has sought an explanation from Corporation Bank chairman and managing director Ramnath Pradeep over alleged violation of norms at the state-run bank. Pradeep is facing charges that include sanctioning loans to a few companies in contravention of regulations. ReadMint's story...
ICICI Bank has resurrected teaser home loans. The bank is launching two new home loan products with interest rates fixed for one-two years. These kind of home loan products had disappeared from the market after the Reserve Bank of India expressed concerns about them.
Finally, scientists have discovered a natural preservative that could help food last for years without rotting. The preservative, called Bisin, prevents the growth of lethal bacteria including E-coli, salmonella and listeria. Read more...
Tags - Find More Articles On:

http://www.livemint.com/2011/08/19093056/Opening-Bell-19-August.html?h=B

India Inc uneasy at Hazare standoff

BS Reporters / Mumbai August 18, 2011, 0:03 IST

At the end of this month, HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh and his friends from India Inc — who had earlier collectively written an open letter to the Prime Minister and his political establishment — plan to meet once again and take their own crusade against corruption and governance deficit forward.

"Our leaders must now show responsible and strong leadership to steer us through a terrible storm India and the global community is going through," said Ajit Gulabchand, chairman, HCC Group.
"Where I think the government is going very wrong is its inability to catch the popular mood. In a democratic set-up, everybody has a right to protest, to air a view. Hazare's team should also not be so rigid in their stand," says the CEO of an infrastructure conglomerate, who did not want to be named. "The mass support of Anna Hazare is rooted in the general frustration and anger of the common people. Hazare is just a catalyst or a vent for this anger," said a Delhi-based entrepreneur, who preferred to remain anonymous.
Even outspoken corporate leaders did not want to get dragged into the specifics of Anna and his struggle. Corruption is part of a bigger malaise of misgovernance, and so the group of 15 — including Parekh, Anu Aga and Keshub Mahindra — who had expressed their anguish in January, will meet to decide their plan of action than get drawn into any debate now. But quite a few did speak out. Mohandas Pai, former director at Infosys, said:"Cearly, the government underestimated the sense of anger among the people of India. There is no trust between people and the government.".
CHAMBERS WANT MOVES
Industry chambers have spoken, calling for a balanced reaction from the government. They echo a popular sentiment that while Parliament has the right to make laws, individuals enjoy the freedom of speech and assembly.
"We strongly support any process or mechanism that will lead to good governance and weed out corruption from all walks of life," said Dilip Modi, president of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).
"Industry believes it has a strong role to play in fighting corruption and, therefore, we have already developed the first version of a Code of Business Ethics," said a spokesperson of the Confederation of Indian Industry.
Marico chairman Harsh Mariwala, also chairman of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, is more realistic than many of his peers. "Anna Hazare is a symbol. The fight is a bigger one on corruption. When you lose faith in the entire system, it becomes difficult for the common man to have confidence in the political establishment. But a Lok Pal Bill alone cannot solve all the problems. There has to be a much bigger overhaul of all discretionary powers," he said.
Cyber citizens from India Inc have been active for the past few days. Some have been pragmatic, some circumspect yet cautious, while some are outspoken as ever. "Let's not be bogged down with scams by a few. Let's hold our heads high and focus on the numerous reasons we have to be proud, independent Indians," tweeted the king of good times and Rajya Sabha MP, Vijay Mallya.
MORE VOICES

M&M's Anand Mahindra, a corporate leader behind many social campaigns, — seems to suggest the writing is on the wall for all to see. "Democracy means no voice, however small, must go unheard. The anti-corruption sentiment is not a whisper — it's a scream. Grave error to ignore it," he warned.

However, the stoic silence of most others may seem odd as they were vocal in their reactions before, when Hazare first led his protest outside Jantar Mantar in April. "We are sick of corruption," leading industrialist and Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj had then remarked. But since then, the slugfest over a Lok Pal and need for a legal framework for it has become overtly political.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/india-inc-uneasy-at-hazare-standoff/446199/

India Inc weighs its words, mkt still to catch Hazare fever

FP Editors Aug 18, 2011
#Anand Mahindra #Anna Hazare #Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw #Politics #Twitter #WhoSaidWhat
An anti-corruption movement led by a feisty 74-year-old social activist, Anna Hazare, is snowballing into one of the biggest challenges in decades for the ruling Congress party and making business leaders uneasy about the impact of the political stand-off on the economy.
For the time being, most of Corporate India has chosen to stay silent on the issue, barring a few voices.
Among those who were willing to give their views on the issue was Mahindra Group's Vice Chairman, Anand Mahindra, who had this to say on the social networking website, Twitter: "Democracy means no voice, however small, must go unheard. The anti-corruption sentiment is not a whisper – it's a scream. Grave error to ignore it: This is a movement whose heart and voice cannot be ignored. If only industry captains can voice their support forAnna Hazare."

Anand Mahindra voiced his comments via twitter. Reuters

Another businessman who took to Twitter to make his voice known was Vijay Mallya, promoter of the Kingfisher group. "Let's not be bogged down with scams by a few. Let's hold our heads high n focus on d numerous reasons have to be proud independent Indians," he said.
Taking a more critical stand was chairman of biotech firm Biocon, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, who kept up a stream of Twitter comments on the unfolding events. " The govt is committing political harakiri – as they say, if you are in a hole, stop digging! Prime Minister (PM) can say what he wants, but he has lost credibility with people. Effective execution has always been the bane of our well intended policies. PM's words are of no avail – he has unfortunately lost credibility – his statement is a case of too little too late," were among the several tweets she put out.
Marico chairman Harsh Mariwala, also chairman of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, was equally direct. "Anna Hazare is a symbol," he told Business Standard newspaper. "The fight is a bigger one on corruption. When you lose faith in the entire system, it becomes difficult for the common man to have confidence in the political establishment. But a Lok Pal Bill alone cannot solve all the problems. There has to be a much bigger overhaul of all discretionary powers."
Aviation entrepreneur Captain Gopinath urged companies to join forces against corruption. "All of us must come forward and give ourselves a better institution, including the business people. Though I may benefit sometimes because I am in a position to bribe and get things done, I think society will not last with corruption… I have compromised sometimes, unfortunately, which we should not," he told CNN IBN. Gopinath also thought that more companies should have come forward to support the anti-corruption protests. "Corporate bigwigs should have come voluntarily. They have not been speaking openly and clearly," hesaid.
Technology giant Infosys, meanwhile, shied away from taking a stand, claiming that it wanted to stay away from the politics behind the crusade. "We are apolitical, but we don't prevent our employees if they want to participate in their own time," Infosys' ex-director, Mohandas Pai, told Business Standard.
Earlier, when Hazare was arrested, industrialist and Rajya Sabha MP Rahul Bajaj was one of the first businessmen to react: "First, the arrest of Anna Hazare and Team Anna is very unfortunate. Second, what I find is that on the one side, there is the government and on the other side, there is the civil society, lots of people are on the civil society side and for understandable reasons, the Opposition is supporting them too," Bajaj told CNN-IBN.
Amid the growing unease among businesses, industry chambers have called for a balanced reaction from the government. "We strongly support any process or mechanism that will lead to good governance and weed out corruption from all walks of life," said Dilip Modi, president of the Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India (Assocham).
So far, the stock markets have not reacted to the growing civil unrest in the country, but that could change in coming days, depending on what turn the protests take. "This has the ingredients of being India's own non-violent Arab uprising," Savio Shetty, a stock market analyst in Mumbai, told Reuters. "But the dish needs to be cooked and looked after! Tahrir square was a rebellion against the government itself … of a 40-year tyrannical rule … things are quite different here."
The economy is already reeling under a slowdown triggered by high inflation and high interest rates. Corporate margins are getting squeezed and the global turmoil caused by a stalling US economy and a spreading debt contagion in Europe are already weighing on the minds of investors.
The current political situation will only add to the growing list of worries.
http://www.firstpost.com/investing/india-inc-stays-cautious-markets-still-to-catch-hazare-fever-63224.html

India Inc backs Anna, seeks 'practical solution' to Lokpal issue
Press Trust of India, August 18, 2011, (New Delhi)

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Corporate leaders today said Anna Hazare and the government should find a practical solution on measures to fight corruption, saying the interest of the nation must be given utmost priority. "I believe we have landed in a very unfortunate situation
but we should now look ahead," Bajaj Auto Ltd Chairman Rahul Bajaj said.
He said if the government is not in a position to meet the demands of 'team Anna' to strengthen the Lokpal Bill, then it should ensure that the 'Jan Lokpal Bill' is introduced through a private member in Parliament.
"This will enable Parliament to discuss both the bills. And what the majority of Parliament wants, Anna has already said he will accept the decision of Parliament, which according to both the government and Anna, is supreme," Bajaj said.
Without commenting specifically on Anna Hazare's protest and the state of corruption in India, Future Group CEO Kishore Biyani emphasised the need to strengthen morality in the system.
"India will have to re-establish values, morality and integrity. The nation has to be treated larger than an individual. We as a nation have lost our values and need to bring it back in the system," Biyani said.
Stating that the government seems to have erred in not sensing society's ire at deep-rooted corruption, Madison World Chairman Sam Balsara said: "It should actively work with Anna to find a lasting and practical solution. However, one cannot suddenly come up and get all the powers to pass a bill since we have a Parliamentary system in place."
While some of the corporate leaders were unwilling to speak on the issue, Mahindra & Mahindra Vice-Chairman Anand Mahindra and Biocon Chairman Kiran Mazumdar Shaw had tweeted in support of Anna's movement.
"Democracy means no voice, however small, must go unheard. The anti-corruption sentiment is not a whisper-it's a scream. Grave error to ignore it," Mahindra said.
One of Shaw's tweets read: "Anna has started another twitter uprising against corruption and injustice - smacks of Tunisia, Egypt - Govt hasn't taken any cues."
RELATED STORIES

Moneycontrol » News » General News » Current Affairs

How does India Inc view Anna's fight against corruption?

Published on Fri, Apr 08, 2011 at 21:17 | Source : CNBC-TV18
Updated at Fri, Apr 08, 2011 at 22:16

Excerpts from What's Hot on CNBC-TV18 Watch the full show Â»

As different groups of people have gone ahead supporting Anna's crusade against corruption, the question remains how the scam-hit India Inc views this fight against corruption. Infosys mentor NR Narayana Murthy says corporate India is grateful to Anna Hazare's sacrifice in the eliminating corruption.
On his take of what corporate India can do post incidents that tarnished certain degree of its image, he advices, "We have to exercise self restrain, adhere to value system and be prepared to lose contracts because we believe in honest and decent business."
As the nation is supporting Anna's call for hunger stike, in an exclusive interview with CNBC-TV18, Murthy also shares similar sentiments. He believes, "It is the time to do whatever is necessary to ensure that we have been a good institution to reduce our corruption and eliminate it."
On legal apprehensions on the Lokpal Bill, Murthy says, "It will be a great to have both CBI and CVC work under the umbrella of Lokpal and provide Lokpal a means to route out corruption."
Below is a verbatim transcript of Narayana Murthy's interview with CNBC-TV18's Shereen Bhan. Also watch the accompanying video.
Q: Do you think it is right to push the government towards legislation through hunger strikes and jail bharo threats?
A: At the end of the day, it is incontestable that we have to reduce corruption in the country. Today, we are in a different position than 30 years or 40 years ago. The expectation of business people, civil society, and political leaders outside of India are high. Our economy is growing so well, there is so much confidence in the country that we can indeed redeem the promise that we made to ourselves when we got independence.
This is the time to do whatever is necessary to ensure that we have been a good institution to reduce our corruption and eliminate it. Therefore, I think if hunger strike is the only way that indeed can help us get there, we have to be very grateful to a person like Anna Hazare for showing the extraordinary sacrifice that he has shown.
Q: Do you support civil society's demand that the Lokpal Bill should also have prosecution powers – to have the combined powers of the CVC (Central Vigilance Commission) and the CBI? Do you think there is an apprehension that it could be misused?
A: The CBI today is very powerful but it comes under the government. CVC is independent but it is only recommendatory. Therefore, it will be great to have both CBI and CVC work under the umbrella of Lokpal and provide Lokpal all the necessary means to route out corruption. We have had CBI in the country; we have CVC but we still have lots of issues of corruption. Therefore, we should seek whatever is necessary to reduce corruption.
Q: Justice Rajinder Sachar, former chief justice of the Delhi High Court is of the opinion that there should be a separate mechanism for ministers and bureaucrats and a separate one for judges. Do you agree with that?
A: Justice Sachar is an expert, howver, my view is a practical one. As long as we have an institution that can mitigate corruption amongst politicians, bureaucrats and judges and other people who are involved in public money, we would make tremendous progress. It doesn't matter whether it is one or two institutions but we need a mechanism to mitigate and eliminate it.
Q: What kind of checks and balances would you like to see drafted into the Bill that would actually prevent this Bill from being misused since it is one of the apprehensions?
A: If you put people in charge of running Lokpal, I don't think there will be any issue. The important thing is to create a mechanism whereby only the best, most respected and most honest people are employed by Lokpal. As long as that happens, we don't have to worry about the issue. The problem arises when you don't have good people in these institutions, for example, the medical council got into trouble because we didn't have any personnel in that. However, now we have good people on the medical council and it will do a good job.
Q: Corporate India's creditability in the past year has been dented severely on account of charges of crony capitalism. What role do you think corporates like yourself can play in curbing corruption?
A: It takes two hands to clap, therefore, there is always a giver and there is a receiver and as people who are much more involved in receiving favours from the government, we have to be very strict about not becoming victims of corruption and thereby giving money. We have to exercise self restrain, adhere to value system and be prepared to lose contracts because we believe in honest and decent business.
Q: Would you consider being nominated as part of the committee if you were asked?
A: It will be an absolute privilege. It will be a big honor and it will be a great opportunity to serve the country if I am requested. I have no hesitation in performing that duty to the best of my abilities.
Tags: Anna Hazare, NR Narayana Murthy, Infosys, corruption, Lokpal Bill, Shereen Bhan
http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/current-affairs/how-does-india-inc-view-annas-fight-against-corruption_535126.html

2011 Indian anti-corruption movement

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses.

2011 Indian anti-corruption movement

Protesters take part in protests at Jantar Mantar in Delhi

Date	13 March 2011 – 9 April 2011 4 June 2011 – 5 June 2011 16 August 2011 – ongoing
Location	India —with protests also being held in various other countries by NRIs in the USA, Australia, United Kingdomand more.
Status	Government version of Bill sent toStanding committee in theParliament; bill referred to as "Jokpal" rather than "Lokpal" in civil society. No law yet passed to bring back overseas black money.
Goals	Passing stronger anti-graft laws to tackle ever-increasing corruption in India and bring back Indian black money stashed in Swiss and other banks overseas.
Characteristics	Non-violence, Satyagraha,demonstrations, sit-ins, signature campaigns, fast-unto-death, Jail Bharo Andolan

Casualties

Injuries

53 protesters^[1]

The 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement refers to a series of protests against the Government of India intended to seek strong legislation against graft, otherwise known as corruption. The protests have centred on a proposed bill, called the Jan Lokpal Bill, which the protestors believe could address the issue if it was suitably worded and enforced. The movement has gained momentum in particular since 5 April 2011, when Anna Hazare, a prominent activist, first went on a hunger strikewhich he called a "fast unto death".

The protesters are of the opinion that the government desires to dilute proposals contained in the original draft of the Jan Lokpal bill. They believe that the changes would make the body intended to oversee the issue, the Lokayukta, no more than a powerless advisory body in the Indian bureaucracy. Hazare, who is a Gandhian, went on his initial hunger strike when talks designed to consider the issues broke down. He had demanded the creation of a joint drafting committee for the bill, with members from both "civil society" and government.^[2]

Following Hazare's initial, much publicised protest action, a second major protest saw controversial events take place at the Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi on 4 June 2011. The figurehead for these protests was Swami Ramdev and their aim was to highlight the need for strong legislation to bring back to the country what has been called "black money" deposited abroad. Ramdev demanded that untaxed money invested abroad should be declared to be the wealth of the nation and, further, that the act of caching money, which is alleged to have been obtained illegally, in foreign banks should be declared a crime against the state. He also demanded that the nation's wealth held in foreign banks should be brought back and that India should sign the United Nations Convention against Corruption. It is estimated that aroundUS$ 350 billion to US$ 1400 billion worth of illegal money is in foreign banks.^[3]^[4]

The protests led to the creation of a movement that saw protests being organised in various cities and towns of India. Protests included fasts, candlelight vigils andrallies. The protests are unusual in India as they have no political affiliation and the protesters have been hostile to any attempt by political parties to use them to strengthen their own political agenda.

[edit]Background

"	Mahatma Gandhi fought for our freedom but we are yet to achieve real independence. The second struggle of independence has started. We are ready to sacrifice our lives but will not buckle under pressure	"
—Anna Hazare^[5]

Anna Hazare's hunger strike at Jantar Mantar inDelhi, on the second day of his fast.

Issues regarding corruption in India have become more prominent in recent years. The country was subject to socialist-inspired economic policies between the 1950s and the late 1980s. Extensive regulation, protectionism, and public ownership led to slow growth.^[6]^[7]The system of bureaucratic controls called License Raj was at the core of corruption.^[8]

The Vohra Report of 1993, submitted by the former Indian Union Home Secretary N. N. Vohra, studied the problem of the criminalization of politics and of the nexus among criminals, politicians and bureaucrats in India. The report contained several observations made by official agencies on the criminal network which was virtually running a parallel government. It also discussed criminal gangs who enjoyed the patronage of politicians – of all political parties – and the protection of government functionaries. It revealed that political leaders had become the leaders of gangs. They were also connected to the military. Over the years criminals had been elected to local bodies, State Assemblies, and even theParliament.^[9]^[10]^[11]

The Right to Information Act of 2005 has helped civilians work effectively towards tackling corruption. It allows Indian citizens (except those living in Jammu and Kashmir) to request information, for a fixed fee of 10 (US$ 0.22), from a "public authority" (a body of Government or "instrumentality of State") which is required to reply expeditiously or within thirty days.^{[clarification needed]} Activists have used this to uncover graft cases against various politicians and bureaucrats, one consequence being that some of those activists have been attacked and even killed.^[12]

Various scandals were discovered in 2010-2011, including the 2G spectrum scam, Adarsh Housing Society Scam, and the Commonwealth Games scam. These involved various Ministers and also members of the Armed Forces, and they demonstrated how entrenched corruption had become in India.^[13]^[14]^[15] They led also to popular, non-political movements campaigning to fight graft via new legislation.

The Jan Lokpal Bill, also referred to as the citizens' ombudsman bill, is a proposal to establish an independent body to investigate cases of corruption within a year and to ensure a speedy prosecution within two years of an investigation being started.^[16]. The Jan Lokpal Bill was proposed by members of the civil society (primarily social activists from the NGO India Against Corruption as an alternative to the Government-drafted Lokpal Bill. The August 16 protests started as a result of significant disagreements over the two versions of the Bill between the civil society leaders and the Government.

[edit]Protest timeline

This article or section may be slanted towards recent events. Please try to keep recent events in historical perspective. (August 2011)

13 March 2011

A poster against corruption in India

A group of Delhi residents drove around the city dressed in similar clothing in an attempt to raise awareness of corruption issues and to gain support for the Jan Lokpal Bill.^[17]

28 March 2011

There were protest marches in various cities across the world, including some in the US. These included a 240-mile march in California that began on 12 March in San Diego and ended on 26 March at the statue erected in honour of Gandhi in San Francisco.^[18]

30 March 2011

Kapil Dev, a former captain of the Indian national cricket team, wrote a letter to the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, complaining that the many investigations into scams arising from the recent Commonwealth Games had achieved nothing so far. He said that, "Why can't we have an independent Lokpal to look into these scams? I consider you as the cleanest politician in the recent history and I urge you for a Jan Lokpal Bill".^[19]

4 April 2011

Hazare announced that he would commence his "fast unto death" and that this would last until a comprehensive measure to tackle corruption was introduced. He claimed that the government had excluded "civil society" from the panel set up to draft the Jan Lokpal Bill, and implied that at least one of the people who was to be on the drafting committee - Sharad Pawar - might be unsuitable for that role because of his large landholdings. Kiran Bedi and Swami Agnivesh voiced their support for Hazare.^[19]

5 April 2011

Protesters have come out in support of Anna Hazare

Hazare initiated his fast at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. Elsewhere, people attended a protest atFreedom Park, Bangalore.^[20]

Campaigners for India Against Corruption (IAC) estimated that a petition circulated in the city of Pune which demanded that the government enact a bill had attracted between 5000 and 6000 signatures between 3 April and 5 April. Hazare has been involved with IAC, a group established by various prominent activists with the primary purpose of achieving the legal enactment and subsequent enforcement of a strong version of the Jan Lokpal bill.^[21]

7 April 2011

Protests have continued as the Government fails to offer better terms to the activists

Two rounds of talks failed. There was agreement regarding constituting a panel to examine the Bill but the government would not accede to demands that it should be a formally constituted panel or that Hazare should lead it. As a consequence of this, Hazare continued his fast.^[22]
Narendra Modi, the chief Minister of Gujarat lashes out at Manmohan Singh for resisting the passage of the Jan Lokpal Bill.^[23]
Sonia Gandhi, the president of the Indian National Congress party and the head of theNational Advisory Council appealed to Hazare to end his indefinite fast.^[24]
Hazare and the protesters tried to keep the protests non-political. No politicians were welcome at the site of the fast. Former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti and journalist Barkha Dutt were forced by civilians to leave, after the protesters objected to their presence, which they believed was harming the integrity of their movement.^[25]

8 April 2011

Protesters in Delhi

Protesters in Pune

Protests spread to numerous other places, including Mumbai, Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Chennai, Patna, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Ranchi, Pune, and the University of Jammu.^[26]
The government continued to squabble with the activists stating that the bill drafting committee will be headed by a government appointed minister and not a civil society member as the protesters demanded to avoid allowing the government to make the bill less powerful.^[27]
The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, met with the President of India to outline to her how the government was going ahead with the demands of the population.^[27]
15 supporters of Hazare on fast were hospitalized.^[28]
Bollywood came out in support of the protests, with actors, musicians and directors speaking in support of the movement and Hazare. Director Farah Khan, actor Anupam Kher, music director Vishal Dadlani, poet-filmmaker Pritish Nandy and actor Tom Alter all visited Jantar Mantar; others stated their support for the movement via social networking websites or the media. Oscar winning Indian composer A. R. Rahman also declared his support for the anti-graft movement.^{[citation needed]}
Renowned Indian/Qatari artist Late M. F. Hussain showed his support by drawing a cartoon of Hazare.^[29]
Indian students at Cambridge University, the former alma mater of the Indian Prime Minister also expressed their support for the movement.^[30]
Many prominent people from government agencies as well as from various corporate houses came out in support of the movement. Some of them were - Delhi Metro chief E. Sreedharan.^[31] (also called the Metro Man of India), Punj Lloyd chairman Atul Punj, Maruti Suzuki chairman R. C. Bhargava, Hero group's Sunil Munjal, Tata Steel vice-chairman B Muthuraman, Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj, Godrej Group head Adi Godrej, Biocon Chairman and Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and Kotak Mahindra Bank vice-chairman & managing director Uday Kotak. They all declared their support for Hazare and the movement.^[32]^[33]
ASSOCHAM President Dilip Modi and FICCI Director General Rajiv Kumar, too came out in support of the movement.^[32]
The Government of India accepted the compromise formula that there be a politician chairman and an activist non-politician Co-Chairman. It was reported that Pranab Mukherjee will be the Chairman of the draft committee while Shanti Bhushan will be the co-chairman.^[34] Bhushan was one of the original drafters of the Lokpal Bill along with Hazare, Justice N. Santosh Hegde, advocatePrashant Bhushan, and RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal.^[35]

9 April 2011

After accepting all the demands of Hazare, the Government of India issued a Official Gazette saying that the draft of the lokpal would be made and presented in the coming monsoon session of Lok Sabha.
Victory celebrations took place at locations throughout the country.^[36] and even Hazare's village.^[37]^[38]^[39]
Bollywood lauded the outcome, repeating their support for the movement.^[40]
Protesters and leaders of the movement alike stated that the path to attaining complete passage of the bill is still a difficult one, and the movement may see harsher days ahead.^[41]
Many commentators have called the movement the 'wake-up' call for India.^[42]^[43]

"	I want to tell the government that we are not two but one. You should wipe it out of your mind that you are the masters. You are not the masters, the people are. Gram Sabha is more powerful than Lok Sabha or State Assemblies	"
—Anna Hazare.^[5]

Within a day of the beginning of the agitation, more than 30,000 people had pledged their support to the Lokpal Bill. Organisers of the India Against Corruption said 30,000 people from Maharashtra expressed their support on their website.^[44] The website has 20,000 members in Mumbai alone.^[45] Within a few days the Facebook page forIndia Against Corruption had more than 220,000 likes.^[46]

16 April 2011

The first meeting regarding a draft of the Lokpal Bill was held on 16 April. The government agreed to audio-record all meetings of the Lokpal Bill panel and to hold public consultations before a final draft is prepared.^[47] Hazare demanded that the proceedings be televised live but the government refused.^[48]

4 June 2011

Swami Ramdev begins his indefinite hunger strike at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi to bring back the black money stashed in tax havens abroad.^[49]
65,000 followers gathered at Ramlila Maidan.^[50]
In a press conference in the evening Kapil Sibbal made public a letter from Ramdev's camp to call off the hunger strike. Ramdev took it as a betrayal and hardened his position.

5 June 2011

At midnight, police raided the grounds when most protesters were sleeping and Ramdev was busy at a meeting with his core group.^[51]
A large police force lobbed tear gas shells, burned the place and lathicharge the crowd at 1 am (IST) to evict them.
Police had arranged buses to drop supporters at railway stations and bus stands in advance; had ammunition ready and were in battle-gear wearing vests and helmets and kept some ambulances on standby.
Delhi Police arrested Ramdev, who was disguised in a salwar kameez with a group of female protesters heading peacefully towards the New Delhi Railway Station
Ramdev was held in a government guesthouse for a few hours and then sent to Dehradun in a BSF aircraft.
Ramdev was sent to his Patanjali Yogpeeth ashram in Haridwar where he delivered a press conference.^[52]
53 people were injured and were treated at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital, AIIMS Trauma Center and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.^[53]^[53]^[1]
One of Baba Ramdev's supporters was injured in the incident and her condition was still critical as of 17th August 2011. ^[54]
Protesters huddled near the Metro station, bus depots and railway stations. Many walked down to Gurdwara Bangla Sahib and other nearby ashrams.^[55] According to New Delhi railway station authorities, supporters continued to leave in batches through the course of the day. While several supporters spent the day at a park near Ramlila Maidan, others took shelter at an Arya Samaj facility in Paharganj.^[56]
Ramdev was prohibited from entering Delhi for 15 days.

6 June 2011

Prime Minister Mnamohan Singh justified the action against Baba Ramdev as an operation that had to be conducted, and that there was no alternative. However Manmohan Singh did not elaborate as to why force was used on a peaceful gathering and why the swoop was done at 1 AM in the morning.^[57]

"	We are really curious why the government is against the idea of telecasting live the proceedings of the committee. The people ought to know the reasons why there is a difference between your and our viewpoint,	"
—Shanti Bhushan.^[58]

9 June 2011

Hazare described his fight against corruption as the "Second Freedom Struggle" and set an ultimatum of 15 August 2011, as the last date to pass a strong Jan Lokpal Bill, threatening to otherwise intensify his anti-corruption agitation and start another fast from 16 August.^[59]

16 June 2011

The Government and the civil society split wide open due to differences in jointly drafting the bill. Government representatives said that if a consensus on the common bill was not reached, two drafts would be sent to the Cabinet, one drafted by the Government and the other drafted by the civil society. Team Anna also claimed that only 15 points, out of a total 71 recommended, were agreed upon and included in the joint draft. Hazare declared that if the government version of the bill was passed in theParliament, he would start his hunger strike from August 16, 2011.^[60]

22 June 2011

In a veiled warning to Anna Hazare for his proposed fast, Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Wednesday indicated that the Gandhian might be meted out the same treatment, depending upon the prevailing situation at that time, as yoga guru Ramdev was given at Ramlila ground.^[61]

14 August 2011

In a scathing attack on Anna Hazare, Congress spokesperson, Manish Tewari, and an MP from Ludhiana constituency, described Anna Hazare as being "involved in corruption from top to bottom", "neck deep in corruption", and also mentioning that the social activist needed to be "shown his place".^[62]

15 August 2011

Anna Hazare announced at a press conference that he and his supporters were determined to go ahead with the fast on 16 August, 2011 as planned. He also urged people to court arrest to push for a stronger Lokpal bill.^[63]
Section 144 was imposed a night before the planned protest date, at JP Park, Rajghat and Dilli Gate, which prohibited assembly of five or more persons.^[63]

16 August 2011

Anna Hazare was detained by Delhi Police in the early morning before he could start his hunger strike at JP park, Delhi. Delhi Police had asked Anna not to leave his home, which he declined, and Anna was detained at his residence in Mayur Vihar. Arvind Kejriwal,Kiran Bedi, Manish Sisodia and more than 1200 supporters.^[64] were also taken into preventive custody by the Police.^[65]^[66]
Anna Hazare was sent to seven days judicial custody to Tihar jail after refusing to sign a personal bond to be released on bail.^[67]
Shehla Masood, an RTI activist and a strong supporter of Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement, was shot dead around 11.30am IST. An unidentified assailant shot her in front of her house in Koh-e-Fiza, Bhopal.^[68]
Kiran Bedi and Shanti Bhushan, detained by Delhi Police on the morning ahead of Anna Hazare's fast-unto-death, were released in the evening at around 6:30pm IST.^[69]
The current telecom minister Kapil Sibal was greeted with black flags and booed by a group of students at a seminar on the Jan Lokpal bill.^[70]
With the Government of India, preparing to release Anna Hazare late in the night,^[71] however Anna refused to come out of Tihar jailuntil the government agreed to an unconditional permission to hold protests at JP Park.^[72]
Demonstrations were held all over India protesting Anna Hazare's arrest. In Chennai, Mahatma Gandhi's secretary, V Kalyanam led the protestors. He said - "India will get a sure gold medal if corruption is entered as an item in the Olympic Games. We may not be a force in football or athletics or hockey. But India is the undisputed global leader in corruption." Referring to Anna Hazare's arrest in New Delhi, Kalyanam said it was easier to fight foreign tyranny than the tyranny of our own people. He ridiculed the contention of Union ministers like Kapil Sibal and Chidambaram that Parliament was supreme and civil society had no voice.^[73]

17 August 2011

After almost a day, Anna still refused to leave jail and spent the night in a room in Tihar jail, despite the government decision to free him.
Delhi Police made concessions for Anna Hazare to fast, stepping up from seven days to 14 days and finally 21 days at Ramlila Maidan.^[74]
Congress made a statement that they suspected a foreign hand in the protests and asked the government to probe if the US was behind Anna's agitation .^[75]

18 August 2011

Anna Hazare agreed to leave jail after Delhi Police granted him permission to fast for 15-days against corruption at Ramlila Maidan. However, he would spend another night in Jail till the venue is ready.^[76]^[77]
Arvind Kejriwal left Tihar jail being there for two days. Kejriwal called this move as just the beginning of their fight against corruption, and also confirmed that Anna Hazare would leave the jail once the grounds at Ramlila Maidan are ready for the fast.^[78]

19 August 2011

Anna Hazare left Tihar Jail at 15 minutes to 12noon IST after 3 days with spontaneous roar of welcome from the huge crowd accumulated near the Jail premises. Just passed the gates, he raised his hand in the air and shouted "Bharat mata ki Jai (Victory to Mother India)".^[79] He also addressed public stating: "Whether I am there or not, this fight will continue." which too recieved a huge roar of applause. Anna waved national flag towards the crowd, responsing the crowd fluttered hundreds of smaller flags and chanted "Anna zindabad (long live Anna)".^[80]
Paying obeisance to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat and Amar Jawan Jyoti at the India Gate, Anna Hazare reached Delhi's Ramlila Maidan to launch 15-day mass protest against corruption.^[81]^[82]
Anna Hazare finally launched his protest at Ramlila Maidan as he declared that he will not quit the venue till the Jan Lokpal Bill is brought.^[83]
Varun Gandhi, Bharatiya Janata Party MP announced that he will introduce Anna Hazare's Jan Lokpal Bill in the Lok Sabha as a private member's bill by saying that Jan Lokpal Bill is better than anything the nation has seen before and would like to make a small contribution in his own way.^[84]

[edit]Use of cyberspace

Hacker group Anonymous has come out in support of a civil movement against corruption in India by hacking one of the key website of a Indian government of National Informatics Centre. This cyber movement has been called "Operation India".^[85]

[edit]Government response

Hazare's protest has led to the resignation of Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar from the Group of Ministers on corruption.^[86] On 8 April, the government started seriously considering the demands of the protesters. The government has stated that it will table the bill in the parliament in the upcoming Monsoon session.^[87] On 9 April, the government finally agreed to have a 50:50 distribution of the Government appointed officials and the members of the civil society.^[88] On May 13, PM Manmohan Singh stated that the Indian government has completed the process for ratification of UN Convention against Corruption.^[89]

[edit]Political response to the Jantar Mantar protests

Bhartiya Janata Party

The Bhartiya Janata Party supported Hazare, with a prominent member, Arun Jaitley, urging the government to take Hazare's fast very seriously.^[90]

Another prominent BJP figure, L.K. Advani suggested that a meeting of political parties should be convened to discuss the issue "particularly in the context of black money and curbing money-power in elections".^[91]

BJP leader Narendra Modi posted on his Facebook account that he was praying for Hazare's health. He also published an open letter to Hazare thanking him for the latter's support for the development work in Gujarat. Modi also warned Hazare of possible vilification by a certain 'powerful-group' that wishes to defame Modi and Gujarat. He reiterated his support for the Jan Lokpal Bill.^[92]

Communist Party of India (Marxist)

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) came out in support of Anna Hazare. Prakash Karat pledged support to Hazare over the Jan Lokpal Bill.^[93]

[edit]Ramlila ground protests

This section requires expansion with:
images.

