It is in human nature to think that the experiences of each generation are unique. So it is not surprising that globalisation is seen as something very special to this period, which started around 1985. But as economic historians have convincingly shown, globalisation in one form or another has been going on for centuries. Indeed, it has been the rule. If anything, the exceptions have been the periods when the process has been interrupted, as during war, whether in the last century or earlier.
There is, however, an important difference this time. Unlike in the previous episodes of pervasive globalisation, as during the long period of peace that started with the Congress of Vienna in 1815, this time globalisation is happening in the presence of nearly 200 nation-states, instead of just a handful. This constitutes a major difference because it complicates the issues that arise out of the definition and exercise of sovereign rights of governments. These rights, at this cusp of the 20th and 21st century, pertain largely to two areas.
One, the rights of governments to spend what it takes to maintain the desired levels of economic activity in their countries and, two, their need to protect and defend domestic capital which comes under pressure from foreign capital. No country, from the mighty USA to the tiny Vanvatu is exception to this rule. In that sense, the main problem that nations face now is no longer whether or not to globalise. It is how to manage globalisation, especially during the transition from one type of economy of society to the other.
Globalisation -- and the consequent immensity of flows of capital accompanied by labour displacing technologies that induce greater uncertainties about citizens' future incomes against which they seek insurance -- has made the problem even more complex. In a system characterised by universal franchise, where the rulers have to keep public opinion in mind, the this in security cannot be overlooked, even when the provision of goods and services are in the hands of private providers. No democratic country is an exception to this rule.
This book, consisting of essays by a number of eminent persons from the countries of East Asia writing under the aegis of the World Economic Forum, addresses these issues but only obliquely. This is a pity because a more direct approach would have improved the focus of the book. As it has turned out, it is a bit too diffuse. Thus, as you start reading, the tone and tenor seems ready to be set by the opening essay by Mahathir Mohamad, Prime Minister of Malyasia, one of the most perceptive practitioners of globalisation. In some ways it is, too. But the promise is fulfilled only patchily as different writers pursue different themes. But the sub-text is more-or-less the same, namely, how to manage this latest phase of globalisation in ways that do the least harm and yield the maximum benefits.
The essays are divided into four groups. The first set is clubbed under the general heading of 'A New Look at Globalisation for Asia'. The second set is called 'Strategies for Success' in which Asia's main business leaders present their perceptions. The third set is gathered under the rather misleading heading of 'Managing Political and Corporate Governance Challenges' but there is no essay on politics and the fourth set is called 'Exploring Regional Trade and Business Links'.
As stated earlier, these essays deal with far too many specifics and far too few generalisations. Some would see that as a strength, and in some immediate ways it might even be so. But to this reviewer the lack of a clearly stated focus appears as a weakness which should have been made up by a much longer introduction that gathered together all the main strands of the work so far on globalisation.
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