Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

The Trend has Taken a New Turn

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The Trend has Taken a New Turn

No doubt, it has been centuries that European and North American countries have been the founder, epicenter and engine of almost everything in the world, ranging from economics, to politics, to social and cultural relations and etc. whatever the reason behind, they were deeply engaged in promoting and expanding those abstract as well as pragmatic concepts. Democracy, human rights, laissez faire, in political, legal and economic spheres respectively were the forefront of the, so-called, project of Westernization.

But the feedback has not been similar, and sometimes quite contrasting. Democracy was not welcomed in many parts of the world and it countered resistance. The same story occurred with laissez faire and human rights.

What now? Seemingly, the trend has taken a new turn. Even those countries that once were strongly resisting to so-called "economic democratization" now have stuck to it even stronger then their western fellows, the very founders and principle supporters of the notions.

Utilizing the same capitalistic theories, many developing countries are jumping towards economic development and prosperity with painstakingly projecting capitalism. However, some are blamed of regulating the economy or, let's put it in this way, regulating the capitalism itself.

No doubt, classical and neo-classical economists were propounding laissez faire which was largely restrained by theory of welfare state, responsibility of government to cope with possible financial and economic crisis as well as recognition of lager role in regulating economy by state after the big economic crisis of 1930s.

The story is repeated in developing countries. But they do not need to restrain laissez faire because that is already restrained. The behavior and measures taken in developed countries after the US housing bubbles burst up to cope with the crisis clearly portrayed that they genuinely are not much convenient with the theory of, so-called, minimum government. They also have held tough measures and somehow indulged in regulating economy through presenting large incentive package to pull the economy back on the track.

What many developing countries are doing nowadays is restraining capitalism and free market. Indeed, governments and states in these countries control the overall financial and economic system in order to avoid instability and injurious fluctuation.

I would like to call it as "indigenization of westernization project". But the same developing countries are under pressure to give up control over the market forces and let the market forces to determine the level of general prices as well as the nominal values of currency.

Western countries are indiscriminately not comfortable with the spiraling economic growth of their Asian, Latin American competitors. American and European goods are not controlling global markets anymore. They have found tough competitors, and now they have to increase the efficiency of factors of production—otherwise, they will be substituted by new emerging economies.

Presently, they are doing whatever they can in order to maintain their economic hegemony. Some of their measures are blunt as countries like China are under severe pressure to loosen its grip over its financial policy and let the Yuan to appreciate against dollar.

In the case of political system too European and North American countries have been leading the world for centuries. They have been like utopian countries for all those who were suffering under repressive, totalitarian, authoritarian regimes in their homeland.

Values like secularism, pluralism and recently multi-culturalism have operated as potential forces attracting people from all over the world. But now the trend is seemingly reversed; that also in time when the most authoritarian regimes are struggling to survive from a new wave of civil defiance.

Undemocratic behavior continually is not going to be tolerated; civil defiance is increasingly penetrating into even the most politically concrete societies and step by step quakes the pillars of authoritarian regimes. People are pushing for democratic establishment and pressurizing authorities to recognize wider sphere for individual, or let's say, individualism is finding larger supporters. Now, the only source of government legitimacy is becoming people, not class, sex, ideologies or religion.

The increasingly arguments become prevalent and find supporters in the European society contemporary to a new wave of awakening taking place in Arabian countries. The white, as somebody called them, revolutions of Egyptian and Tunisian are showcasing how the project of democracy has found indigenous supporters, without political and strategic assistance its founders.

The political tsunami for authoritarian regimes in Arabian countries may not be limited to just Tunis and Egypt, presently, there are mass civil defiance and demonstrations in many other countries. This new wave of awakening which certainly has become nightmare for dictators and authorities would possibly yield a vibrant democracy. There are signs to count on that the current democratic awakening will eventually end to desired goals, and may not fall prey to hands of radical and Islamic fundamentalists.

Assuming the notion right, then we are actually experiencing to counter-trends. One starts from undemocratic countries and goes towards democratization. Second has started from democratic countries where a reversal move is taking place. Parts of modern values should be ignored in order to attain a save and peaceful society. Do these trends shape new global order? It is not known, but what certain is that something new is happening in the world.

Jawad Rahmani is the permanent writer of the Daily Outlook Afghanistan. He can be reached at jawad_rahmani2001@yahoo.com

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