Ramdev claimed that Bharat Swabhiman Yatra had evoked massive support from the masses and more than 10 crore people had been directly involved with the movement. His yatra ended on June 1 at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh after traveling over 100,000 kilometres (62,000 mi) across the country. Almost 3.2 million "netizens" joined the campaign.^[94]

^[95]

Ramdev declared that a people's movement to liberate the country from rampant corruption and build a strong spiritual 'Bharat' would be launched by him in June. The movement was called "Satyagraha against Corruption".^[96] He declared one of the main objectives of the movement was to bring about an end to corruption and bring back black money stashed away in various financial institutions in the country and abroad. On the midnight of 5 June, police raided the site where Ramdev was fasting against corruption and black money issues in the capital and forcefully detained him and removed his supporters from the site after firing tear gas shells and resorting to lathicharge to end his day-old indefinite hunger strike on black money issue.^[97] Seventy-one people were injured and moved to hospital, four of whom were reported to be in critical condition.^[50] Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee called the police action "unfortunate", but added that the government had to do that as Ramdev had no permission to hold a protest at the Ramlila Ground.^[98]

He maintained that second phase of Bharat Swabhiman Yatra would begin from October 2011 year and the Yatra would once again travel a distance of 100,000 kilometres (62,000 mi).^[95]

[edit]Background to the Ramlila ground protests

On March 16, 2011, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) issued its manifesto for the upcoming Bengal polls in 2011, which said that "[if the party came to power, it would] launch a drive to unearth black money, especially those (sic) stashed in Swiss and other tax havens." The issue was taken up by Sharad Yadav of Janata Dal (United), who said on March 27 that there were US$ 1,470 billion stashed by Indians in Swiss banks.

Four senior Union Ministers Pranab Mukherjee, Kapil Sibal, Pawan Kumar Bansal and Subodh Kant Sahay met Ramdev and discussed issues and his demands at Delhi Airport on June 1, 2011.^[99] Back-channel talk between two sides were held in The Claridges, New Delhi on June 2, 2011.^[100] Next day talks were held for a third time between the ministers and Ramdev and both sides claimed consensus. The government gave a response to the demands while Ramdev planned to go ahead with his hunger strike.

250,000 square metres (0.25 km²; 0.097 sq mi) of overhead waterproof tent was set up and the ground was booked for 40 days for the protest. A volunteer centre at the extreme end of the maidan was set up. 650 bathrooms and toilets was stationed inside the maidan, out of which 40 percent were for women. Also provided for was drinking water facility, medical facility and a media centre with three communication towers.^[101]

[edit]Police action against the demonstration

Police fired tear gas, burned the place and lathicharged peacefully fasting men, women and children. 53 persons were reportedly injured and were treated at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital, AIIMS trauma center and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.^[53]^[1]

About 5000 supporters were still missing according to Ramdev.^[102] Jadeep Arya, a key advisor on Ramdev's team, said that about 19 girls students from the Chotipur Gurukul who were seated near the dais were thought to be still missing.^[103] Behen Suman, women's representative of the Trust, said many of these girls were roughed up when the police tried to reach Ramdev and were crying since police officials were pulling their hair, dragging them and their clothes were torn. Police, however, said no one was missing.^[103]

There is an allegation that CCTV footage of the raid is missing.^[104]^[105]

[edit]Police clarification on action

A senior police officer commented on the police action saying, "there were talks in the police headquarters since June 2 that Baba Ramdev would be detained as we knew he is definitely not going to hold a Yoga camp." Allegedly, Ramdev's detention was not a spontaneous decision but had been planned for several days.^[51]

The police said Ramdev was informed around 11 pm (IST) on Saturday that his permission to continue his agitation had been canceled. By that time, over 5000 police officers, including 12 battalions of the Delhi Police, three battalions of Rapid Action Force, two of Central Reserve Police Force commandos and local police were briefed by senior police officers to get ready for action. The Ramlila Ground was then surrounded by several buses and tempos,^[vague] heading towards the ground from Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab but were sent back from the borders.^[51]

[edit]Protest against police action on Ramdev's demonstration

How can the government stop anyone from protesting? The
land is not their 'father's property'. The citizens are the masters of
this country and the ministers are their servants". - Anna Hazare
_{( When some press reporter ask him how can he protest
at Jantar Mantar since prohibitory orders)}

^[106]

On 6 June the National Human Rights Commission of India issued notices to the Union Home Secretary, Delhi Chief Secretary and the Delhi City Commissioner of Police seeking reports within two weeks regarding the midnight crackdown at the Ramlila Ground.^[107]

In a response to the crackdown Hazare said that he would hold a one day hunger strike at Jantar Mantar on 8 June. The venue was changed to Rajghat when he could not get police permission to do so.^[53]

[edit]Aftermath of the Ramlila ground protests

Protests were held in many different parts of country, including the cities of Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Jammu, and Lucknow. Protests against the action also spread to Nepal.^[108]^[109]^[110]^[111]

[edit]Civil society response

Ramdev accused the government of not being serious about discussing issues of corruption and black money, alleging that government negotiator Kapil Sibal had cheated him through "scheming and cunning" attitude. He alleged that there was a conspiracy to kill him and a "threat" was given to him during a meeting with senior ministers. He also claimed that the ruling government chairperson Sonia Gandhi and the United Progressive Alliance government will be responsible for any threat to his life and alleged that he was nearly strangled by the police.^[112] After being evicted from Delhi, Ramdev wanted to continue his fast from Noida but was denied permission to do so by the Uttar Pradesh government. He decided to continue his hunger strike and satyagraha from Haridwar only until June 12, 2011.^[113]^[114]^[115]

Hazare said there might have been some faults with Ramdev's agitation but that the beating up of people at night rather than in the day-time was a "blot on democracy" and that "There was no firing otherwise the eviction was similar to Jallianwala Bagh incident." He said that the "strangulation of democracy" would cause civil society to launch protests throughout the country to "teach government a lesson".^[116]^[117]Other civil society leaders, such as Arvind Kejriwal, also termed the use of police force on non-violent sleeping protesters as undemocratic. Shanti Bhushan and Swami Agnivesh also criticised the police action to end the hunger strike.^[118]^[119]

[edit]Government response

Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh called Ramdev a "cheat" and "fraud".^[120] According to him the government had reached an agreement before the protests were held.^[121] Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wrote to Ramdev, asking to cease-and-desist from holding the protests.^[122] Nationalist Congress Party General Secretary Tariq Anwar said that "Both Hazare and Ramdev are blackmailing the government and they should first peep into their own hearts." ^[123] Pawan Bansal commented on the midnight police action and said that "It was not a crackdown, we [the government] had to do it to maintain law and order".^[124]

[edit]Other political parties response

Bharatiya Janata Party: The party called the police action to break up the hunger strike "undemocratic".^[125] BJP President Nitin Gadkarisaid they will organize a 24-hour long Satyagraha at Rajghat independent of government's permission.^[126] Nitin Gadkari further added; "Women and children were attacked. They were lathi charged and teargas was used. This reminds us of the Emergency days in 1975. We strongly condemn it," and "The Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi used force on democratic ways of protest against corruption and black money. I condemn the action of Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi. They should apologize for the act,"^[127] Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi strongly condemned the incident comparing atrocities on Ramlila ground by comparing the government with Ravana-Lilafurther adding that "It is one of the worst days of Indian history. The Prime Minister had said during the elections that he would bring back black money stashed in Swiss banks within 100 days of coming into power. But today, it is two years and nothing has happened."^[127]Senior BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani said that the police action reminded him of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and added that the police crackdown on Ramdev is a "naked fascism".^[127] Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said: "This is not democracy...the police cannot alone had taken such a step. It had the approval of the Prime Minister and full approval of the Congress President.^[127]

Bahujan Samaj Party: BSP leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Mayawati, condemned the government's midnight crackdown on Ramdev and demanded that Supreme Court of India order an investigation into the incident stating that justice cannot be expected from the Central Government.^[128]^[129]

Samajwadi Party: Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav condemned the incident saying that the action shows Centre has lost its mental balance. Charging the ruling Congress Party, Yadav further said: "A Congress leader said that Baba is a thug. I want to say that Congress is the biggest thug and it should introspect its deeds.^[128] "The government swooped down on Ramdev and his supporters as if it were carrying an attack on a foreign enemy," Yadav told reporters at a press conference.^[129]

Rashtriya Janata Dal: RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav accused Ramdev of being a front for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.^[130]

Communist Party of India (Marxist): CPI(M) termed the police action at the protest site of Ramdev as "deplorable and shortsighted". However, they found fault with the yoga guru for making the issue of black money "farcical" by entering into a secret agreement with government.^[131] "The manner in which Ramdev's demands were drafted and the way in which he has conducted his interactions with the government, coming to a secret agreement to withdraw the hunger strike on the basis of assurances, then reneging and announcing its extension trivialised the seriousness of the issue of black money and made it farcical," the party said.^[129]

Shiv Sena: The Shiv Sena strongly condemned the police action against Ramdev.^[129]

Janata Dal (United): Nitish Kumar, leader of JD(U) and the Chief Minister of Bihar, condemned the attack saying "It is a major blow to democracy and an attack on the democractic rights of the people ... It is also an attack on the fundamental rights of the citizens."^[127]

[edit]Suo Moto Cognizance by the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of India issued notices to the Union Home Secretary, Chief Secretary of Delhi, Delhi administration, and Delhi Police Commissioner asking them to respond within two weeks, after taking suo motu cognizance of forceful eviction of Ramdev and his followers from the Ramlila ground.^[132]

However, the court declined to entertain a petition filed by advocate Ajay Aggarwal, who said that no FIR had been registered against the police officials. The bench expressed its displeasure that before the matter came up for hearing before it, the entire contents of the petition were leaked to the media.^[132]

[edit]August protests

[edit]Background

On July 18, 2011, Hazare declared that he had written a letter to the Prime Minister about his decision to go on an indefinite fast from August 16 at Jantar Mantar. Hazare said that it was the right of Indian citizens to protest and the government could not crush their movement, unlike the Ramlila ground protests. Hazare declared that he was ready to get arrested and beaten up and informed the Delhi Police about his protest.^[133]^[134]^[135]

Hazare's crusade for a strong lokpal Bill found support in Mumbai as the Mumbai Taximen's Union, comprising over 30,000 taxis, agreed to extend their support to Hazare's cause on August 16. The union's decision came after a meeting with Hazare's team in Mumbai. The union's proposal was to keep all taxis off the roads or ply less taxis on August 16. The Mumbai chapter of India Against Corruption claimed that till July 26, nearly 44,000 people had shown interest in joining the protest from August 16.^[136]

In Allahabad, the legal community expressed their support of Hazare's campaign against corruption. Lawyers of Allahabad High Court held protests in support of Anna Hazare at Allahabad by burning copies of the Lokpal Bill, blocking roads and shouting slogans against the callousness of the government. They also pledged to go on a hunger strike at Allahabad from August 16 in support of Anna Hazare.^[137]

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad also came out in support of Hazare's movement, saying that for a strong Lokpal, people from across the country should support the campaign.^[138]

In a referendum conducted by India Against Corruption in Karnataka, about 94.3% of Chikkaballapur constituency and 79.7% of Bangalore South voted to bring the prime minister under the ambit of the Jan Lokpal Bill. The results showed that a majority of the population wanted the Jan Lokpal Bill to be passed by the Parliament and not the "watered down, toothless" bill drafted by the government. The 6,000 participants at the referendum also said that being representatives of the people, members of parliament should vote for the Lokpal, not as directed by their parties, but as by the voice of the majority in his/her constituency. The participants also voted to bring judges under the Lokpal, give adequate powers to the Lokpal to dismiss officers guilty of corruption, monitor corruption at the central as well as state level through Lokayuktas, and to bring all levels of officers under the bill. The questionnaire had a set of eight questions that brought out crucial differences between the Jan Lokpal Bill and the Lokpal Bill put forth by the government, and asked for the people's vote on the same. Around ten parliamentary constituencies across the nation conducted a similar exercise and the results from the nation-wide campaign will be consolidated and presented to the members of Parliament in time for the monsoon session.^[139]^[140]

[edit]Hazare's arrest

On the morning of August 16, 2011, Hazare, along with close associates, was remanded to judicial custody for seven days. Hazare was picked up by police at about 7.30am from a residence in east Delhi for "intending to defy prohibitory orders". Late afternoon, he was produced before a special executive magistrate. After he refused to sign a personal bond to be allowed to get out on bail he was remanded in judicial custody for seven days. Within hours of his detention, a spokesperson for Team Anna said that he had begun his hunger protest while in police custody and that he was not accepting even water to drink. The arrest of Hazare and some of his close associates, set off a groundswell of protests across the country and this appeared to be spreading quickly. The arrest was condemned by political parties, the chief ministers of some non-Congress ruled states, non-government organizations and even parliament did not transact any business after an uproar on the issue forced an adjournment for the day.^[141]

As protests built up in several cities and towns over the arrest, Prashant Bhushan, one of Hazare's key associates, announced a march from India Gate to Parliament House on Wednesday to protest against the police action, which he said was taken at the behest of some cabinet ministers. Delhi police commissioner BK Gupta said that the police were not keen for Hazare be sent to judicial custody. He said police were prepared to release him on a personal bond if he would have given an undertaking that he would not defy Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code which prohibits the gathering of five or more people and ask his supporters not to do so also. Hazare was taken to the Tihar jail where he will spend the time in judicial custody. Kiran Bedi, Arvind Kejriwal and Manoj Sisodia, three other leading activists of team Anna, have also been sent to judicial custody on similar grounds. In a message released after his detention, Hazare said this was the beginning of the "second freedom struggle" and he called on people to participate in a "jail bharo" agitation.^[142]

Opposition parties, peeved over the attitude of the Congress in parliament, said they would meet later today to decide on the course of action.^[when?] Communist Party of India leader Gurudas Dasgupta said he had proposed a boycott of parliament for three days. Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat described the arrest as "a strong attack on democratic rights". Hours after arrest of Hazare, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and BJP leader Sushma Swaraj strongly condemned the action and demanded and explanation from Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh saying that the government is hell-bent on crushing the civil rights of the citizens.^[143]^[144] Senior Bhartiya Janata Party leader L K Advani said he was not surprised at the detention of Mr Hazare and he charged the government with looking for scapegoats and stopping peaceful protests instead of fighting corruption. Arun Jaitley, leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said, that it was a very sad day for Indian democracy, where the ruling government took away the right to protest and the right to dissent.^[145]

In Patna, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar described the detention of Hazare and his associates as a "rehearsal of emergency" which people will never tolerate, and "a murder of democracy." Punjab chief minister Prakash Singh Badal also condemned the arrests saying that the Congress has panicked over the movement of Anna Hazare and accused Congress leaders of stashing money abroad. In Chandigarh and Ludhiana, people from all walks of life took to the streets - despite inclement weather - to join the protest for a strong Lokpal. Among them were activists of the NGOs 'India Against Corruption' and 'Awaaz' who launched a relay hunger strike. Traffic was also blocked at several intersections. Slamming the Centre for detaining Anna Hazare and his aides, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister SK Modi today called upon the people to come to the streets to hold demonstration in support of Anna's movement against corruption "peacefully and democratically."^[146]

In Hyderabad, Telugu Desam Party president N. Chandrababu Naidu asked the Prime minister Manmohan Singh to apologize to the nation for having sent Hazare and other social activists, who are fighting against corruption, to Tihar jail. In Maharashtra, crowds gathered in many cities and towns in response to Mr Hazare's call to court arrest. Thousands poured into south Mumbai's Azad Maidan since early in the morning, in preparation for the 'Jail Bharo' programme. A large number of people courted arrest in support of the demand for an effective Lokpal. Many people wearing 'Gandhi' caps with slogans 'I am Anna' gathered at the Reserve Bank of India Square, on the busy Nagpur-Jabalpur national highway that runs through the Civil Lines area.^[147]^[148]

In a broad day light murder at Bhopal, capital of Madhya Pradesh, an RTI activist and a strong supporter of Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement, Shehla Masood was shot dead around 11.30 am on August 16. An unidentified assailant shot her dead from point blank range while she was leaving in her car to attend a demonstration in support of Anna Hazare.^[149]

In Delhi, in protest against the arrest of Anna Hazare and his close aides by the Delhi Police, the members of All India Students Associationshowed black flags and shouted anti-government slogan against Kapil Sibal, who was to address a seminar at Malvankar Hall in city.^[150]

Anna on August 16 asked government employees across the country to go on mass leave to show solidarity with the movement. Union Home minister P. Chidambaram hoped they would not respond, describing the call as "completely wrong." Hazare's close associate and lawyerPrashant Bhushan urged government servants to join their cause and take a mass leave for a day and join the protests in their city.^[151]

[edit]Release

After protests all over India, the Delhi Police decided to release Hazare after he had been sent to Tihar Jail for seven days. Hazare had even refused food and water intake in Tihar jail, indicating he would carry on his fast in jail. Hazare and his aides, including Kiran Bedi and Arvind Kejriwal, were first taken to the Delhi Police Officer's Mess in North Delhi and were shifted to another after Hazare's supporters gathered in large numbers at Civil Lines. The Delhi Police sent a warrant to the Tihar Jail for the release of Hazare and his supporters withdrawing bail bond conditions, which Hazare had earlier refused to sign. Over 1,500 people who have been detained for taking part in protests demanding Hazare's release were released. Congress sources said that the Government decided to release Hazare and his supporters after coming to the conclusion that keeping him in jail would disrupt law and order unnecessarily. The decision to release Hazare was made after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met party General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, who disapproved of the arrest, on the evening of August 16. Hazare supporters Kiran Bedi and Shanti Bhushan were released by the Delhi Police early on August 16. ^[152]^[153] However, on release, Anna Hazare refused to leave Tihar jail until the government agreed to give unconditional permission to hold protests at JP Park.^[154]

Anna Hazare agreed to leave jail after Delhi Police granted him permission to fast for 15 days against corruption at Ramlila Maidan, a larger venue then JP Park. However, he had to spend another night in jail as the venue was not ready.^[76] On 19 August, at around 12noon IST, Anna left Tihar jail after 3 days. Supporters welcomed him with spontaneous roar as he headed towards Delhi's Ramlila Maidan to launch his hunger protest.^[81]

[edit]See also

[edit]References

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Full coverage

My uncle Anna: A national hero

Hindustan Times - ‎20 minutes ago‎

For the past three days, they had been glued to the television screen, eagerly waiting for Anna Hazare to come out of Tihar Jail. But as soon as it was decided that he would come out of Tihar on Friday, the group of 11 hailing from Hazare's native ...

Chhatrasal stadium still houses Anna supporters

Hindustan Times - ‎10 minutes ago‎

Chhatrasal Stadium, which was turned into a temporary jail by the Delhi Police to detain thousands of Anna supporters who courted arrest on Tuesday, continues to be a shelter for scores of supporters, who have refused to leave the sports venue. ...

Anna corners govt with new deadline

Business Standard - ‎31 minutes ago‎

Anna Hazare came out of Tihar jail here on Friday to a rousing welcome by his burgeoning supporters, and spelled bigger trouble for the government by announcing that his four-day-old fast against corruption would end only with the passage of the Jan ...

India all ears, Anna gives his word on Lokpal: Will fast till my last breath

India Today - ‎37 minutes ago‎

The MMS Team lost the game miserably ! In fact, while ONE TEAM ( Anna Hazare Team ) Was very serious about its strategies, Had limited advisors, Was very much systematic in taking steps, one-after-another, Communicated with all strata of society and ...

'Anna Hazare's movement is anti-social justice, manuwadi'

Times of India - ‎1 hour ago‎

NEW DELHI: The anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare has found huge support across the country. But several prominent dalit activists, intellectuals as well as those writing regularly on dalit issues have severely castigated the movement. ...

'Passage of Lokpal Bill before Aug 30 not possible'

Economic Times - ‎59 minutes ago‎

NEW DELHI: The possibility of passage of Jan Lokpal Bill by August 30 as demanded by Anna Hazare is unlikely, sources in the Government and Congress said tonight. The sources noted that the Lokpal Bill, introduced by the government in the Lok Sabha, ...

Lokpal Bill: Congress struggles to salvage pride

India Today - ‎25 minutes ago‎

Overtaken by the Anna storm, the government seems to be struggling to come up with an appropriate response to salvage its pride. The Congress core committee comprising Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister P. ...

Delhi Police spread thin between Janmashtmi and Anna's fast

NDTV.com - ‎48 minutes ago‎

New Delhi: Delhi Police are making all the security arrangements for Janmashtami on Sunday and keeping their fingers crossed that all goes well, especially in view of Anna Hazare's fast at the Ramlila Maidan that is being attended by thousands of the ...

Willing to discuss things with Government: Team Anna

IBNLive.com - ‎3 hours ago‎

New Delhi: Members of the Anna Hazare's team on Friday said they are willing to discuss with the Government the Lokpal issue with open mind in case the Government comes up with a better suggestion to fight corruption. "We will say what we consider is ...

Congress core group meets to discuss Hazare fast

Hindustan Times - ‎1 hour ago‎

PTI With the Government in a fix over Anna Hazare's agitation over Lokpal issue, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today held discussions with senior government and party colleagues to discuss a way out. The hour-long meeting of Congress Core Committee ...

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Timeline of articles

Number of sources covering this story

	'Passage of Lokpal Bill before Aug 30 not possible' ‎59 minutes ago‎ - Economic Times
	Patrick French: A new 'Gandhi' shakes India ‎14 hours ago‎ - Daily News & Analysis
	Parties back Anna's right to dissent, but reject his main demand ‎Aug 18, 2011‎ - The Hindu
	Facebook users of Pune grow more vocal in supporting Anna Hazare ‎Aug 17, 2011‎ - Times of India
	Anna exposes UPA's incompetence ‎Aug 17, 2011‎ - Hindustan Times (blog)
	BJP slamsPM's statement on Anna's arrest ‎Aug 17, 2011‎ - Hindustan Times
	Fasting Anna almost gets his way, but govt still holding out ‎Aug 17, 2011‎ - Indian Express
	Govt says Anna free to leave jail, he refuses to go ‎Aug 16, 2011‎ - Hindustan Times
	Anna Hazares arrest sparks protests in AP ‎Aug 16, 2011‎ - IBNLive.com
	Gujarat's Gandhigiri for Anna Hazare ‎Aug 16, 2011‎ - Times of India

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Anna Hazare Sets Aug 30 Deadline For Passing Jan Lokpal Bill
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19/08/2011

Fasting Anna refuses to budge

Gandhian resumes protest in Ramlila Maidan; vows to continue until strong anti-graft law is enacted

Fasting Anna refuses to budge

New Delhi: Engergised by swelling support, social activist Anna Hazare on Friday vowed to remain on a fast till a strong anti-graft law was enacted as he resumed his protest at the Ramlila Ground after first paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi at his memorial at Rajghat

The 74-year-old Hazare, who reached the rain-drenched Ramlila Ground after a nearly three-hour journey from the Tihar Jail where he had been since Tuesday, showed no signs of fatigue and declared before thousands of cheering supporters that there would be no budging on the Jan Lokpal Bill.

"We will not leave this place till a (stronger) Lokpal bill is passed," the soldier-turned-reformer said, urging the youth not to abandon the fight against corruption.

"This is the start of a new revolution, of a new freedom struggle," declared Hazare, whose arrest on Tuesday sparked off a nationwide outpouring of anger and put the government in a political fix.

Fasting Anna refuses to budge

"This torch of revolution should always remain lit. It is not just about Lokpal. We have to bring about a transformation in this country," he said in chaste Hindi, comparing the present-day government with the colonial British Raj.

People, he added, would not tolerate anymore the loot of national wealth. The brief speech heralded Hazare's indefinite protest demanding a strong anti-corruption law, four days after he had originally scheduled it in the national capital.

The crowds at the Ramlila Ground continued to swell, despite lashing rains. Elsewhere, in towns and cities across the nation, protests continued for the fourth day in his support.

Hazare's team member and senior advocate Prashant Bhusan dismissed rumours of the social activists surrendering to the government, saying: "No compromise has been agreed to."

Fasting Anna refuses to budge

Before reaching the sprawling Ramlila Ground, Hazare visited Rajghat, where an unusually large crowd gathered to support him. He also paid homage at the India Gate memorial to the Unknown Soldier.

Hazare was arrested on Tuesday and sent to Tihar Jail ahead of his scheduled hunger strike. As mass protests erupted nationwide, the government backed off and ordered him released.

But Hazare refused to leave the prison until he was allowed to fast without fetters. Eventually, the authorities agreed to let him use the Ramlila Ground that can accommodate thousands of people.

As he stepped out of Tihar Jail on Friday morning, hundreds of people, many of whom had been camping outside the prison for days, cheered. The Gandhian enthusiastically shouted slogans of "Inquilab zindabad," "Jai Hind" and "Bharat Mata ki Jai" despite the fact that he had lost three kilograms since beginning his fast on Tuesday.

"The fight against corruption should continue whether or not I am alive. It's a people's movement and you should fight on even after I am gone," he said to loud cheers.

Fasting Anna refuses to budge

With a protective ring thrown by police and activists of India Against Corruption (IAC), Hazare started his journey to Ramlila Ground in an open truck decorated with the national flag that negotiated its way through massive crowds.

At one point, the procession was two kilometres long. The crowd, made up of people from all ages and varying socio-economic backgrounds, appeared upbeat and quite unmindful of the rain.

Team Hazare is bitterly opposed to the government-sponsored Lokpal Bill, which excludes from its ambit the prime minister, the judiciary and the mass of government officials.

Source: IANS

19/08/2011

'Paschim Banga' invokes mixed response in Kolkata

Kolkata: The West Bengal government's decision on Friday to rechristen the state as Paschim Banga has evoked a mixed response among the city intellectuals with a majority of them questioning the use of 'Paschim' in the name.

'Paschim Banga' invokes mixed response in Kolkata

"Where's the change? It has been merely translated to Bengali. I have strong reservation against the use of Paschim (west) in the name. The change is for the sake of change, there is no essence behind the change. I thought they would use Banga, or Bangabhoomi, but they didn't," said Sahitya Akademi Award winning author Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay.

The state government and the opposition Friday unanimously decided to rename the state Paschim Banga, state Industries Minister Partha Chatterjee announced. Echoing Mukhopadhyay's sentiments, noted theatre personality Bhibhas Chakraborty said: "It's no change at all. Why the word Paschim is there? Where's the place for a Paschim or a West? Ideally it should have been Bangla or Bangabhoomi."

However, legendary magician PC Sircar Jr expressed happiness over the decision. "I am very happy and excited. Finally Bengali sentiments have been honoured. No other state in the country has an English name except ours. The new name will remind the coming generation about the painful history of division of Bengal. It will help them grow strong."

'Paschim Banga' invokes mixed response in Kolkata

Accomplished stage and film actor Kaushik Sen feels the name-change bears no effect on commoners. "Those who took the decision of name-change are far more learned people and took the decision for some reason. But how does it affect the common man who struggles for his daily bread? There are larger issues like illiteracy, unemployment to be dealt with."

"It will only add to the confusion. Many people from foreign countries often ask me if Kolkata and Calcutta are two different cities. Now they would be asking if West Bengal and Paschim Banga are two different states," quipped Padma awardee and renowned classical vocalist Ustad Rashid Khan.

Celebrated poet and novelist Sunil Gangopadhyay also expressed his reservation over the use of Paschim in the name. "Paschim is redundant, wonder why it is still there. Wherever you go, people refer to the state as Bengal. You will hardly find anyone saying Paschim or West Bengal. Though I am glad a Bengali name has been given."

'Paschim Banga' invokes mixed response in Kolkata

Earlier, the West Bengal government, along with the opposition parties of the state, Friday unanimously decided to rename West Bengal as Paschim Banga, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said.

"It has been unanimously decided by the state government and all the political parties of the state that the name of the state be renamed from West Bengal to Paschim Banga.

"In Bengali we call our state Paschim Banga but in English we say West Bengal. But from now on in English also, our state will be called and will be written as Paschim Banga," said Banerjee while addressing a programme here. An all-party meeting was held in the state assembly Friday to discuss the renaming of the state.

"The new name will now be passed in the state assembly then it will be sent to the union ministry of home affairs. From there, it will go to the Parliament and then to the president for assent," Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader Manoj Bhattacharjee who was present in the meeting, told IANS.

"We felt that due to historical and administrative reasons, all of us wanted to rename the state. After lot of discussion we found that it is better to have a name which is closer to the alphabet 'A'. We may not be very closer to 'A' but we have upgraded ourselves from 'W' to 'P' which is much closer to 'A'," Industries Minister Partha Chatterjee said at a media conference here.

Source: IANS

19/08/2011

Live: Massive crowds greet Anna

The big day has arrived; Anna begins his own 'experiments with truth', we bring you events as they happen

India for Anna

Some days in a nation's life are more equal than others. August 19, 2011, is one such day. A Gandhian, Anna Hazare, begins his own experiments with truth - in the form of an indefinite fast - to root out corruption from the soil of this ancient land. We bring you a blow-by-blow account of events and thoughts as they happen.

7.10pm: We are open to discussion with government with open mind but won't compromise on corruption, says Prashant Bhushan.
7. 05 pm: Kejriwal alleges govt betraying people in the name of Judicial Accountability Bill to keep higher judiciary out of Lokpal.
7.00pm: Anna appeals to people not to take or give bribe and demands strict law to deal with corrupt people
6.37pm: Anna addresses people at Ramlila Maidan. Hold referendum on Lokpal. The bill is in now in people's parliament, he says.
06.19pm: All vital signs normal, says Dr Naresh Trehan, after a medical examination of Anna by his team
18.05pm: Amitabh Bachchan comes out in support of Anna's fast. Says "everyone has a right to protest"
5.41pm: Team Anna to hold press conference at Ramlila Maidan at 6pm
5.38pm: Anna undergoes medical examination
5.20pm: If government agrees to other terms, we will consider prime minister being kept out of the purview of the Lokpal , says Team Anna member and the former Lokayukta of Karnataka Santosh Hegde.
03:55: Anna declares: The fight for freedom has started
03:55 pm: Support for Anna continues to pour in from all parts of the country. MSN India reader Pawan Kumar Singla from Bangalore writes, "So far the govt by its actions has got only disgraced.Hope it will see the writing on the wall & show grace and come forward to negotiate & save itself from further ridicule"
03:40 pm: UIDAI chairman Nandan Nilekani feels that merely passing the Jan Lokpal Bill will not serve to curb corruption
03:35 pm: Doctors continue to monitor Anna's health periodically at the fast venue
03:00 pm: Government could have to pay a "heavy price" if it ignores the present popular sentiment, feels Santosh Hegde, former Lokayukta of Karnataka and member of the drafting committee of the Jan Lokpal Bill
02:40 pm: Doctors check Anna, appear to be satisfied
02:30 pm: As a tired Anna takes his seat, camp Anna takes over; continues to arouse and inspire crowd with songs, appeals for continued support
02:29 pm: Anna vows not to budge from Ramlila till Jan Lokpal Bill is passed
02:28 pm: Anna urges supporters to fight not just for Lokpal but for an overall revolution
02:25 pm: "This is a fight for change" - Anna to supporters
2:22 pm: Anna addresses supporters at Ramlila
2:14 pm: Anna reaches India Gate
2:07 pm: Anna and followers on their way to India Gate, the last stop before Ramlila
01:57 pm: A running Anna escorted by police officials past the mammoth sea of people
01:50 pm: Massive crowds greet Anna at Rajghat
01:45 pm: Anna's cavalcade expected to take another hour and a half to reach Ramlila
01:38 pm: Major traffic snarls reported on Anna's yatra route
01:32 pm: Anna reaches Rajghat; next stop en route Ramlila will be India Gate

01:25 pm: Government feels media is exaggerating the strength of the crowds out on the streets - Reports
01:05 pm: Anna disembarks from truck and mingles with the sea of people around before moving into a closed vehicle
12:50 pm: BJP leader LK Advani says if Jan Lokpal is presented as a Private Member's Bill, it will take 2 weeks
12:44 pm: Huge gatherings of people slowing down the progress of Anna's cavalcade
12:26 pm: Kiran Bedi addresses gathering at Ramlila Maidan
12:22 am: Heavy downpour as Anna reaches Mayapuri but crowd continues to swell
12:20 pm: Anna's procession reaches Mayapuri
12:16 pm: Scenes of support and jubilation reported from Anna's village Ralegan Siddhi where people from neighbouring villages have also converged

12:13 pm: Anna expected to reach Ramlila in 3 hours
12:07 pm: Massive crowds throng the roads along Anna's route despite heavy rains
12:05 pm: Anna has reportedly lost 3 kgs in 3 days; his blood pressure is 88/160
12:00 noon: Anna's route from Tihar to Ramlila -- Tihar-Mayapuri-Rajghat-India Gate-Ramlila
11:57am: Unprecedented scenes of support and following as Anna's convoy starts from Tihar to Mayapuri
11:53 am: Anna urges supporters to never let this spirit die
11:55am: Thunderous roar of applause as Anna concludes address to supporters
11:53 am: Anna urges supporters to never let this spirit die
11:50am: The struggle for freedom is incomplete till corruption is wiped out, says Anna
11:47 am: Anna addresses supporters outside Tihar
11:45 am: Supporters greet Anna with huge cheer
11:42 am: Anna emerges from Tihar Jail
11:40 am: Delhi Police says elaborate security arrangements have been made at Ramlila
11:30 am: Even as crowds surge near ramlila Maidan, it does not seem likely that Anna will reach the grounds before 1 pm

11:15 am: Anna set to come out anytime now - thousands waiting with bated breath
10:45 am: Ramlila Ground becomes the new epicentre of the Lokpal protests as thousands await Anna
10:34 am: PM should be part of Lokpal Bill: Varun Gandhi
10:30 am: Government open to looking at Jan Lokpal as Private Member's Bill: Reports
10:18 am: BJP's Varun Gandhi to introduce Jan Lokpal Bill in Lok Sabha
10:08 am: JCP Traffic advises people against travel near Ramlila Maidan
10:05 am: There will be a short rally leading to Mayapuri: Kiran Bedi
10:02 am: Kiran Bedi spells out Anna's route to Ramlila; the leader will address the people outside Tihar and then proceed to Mayapuri. Anna will reach Ramlila via India Gate and Rajghat
10:00 am: Anna to leave Tihar for Ramlila Grounds at 11am

19/08/2011

Anna's day out; on the fast track

Today, the nation turns to Ramlila Grounds where Anna Hazare will begin what promises to be an epic 15-day fast

India rises to join Anna Hazare's crusade against corruption

After negotiations through the night in Tihar jail, Team Anna finally forced the government to back down completely, and prised permission from the government for a 15-day fast at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan. The anti-corruption activist will be walking out of Tihar later today to continue with his fast from there.

In Parliament, though, as Thursday went through its hours, opposition parties were in a tacit understanding with the government that Anna's bill wouldn't get their vote. This, even as Team Anna remained adamant that the Jan Lokpal Bill be tabled in Parliament. The opposition leaders remained coy on making their positions public. Even as they expressed support for Anna's movement for the benefit of TV cameras, off record they were firm that they had little sympathy for his version of the bill.

Outside Parliament, however, the crowds couldn't care less as they cheered the day's developments. A YouTube video of Anna inside Tihar posted by former IPS officer Kiran Bedi was the first glimpse of a combative Anna since his arrest.

"The government betrayed us by not sending our Jan Lokpal Bill to the Union Cabinet. If the government still doesn't agree to our demands, I will take permission for another seven days (beyond the 15 days granted" Anna said in the online post.

India rises to join Anna Hazare's crusade against corruption

The BJP's Rajya Sabha member Prakash Javdekar says that the only point that his party agrees with in the Jan Lokpal version is the inclusion of the prime minister in the ambit of the Lokpal.

His party colleague and Rajya Sabha member Ravi Shankar Prasad says that his party does not want the judiciary to be included in the Lokpal and that there should be a separate law for that.

RJD leader Lalu Yadav in the Lok Sabha was unambiguous in his opposition to the civil society group's insistence on the Jan Lokpal.

During his intervention in the House on Wednesday, he recalled his own political baptism in the Jayaprakash Narayan movement in the 1970s. The popular leader from Bihar said, "There cannot be another Mahatma Gandhi, there cannot be another Jayaprakash Narayan." His conclusion is that Parliament alone has the right to make laws.

Even the CPI's D Raja, a Rajya Sabha member, is firm that "It is the government's bill that is before Parliament and we will consider only that. Where is the Jan Lokpal Bill? There will hundreds of documents outside Parliament but they don't concern us."

India rises to join Anna Hazare's crusade against corruption

Obviously, the opposition has the convenient fiction that it will only deal with what is officially presented to it. Raja's colleague and CPI-M leader Brinda Karat, Rajya Sabha member, felt the government's Lokpal was very weak. But she accused the government of "trying to use Parliament as a shield to fight Hazare".

NDA convenor and Lok Sabha member Sharad Yadav denied that there was any polarisation between the political class and civil society but indicated that the bill needed more discussion. "This is a strange idea you are coming up with," he told DNA. "The Parliament reflects the mood of the people. It is not separate from it."

Meanwhile, the BJP-led MCD swung into action since early Thursday to prepare the venue for Anna's fast. They pressed nearly 250 employees along with several cranes and trucks to clean and level the rain-soaked ground.

The MCD's deputy mayor, Anil Sharma, who is from the BJP, was personally overlooking the arrangements.But his presence at the site immediately drew derisive comments from the Congress who continued to accuse Team Anna of being a BJP/RSS front.

Source: DNA

19/08/2011

Dabbawalas take a break for Anna

Mumbai: For the first time in their 120-year-old history, Mumbai's famous dabbawalas, who deliver tiffins service to over two lakh customers daily, will be taking a break today, to support social activist Anna Hazare in his fight against corruption.

Dabbawalas take a break for Anna

"In the last 120 years, we have not had the occasion to take a day off, come rain or shine. We never stop work. But we have decided to back Hazare's agitation," Sopan Mare of the Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association told reporters.

Dabbawalas take a break for Anna

"To support Hazare, as the whole country is doing so, the 5,000 dabbawalas in the city would hold a rally from Churchgate to Azad Maidan tomorrow," Mare said.

Asked if their customers would be irked if they fail to deliver their tiffins, Mare said "they love us so much that they won't feel offended with our action". "All this is for a cause which we feel is just," he added.

Source: PTI

19/08/2011

Indian Americans rally in Anna's support

Washington: Indian Americans across the US have rallied in support of social activist Anna Hazare's movement against corruption with protests before Indian missions and e-mails to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Indian Americans rally in Anna's support

Indian students at Maryland University continued their week-long vigil in front of the Indian Embassy here Thursday besides mounting a massive social networking campaign to spread Hazare's anti-corruption message.

Reports of rallies in support of the movement in front of the Indian missions have come in from San Francisco and Houston. Protests have also been held in Iselin, New Jersey and Artesia, California ahead of Hazare shifting to New Delhi's Ramlila Ground to continue his fast for a strong anti-graft law.

More rallies are planned across the US this weekend in support of Hazare.

Indian Americans rally in Anna's support

US media too is reporting the protests prominently with the New York Times suggesting that Hazare has driven the Indian government into a political corner. But the Wall Street Journal called the methods being used by the social activist the "grammar of anarchy."

"Fuelled by obsessive coverage on India's all news television networks, the jailhouse protest clearly captured the imagination of the country, and appeared to have backed government leaders into a political corner," The Times said.

But the Journal suggested Hazare was undermining the Indian constitution saying "Methods of Hazare's kind have no place in a democratic republic and, as the architect of India's constitution B. R. Ambedkar warned in 1949, are nothing but the grammar of anarchy."

The social reformer "has become a major thorn in the side of the government, which is led by the Congress party," said the Washington Post. CNN suggested he has become an unlikely figurehead for the fight against corruption in India.

Source: IANS

Civil society

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Civil society is composed of the totality of voluntary social relationships, civic and social organizations, and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society, as distinct from the force-backed structures of a state (regardless of that state's political system), the commercial institutions of the market, and private criminal organizations like the mafia. Together, state, market, civil society constitute the entirety of a society, and the relations between these components determine the character of a society and its structure.

[hide]

[edit]Definition

There is no generally accepted definition of civil society. The London School of Economics Centre for Civil Society's working definition is one illustrative example:

Civil society refers to the arena of uncoerced collective action around shared interests, purposes and values. In theory, its institutional forms are distinct from those of the state, and market, though in practice, the boundaries between state, civil society, and market are often complex, blurred and negotiated. Civil society commonly embraces a diversity of spaces, actors and institutional forms, varying in their degree of formality, autonomy and power. Civil societies are often populated by organizations such as registered charities, development non-governmental organizations, community groups, women's organizations, faith-based organizations, professional associations, trade unions, self-help groups, social movements, business associations, coalitions and advocacy groups.^[1]

Definitions often run into difficulty when they are applied universally across social and cultural divides. As part of their research on the state of civil society in over 50 countries around the world, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, has adopted the following definition as means of dealing with this issue "the arena, outside of the family, the state, and the market where people associate to advance common interests."^[2]

[edit]Origins

From a historical perspective, the actual meaning of the concept of civil society has changed twice from its original, classical form. The first change occurred after the French Revolution, the second during the fall of communism in Europe.

[edit]Pre-modern history

The concept of civil society in its pre-modern classical republican understanding is usually connected to the early-modern thought of Age of Enlightenment in the 18th century. However, it has much older history in the realm of political thought. Generally, civil society has been referred to as a political association governing social conflict through the imposition of rules that restrain citizens from harming one another.^[3] In the classical period, the concept was used as a synonym for the good society, and seen as indistinguishable from the state. For instance, Socrates taught that conflicts within society should be resolved through public argument using 'dialectic', a form of rational dialogue to uncover truth. According to Socrates, public argument through 'dialectic' was imperative to ensure 'civility' in the polis and 'good life' of the people.^[4] For Plato, the ideal state was a just society in which people dedicate themselves to the common good, practice civic virtues of wisdom, courage, moderation and justice, and perform the occupational role to which they were best suited. It was the duty of the 'Philosopher king' to look after people in civility. Aristotle thought the polis was an 'association of associations' that enables citizens to share in the virtuous task of ruling and being ruled.^[3] His koinonia politike as politicalcommunity.

The concept of societas civilis is Roman and was introduced by Cicero. The political discourse in the classical period, places importance on the idea of a 'good society' in ensuring peace and order among the people. The philosophers in the classical period did not make any distinction between the state and society. Rather they held that the state represented the civil form of society and 'civility' represented the requirement of good citizenship.^[3] Moreover, they held that human beings are inherently rational so that they can collectively shape the nature of the society they belong to. In addition, human beings have the capacity to voluntarily gather for the common cause and maintain peace in society. By holding this view, we can say that classical political thinkers endorsed the genesis of civil society in its original sense.

The Middle Ages saw major changes in the topics discussed by political philosophers. Due to the unique political arrangements of feudalism, the concept of classical civil society practically disappeared from mainstream discussion. Instead conversation was dominated by problems of just war, a preoccupation that would last until the end of Renaissance.

The Thirty Years' War and the subsequent Treaty of Westphalia heralded the birth of the sovereign states system. The Treaty endorsed states as territorially-based political units having sovereignty. As a result, the monarchs were able to exert control domestically by emasculating the feudal lords and to stop relying on the latter for armed troops.^[5] Hencefore, monarchs could form national armies and deploy a professional bureaucracy and fiscal departments, which enabled them to maintain direct control and supreme authority over their subjects. In order to meet administrative expenditures, monarchs controlled the economy. This gave birth to absolutism.^[6] Until the mid-eighteenth century, absolutism was the hallmark of Europe.^[6]

The absolutist nature of the state was disputed in the Enlightenment period.^[7] As a natural consequence of Renaissance, Humanism, and the scientific revolution, the Enlightenment thinkers raised fundamental questions such as "What legitimacy does heredity confer?", "Why are governments instituted?", "Why should some human beings have more basic rights than others?", and so on. These questions led them to make certain assumptions about the nature of the human mind, the sources of political and moral authority, the reasons behind absolutism, and how to move beyond absolutism. The Enlightenment thinkers believed in the inherent goodness of the human mind. They opposed the alliance between the state and the Church as the enemy of human progress and well-being because the coercive apparatus of the state curbed individual liberty and the Church legitimated monarchs by positing the theory of divine origin. Therefore, both were deemed to be against the will of the people.

Strongly influenced by the atrocities of Thirty Years' War, the political philosophers of the time held that social relations should be ordered in a different way from natural law conditions. Some of their attempts led to the emergence of social contract theory that contested social relations existing in accordance with human nature. They held that human nature can be understood by analyzing objective realities and natural law conditions. Thus they endorsed that the nature of human beings should be encompassed by the contours of state and establishedpositive laws. Thomas Hobbes underlined the need of a powerful state to maintain civility in society. For Hobbes, human beings are motivated by self-interests (Graham 1997:23). Moreover, these self-interests are often contradictory in nature. Therefore, in state of nature, there was a condition of a war of all against all. In such a situation, life was "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short" (Ibid: 25). Upon realizing the danger of anarchy, human beings became aware of the need of a mechanism to protect them. As far as Hobbes was concerned, rationality and self-interests persuaded human beings to combine in agreement, to surrender sovereignty to a common power (Kaviraj 2001:289). Hobbes called this common power, state, Leviathan.

John Locke had a similar concept to Hobbes about the political condition in England. It was the period of the Glorious Revolution, marked by the struggle between the divine right of the Crown and the political rights of Parliament. This influenced Locke to forge a social contract theory of a limited state and a powerful society. In Locke's view, human beings led also an unpeaceful life in the state of nature. However, it could be maintained at the sub-optimal level in the absence of a sufficient system (Brown 2001:73). From that major concern, people gathered together to sign a contract and constituted a common public authority. Nevertheless, Locke held that the consolidation of political power can be turned into autocracy, if it is not brought under reliable restrictions (Kaviraj 2001:291). Therefore, Locke set forth two treaties on government with reciprocal obligations. In the first treaty, people submit themselves to the common public authority. This authority has the power to enact and maintain laws. The second treaty contains the limitations of authority, i. e., the state has no power to threaten the basic rights of human beings. As far as Locke was concerned, the basic rights of human beings are the preservation of life, liberty and property. Moreover, he held that the state must operate within the bounds of civil and natural laws.

Both Hobbes and Locke had set forth a system, in which peaceful coexistence among human beings could be ensured through social pacts or contracts. They considered civil society as a community that maintained civil life, the realm where civic virtues and rights were derived from natural laws. However, they did not hold that civil society was a separate realm from the state. Rather, they underlined the co-existence of the state and civil society. The systematic approaches of Hobbes and Locke (in their analysis of social relations) were largely influenced by the experiences in their period. Their attempts to explain human nature, natural laws, the social contract and the formation of government had challenged the divine right theory. In contrast to divine right, Hobbes and Locke claimed that humans can design their political order. This idea had a great impact on the thinkers in the Enlightenment period.

The Enlightenment thinkers argued that human beings are rational and can shape their destiny. Hence, no need of an absolute authority to control them. Both Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a critic of civil society, and Immanuel Kant argued that people are peace lovers and that wars are the creation of absolute regimes (Burchill 2001:33). As far as Kant was concerned, this system was effective to guard against the domination of a single interest and check the tyranny of the majority (Alagappa 2004:30).

[edit]Modern history

G.W.F. Hegel completely changed the meaning of civil society, giving rise to a modern liberal understanding of it as a form of market society as opposed to institutions of modern nation state.^[8] Unlike his predecessors, the leading thinker of the Romanticism considered civil society as a separate realm, a "system of needs", that stood for the satisfaction of individual interests and private property. Hegel held that civil society had emerged at the particular period of capitalism and served its interests: individual rights and private property.^[9] Hence, he used the German term "bürgerliche Gesellschaft" to denote civil society as "civilian society" – a sphere regulated by the civil code.^[8] For Hegel, civil society manifests contradictory forces. Being the realm of capitalist interests, there is a possibility of conflicts and inequalities within it. Therefore, the constant surveillance of the state is imperative to sustain moral order in society. Hegel considered the state as the highest form of ethical life. Therefore, the political state has the capacity and authority to correct the faults of civil society. Alexis de Tocqueville, after comparing despotic France and democratic America, contested Hegel, putting weight on the system of civilian and political associations as a counterbalance to both liberal individualism and centralization of the state. Hence, Hegel's perception of social reality was followed in general by Tocqueville who distinguished between political society and civil society.^[8]

This was the theme taken further by Karl Marx. For Marx, civil society was the 'base' where productive forces and social relations were taking place, whereas political society was the 'superstructure'.^[8] Agreeing with the link between capitalism and civil society, Marx held that the latter represents the interests of the bourgeoisie.^[10] Therefore, the state as superstructure also represents the interests of the dominant class; under capitalism, it maintains the domination of the bourgeoisie. Hence, Marx rejected the positive role of state put forth by Hegel. Marx argued that the state cannot be a neutral problem solver. Rather, he depicted the state as the defender of the interests of the bourgeoisie. He considered the state to be the executive arm of the bourgeoisie, which would wither away once the working class took democratic control of society.^[11]

This negative view about civil society was rectified by Antonio Gramsci (Edwards 2004:10). Departing somehow from Marx, Gramsci did not consider civil society as coterminous with the socio-economic base of the state. Rather, Gramsci located civil society in the political superstructure. He underlined the crucial role of civil society as the contributor of the cultural and ideological capital required for the survival of the hegemony of capitalism.^[12] Rather than posing it as a problem, as in earlier Marxist conceptions, Gramsci viewed civil society as the site for problem-solving. Agreeing with Gramsci, the New Left assigned civil society a key role in defending people against the state and the market and in asserting the democratic will to influence the state.^[13] At the same time, Neo-liberal thinkers consider civil society as a site for struggle to subvert Communist and authoritarian regimes.^[14] Thus, the term civil society occupies an important place in the political discourses of the New Left and Neo-liberals.

[edit]Post-modern history

The post-modern way of understanding civil society was first developed by political opposition in the former Soviet block East European countries in the 1980s. From that time stems a practice within the political field of using the idea of civil society instead of political society. However, in the 1990s with the emergence of the nongovernmental organizations and the New Social Movements (NSMs) on a global scale, civil society as a third sector became a key terrain of strategic action to construct 'an alternative social and world order.' Henceforth, postmodern usage of the idea of civil society became divided into two main : as political society and as the third sector – apart from plethora of definitions.

The Washington Consensus of the 1990s, which involved conditioned loans by the World Bank and IMF to debt-laden developing states, also created pressures for states in poorer countries to shrink.^[15] This in turn led to practical changes for civil society that went on to influence the theoretical debate. Initially the new conditionality led to an even greater emphasis on "civil society" as a panacea, replacing the state's service provision and social care,^[15] Hulme and Edwards suggested that it was now seen as "the magic bullet." Some development political scientists cautioned that this view created new dangers. For instance, in "Let's get Civil Society Straight" Whaites argued that the often politicized and potentially divisive nature of civil society was being ignored by some policy makers.

By the end of the 1990s civil society was seen less as a panacea amid the growth of the anti-globalization movement and the transition of many countries to democracy; instead, civil society was increasingly called on to justify its legitimacy and democratic credentials. This led to the creation by the UN of a high level panel on civil society [3]. Post-modern civil society theory has now largely returned to a more neutral stance, but with marked differences between the study of the phenomena in richer societies and writing on civil society in developing states. Civil society in both areas is, however, often viewed as a counter-poise and complement rather than an alternative in relation to the state,^[15]or as Whaites stated in his 1996 article, "the state is seen as a precondition of civil society"^[16]

[edit]Democracy

The literature on relations between civil society and democratic political society have their roots in early liberal writings like those of Alexis de Tocqueville.^[8] However they were developed in significant ways by 20th century theorists like Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba, who identified the role of political culture in a democratic order as vital.^[17]

They argued that the political element of many voluntary organizations facilitates better awareness and a more informed citizenry, who make better voting choices, participate in politics, and hold government more accountable as a result.^[18] The statutes of these organizations have often been considered micro-constitutions because they accustom participants to the formalities of democratic decision making.

More recently, Robert D. Putnam has argued that even non-political organizations in civil society are vital for democracy. This is because they build social capital, trust and shared values, which are transferred into the political sphere and help to hold society together, facilitating an understanding of the interconnectedness of society and interests within it.^[19]

Others, however, have questioned how democratic civil society actually is. Some have noted that the civil society actors have now obtained a remarkable amount of political power without anyone directly electing or appointing them.^[15]^[20] It has also been argued that civil society is biased towards the global north.^[21] Partha Chatterjee has argued that, in most of the world, "civil society is demographically limited."^[22] For Jai Sen civil society is a neo-colonial project driven by global elites in their own interests.^[23] Finally, other scholars have argued that, since the concept of civil society is closely related to democracy and representation, it should in turn be linked with ideas of nationality and nationalism.^[24]

[edit]Globalization

Critics and activists currently often apply the term civil society to the domain of social life which needs to be protected against globalization, and to the sources of resistance thereto, because it is seen as acting beyond boundaries and across different territories.^[25] However, as civil society can, under many definitions, include and be funded and directed by those businesses and institutions (especially donors linked to European and Northern states) who support globalization, this is a contested use.^[26] Rapid development of civil society on the global scale after the fall of the communist system was a part of neo-liberal strategies linked to the Washington Consensus.^[15] Some studies have also been published, which deal with unresolved issues regarding the use of the term in connection with the impact and conceptual power of the international aid system (see for example Tvedt 1998). On the other hand, others see globalization as a social phenomenon expanding the sphere of classical liberal values, which inevitably led to a larger role for civil society at the expense of politically derived state institutions.

[edit]Civil society and constitutional economics

Constitutional economics is a field of economics and constitutionalism which describes and analyzes the specific interrelationships between constitutional issues and functioning of the economy including budget process. The term "constitutional economics" was used by American economist – James M. Buchanan – as a name for a new academic sub-discipline that in 1986 brought him the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his "development of the contractual and constitutional bases for the theory of economic and political decision-making." Buchanan rejects "any organic conception of the state as superior in wisdom, to the individuals who are its members." Buchanan believes that a constitution, intended for use by at least several generations of citizens, must be able to adjust itself for pragmatic economic decisions and to balance interests of the state and society against those of individuals and their constitutional rights to personal freedom and private happiness.[4]

The Russian school of constitutional economics was created in the early twenty-first century with the idea that constitutional economics allows for a combined economic and constitutional analysis in the legislative, first of all, budget process, thus helping to overcome arbitrariness in the economic and financial decision-making and to open entrance to civil society into budget process. Russian model is based on the understanding that it is necessary to narrow the gap between practical enforcement of the economic, social and political rights granted by the constitution and the annual budget legislation and administrative policies conducted by the government. Constitutional economics studies such issues as the proper national wealth distribution. This also includes the government spending on the judiciary, which in many transitional and developing countries is completely controlled by the executive. The latter undermines the principle of powers' "checks and balances", as it creates a critical financial dependence of the judiciary. It is important to distinguish between the two methods of corruption of the judiciary: the state (through budget planning and various privileges – being the most dangerous), and the private. The state corruption of the judiciary makes it almost impossible for any business to optimally facilitate the growth and development of national market economy. Without using a constitutional economics approach to the "Rule of Law and Economic Development", it will be very difficult to build any kind of index for the appraisal of real separation of powers within any national legal system. The standards of constitutional economics when used during annual budget planning, as well as the latter's transparency to the society, are of the primary guiding importance to the implementation of the rule of law. Also, the availability of an effective court system, to be used by the civil society in situations of unfair government spending and executive impoundment of any previously authorized appropriations, becomes a key element for the success of any influential civil society.^[27]

[edit]Examples of civil society institutions

academia
activist groups
charities
citizens' militia
civic groups
clubs (sports, social, etc.)
community foundations
community organizations

consumers/consumer organizations
cooperatives
churches
cultural groups
environmental groups
foundations
intermediary organizations for the voluntary and non-profit sector
men's groups
non-governmental organizations (NGOs)

non-profit organizations (NPOs)
policy institutions
political parties
private voluntary organizations (PVOs)
professional associations
religious organizations
social enterprises
support groups
trade unions
voluntary associations
women's groups

Not every institution of civil society is a 'countervailing power' to the state.

[edit]See also

[edit]Civil-society scholars

[edit]Notes

^ "What is civil society?". Centre for Civil Society, Philippine Normal University. 2004-03-01. Retrieved 2006-10-30.
^ CIVICUS Civil Society Index Methodology -http://www.civicus.org/new/media/CSI_Methodology_and_conceptual_framework.pdf
^ ^a ^b ^c Edwards 2004. p 6.
^ O'Connell 1999
^ Brown 2001:70
^ ^a ^b Knutsen 1997:80–118
^ Chandhoke 1995:88
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Zaleski, Pawel (2008). "Tocqueville on Civilian Society. A Romantic Vision of the Dichotomic Structure of Social Reality".Archiv für Begriffsgeschichte (Felix Meiner Verlag) 50.
^ Dhanagare 2001:169
^ Edwards 2004:10
^ See Lenin, 2010, for a summary of Marx's thought on the State and an introduction to Marxist thought on the state up until 1917. For a detailed discussion of Marx's thought on the state and civil society see Draper, 1977 & 1986 (Volumes 1 and 2)
^ Ehrenberg 1999:208
^ Ibid:30
^ Ibid: 33
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Pawel Zaleski Global Non-governmental Administrative System: Geosociology of the Third Sector, [in:] Gawin, Dariusz & Glinski, Piotr [ed.]: "Civil Society in the Making," IFiS Publishers, Warszawa 2006
^ [1]
^ Almond, G., & Verba, S.; 'The Civic Culture: Political Attitudes And Democracy In Five Nations; 1989; Sage
^ 'ibid'
^ Robert D. Putnam, Robert Leonardi, Raffaella Y. Nanetti; Robert Leonardi, Raffaella Y. Nanetti (1994). Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Modern Italy. Princeton University Press.ISBN 0691078890.
^ Agnew, John; 2002; 'Democracy and Human Rights' in Johnston, R.J., Taylor, Peter J. and Watts, Michael J. (eds); 2002;Geographies of Global Change; Blackwell
^ [2] Pithouse, Richard (2005) Report Back from the Third World Network Meeting Accra, 2005. Centre for Civil Society : 1-6.
^ The Politics of the Governed: Popular Politics in Most of the World, 2004
^ Paper: Interrogating the Civil. Engaging Critically with the Reality and Concept of Civil Society, 2010
^ Pollock, Graham.'Civil Society Theory and Euro-Nationalism' , Studies In Social & Political Thought, Issue 4, March 2001, pp. 31–56
^ Mann, Michael; 1984; The Autonomous Power of The State: Its Origins, Mechanisms and Results; European Journal of Sociology 25: pp185-213
^ United Nations: Partners in Civil Society
^ Peter Barenboim, Natalya Merkulova. "The 25th Anniversary of Constitutional Economics: The Russian Model and Legal Reform in Russia, in The World Rule of Law Movement and Russian Legal Reform", edited by Francis Neate and Holly Nielsen, Justitsinform, Moscow (2007).

[edit]References

Alagappa, Muthiah. Civil Society and Political Change in Asia. Stanford: Standford University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-8047-5097-1
Edwards, Michael. Civil Society. Cambridge, England: Polity Press, 2004. ISBN 0-7456-3133-9.
Draper, Hal Karl Marx's Theory of Revolution (Volume 1: State and Bureaucracy, Volume 2: The Politics of Social Classes). New York: Monthly Review Press, 1977 & 1986.
Flyvbjerg, Bent. "Habermas and Foucault: Thinkers for Civil Society?, British Journal of Sociology, vol. 49, no. 2, June 1998, pp. 210–233.
Hemmati, Minu. Dodds, Felix. Enayati, Jasmin. and McHarry,Jan downloadable copy of Multistakeholder Processes for Governance and Sustainability:Beyond Deadlock and Conflict
O'Connell,Brian.Civil Society: The Underpinnings of American Democracy.Medford, Mass:Tufts University Press, 1999. ISBN 0-87451-924-1.
Perlas, Nicolas, Shaping Globalization – Civil Society, Cultural Power and Threefolding. ISBN 0-95838858X .
Pollock, Graham.Civil Society Theory and Euro-Nationalism , Studies In Social & Political Thought, Issue 4, March 2001, pp. 31–56
Tvedt, Terje. Angels of Mercy or Development Diplomats. NGOs & Foreign Aid. Oxford: James Currey, 1998.
Whaites, Alan, Let's get civil society straight: NGOs and Political Theory, Development in Practice, 1996, [5]
Whaites, Alan, NGOs, Civil Society and the State: Avoiding theoretical extremes in real world issues,' Development in Practice 1998 [6]
Zaleski, Pawel, Tocqueville on Civilian Society: A Romantic Vision of the Dichotomic Structure of Social Reality, Archiv für Begriffsgeschichte Bd. 50/2008

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Categories: Community building | Society | Civil society | Social economy

World Movement for Democracy—Made in the USA

By Tom Barry

The "world's democratic movement" is not another one of the transnational citizens' movements, like the anti-globalization or anti-war movements, that prides itself on having no central structure, no dogma, or even an office. This movement is highly organized, better funded, and even has its own "secretariat." Unlike other leaderless but world-shaking transnational citizens' networks that emerged after the end of the Cold War, the "world's democratic movement" is not a product of global civil society but a quasi-governmental initiative based in Washington, D.C.

Carl Gershman, the longtime president of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) where the movement is headquartered, says that the U.S.-government-backed World Movement for Democracy is "an imaginative new mechanism that can facilitate networking, sharing, and solidarity among democrats around the world."

The leading voice of this "movement" is President George W. Bush. Celebrating the 20 th anniversary of the neoconservative-led National Endowment for Democracy on November 6, 2003, President Bush said, "We've reached another great turning point [in history], and the resolve we will show will shape the next stage of the world democratic movement."

Whereas the democratization strategy that President Ronald Reagan launched in 1982-83 targeted the Soviet Union and its "evil empire," Bush has said that his administration's democratization initiative would focus first on the Middle East, and that the "establishment of a free Iraq will be a watershed event in the global democratic revolution."

In the first State of the Union address of his second term, Bush took America's self-imposed mission to spread democracy and freedom to new heights of idealism, committing the United States to the tasks of spreading democracy around the globe and "ending tyranny in our world."

In keeping with the radical thrust of Bush's foreign policy, the president often refers to this movement in military terms—"forward strategy of freedom" and "global democratic revolution." Calling for a doubling of NED's budget for its democratization work in the Middle East, the president declared, "The advance of freedom is the calling of our time. It is the calling of our country."

NED and USAID Provide Political Aid

Together with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the National Endowment for Democracy has functioned as an instrument of the U.S. government's democratization strategy over the past two decades. Whereas USAID is an agency of the State Department, quasi-governmental NED is organized as a nonprofit but funded almost entirely by the U.S. government.

Since 1982, when President Reagan launched what he called a "crusade" to foster "free market democracies" and spread the a neoliberal version of the "magic of the marketplace," both USAID and NED have channeled U.S. government development and public diplomacy funding into the democratization programs of the international institutes of the Republican and Democratic Parties, the AFL-CIO, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, as well as a wide range of institutes, political parties, and nongovernmental organizations abroad.

As part of the Cold War, the U.S. government in 1947 began channeling political aid through the CIA to political parties, publications, policy institutes, academic institutions, and other nongovernmental actors. After Congress prohibited such covert funding in the 1970s, a U.S. government-funded task force called the Democracy Program, which was directed largely by neoconservatives, proposed a new political aid program that would overtly support the type of nongovernmental entities that previously received CIA funding.1

Soon after Ronald Reagan took office, the new administration put this proposal into action, assigning the U.S. Information Agency (USIA) and USAID as the chief sources of political funding. But rather than channeling the aid directly to foreign actors, the Reagan administration decided, in line with the Democracy Program proposal, that the "democracy-building" aid would flow through U.S. private organizations, mainly the newly created National Endowment for Democracy and its affiliates in the two political parties, labor, and business.

NED and other components of the Reagan administration's democratization strategy were an attempt to revive the post-WWII international networks of congresses, publications, and intellectuals funded by the CIA, such as the Congress on Cultural Freedom, in which many neoconservative forerunners like Irving Kristol and Melvin Lasky were leading figures.

Since its first years NED's "democracy-building" initiatives have had two main thrusts—one to promote U.S.-allied political actors against political parties and governments not closely aligned with the United States (such as Nicaragua, Haiti, Cuba, and Venezuela), and another to promote "free market democracy" in countries regarded as having an overly large government presence in the economy, notably in the "transitional" states of the former Soviet Union. As in the 1980s, when the U.S. government deployed NED to support surrogate "freedom fighters" in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, NED today is a central player in the new U.S.-led "global democratic revolution."

The U.S. government's funding for "democracy building" is closely tied to U.S. foreign policy priorities and generally goes to groups who fall in line with or at least do not oppose U.S. economic, diplomatic, and military initiatives.

"Network of Networks"

In the mid-1990s, the U.S. government and NED concluded that the democracy-building strategy needed an overhaul. Taking its cue from the anti-globalization and other transborder citizens' movements, NED began to establish networks of center-right foundations, research institutes, youth groups, parliamentarians, and nongovernmental organizations. In 1999 NED, with U.S. government and U.S. foundation support, organized the founding assembly of the World Movement for Democracy in New Delhi.

In the age of globalized communication and transnational cyber-networking, as exemplified by the anti-free trade movement, NED decided to start its own global citizens' movement. Rather than just channeling U.S.-government funds to disparate groups, NED's president Carl Gershman in 1999 established his office as the "secretariat" for a World Movement for Democracy.2

The movement's objective is to "offer new ways to give practical help to democrats who are struggling to liberalize authoritarian systems and to consolidate emerging democracies."3

According to NED, "The World Movement helps to fulfill one of the objectives of NED's most recent strategic plan, namely 'to create a community of democrats, drawn from the most developed democracies and the most repressive autocracies as well as everything in between, and united by the belief that the common interest is served by the gradual expansion of systems based on freedom, self-government, and the rule of law'."

Just as the citizens' global anti-globalization movement often described itself as a "movement of movements," NED describes the World Movement for Democracy as a "network of networks," that functions as an umbrella organization for an array of affiliated international networks of citizens' groups, parliamentarians, research institutions, business groups, and foundations. What distinguishes this movement from citizens' networks is that it was created as a U.S. government-supported initiative.

U.S. taxpayer revenues cover the cost of having NED function as the logistical and infrastructural secretariat for this multifaceted democracy movement. Annual State Department allocations cover the four NED staff members who oversee the network from their positions in the office of NED's president. Most of the project funding for NED's WMD, however, comes from right-wing foundations in the United States, led by the Bradley Foundation, which has provided the start-up and general support funding for an array of other neoconservative foreign policy projects, including the Project for the New American Century.

Although the World Movement for Democracy states that it "does not advocate positions on particular political issues," the network's website and publications, such as its ezine DemocracyNews, largely reflect the U.S. government's foreign policy positions with respect to countries such as Venezuela and Cuba.

NED has created regional portals for participants in the network. For example, for Latin America and the Caribbean there is the "Portal de la democracia de las Américas," which opens to the webpage of the Red Ciudadana por la Democracia en las Américas (Citizens' Network for Democracy in the Americas).4

In addition to its regional portals to "citizens' networks," NED through the World Movement for Democracy has established regional forums with more restricted participation, such as the Democracy Forum in East Asia and the Africa Democracy Forum.

Also under the umbrella of the World Movement for Democracy are several other global "pro-democracy" networks that NED has been developing over the past decade, including International Movement of Parliamentarians for Democracy, Network of Young Democracy Activists, Democracy Information and Communications Technology Group, and the Network of Democracy Research Institutes. The latter, which includes as members think tanks and policy institutes throughout the world, receives research and technical assistance from NED's Democracy Resource Center.

As part of its effort to function as a nexus for a "network of networks," NED in 1995 convened a meeting in Taipei, Taiwan in conjunction with Taiwan's Institute for National Policy Research that aimed to spark the creation of "democracy foundations" around the world. In 2003, Taiwan, "following a period of consultation with NED," created the Taiwan Democracy Foundation.5

The Institute for National Policy Research is a think tank that is closely associated not only with NED but with the American Enterprise Institute, the premier neoconservative think tank. Today, there are three dozen foundations that participate in the NED-initiated World Conference of Democracy-Support Foundations.

One of the most recent movement-building exercises of NED is the Movement of Parliamentarians for Democracy, founded in Washington in February 2003. Among the main congressional supporters of this NED networking were Christopher Cox (R-CA) and Eliot Engel (D-NY), both closely associated with numerous neoconservative organizations.

A Neocon Product

Neoconservatives inside and outside the Bush administration have been central players in an array of government-backed initiatives such as the World Movement for Democracy and the Community of Democracies, as well as in such strictly private democratization programs as that of the neocon American Enterprise Institute.

In early 2005 President Bush tapped neoconservative ideologue Elliott Abrams—infamous for his key role during the Reagan administration in the NED-funded efforts to support the Nicaraguan Contras—to direct his Global Democracy Initiative.

Penn Kemble, a longtime associate of Carl Gershman and Elliott Abrams and who, like Gershman, has his political roots in the Trotskyist Social Democrats/USA, served as deputy director of the now-defunct U.S. Information Agency, a stronghold of neoconservatives since the early 1980s. In 1999 President Clinton named Kemble the State Department's special representative for the U.S.-led Community of Democracies Initiative, which established the Community of Democracies at a June 2000 meeting in Warsaw.

NED and the World Movement for Democracy are also promoters of the Community of Democracies—which has been greeted with widespread skepticism by many European nations who regard it as a U.S. strategy to skirt UN authority. Addressing the meeting of the Community of Democracies last April, Condoleezza Rice said that this forum with its commitment to "principled multilateralism" was creating a "balance of power that favors freedom."

NED's new democracy initiatives aim to foster a transnational citizens' network funded and guided by the U.S. government and right-wing foundations that will counter the anti-free trade and anti-imperialist citizens' networks that have emerged in this age of globalized communications.

The close identification of the U.S.-sponsored democracy movement with U.S. foreign and military policy has made great strides forward in incorporating hundreds of citizens' groups around the world.

Already there signs that the movement may prove counterproductive in the region that is the main target of NED's democratization agenda. Throughout the Middle East, as in Cuba and Venezuela, democracy-building is getting a bad name since it is so closely associated with U.S. "regime-change" efforts by undemocratic means.

Tom Barry is the policy director of the International Relations Center (IRC), online at www.irc-online.org .

SOURCES

1. The Democracy Program, an extension of a USAID-funded organization called the American Political Foundation included business and USIA officials, but its key movers were the neoconservatives: Eugenia Kemble (sister of Penn Kemble), George Weigel (later with the Ethics and Public Policy Center and a signatory of the founding statement of the Project for the New American Century), Raymond Gastil of Freedom House, and Allen Weinstein (member of neocon-led Coalition for Democratic Majority and later president of the NED-funded Center for Democracy).

2. "Building a Community of Democracies," NED http://www.ned.org/about/building.html

3. World Movement for Democracy
http://wmd.org

4. World Movement for Democracy, Portal de la democracia en las Américas
http://www.wmd.org/lan/participants/country.html

5. David Lowe, "Idea to Reality: NED at 20," NED, 2003. Lowe is a NED vice president, specializing in government and external relations.

Tom Barry is policy director of the International Relations Center (IRC, online at www.irc-online.org). Barry has written numerous books about Latin America and the Caribbean, and is an analyst for the IRC's Americas Program www.americaspolicy.org.

http://www.globalpolitician.com/print.asp?id=1051

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Arab Spring

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Arab Spring
الثّورات العربيّة
alŦɑurat alOɑrɑbɩȋɑë

Clockwise from top left: Protesters gathering in Tahrir Squarein Cairo, Egypt; Demonstrators marching through Habib Bourguib Avenue in Tunis, Tunisia; Political dissidents inSana'a, Yemen, demanding the resignation of the president; Thousands of demonstrators in Karrana, Bahrain; Hundreds of Thousands in Hama, Syria; Demonstrators in Al Bayda, Libya.

Date	18 December 2010 – present
Location	Arab World (see list of countries)
Status	Ongoing (as of 7 July 2011) Tunisian President Ben Ali ousted, and government overthrown. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarakousted, and government overthrown. Unclear situation in Yemen as Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Salehleaves for Saudi Arabia for medical treatment and hands over power to his Vice President. Libya divided by civil war and experiencing foreign intervention in the form of a no-fly zone and air strikes. Civil uprisings against the governments of Syria and Bahrain, despite government changes. Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon and Oman implementing government changes in response to protests. Morocco implementing constitutional reforms in response to protests. Ongoing protests in Algeria, Iraq, and other countries.
Causes	Demographic structural factors^[1](see section Motivations) Authoritarian states Extreme poverty Government corruption Human rights violations Inflation Kleptocracy Sectarianism Unemployment
Characteristics	Civil disobedience Civil resistance Demonstrations Online activism Protest camps Rebellion Revolution Self-immolations Strike actions Uprising Urban warfare

Casualties

Death(s)

16,841–17,113+ (International estimate; see table below)

The Arab Spring (Arabic: الثورات العربية‎; literally the Arabic Rebellions or the Arab Revolutions) is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in theArab world. Since 18 December 2010 there have been revolutions in Tunisia^[2] andEgypt;^[3] a civil war in Libya;^[4] civil uprisings in Bahrain,^[5] Syria,^[6] and Yemen;^[7]major protests in Algeria,^[8] Iraq,^[9] Jordan,^[10] Morocco,^[11] and Oman,^[12] and minor protests in Kuwait,^[13] Lebanon,^[14] Mauritania,^[15] Saudi Arabia,^[16] Sudan,^[17] andWestern Sahara.^[18] Clashes at the borders of Israel in May 2011 have also been inspired by the regional Arab Spring^[19] The protests have shared techniques of civil resistance in sustained campaigns involving strikes, demonstrations, marches and rallies, as well as the use of social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, andSkype, to organize, communicate, and raise awareness in the face of state attempts at repression and internet censorship.^[20] Many demonstrations have also met violent responses from authorities,^[21]^[22]^[23] as well as from pro-government militias and counter-demonstrators.^[24]^[25]^[26] A major slogan of the demonstrators in the Arab world has been Ash-sha`b yurid isqat an-nizam ("The people want to bring down the regime").^[27]

Overview

The series of protests and demonstrations across the Middle East and North Africahas become known as the "Arab Spring",^[28]^[29]^[30]^[31]^[32]^[33] and sometimes as the "Arab Spring and Winter",^[34] "Arab Awakening"^[35] or "Arab Uprisings"^[36] even though not all participants in protests identify as Arab. It was sparked by the first protests that occurred in Tunisia on 18 December 2010 following Mohamed Bouazizi's self-immolation in protest of police corruption and ill treatment.^[37]^[38] With the success of the protests in Tunisia, a wave of unrest struck Algeria, Jordan,Egypt, and Yemen,^[39] then spread to other countries, with the largest, most organised demonstrations often occurring on a "day of rage", usually Friday after noon prayers.^[40]^[41]^[42] The protests have also triggered similar unrest outside the region.

As of July 2011, demonstrations have resulted in the overthrow of two heads of state: Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali fled to Saudi Arabia on 14 January following the Tunisian revolution protests, and in Egypt, President Hosni Mubarakresigned on 11 February 2011, after 18 days of massive protests, ending his 30-year presidency. During this period of regional unrest, several leaders announced their intentions to step down at the end of their current terms. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir announced that he would not seek re-election in 2015,^[43] as did IraqiPrime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whose term ends in 2014,^[44] although there have been increasingly violent demonstrations demanding his immediate resignation.^[45]Protests in Jordan have also caused the resignation of the government^[46] resulting in former Prime Minister and Ambassador to Israel Marouf al-Bakhit being appointed prime minister by King Abdullah and tasked with forming a new government.^[47]Another leader, President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen, announced on 23 April that he would step down within 30 days in exchange for immunity,^[48] a deal the Yemeni opposition informally accepted on 26 April;^[49] Saleh then reneged on the deal, prolonging the Yemeni uprising.^[50] Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi has refused to step down, causing a civil war between his loyalists and rebels based in Benghazi.^[51]

The geopolitical implications of the protests have drawn global attention,^[52] including the suggestion that some protesters may be nominated for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize.^[53]

—Tunisia

Lebanon—

—Kuwait

—Bahrain

Oman

Yemen

Revolution Civil war Sustained civil disorder and governmental changes Protests and governmental changes
Major protests Minor protests Protests outside the Arab world

Summary of protests by country

Country	Date started	Status of protests	Outcome	Death toll	Situation
Tunisia	18 December 2010	Revolution on 14 January 2011 Protests subdued since March 2011	• Ousting of President Ben Ali^[54] and Prime MinisterGhannouchi • Dissolution of the political police^[55] • Dissolution of the RCD, the former ruling party of Tunisia and liquidation of its assets^[56] • Release of political prisoners • Elections to a Constituent Assembly on 23 October 2011^[57]	223^[58]^[59]	Revolution
Algeria	28 December 2010	Subdued since April 2011	• Lifting of the 19-year-old state of emergency^[60]^[61]	8^[62]	Major protests
Lebanon	12 January 2011	Ongoing		0^[63] ^[64]^[65]	Protests and governmental changes
Jordan	14 January 2011	Ongoing	• King Abdullah II dismisses Prime Minister Rifai and his cabinet.^[66]	1 ^[67]^[68]	Protests and governmental changes
Mauritania	17 January 2011	Subdued since May 2011		1^[69]	Protests
Sudan	17 January 2011	Subdued since April 2011	• President Bashir announces he will not seek another term in 2015.^[70]	1^[71]	Protests
Oman	17 January 2011	Ended May 2011	• Economic concessions by SultanQaboos;^[72]^[73]^[74]^[75] • Dismissal of ministers;^[76]^[77] • Granting of lawmaking powers to Oman's elected legislature^[78]	2–6^[79]^[80]^[81]	Protests and governmental changes
Saudi Arabia	21 January 2011	Subdued since June 2011	• Economic concessions by King Abdullah;^[82]^[83] • Men-only municipal elections to be held 22 September 2011^[84]^[85]	2^[86]^[87]	Protests
Egypt	25 January 2011	Revolution on 11 February 2011 Protests ongoing	• Ousting of President Mubarak and Prime MinistersNazif and Shafik;^[88] • Assumption of power by the Armed Forces;^[89] • Suspension of the Constitution, dissolution of theParliament;^[90] • Disbanding of State Security Investigations Service;^[91] • Dissolution of the NDP, the former ruling party of Egypt and transfer of its assets to the state^[92] • Prosecution of Mubarak, his family and his former ministers.^[93]^[94]^[95]	846^[96]	Revolution
Syria	15 March 2011	Ongoing civil war	• Release of some political prisoners;^[97]^[98] • End of Emergency Law; • Dismissal of Provincial Governors;^[99]^[100] • Military action in Hama, Daraa and other areas;^[101] • Resignations from Parliament;^[102] • Resignation of the Government;^[103] • Small defections within Syrian army and clashes among soldiers;^[104] • Formation of The Free Officers	2,206-2,654^[105]	Sustained civil disorder and governmental changes
Morocco	30 January 2011	Ongoing	• Political concessions by King Mohammed VI;^[106] • Referendum on constitutional reforms; • Respect to civil rights and an end to corruption^[107]^[108]	7^[109]^[110]^[111]^[112]	Protests and governmental changes
Yemen	3 February 2011	Ongoing	• Resignation of MPs from the ruling party^[113] • On the June 4, President Ali Abdullah Saleh is injured in an attack on a mosque in his compound in the Yemeni capital Sana'a, causing him and 35 members of his family, including his wife, as well as the prime minister and the Speaker of the Yemeni parliament, to leave Yemen for Saudi Arabia. As of 7 July, Saleh has not returned to Yemen.^[114] • Vice President Abd al-Rahman Mansur al-Haditakes over as Acting President on 4 June 2011.^[115]	1,016-1,203^[116]^[117]	Sustained civil disorder and governmental changes
Iraq	10 February 2011	Ongoing	• Prime Minister Maliki announces that he will not run for a 3rd term;^[118] • Resignation of provincial governors and local authorities^[119]	28+^[120]	Major protests
Bahrain	14 February 2011	Ongoing, though moderately subdued since March 2011	• Economic concessions by King Hamad;^[121] • Release of political prisoners;^[122] • Dismissal of ministers;^[123] • GCC intervention at the request of the Government of Bahrain	36^[124]	Sustained civil disorder and governmental changes
Libya	17 February 2011	Ongoing	• Opposition forces seize control of numerous Libyan cities^[125]^[126]^[127] • Formation of the National Transitional Council^[128]^[129] • UN-mandated NATO, Jordanian, Qatari, Swedish, and Emirati military intervention^[130]	20,000^[131]	Ongoing civil war
Kuwait	18 February 2011	Ended 31 March 2011	• Resignation of Cabinet ^[132]	0^[133]	Protests and governmental changes
Western Sahara	26 February 2011	Subdued since May 2011		0	Protests
Israeli Borders Countries[show]	15 May 2011	Ended 5 June 2011		30-40^[134]^[135]	Major protests
Total death toll:	16,890-17,113+(International estimate, ongoing)

Background

Motivations

Photo calling on a revolution in the Arab world

Numerous factors have led to the protests, including issues such as dictatorship or absolute monarchy,human rights violations, government corruption (demonstrated by Wikileaks diplomatic cables),^[136]economic decline, unemployment, extreme poverty, and a number of demographic structural factors,^[137]such as a large percentage of educated but dissatisfied youth within the population.^[138] Also, some attribute the 2009 Iranian protests as one of the reasons behind the Arab Spring.^[139] The catalysts for the revolts in all Northern African and Persian Gulf countries have been the concentration of wealth in the hands of autocrats in power for decades, insufficient transparency of its redistribution, corruption, and especially the refusal of the youth to accept the status quo.^[140] Increasing food prices and global famine rates have also been a significant factor, as they involve threats to food security worldwide and prices that approach levels of the 2007–2008 world food price crisis.^[141] Amnesty International singled out Wikileaks release ofUS diplomatic cables as a catalyst for the revolts.^[142]

In recent decades rising living standards and literacy rates, as well as the increased availability of higher education, have resulted in an improved human development index in the affected countries. The tension between rising aspirations and a lack of government reform may have been a contributing factor in all of the protests.^[140]^[143]^[144] Many of the internet-savvy youth of these countries have studied in the West, where autocrats and absolute monarchies are considered anachronisms. A university professor of Oman, Al-Najma Zidjaly referred to this upheaval as youthquake.^[140]

Tunisia and Egypt, the first to witness major uprisings, differ from other North African and Middle Eastern nations such as Algeria and Libyain that they lack significant oil revenue, and were thus unable to make concessions to calm the masses.^[140]

Recent history

The current wave of protests is not an entirely new phenomenon, resulting in part from the activities of dissident activists as well as members of a variety of social and union organizations who have been active for years in Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, and other countries in the area, as well as in the territory of Western Sahara.^[145]

Tunisia experienced a series of conflicts over the past three years, the most notable occurring in the mining area of Gafsa in 2008, where protests continued for many months. These protest included rallies, sit-ins, and strikes, during which there were two fatalities, an unspecified number of wounded, and dozens of arrests.^[145]^[146] The Egyptian labor movement had been strong for years, with more than 3,000 labor actions since 2004.^[147] One important demonstration was an attempted workers' strike on 6 April 2008 at the state-run textile factories of al-Mahalla al-Kabra, just outside Cairo. The idea for this type of demonstration spread throughout the country, promoted by computer-literate working class youths and their supporters among middle-class college students.^[147] A Facebook page, set up to promote the strike, attracted tens of thousands of followers. The government mobilized to break the strike through infiltration and riot police, and while the regime was somewhat successful in forestalling a strike, dissidents formed the "April 6 Committee" of youths and labor activists, which became one of the major forces calling for the anti-Mubarak demonstration on 25 January in Tahrir Square.^[147]

In Algeria, discontent had been building for years over a number of issues. In February 2008, United States Ambassador Robert Ford wrote in a leaked diplomatic cable that Algeria is 'unhappy' with long-standing political alienation; that social discontent persisted throughout the country, with food strikes occurring almost every week; that there were demonstrations every day somewhere in the country; and that the Algerian government was corrupt and fragile.^[148] Some have claimed that during 2010 there were as many as '9,700 riots and unrests' throughout the country.^[149] Many protests focused on issues such as education and health care, while others cited rampant corruption.^[150]

In Western Sahara, the Gdeim Izik protest camp was erected 12 km south-east of El Aaiún by a group of young Sahrawis on 9 October 2010. Their intention was to demonstrate against labor discrimination, unemployment, looting of resources, and human rights abuses.^[151]The camp contained between 12,000 and 20,000 inhabitants, but on 8 November 2010 it was destroyed and its inhabitants evicted by Moroccan security forces. The security forces faced strong opposition from some young Sahrawi civilians, and rioting soon spread to El Aaiún and other towns within the territory, resulting in an unknown number of injuries and deaths. Violence against Sahrawis in the aftermath of the protests was cited as a reason for renewed protests months later, after the start of the Arab Spring.^[152]

The catalyst for the current escalation of protests was the self-immolation of individuals such as Mohamed Bouazizi, which brought together various groups dissatisfied with the existing system, including many unemployed, political and human rights activists, labor, trade unionists, students, professors, lawyers, and others.^[145] These groups have become an unprecedented movement that has built sufficient momentum to engender the current scope of events.^{[citation needed]}

Tunisian revolution

Demonstrators in downtown Tunis on 14 January 2011

Main article: Tunisian revolution

Following the self-immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi in Sidi Bouzid, a series of increasingly violent street demonstrations through December 2010 ultimately led to the ouster of longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on 14 January 2011. The demonstrations were precipitated by high unemployment, food inflation, corruption,^[153] lack of freedom of speech and other forms of political freedom,^[154] and poor living conditions. The protests constituted the most dramatic wave of social and political unrest in Tunisia in three decades,^[155]^[156] and have resulted in scores of deaths and injuries, most of which were the result of action by police and security forces against demonstrators. Ben Ali fled into exile in Saudi Arabia, ending his 23 years in power.^[157]^[158]

Following Ben Ali's departure, a state of emergency was declared and a caretaker coalition government was created, which included members of Ben Ali's party, the Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD), as well as opposition figures from other ministries. However, the five newly appointed non-RCD ministers resigned almost immediately.^[159]^[160] As a result of continued daily protests, on 27 January Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi reshuffled the government, removing all former RCD members other than himself, and on 6 February the former ruling party was suspended;^[161] later, on 9 March, it was dissolved.^[162] Following further public protests, Ghannouchi himself resigned on 27 February, and Beji Caid el Sebsi became Prime Minister.

Egyptian revolution

Main article: 2011 Egyptian revolution

Celebrations in Tahrir Square after Omar Suleiman's statement concerning Hosni Mubarak's resignation

Following the uprising in Tunisia and prior to his entry as a central figure in Egyptian politics, potential presidential candidate Mohamed ElBaradei warned of a 'Tunisia-style explosion' in Egypt.^[163]

Protests in Egypt began on 25 January and ran for 18 days. Beginning around midnight on 28 January, the Egyptian government attempted, somewhat successfully, to eliminate the nation's internet access, in order to inhibit the protesters' ability to organize through social media.^[164]Later that day, as tens of thousands protested on the streets of Egypt's major cities, President Mubarak dismissed his government, later appointing a new cabinet. Mubarak also appointed the first Vice President in almost 30 years.^{[citation needed]} On 2 February, pro-Mubarak activists led a counter-protest that turned violent.^{[citation needed]} Many international journalists complained of harassment and one local journalist was killed in the protests.^{[citation needed]}

On 10 February, Mubarak ceded all presidential power to Vice President Omar Suleiman, but soon thereafter announced that he would remain as President until the end of his term.^[165] However, protests continued the next day, and Suleiman quickly announced that Mubarak had resigned from the presidency and transferred power to the Armed Forces of Egypt.^[166] The military immediately dissolved the Egyptian Parliament, suspended the Constitution of Egypt, and promised to lift the nation's thirty-year "emergency laws". It further promised to hold free, open elections within the next six months, or by the end of the year at the latest.^{[citation needed]} A civilian, Essam Sharaf, was appointed as Prime Minister of Egypt on 4 March to widespread approval among Egyptians in Tahrir Square.^[167] Protests have continued through July 2011, however, in response to Sharaf and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces' perceived sluggishness in instituting reforms.^[168]

Libyan civil war

Thousands of demonstrators gather in Al Bayda

Main article: 2011 Libyan civil war

The protest began in Libya, after the success of the revolution of Tunisia and went out the first demonstration to protest living conditions in the city of Al Bayda on 14 January, and protesters clashed with police and attacked government offices.^[169]^[170] Anti-government protests began in Libya on 15 February 2011. By 18 February, the opposition controlled most of Benghazi, the country's second-largest city. The government dispatched elite troops and mercenaries in an attempt to recapture it, but they were repelled. By 20 February, protests had spread to the capitalTripoli, leading to a television address by Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, who warned the protestors that their country could descend into civil war. The rising death toll, which currently numbers in the thousands, was drawing international condemnation, resulting in the resignation of several Libyan diplomats and their call for the regime's dismantlement.^{[citation needed]}

On 26 February 2011, amidst ongoing efforts by demonstrators and rebel forces to wrest control of Tripoli from the jamahiriya, the opposition set up an interim government in Benghazi to oppose Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi's rule.^[171]^[172] However, despite initial opposition success, government forces subsequently took back much of the Mediterranean coast.^{[citation needed]}

On 17 March, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 was adopted, authorising a no-fly zone over Libya, and "all necessary measures" to protect civilians. Two days later, France, the United States and the United Kingdom intervened in Libya with a bombing campaign against pro-Gaddafi forces. A coalition of 27 states from Europe and the Middle East soon joined the intervention. The forces were driven back from the outskirts of Benghazi, and the rebels mounted an offensive, capturing scores of towns across the coast of Libya. The offensive stalled however, and a counter-offensive by the government retook most of the towns, until a stalemate was formed between Bregaand Ajdabiya, the former being held by the government and the latter in the hands of the rebels. Focus then shifted to the west of the country, where bitter fighting continued. After a three-month-long battle, a loyalist siege of rebel-held Misrata, the third largest city in Libya, was broken in large part due to coalition air strikes. The three major fronts of combat are generally considered to be the Nafusa Mountains (also known as the Western Mountains), Misrata District, and the Gulf of Sidra,^[173] though a fourth front may have opened as of late July 2011 in the southern Libyan Desert.^[174] On the 13th of August, 2011, rebel fighters from the Libyan Nafusa Mountains were able to enter and take parts of the city of Zawiyah, wich is the fourth largest city in Libya. On the same day, the rebels made other advances, including the taking over of some parts of the strategic city of Gharyan. Surman city was taken by rebel forces on August 14, 2011.

Syrian uprising

Main article: 2011 Syrian uprising

Large protests in Al-Assy square inHama

Protests in Syria started on 26 January, when one case of self-immolation was reported. Protesters have been calling for political reforms and the reinstatement of civil rights, as well as an end to the state of emergency which has been in place since 1963.^[175] A "day of rage" was set for 4–5 February, but it was uneventful.^[176]^[177]

In 6 March, the Syrian security forces arrested about 15 children In Daraa south Syria for righting slogans against the regime, children were tortured and brutally arrived reduce nail avulsion, so that made Daraa the first city to protest against the Paathy regime ho have rulling Syria since 1963.

Thousands of protestors gathered in Damascus, Aleppo, al-Hasakah, Daraa, Deir ez-Zor, andHama on 15 March,^[178]^[179]^[180]^[181] with recently released politician Suhair Atassi becoming an unofficial spokesperson for the 'Syrian revolution'.^[182]^[183]^[184]^[185] The next day there were reports of approximately 3000 arrests and a few 'martyrs', but there are no official figures on the number of deaths.^[186] Protests have continued through July 2011, with the government responding with harsh security clampdowns and military operations in several districts, especially in the north.^[187]

On 31 July, Syrian army tanks stormed several cities, including Hama, Deir ez-Zour, Abu Kamal, Daraa, Medmah. At least 136 people were killed in the most violent and bloody day since the uprising started.^[188]

Yemeni uprising

Main article: 2011 Yemeni uprising

protests in Sana'a and other Yemeni cities

Protests occurred in many towns in both the north and south of Yemen starting in mid-January. Demonstrators initially protested against governmental proposals to modify the constitution of Yemen, unemployment and economic conditions,^[189] and corruption,^[190] but their demands soon included a call for the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh,^[191]^[190]^[192] who had been facing internal opposition from his closest advisors since 2009.^[193] A major demonstration of over 16,000 protesters took place in Sana'a on 27 January,^[194] and soon thereafter human rights activist and politician Tawakel Karman called for a "Day of Rage" on 3 February.^[195] According toXinhua News, organizers were calling for a million protesters.^[196] In response to the planned protest, Ali Abdullah Saleh stated that he would not seek another presidential term in 2013.^[197]

On 3 February, 20,000 protesters demonstrated against the government in Sana'a,^[198]^[199] others participated in a "Day of Rage" in Aden^[200] that was called for by Tawakel Karman,^[195] while soldiers, armed members of the General People's Congress, and many protestors held a pro-government rally in Sana'a.^[201] Concurrent with the resignation of Egyptian president Mubarak, Yemenis again took to the streets protesting President Saleh on 11 February, in what has been dubbed a "Friday of Rage".^[202] The protests continued in the days following despite clashes with government advocates.^[203] In a "Friday of Anger" held on 18 February, tens of thousands of Yemenis took part in anti-government demonstrations in the major cities of Sana'a, Taiz, and Aden. In the capital, Sana'a, the crowd marched towards the Presidential Palace, chanting anti-government slogans, despite the attempts of riot police to stop them. Three people were killed in the demonstrations, one of whom was killed by a hand grenade in Taiz. There were also reports of gunfire in Aden during a rally, and as the riots continued overnight protesters set fire to a local government building. Security forces killed one demonstrator, and killed another demonstrator during protests the following day.^[204] Protests continued over the following months, especially in the three major cities, and briefly intensified in late May into urban warfare between Hashid tribesmen and army defectors allied with the opposition on one side and security forces and militias loyal to Saleh on the other.^[205]

After Saleh agreed to accept a Gulf Cooperation Council-brokered plan allowing him to cede power in exchange for immunity only to back away before signing three separate times,^[206]^[207] an assassination attempt on 3 June left him and several other high-ranking Yemeni officials injured by a blast in the presidential compound's mosque.^[208] Saleh was evacuated to Saudi Arabia for treatment, but he handed over power to Vice President Abd al-Rab Mansur al-Hadi, who has largely continued his policies^[209] and ordered the arrest of several Yemenis in connection with the attack on the presidential compound.^[208] It is unclear whether Saleh will return from Saudi Arabia or when he might do so, but he appeared briefly on television from Riyadh to address the Yemeni people on 7 July.^[210] Protests have continued in his absence and are ongoing as of July 2011.^[211]

Concurrent incidents

Concurrent with the events in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria and Yemen, protests flared up in other parts of the region, some of them becoming violent, some of them facing strong suppression efforts, and some of them resulting in various political changes.

Algeria

Main article: 2010–2011 Algerian protests

8 January protests in Algeria.

On 29 December, protests began in Algiers over the lack of housing, quickly escalating to violent confrontations with the police. At least 53 people were reported injured and another 29 arrested.^[212] Over the course of the Algerian protests, three demonstrators were killed, over 800 were injured, and at least 1,100 were arrested.^{[citation needed]} From 12–19 January, a wave of self-immolation attempts swept the country, beginning with Mohamed Aouichia, who set himself on fire in Bordj Menaiel in protest at his family's housing. On 13 January, Mohsen Bouterfif set himself on fire after a meeting with the mayor of Boukhadra in Tebessa, who had been unable to offer Bouterfif a job and a house. Bouterfif reportedly died a few days later, and about 100 youths protested his death, resulting in the mayor's dismissal by the provincial governor. At least ten other self-immolation attempts were reported that week.^{[citation needed]} On 22 January, the RCD party organised a demonstration for democracy in Algiers, and though illegal under the State of Emergency enacted in 1992, it was attended by about 300 people. The demonstration was suppressed by police, with 42 reported injuries. On 29 January, at least ten thousand people marched in the northeastern city of Béjaïa.^[213]

In an apparent bid to stave off unrest, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika announced on 3 February that the 19-year state of emergency would be lifted,^[214] a promise fulfilled on 22 February when Algeria's cabinet adopted an order to lift the state of emergency.^[215]^[216] Bouteflika said on 15 April that he would seek revisions to the country's constitution as part of a broad push for democratic reforms.^[217]

Bahrain

Main article: 2011 Bahraini uprising

Thousands of demonstrators gather for "National demands: An elected government" rally in Karrana, Bahrain on July, 8

The 2011 protests in Bahrain were initially aimed at achieving greater political freedom and respect for human rights, and were not intended to threaten the monarchy.^[218] Lingering frustration among the Shiite majority with being ruled by the Sunni government was a major root cause, but the protests in Tunisia and Egypt are cited as the inspiration for the demonstrations.^[219]^[220] The protests began in Bahrain on 14 February^[218] and were largely peaceful, until a raid by police on the night of 17 February against protestors sleeping at the Pearl Roundabout in Manama, in which police killed three protestors.^[221]^[222] Following the deadly raid, the protestors' aims expanded to a call for the end of the monarchy.^[223] On 18 February, government forces opened fire on protesters, mourners, and news journalists,^[224] prompting protesters to begin calling for the overthrow of the Bahraini monarchy and government.^[225] On 19 February, protesters occupied Pearl Square after the government ordered troops and police to withdraw.^[226]^[227]^[228] On 22 February, an estimated one hundred thousand people, one fifth of the nation's population, marched. On 14 March, at the request of the Crown Prince, GCC Saudi Arabian troops entered the country,^[229] and opened fire on the protesters, several of whom were killed.^[230]^[231] Later thousands of Shia protesters arose in Iraq and Qatif in opposition to the Saudi-led intervention in Bahrain.^[232]^[233]^[234]

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa declared a three-month state of emergency on 15 March and asked the military to reassert its control as clashes spread across the country.^[235] It was later lifted on 1 June 2011.^[236] On 16 March 2011, the protesters' camp in the Pearl Roundabout was evacuated, bulldozed, and set on fire by the Bahraini Defense Force, riot police, and the Peninsula Shield Force, the military arm of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which intervened reportedly at King Hamad's behest.^[237] Later on 18 March, the Pearl Roundabout monument was torn down as part of the crackdown on protesters.^[238]

Since the lifting of emergency law on 1 June, several large rallies have been staged by the Shi'ite community demanding the release of detained protesters, greater political representation, and an end to sectarian discrimination. As of July 2011, medical personnel are being prosecuted for treating injured protesters, and several human rights groups and news organizations have alleged they have been deliberately targeted by the Bahraini government.^[239]

Iraq

Main article: 2011 Iraqi protests

In an effort to prevent unrest, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced that he would not run for a third term in 2014.^[240] Nevertheless, hundreds of protesters gathered in several major urban areas (notably Baghdad and Karbala) on 12 February, demanding a more effective approach to national security, to the investigation of federal corruption cases, as well as increased government involvement in making public services fair and accessible.^[241]^[242]^[243] In response, the government promised to subsidize electricity costs.^[244]

Israel's Haaretz reported that a 31-year-old man in Mosul died from self-immolation, while protesting high unemployment. Haaretz also reported a planned 'Revolution of Iraqi Rage' to be held on 25 February near the Green Zone.^[245]

On 16 February, up to 2,000 protesters took over a provincial council building in the city of Kut. The protesters demanded that the provincial governor resign because of the lack of basic services such as electricity and water. As many as three people were killed and 30 injured.^{[citation needed]} On 24 February, Hawijah, Mosul, and Baghdad featured violent protests.^[246]

Israeli border

Main article: 2011 Israeli border demonstrations

Jordan

Main article: 2011 Jordanian protests

On 14 January, protests commenced in the capital Amman, as well as at Ma'an, Al Karak, Salt and Irbid, and others. The protests, led by trade unionists and leftist parties, occurred after Friday prayers, and called for the government of Prime Minister Samir Rifai to step down.^[262]The Muslim Brotherhood and 14 trade unions said that they would hold a sit-down protest outside parliament the next day to "denounce government economic policies".^[263] Following the protest, the government reversed a rise in fuel prices,^[264] but 5,000 protested on 21 January in Amman despite this effort to alleviate Jordan's economic misery.^[265]

On 1 February, the Royal Palace announced that King Abdullah had dismissed the government on account of the street protests, and had asked Marouf al-Bakhit, a former army general, to form a new Cabinet.^[266] King Abdullah charged Bakhit to "take quick, concrete and practical steps to launch a genuine political reform process". The monarch added that the reforms should put Jordan on the path "to strengthen democracy", and provide Jordanians with the "dignified life they deserve".^[267] This move did not end protests, however, which peaked with a rally of between 6,000 and 10,000 Jordanians on 25 February.^[268] A protest camp led by students calling for democratic reforms was established on 24 March in Gamal Abdel Nasser Circle in downtown Amman,^[269] but at least one person was killed and over 100 injured the next day after pro-government vigilantes clashed with the protesters in the camp, forcing police to intervene.^[270] These clashes and belated police interventions have become a hallmark of the Jordanian protests, with a major rally in central Amman planned for 15 July being derailed by belligerent regime supporters.^[271] As of July 2011, protests are ongoing.

Morocco

Main article: 2011 Moroccan protests

Thousands of demonstrators gathered inCasablanca.

Inspired by events in Tunisia and Egypt, at least four Moroccans set themselves on fire on 30 January 2011 at a protest gathering in Tangier.^[272] According to a media report, Moroccan authorities approved the anti-government protest that was planned through the popular social networking site Facebook. The same report said that the government had welcomed the plan by several Moroccan youth movements to organize an Egypt-style anti-government protest on 20 February.^[273]^[274]

On 20 February, at least 37,000 Moroccans rallied in the capital, Rabat, to demand that King Mohammed relinquish some of his power.^[275] The protests were not aimed at overthrowing the king, however, as he remains revered by Moroccans^[276] Everything calmed down for about a week following the demonstration, but on 26 February about 1000 demonstrators gathered inCasablanca to demand political reform.^[277]

On 9 March, in a live televised address, King Mohammed VI announced that he would begin a comprehensive constitutional reform aimed at improving democracy and the rule of law. He promised to form a commission to work on constitutional revisions, which would make proposals to him by June, after which a referendum would be held on the draft constitution.^[278]

On 20 March, at least 20,000 people,^[279] including many Islamists, participated in peaceful protests in more than 60 cities across the nation. Some of the demonstrators demanded greater political change than what King Mohammed had promised in his 9 March address, while others continued pressuring the government to make the promised reforms.^[280] The police did not intervene and no violent acts were reported.

Oman

Main article: 2011 Omani protests

Protesters set ablaze Lulu Hypermarket inSohar, Oman on 28 February 2011

In the Gulf country of Oman, 200 protesters marched on 17 January 2011, demanding salary increases and a lower cost of living. The protest shocked some journalists who generally view Oman as a 'politically stable and sleepy country'.^[281] Renewed protests occurred on 18 February, with 350 protesters demanding an end to corruption and better distribution of oil revenue.^[282]Some protesters also carried signs with slogans of support for the Sultan.^[283]

On 26 February, protesters in Sohar called for more jobs.^[284] On the following day, tensions escalated with protesters burning shops and cars.^[285] The police responded using tear gas to contain and disperse the crowds of protesters.^[286] Demonstrations also spread to the region ofSalalah, where protesters had reportedly been camping outside the provincial governor's house since 25 February.^[286]^[287] In Sohar, witnesses claimed that two protesters were killed when police fired rubber bullets to disperse the crowds.^[79]^[80]^[81]^[288] Witnesses further reported that protesters burnt a police station as well as the Wali's house (where the representative of the Sultan to Sohar stays).^[289] The Omani protesters insisted that they were not challenging the rule of Sultan Qaboos, who has been in power since 1970, but were merely calling for jobs and reform.^[290] The protesters even apologized to the Sultan for allowing violence rattle the city of Sohar on 28 February 2011.^[291]

The Sultan continued with his reform campaign by dissolving the Ministry of National Economy, setting up a state audit committee, granting student and unemployment benefits,^[292] dismissing scores of ministers, and reshuffling his cabinet three times.^[293] In addition, nearly 50,000 jobs are being created in the public sector, including 10,000 new jobs in the Royal Oman Police.^[294]) The Omani Ministry of Manpower has furthermore directed various companies (both private and public) to formulate their own employment plans. The Royal Army of Oman has also initiated employment drives by publishing recruitment advertisements in newspapers, etc.^[295] The government's efforts largely placated protesters, and Oman has not seen significant demonstrations since May 2011, when increasingly violent protests in Salalah were subdued.^[296]

Saudi Arabia

Main article: 2011 Saudi Arabian protests

Poster for the Saudi Arabia's #women2drive Movement, artwork byCarlos Latuff

In Saudi Arabia hundreds of people protested against the poor infrastructure in Jeddah following flooding.^[297]^[298] At the same time, an online campaign began calling for major political and economic changes. On 5 February, forty women demonstrated for the release of prisoners held without trial.^[299] Several protests of a few hundred demonstrators each took place in late February, and also in early March in the north-east, mostly in Qatif^[300] but also in Hofuf, in al-Awamiyah, as well as in Riyadh.^[301]^[302] Security in the north-east was tightened on 5 March,^[303]and a 'significant' police presence in Riyadh^[304] and Jeddah^[305] prevented protests from occurring on 11 March. A day earlier, three protesters were injured by police gunfire in Qatif.^[300]Nonetheless, protests calling for the release of prisoners took place outside the Ministry of the Interior in Riyadh on 12 March.^[306]^[307]

Following the crackdown during the 2011 Bahraini uprising, frequent demonstrations of a few hundred to a few thousand^[308]^[309] people occurred in and around Qatif from 15^[310] to 25^[311]^[312]March, which demanded the release of prisoners and the withdrawal of the Peninsula Shield Forcefrom Bahrain.^[313]^[314] On 22–23 March, men-only municipal elections to elect half the members of local councils were announced for 22 September 2011.^[84]^[85]

On June 17, the anti-government movement "Women2Drive" has organized a drive-in to demand fairer treatment of women in the country. It was sparked by the arrest and imprisonment of Manal al-Sharif^[315] for driving a vehicle with another woman. al-Sharif has been called a modern Rosa Parks.^[316] Reports of desperation within the government surfaced as the rally is expected to highlight one of the worst gender rights' regimes in the world.^[317] On June 9, several women were arrested north of Riyadh for practicing in a parking lot.^[318]^[319]^[320] On June 15, female drivers in the United States have organized a protest in solidarity with Saudi women, planning to encircle the Saudi embassy in Foggy Bottom.^[321] During the month three females from Minnesota, supported by an advocacy group, announced a gender discrimination complaint against the kingdom's livery services in Rochester to coincide with the "Women2Drive" campaign.^[322]^[323]

Others

• In Kuwait, the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, gave every citizen [1.12 million people] 'free food rations and a grant of $4,000 [1,000 dinars]'.^[324] Officially the grant was in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of Kuwait's liberation from occupying Iraqi forces, as well as of the 50th anniversary of the state's independence.^[325] Dozens of Bedouns demonstrated in Kuwait on 19 February^[326] and opposition groups called for protests on 8 March.^[327]^[328]

In June, hundreds of Kuwaitis marched in an anti-government protest, calling for the resignation of the prime minister.^[329] A 10-year old Egyptian boy named Bassem, whose father is an academic^[vague] at Kuwait University, was expelled from education^[vague] in the country for asking "Why didn't you have a revolution in your country?" Accused of inciting a revolution, the expulsion sparked an outcry, resulting in his reinstatement later that month.^[330]^[331] Soon thereafter, reports surfaced of a crisis growing in the country as a rebellious parliament stepped up pressure on the ruling family over allegations of mismanagement of public funds, corruption and inefficiency.^[332]

• In Lebanon, hundreds or protesters rallied in Beirut on 27 February in a march referred to as "The Laique pride", calling for reform of the country's confessional political system. At the same time, a peaceful sit-in took place in Saida.^[333] On 13 March, tens of thousands of supporters of the March 14 coalition called for the disarmament of Hezbollah in Beirut, rejecting the supremacy of Hezbollah's weapons over political life. They also showed support for the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) after the fall of the Hariri government and the creation of the Mikati government.^[334]

• In Mauritania, Yacoub Ould Dahoud, a protester, burned himself near the Presidential Palace on 17 January, in opposition to the policies of Mauritanian president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.^[335]^[336] The following week, hundreds of people took to the streets of the capital Nouakchott. The mayor of the city of Awjeft, Mohamed El Moctar Ould Ehmeyen Amar, resigned from the ruling party to politically support what he called "the just cause of youngsters".^[337] In addition to the capital Noukchott, cities such as Atar, Zouerate, and Aleg also organised sporadic protests.^[338] Despite minor economic concessions by the authorities, on 25 April protesters again took to the streets to call for the resignation of the prime-minister, Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf.^[339]

• In Qatar, a campaign called "The Freedom Revolution, March 16, Qatar" has been launched on Facebook calling for a revolution against the regime of Qatari Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. However, on 28 February 2011, all the content of the main page of the revolution was deleted and replaced with content in support of the emir.^[340] However there were no reports of major protests taking place. the Qatari media claims that the call for a Qatari Revolution was created by Pro-Assad Syrians against Al-Jazeera for its negative reports against Bashar Al-Assad's crackdown.^[341]

• In Sudan, protests took place on 30 January and 1 February, when hundreds called for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to step down. On 21 February, President Omar al-Bashir announced that he would not seek to run in the next presidential election (in 2015).^[342]

• In the United Arab Emirates, a group of intellectuals petitioned their ruler for comprehensive reform of the Federal National Council, including demands for universal suffrage. About 160 people signed the petition, many of whom were academics and former members of the FNC.^[343] On 12 April, Ahmed Mansoor, a prominent blogger and pro-democracy activist, was charged with possession of alcohol. According to his lawyer, two other men, a blogger and a political commentator, were detained a few days earlier, a charge denied by the police.^[344] In May, the government started expanding its network of surveillance cameras, as a preventive measure against revolts.^[345] In June, Mansoor and 4 other reform activists pleaded not guilty to insulting the ruling family after being charged.^[346]

• In the Palestinian Territories, Haaretz suggested that an announcement by the Palestinian Authority on 1 February to holdmunicipal elections in July was a reaction to the anti-government protests in Egypt. On 14 February, amid pan-Arab calls for reform, the Palestinian Authority's Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, submitted his resignation along with that of his cabinet to President Abbas.^[347] After consultations with other factions, institutions, and civil society groups, Abbas asked him to form a new government.^[348] The reshuffle had long been demanded by Fayyad as well as members of Abbas's Fatah faction.^[348]

• In Western Sahara, young Sahrawis held a series of minor demonstrations to protest labour discrimination, lack of jobs, looting of resources, and human rights abuses.^[151] Although protests from February 2011 onward were related to a series of Sahrawi demonstrationsoutside El Aaiun that originated in October 2010 and died down the following month, protesters cited inspiration from the events in other parts of the region. A few academics, notably Noam Chomsky, viewed the October protests as the starting point from which 'the current wave of protests actually began'.^[349]

Analysis

Ethnic scope

Many analysts, journalists, and involved parties have focused on the protests as being a uniquely Arab phenomenon, and indeed, protests and uprisings have been strongest and most wide-reaching in majority-Arab countries, giving rise to the popular moniker of Arab Spring—a play on the so-called 1968 Prague Spring, a democratic awakening in what was then communist Czechoslovakia—to refer to protests, uprisings, and revolutions in those states.^[350]^[351]^[352] However, the international media has also noted the role of minority groups in many of these majority-Arab countries in the revolts.

In Tunisia, the country's small Jewish minority was initially divided by protests against Ben Ali and the government, but eventually came to identify with the protesters in opposition to the regime, according to the group's president, who described Jewish Tunisians as "part of the revolution".^[353]^[354] The Coptic minority in Egypt was similarly divided by the protests, with Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria calling for them to end but a number of Coptic Christians choosing to join in demonstrations against the regime with their Muslim compatriots, a fact that did not go unnoticed by reporters and commentators.^[355]^[356]^[357]

In Morocco, through a series of constitutional reforms, passed through a national referendum on 1 July, among other things, the Berber language was made an official language alongside Arabic.^[358] During the civil war in Libya, one major theater of combat has been the western Nafusa Mountains, where the indigenous Berbers have taken up arms against the regime while supporting an interim governmentbased in the majority-Arab eastern half of the country.^[359]^[360] Hundreds of non-Arab Darfuris have joined anti-government protests in northernSudan.^[361] In Iraq and Syria, the ethnic Kurdish minority has been involved in protests against the government,^[362]^[363] including theKurdistan Regional Government in the former's Kurdish-majority north, where at least one attempted self-immolation was reported.^[364]^[365]^[366]

Impact of the Arab Spring

Main article: Impact of the Arab Spring

The regional unrest has not been limited to countries of the Arab world. The early success of uprisings in North Africa inspired disenchanted people in the Middle Eastern states of Iran^[367]^[368] and Turkey^[369] to take to the streets and agitate for reforms. These protests, especiallythose in Iran,^[370] are considered by many commentators to be part of the same wave that began in Tunisia and has gripped the broader Middle Eastern and North African regions, even though those countries are not Arab-majority states and most of the protesters therein are not Arab, as exemplified by the Kurdish protests in Turkey.

In the countries of the neighboring South Caucasus—namely Armenia,^[371] Azerbaijan,^[372] and Georgia^[373]—as well as some countries inEurope, including Albania,^[374] Croatia,^[375] and Spain;^[376] countries in sub-Saharan Africa, including Burkina Faso,^[377] Djibouti,^[378] andUganda;^[379]^[380] and countries in other parts of Asia, including the Maldives^[381] and the People's Republic of China,^[382] demonstrators and opposition figures claiming inspiration from the examples of Tunisia and Egypt have staged their own popular protests.

International reactions

Main article: International reactions to the Arab Spring

Protests in many countries affected by the Arab Spring have attracted widespread support from the international community, while harsh government responses have generally met condemnation.^[383]^[384]^[385]^[386] In the case of the Bahraini, Moroccan, and Syrian protests, the international response has been considerably more nuanced.^[387]^[388]^[389]^[390]

Some critics have accused Western governments, including those of France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, of hypocrisy in the way they have reacted to the Arab Spring.^[391]^[392] Noam Chomsky accused the Obama administration of endeavoring to muffle the revolutionary wave and stifle popular democratization efforts in the Middle East.^[393]

Protests have also affected oil prices, contributing to the 2011 energy crisis. The International Monetary Fund said oil prices were likely to be higher than originally forecast due to unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, major regions of oil production.^[394]

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External links

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Pleaseimprove this article by removing excessive and inappropriate external links. (June 2011)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 2010–2011 Middle East and North Africa protests

Middle East at Aljazeera English
Middle East protests at BBC News
Arab and Middle East protests live blog at The Guardian
Middle East Protests at The Lede blog at The New York Times
Middle East protests live at Reuters
Middle East protests collected news and commentary at The Financial Times
- Arab spring: an interactive timeline of Middle East protests, The Guardian
Rage on the Streets collected news and commentary at Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review
Middle East Unrest collected news and commentary at The National
The Arab Revolution collected news and commentary at Spiegel.de
Unrest in the Arab World collected news and commentary at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
The Middle East in Revolt collected news and commentary at Time
Issue Guide: Arab World Protests, Council on Foreign Relations, February 16, 2011
The Shoe Thrower's index, An index of unrest in the Arab world, The Economist, February 9, 2011
Interview with Tariq Ramadan: "We Need to Get a Better Sense of the Trends within Islamism", Qantara.de, 2 February 2011
Arab Revolution Video Blog
Tracking the wave of protests with statistics, RevolutionTrends.org
Arab Spring at the Best of the Web Directory
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August 4 , 2005

Non-governmental organization

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"NGO" redirects here. For other uses, see NGO (disambiguation).

Non-governmental organization, or NGO, is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations (UN), and is normally used to refer to organisations that do not form part of the government and are not conventional for-profit business. In the cases in which NGOs are funded totally or partially by governments, the NGO maintains its non-governmental status by excluding government representatives from membership in the organization. The term is usually applied only to organizations that pursue some wider social aim that has political aspects, but that are not overtly political organizations such as political parties. Unlike the term "intergovernmental organization", the term "non-governmental organization" has no generally agreed legal definition. In many jurisdictions, these types of organization are called "civil society organizations" or referred to by other names.

The number of internationally operating NGOs is estimated at 40,000.^[1] National numbers are even higher: Russia has 277,000 NGOs;^[2]India is estimated to have around 3.3 million NGOs in year 2009 that is one NGO for less than 400 Indians, and many times the number of primary schools and primary health centres in India.^[3]^[4]

[edit]Definition of NGO

NGOs are difficult to define and classify due to the term's inconsistent use. NGO, non-profit organization (NPO) and private voluntary organization (PVO) are the most used terms and are used interchangeably despite differing definitions. Classifying non-governmental organizations within defined boundaries excludes NGOs that fall outside each specific boundary. Additionally, it is beneficial for NGO networks to create a classification that allows similar organizations to exchange information more easily. To attempt a classification of NGOs requires a framework, that includes the orientation and the organization's level of operation. An NGO's orientation refers to the type of activities an organization takes on. These activities might include environmental, development, or advocacy work. An NGO's level of operation indicates the scale at which an organization works on, like the difference in work between an international NGO and community or national NGO.^[5]

One of the earliest mentions of the term "NGO" was in 1945 when the UN was created. The UN introduced the term "NGO" to distinguish between the participation of international private organizations and intergovernmental specialized agencies. According to the UN, all kinds of private organizations that are independent from government control can be recognized as "NGOs." "NGOs" cannot seek to diminish a nation's government in the shape of an opposing political party; NGOs also need to be non-criminal and non-profit. Professor Peter Willets, from the City University of London, argues the definition of NGOs can be interpreted differently by various organizations and depending on a situation's context. He defines an NGO as ""an independent voluntary association of people acting together on a continuous basis for some common purpose other than achieving government office, making money or illegal activities." In this view, two main types of NGOs are recognized according to the activities they pursue: operational and campaigning NGO's. Although Willets proposes the operational and campaigning NGOs as a tool to differentiate the main activities of these organizations, he also explains that they have more similarities than differences. Their activities are unrestricted; thus operational NGOs may need to campaign and campaigning NGOs may need to take on structural projects.^[6]

NGO consultative status with ECOSOC:

A consultative status for an NGO is the right to participate in resolutions and deliberations within the ECOSOC, which is the Economic and Social Council in the United Nations. It also gives the right to participate in other international fora, such as the Human Rights Council.

In order to be eligible for a consultative status, an NGO must have at least two years of existence, which requires to have been properly registered with the respective authorities and government. The organizations must have a democratic constitution, representative authority, established headquarters, accountability for transparent and democratic decision-making and be independent from government control.^[7]

NGOs are defined by the World Bank as "private organizations that pursue activities to relieve suffering, promote the interests of the poor, protect the environment, provide basic social services, or undertake community development".^[8]

[edit]NPOs and NGOs

Common usage varies between countries - for example NGO is commonly used for domestic organizations in Australia that would be referred to as non-profit organizations in the United States. Such organizations that operate on the international level are fairly consistently referred to as "non-governmental organizations", in the United States and elsewhere.

There is a growing movement within the non-profit organization/non-government sector to define itself in a more constructive, accurate way. The "non-profit" designation is seen to be particularly dysfunctional for at least three reasons: 1) It says nothing about the purpose of the organization, only what it is not; 2) It focuses the mind on "profit" as being the opposite of the organization's purpose; 3) It implies that the organization has few financial resources and may run out of money before completing its mission. Instead of being defined by "non-" words, organizations are suggesting new terminology to describe the sector. The term "social benefit organization" (SBO) is being adopted by some organizations. This defines them in terms of their positive mission. The term "civil society organization" (CSO) has also been used by a growing number of organizations, such as the Center for the Study of Global Governance.^[9] The term "citizen sector organization" (CSO) has also been advocated to describe the sector — as one of citizens, for citizens.^[10] These labels, SBO and CSO, position the sector as its own entity, without relying on language used for the government or business sectors. However, some have argued that CSO is not particularly helpful, given that most NGOs are in fact funded by governments and/or profit-driven businesses and that some NGOs are clearly hostile to independently organized people's organizations.^[11]^[12] The term "social benefit organization" seems to avoid that problem, since it does not assume any particular structure, but rather focuses on the organization's mission.

[edit]History

International non-governmental organizations have a history dating back to at least 1839.^[13] It has been estimated that by 1914 there were 1083 NGOs.^[14] International NGOs were important in the anti-slavery movement and the movement for women's suffrage, and reached a peak at the time of the World Disarmament Conference.^[15] However, the phrase "non-governmental organization" only came into popular use with the establishment of the United Nations Organization in 1945 with provisions in Article 71 of Chapter 10 of the United Nations Charter^[16] for a consultative role for organizations which are neither governments nor member states—see Consultative Status. The definition of "international NGO" (INGO) is first given in resolution 288 (X) of ECOSOC on February 27, 1950: it is defined as "any international organization that is not founded by an international treaty". The vital role of NGOs and other "major groups" in sustainable development was recognized in Chapter 27^[17] of Agenda 21, leading to intense arrangements for a consultative relationship between the United Nations and non-governmental organizations.^[18]

Rapid development of the non-governmental sector occurred in western countries as a result of the processes of restructuring of the welfare state. Further globalization of that process occurred after the fall of the communist system and was an important part of the Washington consensus.^[11]

Globalization during the 20th century gave rise to the importance of NGOs. Many problems could not be solved within a nation. International treaties and international organizations such as the World Trade Organization were centred mainly on the interests of capitalist enterprises. In an attempt to counterbalance this trend, NGOs have developed to emphasize humanitarian issues, developmental aid and sustainable development. A prominent example of this is the World Social Forum, which is a rival convention to the World Economic Forum held annually in January in Davos, Switzerland. The fifth World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in January 2005 was attended by representatives from more than 1,000 NGOs.^{[citation needed]} Some have argued that in forums like these, NGOs take the place of what should belong to popular movements of the poor. Others argue that NGOs are often imperialist^[19] in nature, that they sometimes operate in a racialized manner inthird world countries, and that they fulfill a similar function to that of the clergy during the high colonial era. The philosopher Peter Hallwardargues that they are an aristocratic form of politics.^[20] Whatever the case, NGO transnational networking is now extensive.^[21]

[edit]Types of NGOs

NGO type can be understood by orientation and level of co-operation.

NGO type by orientation

Charitable orientation;
Service orientation;
Participatory

Empowering orientation;

NGO type by level of co-operation

Community- Based Organization;
City Wide Organization;
National NGOs;
International NGOs;

Apart from "NGO", often alternative terms are used as for example: independent sector, volunteer sector, civil society, grassroots organizations, transnational social movement organizations, private voluntary organizations, self-help organizations and non-state actors (NSA's).

Non-governmental organizations are a heterogeneous group. A long list of acronyms has developed around the term "NGO".

These include:

BINGO, short for Business-friendly International NGO or Big International NGO;
National NGO: A non-governmental organization that exists only in one country. This term is usually rare due to the globalization of Non-governmental organizations, which causes an NGO to exist in more than one country.^[6]
CSO, short for civil society organization;
DONGO: Donor Organized NGO;
ENGO: short for environmental NGO, such as Greenpeace and WWF
NNGO, short for Northern non governmental organization.
IDCIs, short for international development cooperation institutions.
SNGOs, short for Southern nongovernmental organizations
SCOS, also known as social change organizations
GONGOs are government-operated NGOs, which may have been set up by governments to look like NGOs in order to qualify for outside aid or promote the interests of the government in question;
INGO stands for international NGO; Oxfam, INSPAD INSTITUTE OF PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT "A European Think Tank For Peace Initiatives" ;
QUANGOs are quasi-autonomous non-governmental organizations, such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). (The ISO is actually not purely an NGO, since its membership is by nation, and each nation is represented by what the ISO Council determines to be the 'most broadly representative' standardization body of a nation. That body might itself be a nongovernmental organization; for example, the United States is represented in ISO by the American National Standards Institute, which is independent of the federal government. However, other countries can be represented by national governmental agencies; this is the trend in Europe.)
TANGO: short for technical assistance NGO;
TNGO: short for transnational NGO; The term emerged during the 1970s due to the increase of environmental and economic issues in the global community. TNGO includes non-governmental organizations that are not confined to only one country, but exist in two or more countries.
GSO: Grassroots Support Organization
MANGO: short for market advocacy NGO
NGDO: non-governmental development organization

USAID refers to NGOs as private voluntary organisations. However many scholars have argued that this definition is highly problematic as many NGOs are in fact state and corporate funded and managed projects with professional staff.^{[citation needed]}

NGOs exist for a variety of reasons, usually to further the political or social goals of their members or funders. Examples include improving the state of the natural environment, encouraging the observance of human rights, improving the welfare of the disadvantaged, or representing a corporate agenda. However, there are a huge number of such organizations and their goals cover a broad range of political and philosophical positions. This can also easily be applied to private schools and athletic organizations.

[edit]Environmental NGOs

Environmental NGOs work on cases related to the environment. An example of an ENGO is Greenpeace. Just like other TNGOs networks, transnational environmental networks might acquire a variety of benefits in sharing information with other organizations, campaigning towards an issue, and exchanging contact information. Since Transnational environmental NGOs advocate for different issues like public goods, such as pollution in the air, deforestation of areas and water issues, it is more difficult for them to give their campaigns a human face than TNGOs campaigning directly for human rights issues.

Some of the earliest forms of transnational environmental NGOs started to appear after the Second World War with the creation of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). After the UN was formed in 1945, more environmental NGO started to emerge in order to address more specific environmental issues. In 1946, the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was created with the purpose of advocating and representing scientific issues and collaboration among environmental NGOs. In 1969, the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE) was funded to increase and improve collaboration among environmentalists. This collaboration was later reinforced and stimulated with the creation of UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Program in 1971. In 1972, the UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, tried to address the issues on Sweden's plead for international intervention on trans-boundary pollution from other European industrialized nations.

Transnational environmental NGOs have taken on diverse issues around the globe, but one of the best-known cases involving the work of environmental NGO's can be traced back to Brazil during the 1980s. The United States got involved with deforestation concerns due to the allegations of environmentalists dictating deforestation to be a global concern, and after 1977 the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act added an Environmental and Natural Resources section.

During the early 1980s the Brazilian government created the Polonoreste developing program, which the World Bank agreed to finance. The Polonoreste program aimed to urbanized areas of the Amazon, which were already occupied by local indigenous groups. Rapid deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon called the attention and intervention of UNESCO, who utilized its Program on Man and the Biosphere to advocate against the Polonoreste program, on the grounds of violating the rights of the indigenous groups living in the Amazon. In the case of deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon, the environment NGOs were able to put pressure on the World Bank to cancel the loans for the Polonoreste program. Due to the leverage that the U.S. has over the bank, in 1985 the World Bank suspended the financial aid to the Polonoreste Program. The work of environmental NGOs in the Brazilian case was successful because there was a point of leverage that made the targeted actor vulnerable to international pressure.^[22]

Even though the goals of environmental NGOs might have in common issues related to the environment, its exploitation and how to protect it, these organizations are very diverse and lack a central form of international hegemony. There is, however a clear distinction between the interests and goals among groups located in industrialized countries, often referred as the states of the north, and nations located in developing countries or southern states. Northern states mainly concern includes issues due to poverty, increase of population in developing countries and economic development in the north. In the other hand, southern states blame developing countries for overconsumption and pollution resulting from industrialization. Groups from poorer nations blame the industrialized world for inequalities in the international economic system and negatively criticize the implementation of polluting companies in southern states.

There is also a distinction among groups that take on particular and specific socioeconomic issues related to the environment. The Women's Environment and Development Organization was created in 1990 with the purpose to advocate for gender inclusion in work related to the Earth Summit. Other groups might focus on issues that include racial minorities and individuals from lower income backgrounds.^[23]

[edit]Activities

There are also numerous classifications of NGOs. The typology the World Bank uses divides them into Operational and Advocacy:^[24]

Operational NGOs Operational NGOs seek to "achieve small scale change directly through projects."^[25] " They mobilize financial resources, materials and volunteers to create localized programs in the field. They hold large scale fundraising events, apply to governments and organizations for grants and contracts in order to raise money for projects. They often operate in a hierarchical structure; with a main headquarters staffed by professionals who plan projects, create budgets, keep accounts, report, and communicate with operational fieldworkers who work directly on projects^[25] Operational NGOs deal with a wide range of issues, but are most often associated with the delivery of services and welfare, emergency relief and environmental issues. Operational NGOs can be further categorized, one frequently used categorization is the division into relief-oriented versus development-oriented organizations; they can also be classified according to whether they stress service delivery or participation; or whether they are religious or secular; and whether they are more public or private-oriented. Operational NGOs can be community-based, national or international. The defining activity of operational NGOs is implementing projects.^[25]

Campaigning NGOs Campaigning NGOs seek to "achieve large scale change promoted indirectly through influence of the political system."^[25] Campaigning NGOs need an efficient and effective group of professional members who are able to keep supporters informed, and motivated. They must plan and host demonstrations and events that will keep their cause in the media. They must maintain a large informed network of supporters who can be mobilized for events to garner media attention and influence policy changes. The defining activity of campaigning NGOs is holding demonstrations.^[25] Campaigning NGOs often deal with issues relating to human rights, women's rights, children's rights. The primary purpose of an Advocacy NGO is to defend or promote a specific cause. As opposed to operational project management, these organizations typically try to raise awareness, acceptance and knowledge by lobbying, press work and activist events.

Operational and Campaigning NGOs It is not uncommon for NGOs to make use of both activities. Many times, operational NGOs will use campaigning techniques if they continually face the same issues in the field that could be remedied through policy changes. At the same time, Campaigning NGOs, like human rights organizations often have programs that assist the individual victims they are trying to help through their advocacy work.^[25]

Concerns about NGOs

NGOs were intended to fill a gap in government services, but in countries like India, NGOs are gaining a powerful stronghold in decision making. In the interest of sustainability, most donors require that NGOs demonstrate a relationship with governments. State Governments themselves are vulnerable because they lack strategic planning and vision. They are therefore sometimes tightly bound by a nexus of NGOs, political bodies, commercial organizations and major donors/funders, making decisions that have short term outputs but no long term affect. NGOs in India are under regulated, political, and recipients of large government and international donor funds. NGOs often take up responsibilities outside their skill ambit. Governments have no access to the number of projects or amount of funding received by these NGOs. There is a pressing need to regulate this group while not curtailing their unique role as a supplement to government services.

[edit]Methods

NGOs vary in their methods. Some act primarily as lobbyists, while others primarily conduct programs and activities. For instance, an NGO such as Oxfam, concerned with poverty alleviation, might provide needy people with the equipment and skills to find food and clean drinking water, whereas an NGO like the FFDA helps through investigation and documentation of human rights violations and provides legal assistance to victims of human rights abuses. Others, such as Afghanistan Information Management Services, provide specialized technical products and services to support development activities implemented on the ground by other organizations.

[edit]Public relations

Non-governmental organisations need healthy relationships with the public to meet their goals. Foundations and charities use sophisticated public relations campaigns to raise funds and employ standard lobbying techniques with governments. Interest groups may be of political importance because of their ability to influence social and political outcomes. A code of ethics^[26] was established in 2002 by The World Association of Non Governmental NGOs.

[edit]Project management

There is an increasing awareness that management techniques are crucial to project success in non-governmental organizations.^[27]Generally, non-governmental organizations that are private have either a community or environmental focus. They address varieties of issues such as religion, emergency aid, or humanitarian affairs. They mobilize public support and voluntary contributions for aid; they often have strong links with community groups in developing countries, and they often work in areas where government-to-government aid is not possible. NGOs are accepted as a part of the international relations landscape, and while they influence national and multilateral policy-making, increasingly they are more directly involved in local action.

[edit]Staffing

Not all people working for non-governmental organizations are volunteers.

There is some dispute as to whether expatriates should be sent to developing countries. Frequently this type of personnel is employed to satisfy a donor who wants to see the supported project managed by someone from an industrialized country. However, the expertise these employees or volunteers may be counterbalanced by a number of factors: the cost of foreigners is typically higher, they have no grassroot connections in the country they are sent to, and local expertise is often undervalued.^[24]

The NGO sector is an important employer in terms of numbers.^{[citation needed]} For example, by the end of 1995, CONCERN worldwide, an international Northern NGO working against poverty, employed 174 expatriates and just over 5,000 national staff working in ten developing countries in Africa and Asia, and in Haiti.

[edit]Funding

Large NGOs may have annual budgets in the hundreds of millions or billions of dollars. For instance, the budget of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) was over US$540 million in 1999.^[28] Funding such large budgets demands significant fundraising efforts on the part of most NGOs. Major sources of NGO funding are membership dues, the sale of goods and services, grants from international institutions or national governments, and private donations. Several EU-grants provide funds accessible to NGOs.

Even though the term "non-governmental organization" implies independence from governments, most NGOs depend heavily on governments for their funding.^[11] A quarter of the US$162 million income in 1998 of the famine-relief organization Oxfam was donated by the British government and the EU. The Christian relief and development organization World Vision United States collected US$55 million worth of goods in 1998 from the American government. Nobel Prize winner Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) (known in the USA as Doctors Without Borders) gets 46% of its income from government sources.^[29]

Government funding of NGOs is controversial, since, according to David Rieff, writing in The New Republic, "the whole point of humanitarian intervention was precisely that NGOs and civil society had both a right and an obligation to respond with acts of aid and solidarity to people in need or being subjected to repression or want by the forces that controlled them, whatever the governments concerned might think about the matter."^[30] Some NGOs, such as Greenpeace do not accept funding from governments or intergovernmental organizations.^[31]^[32]

[edit]Monitoring and control

In a March 2000 report on United Nations Reform priorities, former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan wrote in favor of international humanitarian intervention, arguing that the international community has a "right to protect" citizens of the world against ethnic cleansing, genocide, and crimes against humanity. On the heels of the report, the Canadian government launched the Responsibility to ProtectR2PPDF (434 KiB) project, outlining the issue of humanitarian intervention. While the R2P doctrine has wide applications, among the more controversial has been the Canadian government's use of R2P to justify its intervention and support of the coup in Haiti.^[33] Years after R2P, the World Federalist Movement, an organization which supports "the creation of democratic global structures accountable to the citizens of the world and call for the division of international authority among separate agencies", has launched Responsibility to Protect - Engaging Civil Society (R2PCS). A collaboration between the WFM and the Canadian government, this project aims to bring NGOs into lockstep with the principles outlined under the original R2P project.

The governments of the countries an NGO works or is registered in may require reporting or other monitoring and oversight. Funders generally require reporting and assessment, such information is not necessarily publicly available. There may also be associations and watchdog organizations that research and publish details on the actions of NGOs working in particular geographic or program areas.^{[citation needed]}

In recent years, many large corporations have increased their corporate social responsibility departments in an attempt to preempt NGO campaigns against certain corporate practices. As the logic goes, if corporations work with NGOs, NGOs will not work against corporations.

In December 2007, The United States Department of Defense Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs) S. Ward Casscells established an International Health Division under Force Health Protection & Readiness.^[34] Part of International Health's mission is to communicate with NGOs in areas of mutual interest. Department of Defense Directive 3000.05,^[35] in 2005, requires DoD to regard stability-enhancing activities as a mission of importance equal to combat. In compliance with international law, DoD has necessarily built a capacity to improve essential services in areas of conflict such as Iraq, where the customary lead agencies (State Department and USAID) find it difficult to operate. Unlike the "co-option" strategy described for corporations, the OASD(HA) recognizes the neutrality of health as an essential service. International Health cultivates collaborative relationships with NGOs, albeit at arms-length, recognizing their traditional independence, expertise and honest broker status. While the goals of DoD and NGOs may seem incongruent, the DoD's emphasis on stability and security to reduce and prevent conflict suggests, on careful analysis, important mutual interests.

[edit]Legal status

The legal form of NGOs is diverse and depends upon homegrown variations in each country's laws and practices. However, four main family groups of NGOs can be found worldwide:^[36]

Unincorporated and voluntary association
Trusts, charities and foundations
Companies not just for profit
Entities formed or registered under special NGO or nonprofit laws

NGOs are not subjects of international law, as states are. An exception is the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is subject to certain specific matters, mainly relating to the Geneva Convention.

The Council of Europe in Strasbourg drafted the European Convention on the Recognition of the Legal Personality of International Non-Governmental Organizations in 1986, which sets a common legal basis for the existence and work of NGOs in Europe. Article 11 of theEuropean Convention on Human Rights protects the right to freedom of association, which is also a fundamental norm for NGOs.

[edit]Critiques

Stuart Becker provides the following summary of the primary critiques of NGOs: "There's a debate that, NGOs take the place of what should belong to popular movements of the poor. Others argue that NGOs are often imperialist in nature, that they sometimes operate in a racist manner in Third World countries and that they fulfill a similar function to that of the clergy during the colonial era. Philosopher Peter Hallwardargues that they are an aristocratic form of politics."^[37]

Issa G. Shivji is one of Africa's leading experts on law and development issues as an author and academic. His critique on NGOs is found in two essays: "Silences in NGO discourse: The role and future of NGOs in Africa" and "Reflections on NGOs in Tanzania: What we are, what we are not and what we ought to be". Shivji argues that despite the good intentions of NGO leaders and activists, he is critical of the "objective effects of actions, regardless of their intentions".^[38] Shivji argues also that the sudden rise of NGOs are part of a neoliberalparadigm rather than pure altruistic motivations. He is critical of the current manifestations of NGOs wanting to change the world without understanding it, and that the imperial relationship continues today with the rise of NGOs.

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2011)

[edit]Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages

1. They have the ability to experiment freely with innovative approaches and, if necessary, to take risks.

2. They are flexible in adapting to local situations and responding to local needs and therefore able to develop integrated projects, as well as sectoral projects.

3. They enjoy good rapport with people and can render micro-assistance to very poor people as they can identify those who are most in need and tailor assistance to their needs.

4. They have the ability to communicate at all levels, from the neighbourhood to the top levels of government.

5. They are able to recruit both experts and highly motivated staff with fewer restrictions than the government.

Disadvantages

1. Paternalistic attitudes restrict the degree of participation in program/project design.

2. Restricted/constrained ways of approach to a problem or area.

3. Reduced/less replicability of an idea, due to non-representativeness of the project or selected area, relatively small project coverage, dependence on outside financial resources, etc.

4. "Territorial possessiveness" of an area or project reduces cooperation between agencies, seen as threatening or competitive.

5. Top-down models of development minimize the role of local knowledge and ownership to submit or conform to international norms and expectations.

6. Dependency on external assistance decreases the pressure for local and national governments to provide for their citizens.

[edit]Education

[edit]See also

[edit]Notes and references

^ (Anheier et al., "Global Civil Society 2001", 2001)
^ "Hobbled NGOs wary of Medvedev — chicagotribune.com".Chicago Tribune.
^ oneworld.net
^ [1]
^ Vakil, Anna. "Confronting the Classification Problem: Toward a Taxonomy of NGOs"
^ ^a ^b Willets, Peter. "What is a Non-Governmental Organization?"
^ UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs
^ Operational Directive 14.70 - see NGO Research Guide, Duke University Libraries.
^ Glasius, Marlies, Mary Kaldor and Helmut Anheier (eds.) "Global Civil Society 2006/7". London: Sage, 2005.
^ Drayton, W: "Words Matter". Alliance Magazine, Vol. 12/No.2, June 2007.
^ ^a ^b ^c Pawel Zaleski Global Non-governmental Administrative System: Geosociology of the Third Sector, [in:] Gawin, Dariusz & Glinski, Piotr [ed.]: "Civil Society in the Making", IFiS Publishers, Warszawa 2006
^ South African Grassroots Movements Rebel Against NGO Authoritarianism
^ The Rise and Fall of Transnational Civil Society: The Evolution of International Non-Governmental Organizations since 1839. By T. R. Davies City University London Working Paper. Steve Charnovitz, "Two Centuries of Participation: NGOs and International Governance, Michigan Journal of International Law, Winter 1997.
^ Subcontracting Peace - The Challenges of NGO Peacebuilding. Edited by: Richmond, Oliver P., and Carey, Henry F. Published by Ashgate, 2005. Page 21.
^ Davies, Thomas Richard (2007). The Possibilities of Transnational Activism: the Campaign for Disarmament between the Two World Wars. ISBN 978 9004162 58 7.
^ Charter of the United Nations: Chapter X
^ Agenda 21 - Chapter 27: Strengthening the Role of Non-governmental Organizations: Partners for Sustainable Development, Earth Summit, 1992
^ 1996/31. Consultative relationship between the United Nations and non-governmental organizations
^ Abahlali baseMjondolo Rethinking Public Participation from below, 'Critical Dialogue', 2006
^ See his Damming the Flood (Verso, London, 2007.)
^ Stone, Diane. "Transfer Agents and Global Networks in the 'Transnationalisation' of Policy", Journal of European Public Policy.austiniskewl, 11(3) 2004: 545–66.
^ Keck and Sikkink. "Environmental Advocacy Networks"
^ McCormick, John. "The Role of Environmental NGOs in International Regimes"
^ ^a ^b World Bank Criteria defining NGO
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Willitts, Peter. "What Is a Non-Governmental Organization". UNESCO Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems. Eolss Publishers, Oxford, UK, 2002.
^ Wango.org
^ LSE.ac.uk, Mukasa, Sarah. Are expatriate staff necessary in international development NGOs? A case study of an international NGO in Uganda. Publication of the Centre for Civil Society at London School of Economics. 2002, p. 11–13.
^ "Poll shows power of AIPAC drops slightly". Jewish News Weekly of Northern California. 1999-12-19. Retrieved 2007-06-25.
^ Intractable Conflict Knowledge Base Project of the Conflict Research Consortium at the University of Colorado.
^ NG-Uh-O - The trouble with humanitarianism David Rieff, June 10, 2010, The New Republic
^ Harvard Business School, HBS Cases: The Value of Environmental Activists
^ Greenpeace, Annual Report 2008 (pdf)
^ Engler, Fenton, Yves, Anthony (2005). Canada in Haiti: Waging War on the Poor Majority. Vancouver, Winnipeg: RED Publishing. pp. 120. ISBN 9781552661680.
^ OSD.mil
^ DTIC.mil
^ Grant B. Stillman (2007), Global Standard NGOs, Geneva: Lulu, pp. 13-14.
^ The definitive description of a non-government organisation, Friday, 28 January 2011 16:43 Stuart Alan Becker, The Phnom Penh Post
^ Shivji, Issa G. (2007). Silence in NGO discourse: the role and future of NGOs in Africa. Oxford, UK: Fahamu. pp. 84. ISBN 978-0-9545637-5-2.

[edit]Further reading

Mark Butler, with Thulani Ndlazi, David Ntseng, Graham Philpott, and Nomusa Sokhela. NGO Practice and the Possibility of FreedomChurch Land Programme, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa 2007 Churchland.co.za
Olivier Berthoud, NGOs: Somewhere between Compassion, Profitability and Solidarity Envio.org.ni, PDF Edinter.net Envio, Managua, 2001
Terje Tvedt, 19982/2003: Angels of Mercy or Development Diplomats. NGOs & Foreign Aid, Oxford: James Currey
Steve W. Witt, ed. Changing Roles of NGOs in the Creation, Storage, and Dissemination of Information in Developing Countries (Saur, 2006). ISBN 3-598-22030-8
Cox, P. N. Shams, G. C. Jahn, P. Erickson and P. Hicks. 2002. Building collaboration between NGOs and agricultural research institutes. Cambodian Journal of Agriculture 6: 1-8. IRRI.org
Ann Florini, ed. The Third Force: The Rise of Transnational Civil Society (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Japan Center for International Exchange, 2001).
Margaret Keck and Kathryn Sikkink. 1998. Activists Beyond Borders: Advocacy Networks in International Politics. Cornell University Press
Rodney Bruce Hall, and Biersteker, Thomas. The Emergence of Private Authority in Global Governance (Cambridge Studies in International Relations, 2003)
Dorthea Hilhorst, The Real World of NGOs: Discourses, Diversity and Development, Zed Books, 2003
Joan Roelofs, Foundations and Public Policy: The Mask of Pluralism (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2003).
Ian Smillie, & Minear, Larry, editors. The Charity of Nations: Humanitarian Action in a Calculating World, Kumarian Press, 2004
Simon Maxwell and Diane Stone. (eds) Global Knowledge Networks and International Development: Bridges Across Boundaries(Routledge, 2005: I-xix; 1-192).
Sidney Tarrow, The New Transnational Activism, New York :Cambridge University Press, 2005
Thomas Ward, editor. Development, Social Justice, and Civil Society: An Introduction to the Political Economy of NGOs, Paragon House, 2005
H. Teegen, 2003. 'International NGOs as Global Institutions: Using Social Capital to Impact Multinational Enterprises and Governments', Journal of International Management.
Jennifer Brinkerhoff, Stephen C. Smith, and Hildy Teegen, NGOs and the Millennium Development Goals: Citizen Action to Reduce Poverty, Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
S.Goonatilake. Recolonisation: Foreign Funded NGO's in Sri Lanka, Sage Publications 2006.
Teegen, H. Doh, J., Vachani, S., 2004. "The importance of nongovernmental organisation in global governance and value creation: an international business research agenda" in Journal of International Business Studies. Washington: Vol. 35, Iss.6.
K. Rodman, (1998)."'Think Globally, Punish Locally: Nonstate Actors, Multinational Corporations, and Human Rights Sanctions" in Ethics in International Affairs, vol. 12.
Grant B. Stillman (2006), NGO Law and Governance: a resource book, ADB Institute, Tokyo, ISBN 4-89974-013-1.

More useful are regional histories and analyses of the experience of NGOs. Specific works (although this is by no means an exhaustive list) include:

T. R. Davies, The Possibilities of Transnational Activism: The Campaign for Disarmament between the Two World Wars, Brill, 2007.ISBN 3-598-22030-8
H. Englund, Prisoners of Freedom: Human Rights & the Africa Poor, University of California Press, 2006
Carrie Meyer, The Economics and Politics of NGOs in Latin America, Praeger Publishers, July 30, 1999
Chhandasi Pandya. 2006. Private Authority and Disaster Relief: The Cases of Post-Tsunami Aceh and Nias. Critical Asian Studies. Vol. 38, No. 2. Pg. 298-308. Routledge Press: Taylor & Francis Group
Maha Abdelrahman, Civil Society Exposed: The Politics of NGOs in Egypt, The American University in Cairo Press, 2004. Al-Ahram Weekly has done a review of the book.
Sangeeta Kamat, Development hegemony: NGOs and The State in India, Delhi, New York; Oxford University Press, 2002
Adama Sow, Chancen und Risiken von NGOs – Die Gewerkschaften in Guinea während der Unruhen 2007 – EPU Research Papers: Issue 03/07, Stadtschlaining 2007 (German)
Lyal S. Sunga, "Dilemmas facing INGOs in coalition-occupied Iraq", in Ethics in Action: The Ethical Challenges of International Human Rights Nongovernmental Organizations, edited by Daniel A. Bell and Jean-Marc Coicaud, Cambridge Univ. and United Nations Univ. Press, 2007.
Lyal S. Sunga, "NGO Involvement in International Human Rights Monitoring, International Human Rights Law and Non-Governmental Organizations" (2005) 41-69.
Werker & Ahmed (2008): What do Non-Governmental Organizations do?
Steve Charnovitz, "Two Centuries of Participation: NGOs and International Governance," Michigan Journal of International Law, Vol. 18, Winter 1997, at 183-286.
Abahlali baseMjondolo Rethinking Public Participation from Below, 'Critical Dialogue', 2006
Akpan S. M (2010): Establishment of Non-Governmental Organizations (In Press).
Edward A. L. Turner (2010) Why Has the Number of International Non-Governmental Organizations Exploded since 1960?, Cliodynamics, 1, (1). Retrieved from: [2]

The de facto reference resource for information and statistics on International NGOs (INGOs) and other transnational organisational forms is the Yearbook of International Organizations, produced by the Union of International Associations.

David Lewis and Nazneen Kanji (2009): Non-Governmental Organizations and Development. New York: Routledge.
Issa G. Shivji (2007): Silence in NGO Discourse: The Role and Future of NGOs in Africa. Nairobi: Fahamu.
Jens Steffek and Kristina Hahn (2010): Evaluating Transnational NGOs: Legitimacy, Accountability, Representation. New York: Palgrave, Macmillan.

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Neoliberalism is a label for the market-driven^[1] approach to economic and social policy based on neoclassical theories of economics that stresses the efficiency of private enterprise,liberalized trade and relatively open markets, and therefore seeks to maximize the role of the private sector in determining the political and economic priorities of the state. The term is typically used by opponents of the policy and rarely by supporters.^[2]^[3]

The term "neoliberalism" has also come into wide use in cultural studies to describe an internationally prevailing ideological paradigm that leads to social, cultural, and political practices and policies that use the language of markets, efficiency, consumer choice, transactional thinking and individual autonomy to shift risk from governments and corporations onto individuals and to extend this kind of market logic into the realm of social and affective relationships.^[4]

[edit]Policy implications

Neoliberalism seeks to transfer control of the economy from public to the private sector,^[5]under the belief that it will produce a more efficient government and improve the economic health of the nation.^[6] The definitive statement of the concrete policies advocated by neoliberalism is often taken to be John Williamson's^[7] "Washington Consensus", a list of policy proposals that appeared to have gained consensus approval among the Washington-based international economic organizations (like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) andWorld Bank). Williamson's list included ten points:

Fiscal policy Governments should not run large deficits that have to be paid back by future citizens, and such deficits can only have a short term effect on the level of employment in the economy. Constant deficits will lead to higher inflation and lower productivity, and should be avoided. Deficits should only be used for occasional stabilization purposes.
Redirection of public spending from subsidies (especially what neoliberals call "indiscriminate subsidies") and other spending neoliberals deem wasteful toward broad-based provision of key pro-growth, pro-poor services like primary education, primary health care and infrastructure investment
Tax reform– broadening the tax base and adopting moderate marginal tax rates to encourage innovation and efficiency;
Interest rates that are market determined and positive (but moderate) in real terms;
Floating exchange rates;
Trade liberalization – liberalization of imports, with particular emphasis on elimination of quantitative restrictions (licensing, etc.); any trade protection to be provided by law and relatively uniform tariffs; thus encouraging competition and long term growth
Liberalization of the "capital account" of the balance of payments, that is, allowing people the opportunity to invest funds overseas and allowing foreign funds to be invested in the home country
Privatization of state enterprises; Promoting market provision of goods and services which the government cannot provide as effectively or efficiently, such as telecommunications, where having many service providers promotes choice and competition.
Deregulation – abolition of regulations that impede market entry or restrict competition, except for those justified on safety, environmental and consumer protection grounds, and prudent oversight of financial institutions;
Legal security for property rights; and,
Financialisation of capital.

[edit]History

[edit]Embedded liberalism

The term embedded liberalism refers to the economic system that dominated the non-communist global economy from the end of World War II to the 1970s. David Harvey argues that at the end of World War II, the primary objective was to develop an economic plan that would not lead to a repeat of the Great Depression during the 1930s.^[8] Harvey notes that under this new system free trade was regulated "under a system of fixed exchange rates anchored by the US dollar's convertibility into gold at a fixed price. Fixed exchange rates were incompatible with free flows of capital."^[9] Harvey argues that embedded liberalism led to the surge of economic prosperity that came to define the 1950s and 1960s.

Across much of the world, the work of John Maynard Keynes, which sought to formulate the means by which governments could stabilize and fine-tune free markets, became a highly influential approach. Within the developing world, several developments – among themdecolonization, a desire for national independence and the destruction of the pre-war global economy,^[10] and the view that countries could not effectively industrialize under free market systems (e.g., the Singer–Prebisch thesis) – encouraged economic policies that were influenced by communist, socialist and import substitution precepts.

The period of government interventionism in the 1950s and 1960s was characterized by exceptional economic prosperity, as economic growthwas generally high, was contained,^[11] and economic distribution was comparatively equalized.^[12] This era is known as les Trente Glorieuses("The Glorious Thirty [years]") or "Golden Age", a reference to many countries having experienced particularly high levels of prosperity between (roughly) World War II and 1973.

[edit]Collapse of embedded liberalism

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David Harvey notes that the system of embedded liberalism began to break down beginning towards the end of the 1960s. The 1970s were defined by an increased accumulation of capital, unemployment, inflation (or stagflation as it was dubbed), and a variety of fiscal crises. He notes that "the embedded liberalism that had delivered high rates of growth to at least the advanced capitalist countries after 1945 was clearly exhausted and no longer working."^[13] A number of theories concerning new systems began to develop, which led to extensive debate between those who advocated "social democracy and central planning on the one hand" and those "concerned with liberating corporate and business power and re-establishing market freedoms on the other. Harvey notes that, by 1980, the latter group had emerged as the leader, advocating and creating a global economic system that would become known as neoliberalism.^[14]

Some argue that the strains which occurred were located in the international financial system,^[15]^[16] and culminated in the dissolution of the Bretton Woods system, which some argue had set the stage for theStagflation crisis that would, to some extent, discredit Keynesianism in the English-speaking world. In addition, some argue that the postwar economic system was premised on a society that excluded women and minorities from economic opportunities, and the political and economic integration given to these groups strained the postwar system.^[17]

Farshad Araghi, professor of the Department of Sociology at Florida Atlantic University, argues that a true abandonment of Keynesianism for Neoclassical Economics has never occurred. In fact, he states that the magniloquence of anti-Keynesianism and deregulation concerned more the matter of demolishing national-developmentalism in the decolonized world, along with the wage contracts and welfare states in the industrialized countries.^[18]

[edit]Post-1970s economic liberalism

[edit]Global spread

Chronic economic crisis throughout the 1980s, and the collapse of the Communist bloc at the end of the 1980s, helped foster political opposition to state interventionism in favor of free market reform policies. From the 1980s onward, a number of communist and socialist countries initiated various neoliberal market reforms, such as the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia under the direction of Ante Markovic (until the country's collapse in the early 1990s), and the People's Republic of China under the direction of Deng Xiaoping.

Changes occurred from the 1970s to the 1980s. Started off with most of the democratic world governments focused primarily on the primacy of economic individual rights, rules of law and roles of the governments in moderating relative free trade. It was almost considered national self determination at the time.^{[citation needed]}

Stances of organized labour shifted when governments of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher took strong stances to break down trade barriers entirely to reduce government power; thus allowing the market to be more important. Therefore industries will increasingly shift globally with integrated knowledge boosting the economy.^{[citation needed]}

[edit]Chicago School

The Chicago school of economics describes a neoclassical school of thought within the academic community of economists, with a strong focus around the faculty of University of Chicago.

The school emphasizes non-intervention from government and rejects regulation in laissez-faire free markets as inefficient. It is associated with neoclassical price theory and libertarianism and the rejection of Keynesianism in favor of monetarism until the 1980s, when it turned to rational expectations. The school has impacted the field of finance by the development of the efficient market hypothesis. In terms of methodology the stress is on "positive economics"– that is, empirically based studies using statistics to prove theory.

Approximately 70% of the professors in the economics department have been considered part of the school of thought.^{[citation needed]} The University of Chicago department, widely considered one of the world's foremost economics departments,^[19]^[20]^[21] has fielded more Nobel Prize winners and John Bates Clark medalists in economics than any other university.^{[citation needed]}

Those who attend to the Chicago School prefer some form of competition law, school vouchers, a central bank, intellectual property and prefer Milton Friedman's negative income tax as a replacement to the existing system.^{[citation needed]}

[edit]Australia

In Australia, neoliberal economic policies have been embraced by governments of both the Labor Partyand the Liberal Party since 1983. The governments of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating from 1983 to 1996 pursued economic liberalisation and a program of micro-economic reform. These governments privatized government corporations , deregulated factor markets, floated the Australian dollar, and reduced trade protection.^[22]

Keating, as federal treasurer, implemented a compulsory superannuation guarantee system in 1992 to increase national savings and reduce future government liability for old age pensions.^[23] The financing of universities was deregulated, requiring students to contribute to university fees through a repayable loan system known as the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS) and encouraging universities to increase income by admitting full-fee-paying students, including foreign students.^[24] The admitting of domestic full-fee-paying students to public universities was stopped in 2009 by the Rudd Labor Government.^[25]

When the Liberal Party returned to power in March 1996 under prime minister John Howard, the programme of economic liberalisation was continued with the privatisation of more government corporations, notably the sale of the telecommunications provider Telstra, and the Reserve Bank of Australia was made independent of the government in determining monetary policy. A 10% Goods and Services Tax GST(similar to European VAT) was introduced with the aim of combining and simplifying the previous duties and taxes to make the system more efficient. A series of reforms were enacted to deregulate the labour market.^[26]

[edit]Canada

In Canada, the issues identified with neoliberalism (reducing taxes and welfare spending, minimizing of government and reform of public healthcare and education, among others) are often associated with Brian Mulroney, Mike Harris, Ralph Klein, Gordon Campbell and Stephen Harper.^[27]

Ralph Klein, who supports and has supported extraction of Alberta's vast oil and natural gas reserves, is credited by the Pembina Institute as generating a relatively small amount of provincial revenue compared to the increase in oil sand production. Between 1995 and 2004, production grew by 133%, but government revenue shrank by 30%, leaving large fortunes in the hands of corporations.^[28]

Under Mike Harris in Ontario during the 1990s, industry and social responsibilities were transferred to the cities. Toronto during this time was forced to amalgamate and enter a period of development. The Amalgamation of Toronto was intended as a cost saving measure and, in 2000, Michael R. Garrett noted a yearly savings of $136.2 million (CDN)^[29] However, in 2007, Barry Hertz reported in the conservative national newspaper National Post that cost savings never materialized. He also noted that government staff had grown, with the city employing 4,015 more people in 2007 than it did in 1998.^[30]

Canadian politics were also affected. Trade tariffs were ended, allowing less restrictions on trade. Government sizes were decreased limiting their power towards industries.^[31] The federal government rules during that time and municipalities had no power.

[edit]Chile

Milton Friedman used the term "Miracle of Chile" in reference to Augusto Pinochet's support for liberal economic changes in Chile carried out by the "Chicago Boys". Their implemented economic model had three main objectives: economic liberalization, privatization of state owned companies, and stabilization of inflation. These market-oriented economic policies were continued and strengthened by successive governments after Pinochet stepped down.^[32] At the time, Milton Friedman stated that the Chilean experiment was "comparable to the economic miracle of post-war Germany."^[33]

Some of Pinochet's neoliberal policies were continued after the termination of his 17-year-long dictatorship, though with more social policies to counter the great social-economic inequality.^[34]^[35] According to the Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal, in 2007 Chile was the world's 11th "most free" economy, and 3rd in the Americas.

According to the United Nations Development Report of 2009 Chile has high competitiveness, quality of life, political stability, globalization,economic freedom, low perception of corruption and comparatively low poverty rates.^[36]

According to the International Monetary Fund Chile "ranks high regionally" in freedom of the press, human development and democratic development. Also according to the IMF Chile has the region's highest GDP to popular ratio (at market prices^[37] and purchasing power parity)^[38] and also has a high degree of income inequality, as measured by the Gini index.^[39]

The experience of Chile in the 1970s and 1980s, and especially the export of the Chilean pension model by former Labor Minister José Piñera, has influenced the policies of the Communist Party of China and has been invoked as a model by economic reformers in other countries, such as Boris Yeltsin in Russia and almost all Eastern European post-Communist societies.^[40]

Mining of copper in Chile is publicly owned (see Chilean nationalization of copper). Chile is the world's top producer of copper, which is by far the largest Chilean export good (accounting for over 40% of export revenue).

[edit]Hong Kong

Hong Kong practices relatively laissez-fairepolicies.

Milton Friedman described Hong Kong as a laissez-faire state and he credits that policy for the rapid move from poverty to prosperity in 50 years.^[41] Hong Kong's GDP grew under British colonial control between 1897 and 1997, while possessing central banking, school regulations, environmental regulations and government ownership of housing — all examples of economic intervention.^[42] These regulations were however light in comparison to many other countries, and in terms of economic regulation Friedman's analysis of Hong Kong as a 'laissez-faire' state seems justified: Hong Kong has no capital gains tax, no interest tax, no sales tax and only a 15% flat income tax. It also has no tariffs or other legal restrictions on international free trade, no minimum wage laws (until 2010), and no price or wage controls. Further it extends no unemployment benefits, enacts no labour legislation, provides no social security and no national health insurance.^[43]

A 1994 World Bank report stated that Hong Kong's GDP per capita grew in real terms at an annual rate of 6.5% from 1965 to 1989, a consistent growth percentage over a span of almost 25 years^[44] By 1990 Hong Kong's per capita income officially surpassed that of the ruling United Kingdom.^[45] In 1960 the average per capita income in Hong Kong was 28% of that in Great Britain; by 1996, it had risen to 137% of that in Britain.^[46]

Since 1995 Hong Kong has been ranked as having the world's most liberal capital markets by the Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal.^[47] The Fraser Institute concurred in 2007.^[48]

[edit]Japan

Junichiro Koizumi, a popular Japanese leader who fought for privatization.

The largest privatization in history was that of Japan Post. It was the nation's largest employer and one third of all Japanese government employees worked for Japan Post.

In September 2003, Koizumi's cabinet proposed splitting Japan Post into four separate companies: a bank, an insurance company, a postal service company, and a fourth company to handle the post offices as retail storefronts of the other three. After privatization was rejected by upper house, Koizumi scheduled nationwide elections to be held on September 11, 2005. He declared the election to be a referendum on postal privatization. Koizumi subsequently won this election, gaining the necessary supermajority and a mandate for reform, and in October 2005, the bill was passed to privatize Japan Post in 2007.^[49]

[edit]Mexico

Mexico is presently the eighth largest trading nation. Mexico joined GATT, or General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in 1986 and has been a part of the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) since 1990. Another trading partnership Mexico entered into was the Uruguay Round (UR).

The reforms brought about by NAFTA resulted in a huge opening of the Mexican economy and " increased the political and economic costs of trade policy reversals and restrained trade policy with other countries to compatibility with (if not subservience to) NAFTA," (Mena, 48). Tariffs were reduced across most sectors of the economy. They also opened the door for factories along the border of the US and Mexico. Maquiladoras account for most of the Mexican export market. A reform of the 1973 Foreign Investment Law, "Foreign Investment is not allowed in oil production or refining." (Mena, p. 49).

Mexico benefited greatly from its relationship with the UR and the WTO. There were low tariffs on Mexican goods and Mexico was not bound to alter its tariffs for UR members. "Mexico's preferences on non-agricultural subsidies were largely borne out in the URAs," (Ortiz Mena, 60). Mexico continues to have restrictions on foreign ownership and has been criticized for not signing the Agreement on Government Procurement. NGOs are also critical of the reforms that had been made.

After joining NAFTA, Mexico entered into over thirty free trade agreements (FTA). Mexico also signed FTAs with the European Union (EU), European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA), and Japan. As a result of these agreements, exports increased, manufactured goods became more important, and Mexico became the US's second largest trading partner.

The Mexican government feels that the benefits of liberalism have been slowed due to a lack of implementations of URA policies by developed countries. The government fears that environmental and labor issues might affect the trade agenda. They are looking to the developed nations to help with a clean transition to the post-Doha work program. There are eleven areas that Mexico will focus on in the future: agriculture, export subsidies, TRIM, Service, IPR, dispute settlements, FDI, competition policy, government procurement, industrial goods, and labor and environment. Also, Mexico seeks to improve access for its important exports by complying fully with URAs.^[50]

[edit]New Zealand

The term Rogernomics was created by analogy with Reaganomics to describe the economic policies followed by New Zealand Finance Minister Roger Douglas from his appointment in 1984.

The policies included cutting agricultural subsidies and trade barriers, privatising public assets and the control of inflation through measures rooted in monetarism, and were regarded in some quarters of Douglas's New Zealand Labour Party as a betrayal of traditional Labour ideals. The Labour Party subsequently retreated from pure Rogernomics, which became a core doctrine of the more right-wing ACT party. Roger Douglas planned to create a 15% flat tax in New Zealand, and to privatise schools, roads and hospitals, which was moderated by the Labour cabinet at the time,^[51] although the resultant reforms were still generally considered radical in a global context. After Douglas left the Labour party, he went on to co-found ACT in 1993, which regards itself as the new liberal party of New Zealand.

Since 1984, government subsidies including those for agriculture have been eliminated; import regulations have been liberalised; exchange rates have been freely floated; controls on interest rates, wages, and prices have been removed; and marginal rates of taxation reduced. Tight monetary policy and major efforts to reduce the government budget deficit brought the inflation rate down from an annual rate of more than 18% in 1987. The Deregulation of government-owned enterprises in the 1980s and 1990s reduced government's role in the economy and permitted the retirement of some public debt, but simultaneously massively increased the necessity for greater welfare spending and has led to considerably higher rates of unemployment than were standard in New Zealand in earlier decades. However, unemployment in New Zealand lowered again by 2006-2007, hovering around 3.5% to 4%.

Deregulation created a very business-friendly regulatory framework. A survey 2008 study ranked it 99.9% in "Business freedom", and 80% overall in "Economic freedom", noting amongst other things that it only takes 12 days to establish a business in New Zealand on average, compared with a worldwide average of 43 days. Other indicators measured were property rights, labour market conditions, government controls and corruption, the last being considered "next to non-existent" in the Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal study.^[52]

In its Doing Business 2008 survey, the World Bank (which in that year rated New Zealand as the second-most business-friendly country worldwide), gave New Zealand rank 13 out of 178 in the business-friendliness of its hiring laws.^[53]

New Zealanders have a high level of life satisfaction as measured by international surveys; this is despite lower GDP per-head levels than many other OECD countries. The country was ranked 20th on the 2006 Human Development Index, which also accounts for non-economic factors such as literacy and public health, and 15th in The Economist's 2005 worldwide quality-of-life index.^[54] The country was further ranked 1st in life satisfaction and 5th in overall prosperity in the 2007 Legatum Institute prosperity index.^[55]^[56] In addition, the 2007 Mercer Quality of Living Survey ranked Auckland 5th place and Wellington 12th place in the world on its list.^[57]

[edit]Scandinavia

Carl Bildt's government liberalized Sweden's capital flows and privatized public services.

Scandinavian countries have embraced many^[which?] neoliberal policies.^[8]

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, former Prime Minister of Denmark.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, former Prime Minister of Denmark and leader of Venstre, has written books advocating minimal state. Denmark is a European leader on economic freedom indices. Denmark has ranked as the world's 11th "most free" economy, of 162 countries, in an index created by the Wall Street Journal and Heritage Foundation, theIndex of Economic Freedom 2008.

In Sweden, Carl Bildt's government program was one of liberalizing the Swedish economy, privatizing public services and making the country a member of the European Union. Carl Bildt signed the accession treaty at the European Union summit of Corfu, Greece on June 23, 1994. Economic changes were enacted, such as voucher schools, liberalized markets for telecommunications and energy^{[clarification needed]} as well as the privatization of publicly owned companies.^[which?] The Bildt government made it possible for counties to privatizate health care (although few did this), contributing to liberalizing the Swedish economy. Privatization of state owned companies and deregulation of business were also carried out by the following social democratic governments.

Iceland began implementing neoliberal economic policies beginning in the late 1980s. As measured by the Economic Freedom of the World, it had the 53rd "freest economy" in 1975 and it was one of the poorest countries in Europe. In 2004, it had the 9th freest economy and it was one of the richest.^[58] However, by 2009, the country was bankrupt, a consequence that a number of observers have attributed directly to Iceland's adoption of neoliberal economic policies.^[59]^[60]^[61]^[62]^[63]

[edit]South Africa

South Africa's GDP has grown since the beginning of the new government system in 1994, which ended the rule of apartheid in South Africa. While some see the implementation of neoliberal policies inside South Africa as having spurred the country's growth rate, others cite policies such as maintaining high interests rates to quell inflation as actually hurting economic growth. Meanwhile, the implementation of GEAR (Growth Employment and Redistribution Strategy) policies have caused a decline in employment that started after the new government in 1994, which caused an increase in South Africa's poverty level.^[64]

[edit]United Kingdom

Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reaganinstituted economic liberal policies.

Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister with a mandate to reverse Britain's economic decline. Thatcher's political and economic philosophy emphasised reduced state intervention,^[65] freer markets,^[66] and more entrepreneurialism.^[67] She once slammed a copy of Friedrich Hayek's The Constitution of Liberty down on a table during a Shadow Cabinet meeting, saying, "This is what we believe."^[68] Thinkers closely associated with Thatcherism include Keith Joseph, Friedrich Hayekand Milton Friedman.^[69]

Thatcher's political and economic philosophy emphasised reduced state intervention as well asfree markets and "entrepreneurialism".^[69] She vowed to end excessive government interference in the economy and attempted to do this through privatizing nationally-owned enterprises. After theJames Callaghan government had concluded that the Keynesian approach to demand-side management failed, Thatcher felt that the economy was not self-righting and that new fiscal judgements had to be made to concentrate on inflation.^[70] She began her economic reforms by increasing interest rates to slow the growth of the money supply and thus lower inflation.^[71] In accordance with her "less government intervention" views she introduced public spending cuts^[72]particularly on housing and industry subsidies. She also placed limits on the printing of money and legal restrictions on trade unions.

By January 1982 the inflation rate had fallen to 8.6% from earlier peaks of 18%. By 1983 overall economic growth was stronger, while inflation and mortgage rates were at their lowest levels since 1970.^[73] The term "Thatcherism" came to refer to her policies as well as aspects of her ethical outlook and personal style, including moral absolutism, nationalism, focus on individuals rather than society as a whole and an uncompromising approach to achieving political goals.

After the 1983 election, the Conservative majority expanded, Thatcher continued to enact her economic policies.^[72] The UK government sold most of the state's large utilities.^[72] The policy of privatisation was a main component of Thatcherism. When Thatcher was forced to resign as British Prime Minister in 1990 British economic growth was on average higher than the other large EU economies (Germany, France and Italy). However this was accompanied by poor social conditions compared with the rest of the EU.

The price of these economic policies was a temporary and dramatic increase in unemployment that embarrassed the Thatcher government so much that the definition of unemployment was changed 31 times in order to come up with lower figures. Despite this, the official rate of unemployment in the United Kingdom increased to 9.1% in the years 1979-89 after it had been 3.4% between 1973–79 and 1.9% between 1960-73.^[74]^[75]

In 2001 Peter Mandelson, a Member of Parliament belonging to the British Labour Party and closely associated with Tony Blair, famously declared that "we are all Thatcherites now."^[76] In reference to contemporary British political culture it could be said that a "post-Thatcherite consensus" exists with regard to economic policy. In the 1980s the now defunct Social Democratic Party adhered to a "tough and tender" approach in which Thatcherite reforms were coupled with extra welfare provision. Neil Kinnock, leader of the Labour Party from 1983–1992, initiated Labour's rightward shift across the political spectrum by concurring largely with the economic policies of the Thatcher governments. The New Labour government of Tony Blair has been described as "neo-Thatcherite" by some since many of their economic policies mimicked those of Thatcher.^[77]^[78]

The coalition government of Cameron and Clegg, that came into office in 2010 has been described as Neoliberal, with neoliberal 'Orange Book' Liberal Democrats playing key ministerial roles.^[79]

[edit]United States

Critics such as Noam Chomsky and David Harvey point to declining real wages as a response to Neoliberalism.^[80]^[81]

The Administration of Ronald Reagan, from 1981 to 1989, made a range of decisions that served to liberalize (in contemporary US terminology, this is more likely to be described as conservative economics rather than liberal; in the sense of this article, liberalize refers to an economic system involving few regulations) the American economy.^[82]^[83] These policies are often described as Reaganomics, and are often associated with supply-side economics (The notion that, in order to lower prices and cultivate economic prosperity, policies should appeal to producers rather than consumers.).

During Reagan's tenure, GDP grew at an annual rate of 2.7% per year.^[84] Per capita GDP in real terms was $31,877 in 1989 a rise of 24% from the $25,640 in 1981. Unemployment dropped from its high in the 1983 recession but it averaged higher than the previous decade and the subsequent decade. Also, inflation significantly decreased.^[85] Average real wages were stagnant, however, as inequality began to grow for the first time since the 1920s. Some, like William Niskanen, would point out two facts in response, the first being that average compensation for workers (that is wages+fringe benefits) went up through the 80s, and that every quintile of society performed better during the 80s. He neglects to mention that inequality increased significantly, beginning a trend that continued through to 2007. [See the work of Emanuel Saez] The policies were derided by some as "Trickle-down economics",^[86] due to the significant cuts in the upper tax brackets. There was a massive increase in Cold War related defense spending that caused large budget deficits,^[87] the U.S. trade deficit expansion,^[87] and contributed to the Savings and Loan crisis,^[88] In order to cover new federal budget deficits, the United States borrowed heavily both domestically and abroad, raising the national debt from $700 billion to $3 trillion,^[89] and the United States moved from being the world's largest international creditor to the world's largest debtor nation.^[90]

Peter Gowan has argued that the United States has been the main force behind the adoption of neoliberal policies in the rest of the world. The basic argument is that since the dollar is the international reserve currency, American banks are at a competitive advantage with respect to non-American banks, which cannot directly lend in dollars, so that their operations involve more foreign exchange risk. (Since the dollar is the international exchange currency, most international reserves are held as dollars, and the price of commodities such as oil are set in dollars, it is in general less risky to hold dollars than to hold other currencies, in the short term, at least.) Thus, once the United States liberalized its financial markets and controls over its banking industry, other countries were forced to follow suit.^[91]

[edit]Reach and effects

Neoliberal movements ultimately changed the world's economies in many ways, but some analysts argue that the extent to which the world has liberalized may often be overstated. Some of the past thirty years' changes are clear and unambiguous, like:^[92]

Growth in international trade and cross-border capital flows
Elimination of trade barriers
Cutbacks in public sector employment
The privatization of previously public-owned enterprises
The transfer of the share of countries' economic wealth to the top economic percentiles of the population.^[93]

Other changes are not so apparent, and are debated in the literature^[92]:

Reduction in the size of governments. Governments do not appear to have shrunk wholesale. With the exception of exceptionally high-spending governments, government expenditures (as a percentage of GDP) appears to have stayed the same since 1980. Most of the cuts to government spending appear to have been a temporary phenomenon that took place during the 1990s.

[edit]Effects in Latin American urbanization

Between the 1930s and the late 1970s most countries in Latin America used the import substitution industrialization model (ISI) to build industry and reduce the dependency on imports from foreign countries. The result of ISI in these countries included rapid urbanization of one or two major cities, a growing urban population of the working class, and frequent protests by trade unions and left-wing parties.^[94] In response to the economic crisis, the leaders of these countries quickly adopted and implemented new neoliberal policies due to prospect theory.

A study based on the transformations of urban life and systems as a result of neoliberalism in six countries of Latin America was published by Alejandro Portes and Bryan Roberts and titled "The Free-Market City: Latin American Urbanization in the Years of the Neoliberal Experiment". This comparative study included census data analysis, surveying, and fieldwork focused in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay. Predictions of the neoliberalism were extended to these six countries in four areas: urban systems and primacy, urban unemployment and informal employment, urban inequality and poverty, and urban crime and victimization. Data collected support a relationship between the economic policies of neoliberalism and the resulting patterns of urbanization.

In the area of urban systems and primacy two tendencies were revealed in the data. The first was continuing growth in total size of urban populations while the second tendency was the decline in size of the primate city with decreased migration flows to these cities. Therefore, when calculating the urban growth rate each of these countries all showed minimal or a significant decline in growth. Portes and Roberts theorize that the changes are due to the "loss of attraction of major cities...due to a complex set of factors, but is undoubtedly a related to the end of the ISI era".^[94] Although the relationship between the open-market and the transformation of urban systems has not been proven to be a perfect one-to-one relationship, the evidence supports the acceleration or initiation of these two tendencies following neoliberal changes.^[94]

While every country showed that rates of urban unemployment and informal employment remained stagnant or increased, slight variations were discovered between the six countries. For example, in Argentina the deteriorating labor-market and working conditions coincided perfectly with the application of strict economic neoliberal policies.^[94] Strict neoliberal policies were considered a success, however, in Chile. Interestingly, this study critiques that while Chile avoided unemployment by creating jobs, these jobs were often lacking necessary social services and labor protection.^[94] Portes and Roberts use these various countries to demonstrate that though neoliberal policies are predicted to increase employment, the actual variant effects range from stagnant or increased unemployment to unreliable or unsafe employment.

With the variation of urban employment and informal employment there was also a variation in the inequality and poverty in the six countries. While the majority of the population within these countries suffered from poverty, the upper classes received the benefits of the neoliberal system. According to Portes and Roberts, "the 'privileged decile' received average incomes equivalent to fourteen times the average Latin American poverty-line income".^[94] In the six countries, it cannot be accurately concluded that poverty increased in response to neoliberal policies, in part, because of a disproportionate share of wages in the upper classes. The neoliberal policies in some countries did increase wealth though the distribution was not equally spread. While it cannot be concluded that the policies created poverty, the disproportionate distribution of wealth increased the inequality within all six countries.^[94]

As a direct result of visible growing inequality, each country struggled with increased crime and victimization in both urban and suburban settings. However, due to corruption within the police force it is not possible to accurately extrapolate a trend in the data of crime and victimization.^[94] The location of crime is not limited to the urban areas and has spread throughout the suburban communities, though according to Portes and Roberts, most criminals reside within the impoverished urban communities. The combination of origins and location of crime supports the hypothesis of forced entrepreneurialship within these six countries. Even though crime and victimization increases with an increase in inequality, it cannot be definitively correlated to neoliberal policies.^[94]

This study published by Portes and Roberts demonstrates that though the ISI model was ineffective in maintaining economic stability, the neoliberal policies implemented were drastic and detrimental to social stability. Therefore, while neoliberalism is often theorized as an effective economic strategy, the social realities are often understated and traumatic.

[edit]Support

[edit]Political freedom

In Capitalism and Freedom (1962), Friedman developed the argument that economic freedom, while itself an extremely important component of total freedom, is also a necessary condition for political freedom. He commented that centralized control of economic activities was always accompanied with political repression.

In his view, the voluntary character of all transactions in a free market economy and wide diversity that it permits are fundamental threats to repressive political leaders and greatly diminish power to coerce. Through elimination of centralized control of economic activities, economic power is separated from political power, and the one can serve as counterbalance to the other. Friedman feels that competitive capitalism is especially important to minority groups, since impersonal market forces protect people from discrimination in their economic activities for reasons unrelated to their productivity.^[95]

It is important to take into account, however, that an early neoliberal regime was attempted in Chile under what some would consider a military dictatorship and severe social repression. However, despite what most would consider a highly objectionable context for implementation of economic liberty, Chile now enjoys the highest rate of GDP per capita in Latin America; this lends strong credence to the assertion that economic freedom is more important to prosperity than are democratic institutions. Also, increased economic freedom put pressure on the dictatorship over time and increased political freedom.In The Road to Serfdom, Hayek argued that "Economic control is not merely control of a sector of human life which can be separated from the rest; it is the control of the means for all our ends."^[96]

[edit]State-centric approach

The state-centric approach to neoliberalism is not critical, but it concurs with the critical approach that neoliberal ideas are really just laissez-faire liberal prescriptions that overthrew Keynesianism. State-centric theorists hold that neoliberalism is "the attempt to reduce the role of the state in the market through tax cuts, decreases in social spending, deregulation, and privatization."^[97] However, the state-centric approach argues that state actors were the political entrepreneurs who formulated neoliberalism – rather than, as critics of neoliberalism would claim, capitalist political organizations, and economists and economic departments, think tanks, and politicians all supported by class-conscious capitalists. State-centric theorists argue that neoliberalism spread because it fit the voters' preferences best; they disagree in this with the critical approach, which maintains that neoliberal framing and policies were propagated by well-heeled, highly organized political machines that insisted to the public, "There is no alternative". State-centric sociologist Monica Prasad (2006) further argues that neoliberalism became dominant where the (federal) tax structure was progressive, where industrial policy was "adversarial" to business, and where welfare was associated with the poor. She asserts this was the case in the U.S. and UK, relative to France and Germany. However, in France and Germany, taxation by the national government was regressive^{[citation needed]}, industrial policy favored business^{[citation needed]}^{[clarification needed]}, and the welfare state was widely recognized^[who?] to benefit the middle class; consequently neoliberalism was not widely favored by either business or the middle classes in these two countries.

Prasad's analysis suggests that neoliberalism has been a corrective to policies that favored the working class over capitalist interests, and it was championed by autonomous state actors.

[edit]Opposition

Opponents of neoliberalism argue the following points:

Globalization and liberalization subvert nations' ability for self-determination.
Exploitation: critics consider neo-liberal economics to promote exploitation.
Negative economic consequences: Critics argue that neo-liberal policies produce inequality.
Increase in corporate power: some anti-corporate organizations believe neoliberalism, unlike liberalism, changes economic and government policies to increase the power of corporations and large business, and a shift to benefit the upper classes over the lower classes.^[98]
There are terrains of struggles for neoliberalism locally and socially. Urban citizens are increasingly deprived of the power to shape the basic conditions of daily life.^[31]
Trade-led, unregulated economic activity and lax state regulation of pollution may lead to environmental impacts or degradation.^[99]
It is claimed that deregulation of the labor market produces flexibilization and casualization of labor, greater informal employment, and a considerable increase in industrial accidents and occupational diseases.^[100]

[edit]Anglo-American

"The standard neoliberal policy package includes cutting back on taxes and government spending; eliminating tariffs and other barriers to free trade;^{[clarification needed]} reducing regulations of labor markets and^{[clarification needed]} financial markets and focusing macroeconomic policies on controlling inflation rather than stimulating the growth of jobs," reports economist Robert Pollin (2003).^[101] Arising out of a rejection of the class compromises^{[clarification needed]} embedded in previous liberal political-economic policies, including Keynesian and Active Labour Market Policies (ALMPs), economic neoliberalism usually brings about strong economic inequality. While proponents of neoliberal shifts, such asGeorge H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton argue that over time all levels of income are better off, some claim that empirical evidence has shown this not to be the case.^[8]

[edit]Criticism from left

Critics on the left sometimes refer to neoliberalism as the "American Model," and they make the claim that it promotes low wages and high inequality.^[102] According to the economists Howell and Diallo (2007), neoliberal policies have contributed to a U.S. economy in which 30% of workers earn "low wages" (less than two-thirds the median wage for full-time workers), and 35% of the labor force is "underemployed"; only 40% of the working-age population in the U.S. is adequately employed. The Center for Economic Policy Research's (CEPR) Dean Baker (2006) has argued that the driving force behind rising inequality in the U.S. has been a series of deliberate, neoliberal policy choices including anti-inflationary bias, anti-unionism, and profiteering in the health industry.^[103] However, countries have applied neoliberal policies at varying levels of intensity; for example, the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) has calculated that only 6% of Swedish workers are beset with wages it considers low, and that Swedish wages are overall lower due to their lack of neoliberal policies^[104] John Schmitt and Ben Zipperer (2006) of the CEPR have analyzed the effects of intensive Anglo-American neoliberal policies in comparison to continental European neoliberalism, concluding "The U.S. economic and social model is associated with substantial levels of social exclusion, including high levels of income inequality, high relative and absolute poverty rates, poor and unequal educational outcomes, poor health outcomes, and high rates of crime and incarceration. At the same time, the available evidence provides little support for the view that U.S.-style labor-market flexibility dramatically improves labor-market outcomes. Despite popular prejudices to the contrary, the U.S. economy consistently affords a lower level of economic mobility than all the continental European countries for which data is available."^[105]

Notable critics of neoliberalism in theory or practice include economists Joseph Stiglitz, Amartya Sen, and Robert Pollin,^[106] linguist Noam Chomsky,^[107] geographer David Harvey,^[8] and the alter-globalization movement in general, including groups such as ATTAC. Critics of neoliberalism argue that not only is neoliberalism's critique of socialism (as unfreedom) wrong, but neoliberalism cannot deliver the liberty that is supposed to be one of its strong points. Daniel Brook's "The Trap" (2007), Robert Frank's "Falling Behind" (2007), Robert Chernomas and Ian Hudson's "Social Murder" (2007), and Richard G. Wilkinson's "The Impact of Inequality" (2005) all claim high inequality is spurred by neoliberal policies and produces profound political, social, economic, health, and environmental constraints and problems. The economists and policy analysts at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) offer inequality-reducing social democratic policy alternatives to neoliberal policies. In addition, a significant opposition to neoliberalism has grown in Latin America. Prominent Latin American opponents include the Zapatista Army of National Liberation rebellion, the Brazilian MST, and the socialist governments of Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba.

According to (Pollin 2003), neoliberalism under the U.S. Bill Clinton administration– steered by Alan Greenspan and Robert Rubin– was the temporary and unstable policy inducement of economic growth via government-supported financial and housing market speculation, featuring both low unemployment and low inflation. He claims that this unusual coincidence was made possible by the disorganization and dispossession of the American working class. Santa Cruz history of consciousness professor Angela Davis and Princeton sociologist Bruce Western have claimed that the high rate (compared to Europe) of incarceration in the U.S. – specifically 1 in 37 American adults is in the prison system – heavily promoted by the Clinton administration, is the neoliberal U.S. policy tool for keeping unemployment statistics low, while stimulating economic growth through the maintenance of a contemporary slave population and the promotion of prison construction and "militarized policing."^[108] The Clinton Administration also embraced neoliberalism by pursuing international trade agreements that would benefit the corporate sector globally (normalization of trade with China for example). Domestically, Clinton fostered such neoliberal reforms as the corporate takeover of health care in the form of the HMO, the reduction of welfare handouts, and the implementation of "Workfare".^[109]

(Harvey 2005) claims that neoliberalism is a global capitalist class power restoration project. Neoliberalism, he argues, is a theory of political-economic practices that dedicates the state to championing private property rights, free markets, and free trade, while deregulating business and privatizing inefficient government assets. Ideologically, he suggests that neoliberals promote entrepreneurialism as the normative source of human happiness. Harvey also considers neoliberalization a form of capitalist "creative destruction", a Schumpeterian concept.^[110] This indicates that while neoliberalism is a critical concept with a critique of capitalist class relations, it is not strictly a Marxist concept; the Marxist term for neoliberalism is "primitive accumulation".

Harvey (2000)^[111] claims that neoliberalism has become hegemonic worldwide, sometimes by coercion. Neoliberalism has had the support of large debt restructuring organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which were encouraged to promote neoliberalism in order to promote higher living standards in developing countries. Opponents of neoliberalism argue that neoliberalism is the implementation of global capitalism through government/military interventionism to protect the interests of multinational corporations.

[edit]European and Latin American opposition

Neoliberalism and globalization are considered related to one another. While generally theorists describe neoliberalism as the contemporary version of capitalist expansionism,some theorists argue that the terms "globalization" and "neoliberalism" must be rigorously separated and that culture should be the primary lens through which the concepts are understood. "Free markets and global free trade are not new, and this use of the word (neoliberalism) ignores developments in the advanced economies...Neoliberalism is not just economics: it is a social and moral philosophy, in some aspects qualitatively different from liberalism."^[112]

One Euro-Latin American perspective critical of neoliberalism focuses upon the way in which neoliberalism becomes habitually embedded in the economic system itself. For example, Dutch author Paul Treanor argues that the ideas derived from neoliberalism (and neoliberalism itself) are a philosophy and not just an "economic structure." For example, a neoliberal perceives the world in a "term of market metaphors" and when members of a society commonly refer to countries as companies, that civilization would then be deemed a neoliberal instead of a liberal culture. Yet Treanor also recognizes continuity between historical liberal and contemporary neoliberal cultures. "When this is a view of nation states, it is as much a form of neo-nationalism as neoliberalism. It also looks back to the pre-liberal economic theory — mercantilism — which saw the countries of Europe as competing units. The mercantilists treated those kingdoms as large-scale versions of a private household, rather than as firms. Nevertheless, their view of world trade as a competition between nation-sized units would be acceptable to modern neoliberals."^[112]

Two of Treanor's collaborators, Elizabeth Martínez and Arnoldo García, find that neoliberalism is a collection of economic policies that has spread its ideals from country to country over the last 25 years. They claim that neoliberalism clearly treats its poorest citizens badly, by allowing for the increased disparity of the distribution of wealth ("the rich get richer, while the poor get richer at a slower rate"). Highlighting ideology, Martínez and García explain the difference between neoliberalism and liberalism by pointing to liberalism's association with class compromising ideology, stating that ""Liberalism" can refer to political, economic, or even religious ideas. In the U.S. political liberalism has been a strategy to prevent social conflict. It is presented to poor and working people as progressive compared to conservative or Right-wing."^[113] However, they further argue that this liberal social contract was broken by the elite political movement which included neoliberalism in the U.S.^[114]^{[page needed]}

[edit]Argentine economic collapse

Decades of poor governance, a spend-thrift military dictatorship, labour market reforms, and neoliberal structural adjustment programseventually led to the 1999-2002 Argentine economic crisis. During the Menem administration, Argentina was under the guidance of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank (WB), and U.S. Treasury. Although heavily indebted, the IMF continued to lend Argentina loans, and public debt sky rocketed as loans were postponed. Argentina commenced a neoliberal restructuring process. This small case study exemplifies how neoliberal policies directed with a top-down approach under the guidance of the 'Washington Consensus' were inefficient and only caused further damage to the Argentine economy. The unofficial mantra of the 'Washington Consensus' was "stabilize, privatize, and liberalize".^[115] A number of labour market reforms were enacted, including the establishment of new regulations for public employment, the decentralizarion of social services, the deregulation of the private economy along with weakened labor laws, the partial privatization of the social security system, and the flexibilization of the labor market.^[116] During this time Argentina's foreign debt grew substantially from US $57.6 billion in 1990 to US $144.5 billion in 2001.^[116] This debt accumulation, coupled with the immediate devaluation of the Argentine peso, led to hyperinflation, high unemployment rates, a large informal labour sector, an increase in poverty levels, and basic educational and health service cuts. A reduction in public salaries and numerous lay-offs stemming from privatization resulted in the loss of income of masses of workers, effectively creating a "new poor" among lower- to middle-class Argentines.^[116] At the same time that Argentina's economy grew increasingly uncompetitive as a result of convertibility, international debt continued to rise and government corruption became rampant, deregulation resulted in the flight of capital and heightened levels of anxiety among the public.^[116]

[edit]See also

[edit]Notes

^ http://www.socialistproject.ca/bullet/365.php Colin Leys
^ Ravi K. Roy, Arthur Denzau, Thomas D. Willett, Neoliberalism: national and regional experiments with global ideas (2007) p. 27
^ Mike Davis and Daniel Bertrand Monk, eds. Evil paradises: dreamworlds of neoliberalism (2007)
^ Ong, Aihwa (2006). Neoliberalism as Exception: Mutations in Citizenship and Sovereignty. Duke University Press.
^ Cohen, Joseph Nathan (2007) "The Impact of Neoliberalism, Political Institutions and Financial Autonomy on Economic Development, 1980–2003" Dissertation, Department of Sociology, Princeton University. 2007
^ Prasad, (2006)
^ Williamson, John (1990) "What Washington Means by Policy Reform" in John Williamson, ed. Latin American Adjustment: How Much Has Happened? (Washington, DC: Institute for International Economics
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d (Harvey 2005)
^ (Harvey 2005, p. 10)
^ Sachs, Jeffrey and Andrew Warner (1995) "Economic Reforms and the Process of Global Integration" Brookings Papers on Economic Activity:1–118
^ Fischer, Stanley, Ratna Sahay and Carlos A. Veigh (2002) "Modern Hyper- and High Inflations" Journal of Economic Literature: 837–880.
^ Piketty, Thomas; Saez, Emmanuel (2003). "Income Inequality in the United States, 1913–1998". Quarterly Journal of Economics 118 (1): 1–39. doi:10.1162/00335530360535135.
^ (Harvey 2005, p. 12)
^ (Harvey 2005, p. 13)
^ Helleiner, Eric (1994) States and the Resurgence of Global Finance: From Bretton Woods to the 1990s (Ithaca: Cornell University Press).
^ Block, Fred (1977) The Origins of International Economic Disorder: A Study of US International Monetary Policy from WWII to the Present(Berkeley: University of California Press).
^ Piore, Michael J. and Charles F. Sabel (1984) The Second Industrial Divide: Possibilities for Prosperity (New York: Basic)
^ Araghi, Farshad (January 23, 2010). "The End of 'Cheap Ecology' and the Crisis of 'Long Keynesianism'". Economic and Political Weekly.XLV. p. 40.
^ ECONOMICS AT CHICAGO, University of Chicago Department of Economics
^ University of Chicago, World University Ranking
^ Worldwide Ranking of Economics Departments and Economists, Scribd
^ Cameron Clyde R How the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party Lost Its Way
^ Neilson L and Harris B Chronology of superannuation and retirement income in Australia Parliamentary Library, Canberra, July 2008
^ Marginson S Tertiary Education: A revolution to what end? Online Opinion, 5 April 2005
^ . http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,,24571244-5005962,00.html.^{[dead link]}
^ Saunders P Unleashing (Labour) Market Forces: the Social Policy Implications of Industrial Relations University of New South Wales Law Journal, Vol 29(1) 2006
^ The Neo-Liberal Dogma & Canada, The Politics eZine - Canada
^ Amy Taylor. "Klein Shortchanging Albertans". Edmonton Journal.
^ Michael R. Garrett. "Building the new City of Toronto:
Three year status report on amalgamation
January 1998-December 2000". City of Toronto.
^ Barry Hertz. "Amalgamation: 10 years later". National Post.
^ ^a ^b Jamie Peck and Adam Tickell, "Neoliberalizing space," Antipode 34 (2002): 380–404.
^ Thomas M. Leonard. Encyclopedia Of The Developing World. Routledge. ISBN 1-57958-388-1 p. 322
^ Bello, W and Kelly, J The IMF and Chile: A Parting of Ways? International Finance, The Multinational Monitor, April 1983, Volume 4, Number 4]
^ Economic Reforms in Chile: From Dictatorship to Democracy, Latin American Politics and Society, Fall 2003 by Siavelis, Peter
^ "Country profile: Chile". BBC News. 16 December 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
^ "Human and income poverty: developing countries". UNDP. Retrieved 19 May 2008.
^ "World Economic Outlook Database, April 2008". Retrieved 2 May 2008.
^ "World Economic Outlook Database, April 2008". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 2 May 2008.
^ "Encuesta Casen" (PDF). Mideplan. 2007.
^ SCHAEFER, Standard. Chile's Failed Economic Laboratory: an Interview with Michael Hudson. CounterPunch, October 20, 2003
^ The Hong Kong Experiment by Milton Friedman on Hoover Digest accessed at March 29, 2007
^ http://www.asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=284&Itemid=34%20
^ The Capitalist Manifesto: The Economic, Historic and Philosophic Case for Laissez-faire
^ Rowley C & Fitzgerald R Managed in Hong Kong: Adaptive Systems, Entrepreneurship and Human Resources Routledge, UK, 2000. ISBN 0-7146-5026-9
^ Yu Tony Fu-Lai. [1997] (1997) Entrepreneurship and Economic Development of Hong Kong. United Kingdom: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-16240-8
^ The Capitalist Manifesto: The Economic, Historic and Philosophic Case for Laissez-Faire
^ "2008 Index of Economic Freedom". Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal.
^ Economic Freedom of the World Report Economic Freedom Network (Fraser Institute) 2007
^ Takahara, "All eyes on Japan Post"Faiola, Anthony (15 October 2005). "Japan Approves Postal Privatization". Washington Post (The Washington Post Company): p. A10. Retrieved 9 February 2007.
^ Ortiz Mena, Antonio. 2004. "A Regional Player in Multilateral Trade Negotiations." In Trade Policy Reforms in Latin America. Pgs. 47-71
^ Lange, David. My Life.(2005) Viking. Auckland.
^ "Survey ranks NZ in top six for economic freedom". The New Zealand Herald. 16 January 2008.
^ Economy Rankings (from the 'Doing Business' website of the World Bank. Accessed 2008-08-13.)
^ "The Economist Intelligence Unit's quality-of-life index" (PDF). The World in 2005. The Economist. pp. 4. Retrieved 13 March 2007.
^ "Kiwis world's most satisfied". National Business Review. 5 July 2007. Retrieved 30 November 2007.
^ "The 2007 Legatum Prosperity Index". LIGD. prosperity.org. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved 30 November 2007.
^ "Highlights from the 2007 Quality of Living Survey". Mercer. 7 April 2007. Retrieved 22 February 2008.
^ Gissurarson, Hannes H. (29 November 2004). "Article on Icelandic economic miracle". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 20 February 2008.
^ http://www.alternet.org/workplace/103525/iceland%27s_economic_meltdown_is_a_big_flashing_warning_sign/?comments=view&cID=1038826&pID=1038711#c1038826
^ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/max-keiser/who-could-have-predicted_b_145920.html
^ McVeigh, Tracy (5 October 2008). "The party's over for Iceland, the island that tried to buy the world". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 20 May 2010.
^ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/iris-lee/whats-next-for-iceland-en_b_160526.html
^ Paul, Krugman (April 19, 2009). "Erin Go Broke". New York Times. Retrieved 20 April 2009. "Like its near-namesake Iceland, Ireland jumped with both feet into the brave new world of unsupervised global markets. Last year the Heritage Foundation declared Ireland the third freest economy in the world, behind only Hong Kong and Singapore."
^ Resistance to neoliberalism, Josep María Antentas
^ The welfare state, The National Archives
^ BOORISH AND FOOLISH - How we miss Ted
^ Urban Narratives: Contesting Place and Space in Some British Cinema from the 1980s, by John Kirk, 2001 Journal of Narrative Theory
^ Samuel Brittan says, " Hayek's book is still probably the most comprehensive statement of the underlying ideas of the moderate free market philosophy espoused by neoliberals." Brittan, "The many faces of liberalism," FT.COM Jan. 22, 2010
^ ^a ^b Raymond Plant, The Neo-liberal State (2009)
^ Blackaby, F.T. (1979). The Economics and Politics of Demand Management IN Cook, S.T. & Jackson, P.M. (Ed.) Current Issues in Fiscal Policy. Martin Robertson, Oxford; pp185-197
^ Whitely, Paul (1986). Political Control of the Macroeconomy. SAGE Publications Ltd, London
^ ^a ^b ^c "Margaret Thatcher". MSN Encarta. Archived from the original on 2009-11-01. Retrieved 29 October 2008.
^ "Consumer Price Inflation: 1947 to 2004". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 13 June 2008.
^ Thatcher and Thatcherism, Eric J. Evans
^ Thatcher and Thatcherism by Eric J. Evans, 1st edition, 1997, Routledge
^ Tempest, Matthew (10 June 2002). "Mandelson: we are all Thatcherites now". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 15 September 2006.
^ "New Labour Neo-Thatcherite". New Statesman. 6 June 2005. Retrieved 1 April 2007.
^ Simon Griffiths, and Kevin Hickson, eds. British Party Politics and Ideology after New Labour (2009)
^ Simon Kovar, the Neoliberal Democrats, 'The Liberal' August 2010 http://www.theliberal.co.uk/libdems/neo-liberal-democrats.html
^ Market Democracy in a Neoliberal Order: Doctrines and Reality
^ David Harvey, A Brief History of Neoliberalism
^ THE ATLANTIC BRIDGE
^ Purposive diversification and economic performance, John T. Scott
^ http://www.bea.gov/national/nipaweb/TableView.asp?SelectedTable=264&FirstYear=2002&LastYear=2004&Freq=Qtr
^ "Ronald Reagan". Microsoft Corporation. 2007. Archived from the original on 2009-10-31. Retrieved 27 July 2007.
^ Danziger, S.H.; D.H. Weinburg (1994). "The Historical Record: Trends in Family Income, Inequality, and Poverty" in Confronting Poverty: Prescriptions for Change.
^ ^a ^b Page not found 2008-05-24 Etebari, Mehrun (July 17, 2003). "Trickle-Down Economics: Four Reasons why it Just Doesn't Work". faireconomy.org. Retrieved 31 March 2007.
^ "The S&L Crisis: A Chrono-Bibliography". Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Retrieved 8 April 2007..
^ Cannon, Lou (2001) p. 128
^ "Reagan Policies Gave Green Light to Red Ink". The Washington Post. 9 June 2004. Retrieved 25 May 2007.
^ (Gowan 1999, pp. 25–33)
^ ^a ^b Cohen, Joseph Nathan and Miguel Centeno (2006) "Neoliberalism and Patterns of Economic Performance" Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 606(1): 32-67. DOI:10.1177/0002716206288751
^ Rapley, John. 2004. Globalization and Inequality: Neoliberalism's Downward Spiral. Boulder: Lynne Rienner.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Portes, Alejandro, and Bryan R. Roberts. "The Free-market City: Latin American Urbanization in the Years of the Neoliberal Experiment." Studies in Comparative International Development (2005): 43-82
^ Milton Friedman. Capitalism and freedom. (2002). The University of Chicago. ISBN 0-226-26421-1 p.8-21
^ Friedrich Hayek, The Road to Serfdom, University Of Chicago Press; 50th Anniversary edition (1944), ISBN 0-226-32061-8 p.95
^ Prasad, Monica. The Politics of Free Markets: The Rise of Neoliberal economic Policies in Britain, France, Germany, & The United States. 2006. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. *Note the publisher is one of the foundational neoliberal incubator institutions.
^ Yes! Magazine — Fall 2007 issue — page 4, editor's comments. Yes! Magazine is a "pro-sustainability" magazine.
^ Peet, Richard. "Neoliberalism and Nature: The Case of the WTO". Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol 590 November 2003: 188-211.
^ Feo, Oscar. "Venezuelan Health Reform, Neoliberal Policies and their Impact on Public Health Education: Observations on the Venezuelan Experience". Social Medicine, Vol 3 Number 4 November 2008: 224.
^ (Pollin 2003, p. 196)
^ Howell, David R. and Mamadou Diallo. 2007. "Charting U.S. Economic Performance with Alternative Labor Market Indicators: The Importance of Accounting for Job Quality." SCEPA Working Paper 2007-6.
^ Baker, Dean. 2006. "Increasing Inequality in the United States.[1]" Post-autistic Economics Review 40.
^ OECD. 2007. "OECD Employment Outlook. Statistical Annex."
^ Schmitt, John and Ben Zipperer. 2006. "Is the U.S. a Good Model for Reducing Social Exclusion in Europe?" Post-autistic Economics Review 40.
^ (Pollin 2003)
^ Profit Over People: Neoliberalism and Global Order. Seven Stories Press. November, 1998. ISBN 1-888363-82-7
^ Western, Bruce. 2006. Punishment and Inequality in America. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
^ Kenneth J. Saltman (2005). The Edison Schools: Corporate Schooling and the Assault on Public Education. Routledge. pp. 184–185.
^ (Harvey 2005, pp. 2–3)
^ Spaces of hope, David Harvey, pg. 73, 2000
^ ^a ^b Treanor, Paul. Liberalism, Market, Ethics. December 1, 2007.
^ Martinez, Elizabeth and Garcia, Arnoldo. "What is Neo-liberalism?" Global Exchange. February 26th, 2000.
^ Fox-Piven, F. and R. Cloward, "The Breaking of the American Social Compact.", 1997, New York, The New Press.
^ Rodrik, D. Goodbye Washington Consensus, Hello Washington Confusion? Harvard University, January 2006.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Whitson, Risa (2007). Beyond the Crisis: Economic globalization and informal work in urban Argentina. Journal of Latin American Geography. Vol. 6 Issue 2, p121-136, 16p

[edit]Further reading

[Ankerl, Guy]. Beyond Monopoly Capitalism and Monopoly Socialism. Schenkman, Cambridge, 1978, ISBN 0-87073-938-7
Bowles, Samuel, David M. Gordon, and Thomas E. Weisskopf. 1989. "Business Ascendancy and economic Impasse: A Structural Retrospective on Conservative Economics, 1979-87." Journal of Economic Perspectives 3(1):107-134.
Brown, Wendy. "Neoloberalism and the End of Liberal Democracy" in Edgework: critical essays on knowledge and politics Princeton University Press, 2005, ch 3.
Campbell, John L., and Ove K. Pedersen, eds. The Rise of Neoliberalism and Institutional Analysis Princeton University Press, 2001. 288 pp.
Ferris, Timothy. The Science of Liberty (2010) HarperCollins 384 pages
Foucault, Michel. The Birth of Biopolitics Lectures at the College de France, 1978-1979. London: Palgrave, 2008.
Gowan, Peter (1999). The Global Gamble: Washington's Faustian Bid for World Dominance. London: Verso. ISBN 1859842712
Griffiths, Simon, and Kevin Hickson, eds. British Party Politics and Ideology after New Labour (2009) Palgrave Macmillan 256 pages
Hayek, Friedrich August Von. The Constitution of Liberty (1960)
Harvey, David (2005). A Brief History of Neoliberalism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0199283265
Larner, Wendy. "Neo-liberalism: policy, ideology, governmentality," Studies in political economy 63 (2000) online
Plant, Raymond (2009). The Neo-liberal State. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0199281750
Pollin, Robert (2003). Contours of Descent: U.S. Economic Fractures and the Landscape of Global Austerity. New York: Verso.ISBN 1844675343
Prasad, Monica. The Politics of Free Markets: The Rise of Neoliberal Economic Policies in Britain, France, Germany and the United States. University of Chicago Press. 2006. 328 pages
Steger, Manfred B., and Ravi K. Roy, Neoliberalism: A Very Short Introduction (2010)
Torbat, Akbar E., "Global Financial Meltdown and the Demise of Neoliberalism" (2008), Global Research

Wang, Hui, and Karl, Rebecca E. "1989 and the Historical Roots of Neoliberalism in China," positions: east Asia cultures critique, Volume 12, Number 1, Spring 2004, pp. 7–70

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Categories: Economic liberalism | Political theories | Macroeconomics | Political economy | Political terms

The N.E.D's Latest Front Group

Inside Bush's "World Movement for Democracy"

By TOM BARRY

This movement is highly organized, better funded, and even has its own "secretariat." Unlike other leaderless but world-shaking transnational citizens' networks that emerged after the end of the Cold War, the "world's democratic movement" is not a product of global civil society but a quasi-governmental initiative based in Washington, DC.

Carl Gershman, the longtime president of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) where the movement is headquartered, says that the U.S.-government-backed World Movement for Democracy is "an imaginative new mechanism that can facilitate networking, sharing, and solidarity among democrats around the world."

The leading voice of this "movement" is President George W. Bush. Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the neoconservative-led National Endowment for Democracy on November 6, 2003, President Bush said, "We've reached another great turning point [in history], and the resolve we will show will shape the next stage of the world democratic movement."

Whereas the democratization strategy that President Ronald Reagan launched in 1982-83 targeted the Soviet Union and its "evil empire," Bush has said that his administration's democratization initiative would focus first on the Middle East, and that the "establishment of a free Iraq will be a watershed event in the global democratic revolution."

In the first State of the Union address of his second term, Bush took America's self-imposed mission to spread democracy and freedom to new heights of idealism, committing the United States to the tasks of spreading democracy around the globe and "ending tyranny in our world."

In keeping with the radical thrust of Bush's foreign policy, the president often refers to this movement in military terms-"forward strategy of freedom" and "global democratic revolution." Calling for a doubling of NED's budget for its democratization work in the Middle East, the president declared, "The advance of freedom is the calling of our time. It is the calling of our country."

NED and USAID Provide Political Aid

Together with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the National Endowment for Democracy has functioned as an instrument of the U.S. government's democratization strategy over the past two decades. Whereas USAID is an agency of the State Department, quasi-governmental NED is organized as a nonprofit but funded almost entirely by the U.S. government.

Since 1982, when President Reagan launched what he called a "crusade" to foster "free market democracies" and spread the a neoliberal version of the "magic of the marketplace," both USAID and NED have channeled U.S. government development and public diplomacy funding into the democratization programs of the international institutes of the Republican and Democratic Parties, the AFL-CIO, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, as well as a wide range of institutes, political parties, and nongovernmental organizations abroad.

As part of the Cold War, the U.S. government in 1947 began channeling political aid through the CIA to political parties, publications, policy institutes, academic institutions, and other nongovernmental actors. After Congress prohibited such covert funding in the 1970s, a U.S. government-funded task force called the Democracy Program, which was directed largely by neoconservatives, proposed a new political aid program that would overtly support the type of nongovernmental entities that previously received CIA funding.1 Soon after Ronald Reagan took office, the new administration put this proposal into action, assigning the U.S. Information Agency (USIA) and USAID as the chief sources of political funding. But rather than channeling the aid directly to foreign actors, the Reagan administration decided, in line with the Democracy Program proposal, that the "democracy-building" aid would flow through U.S. private organizations, mainly the newly created National Endowment for Democracy and its affiliates in the two political parties, labor, and business.

NED and other components of the Reagan administration's democratization strategy were an attempt to revive the post-WWII international networks of congresses, publications, and intellectuals funded by the CIA, such as the Congress on Cultural Freedom, in which many neoconservative forerunners like Irving Kristol and Melvin Lasky were leading figures.

Since its first years NED's "democracy-building" initiatives have had two main thrusts-one to promote U.S.-allied political actors against political parties and governments not closely aligned with the United States (such as Nicaragua, Haiti, Cuba, and Venezuela), and another to promote "free market democracy" in countries regarded as having an overly large government presence in the economy, notably in the "transitional" states of the former Soviet Union. As in the 1980s, when the U.S. government deployed NED to support surrogate "freedom fighters" in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, NED today is a central player in the new U.S.-led "global democratic revolution."

The U.S. government's funding for "democracy building" is closely tied to U.S. foreign policy priorities and generally goes to groups who fall in line with or at least do not oppose U.S. economic, diplomatic, and military initiatives.

"Network of Networks"

In the mid-1990s, the U.S. government and NED concluded that the democracy-building strategy needed an overhaul. Taking its cue from the anti-globalization and other transborder citizens' movements, NED began to establish networks of center-right foundations, research institutes, youth groups, parliamentarians, and nongovernmental organizations. In 1999 NED, with U.S. government and U.S. foundation support, organized the founding assembly of the World Movement for Democracy in New Delhi.

In the age of globalized communication and transnational cyber-networking, as exemplified by the anti-free trade movement, NED decided to start its own global citizens' movement. Rather than just channeling U.S.-government funds to disparate groups, NED's president Carl Gershman in 1999 established his office as the "secretariat" for a World Movement for Democracy.2

The movement's objective is to "offer new ways to give practical help to democrats who are struggling to liberalize authoritarian systems and to consolidate emerging democracies."3

According to NED, "The World Movement helps to fulfill one of the objectives of NED's most recent strategic plan, namely 'to create a community of democrats, drawn from the most developed democracies and the most repressive autocracies as well as everything in between, and united by the belief that the common interest is served by the gradual expansion of systems based on freedom, self-government, and the rule of law'."

Just as the citizens' global anti-globalization movement often described itself as a "movement of movements," NED describes the World Movement for Democracy as a "network of networks," that functions as an umbrella organization for an array of affiliated international networks of citizens' groups, parliamentarians, research institutions, business groups, and foundations. What distinguishes this movement from citizens' networks is that it was created as a U.S. government-supported initiative.

U.S. taxpayer revenues cover the cost of having NED function as the logistical and infrastructural secretariat for this multifaceted democracy movement. Annual State Department allocations cover the four NED staff members who oversee the network from their positions in the office of NED's president. Most of the project funding for NED's WMD, however, comes from right-wing foundations in the United States, led by the Bradley Foundation, which has provided the start-up and general support funding for an array of other neoconservative foreign policy projects, including the Project for the New American Century. Although the World Movement for Democracy states that it "does not advocate positions on particular political issues," the network's website and publications, such as its ezine DemocracyNews, largely reflect the U.S. government's foreign policy positions with respect to countries such as Venezuela and Cuba.

NED has created regional portals for participants in the network. For example, for Latin America and the Caribbean there is the "Portal de la democracia de las Américas," which opens to the webpage of the Red Ciudadana por la Democracia en las Américas (Citizens' Network for Democracy in the Americas).4

In addition to its regional portals to "citizens' networks," NED through the World Movement for Democracy has established regional forums with more restricted participation, such as the Democracy Forum in East Asia and the Africa Democracy Forum.

Also under the umbrella of the World Movement for Democracy are several other global "pro-democracy" networks that NED has been developing over the past decade, including International Movement of Parliamentarians for Democracy, Network of Young Democracy Activists, Democracy Information and Communications Technology Group, and the Network of Democracy Research Institutes. The latter, which includes as members think tanks and policy institutes throughout the world, receives research and technical assistance from NED's Democracy Resource Center.

As part of its effort to function as a nexus for a "network of networks," NED in 1995 convened a meeting in Taipei, Taiwan in conjunction with Taiwan's Institute for National Policy Research that aimed to spark the creation of "democracy foundations" around the world. In 2003, Taiwan, "following a period of consultation with NED," created the Taiwan Democracy Foundation.5

The Institute for National Policy Research is a think tank that is closely associated not only with NED but with the American Enterprise Institute, the premier neoconservative think tank. Today, there are three dozen foundations that participate in the NED-initiated World Conference of Democracy-Support Foundations.

One of the most recent movement-building exercises of NED is the Movement of Parliamentarians for Democracy, founded in Washington in February 2003. Among the main congressional supporters of this NED networking were Christopher Cox (R-CA) and Eliot Engel (D-NY), both closely associated with numerous neoconservative organizations.

A Neocon Product

Neoconservatives inside and outside the Bush administration have been central players in an array of government-backed initiatives such as the World Movement for Democracy and the Community of Democracies, as well as in such strictly private democratization programs as that of the neocon American Enterprise Institute.

In early 2005 President Bush tapped neoconservative ideologue Elliott Abrams-infamous for his key role during the Reagan administration in the NED-funded efforts to support the Nicaraguan Contras-to direct his Global Democracy Initiative.

Penn Kemble, a longtime associate of Carl Gershman and Elliott Abrams and who, like Gershman, has his political roots in the Trotskyist Social Democrats/USA, served as deputy director of the now-defunct U.S. Information Agency, a stronghold of neoconservatives since the early 1980s. In 1999 President Clinton named Kemble the State Department's special representative for the U.S.-led Community of Democracies Initiative, which established the Community of Democracies at a June 2000 meeting in Warsaw.

NED and the World Movement for Democracy are also promoters of the Community of Democracies-which has been greeted with widespread skepticism by many European nations who regard it as a U.S. strategy to skirt UN authority. Addressing the meeting of the Community of Democracies last April, Condoleezza Rice said that this forum with its commitment to "principled multilateralism" was creating a "balance of power that favors freedom." NED's new democracy initiatives aim to foster a transnational citizens' network funded and guided by the U.S. government and right-wing foundations that will counter the anti-free trade and anti-imperialist citizens' networks that have emerged in this age of globalized communications.

The close identification of the U.S.-sponsored democracy movement with U.S. foreign and military policy has made great strides forward in incorporating hundreds of citizens' groups around the world.

Already there signs that the movement may prove counterproductive in the region that is the main target of NED's democratization agenda. Throughout the Middle East, as in Cuba and Venezuela, democracy-building is getting a bad name since it is so closely associated with U.S. "regime-change" efforts by undemocratic means.

Tom Barry is the policy director of the International Relations Center (IRC), online at www.irc-online.org.

Palash Biswas
Pl Read:
http://nandigramunited-banga.blogspot.com/

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Friday, August 19, 2011

Why India Incs, FDI Fed REFORMIST Media and Corporate Imperilaist AMERICA Support Anna Hazaare and the Marxists Follow Suit? Why Excluded Enslaved Communities Fail to Understand the Conspiracy? Why Civil Society and LPG Mafia Rule Chose Ramlila Maida

US not behind Anna's agitation: Senator McCain

India Inc.

[edit]See also

[edit]References

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Contents

[edit]Background

[edit]Protest timeline

[edit]Use of cyberspace

[edit]Government response

[edit]Political response to the Jantar Mantar protests

[edit]Ramlila ground protests

[edit]Background to the Ramlila ground protests

[edit]Police action against the demonstration

[edit]Police clarification on action

[edit]Protest against police action on Ramdev's demonstration

[edit]Aftermath of the Ramlila ground protests

[edit]Civil society response

[edit]Government response

[edit]Other political parties response

[edit]Suo Moto Cognizance by the Supreme Court

[edit]August protests

[edit]Background

[edit]Hazare's arrest

[edit]Release

[edit]See also

[edit]References

[edit]External links

Full coverage

Related

Timeline of articles

Images

Videos

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Live: Massive crowds greet Anna

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Civil society

Contents

[edit]Definition

[edit]Origins

[edit]Pre-modern history

[edit]Modern history

[edit]Post-modern history

[edit]Democracy

[edit]Globalization

[edit]Civil society and constitutional economics

[edit]Examples of civil society institutions

[edit]See also

[edit]Civil-society scholars

[edit]Notes

[edit]References

[edit]External links

World Movement for Democracy—Made in the USA

Arab Spring

Contents

Overview

Summary of protests by country

Background

Motivations

Recent history

Tunisian revolution