KoPA Archives
À̸§
E-mail
ºñ¹Ð¹øÈ£
(°Ô½Ã¹° »èÁ¦ ¹× ¼öÁ¤½Ã ÀÌ¿ëµË´Ï´Ù.)
HTML¾²±â
(HTMLÀ» Á÷Á¢ ÀÔ·ÂÇϽǷÁ¸é üũÇÕ´Ï´Ù)
Á¦¸ñ
³»¿ë
>>> Writer : Changgeun Lee > A Critical Review of Alternative Debates on the International Control over the Capital(May, 1999) > > > 1. Catastrophe of globalization and the necessity of international > control > > Under the axiom of 'freedom of markets', the globalization of the capital has imposed such an undefiable 'categorical imperative' as liberalization, open trade and deregulation. > So miserable was the result that nation-states were, in the era of globalization, nearly deprived of every device for economic regulation: job deprival, economic concentration, expansion of poverty, demolition of the public sector, intensification of social exclusion, destruction of cultural autonomy and the crisis of ecosystem. People all over the world are shocked by the fact that their destinies are unknowingly determined beyond their > grasp. > > The sole task of national governments is to draw capitals into their territories and to endeavor to preserve domestic capitals; the freer the capital flows, the severer national competitions become. Every nation-state forces herself to seek for new methods to > render her attractive to the capital, and the fact that most investments are short-termed indicates that nations are put under permanent pressure "to preserve the condition to hold the capital in their territories". Labor markets are made "flexible" and core public > corporations should be exposed to private investors. No limitation may be put on the transfer of investment profits into the homelands. Only remain the nominal indices indicating economic recovery and the statistical numbers celebrating the explosive augmentation of foreign direct investments. > > Where and how should "limitless races to the bottom" be cut off? Is there any transnational means to terminate the coercive "unlimited competition system" that is globally operating? The "international control over the capital" has fairly broad connotations; it comprises every means possible to limit the operation of the global deregulation system that drives people all over the world into the "limitless races to the bottom". It comprises every action and means to cut the chain of imperialism in the local, national and international level: KCTU's anti-layoff struggle, Han Young strikes in Mexico, ecologist warriors' struggle against nuclear power and taxation on financial transactions. Various debates on "transnational financial capitals and controls over foreign direct investment" ascribed to present globalization, therefore, should be reviewed > in the light of its suggestion to Korean people. > > 2. What happened from 1997 to 1999 > > The crisis of finance and foreign exchanges in East Asia, generated from the devaluation of Thai bart in 1997, has spread to Indonesia, Korea, Russia and Brazil. > Capitalists and their patronized intellectuals, who eschew any action scarring 'freedom of markets', commenced to make flippant remarks. With the expression of the 'volatility of world financial markets', 'hedge funds' and 'herd instinct', however, some started to > carefully maintain that short-term speculative capital should be regulated. The bankruptcy of a representative hedge fund named LTCM (Long-Term Capital Management) initiated by famous Nobel prizers, aroused the necessity of the regulation of hedge funds even in the United States, the kingdom of financial capitals. The key proposal for the regulation of the short-term speculative capital may be categorized into three: First, guarantee of the transparency of international financial flux and the fortification of control to efficiently supervise the indiscriminate activities of hedge funds. > Secondly, consolidation of the role of international lenders of last resort to prevent fluidity crisis. Thirdly, debates on the reforms of global financial rules. Even among them the necessity of the regulation of financial markets is considerably agreed, though > the debate is confined within short-term speculative capitals. Such reactions of capitalists indicate that even they are afraid of the speculative accumulation system and the instability of the financial system. > > Another remarkable issue is the citizens' and people's struggle as regards MAI(the Multilateral Agreement on Investment). MAI had been negotiated in OECD since 1995, and was expected to get signed in 1998. On January in 1997, when the MAI negotiating text was exposed through Internet, it aroused enormous struggles of citizens, workers > and social activists all over the world, and at last the negotiation was suspended due to the withdrawal of France on October in 1998. > > We, nevertheless, should not overlook what MAI means in terms of class struggle, for MAI has clearly exposed the phase of globalization as imperialist nations and transnational capitals are seeking it, and showed how worldwide people and workers can struggle against capitalists' international treaties. Reviewing MAI in comparison with other free trade agreements and free investment agreements, we can clearly understand what imperialist nations and transnational capitals call globalization. To begin with, MAI makes a really broad definition of the 'investment'[1], thus even short-term speculations are also considered to be a kind of 'investment' protected by MAI. Additionally, clauses on the liberalization & protection of the investment were much fortified. > > While most investment treaties protect only post-establishment processes, MAI liberates and protects pre-establishment processes; even American investors' speculation in Korean stock markets through computer terminals is considered to be a "just investment" and should be sufficiently protected. What is worse, the duty of investment liberalization[2], which is not regulated in most BITs and OECD regulations, is additionally regulated. Finally, very restrictive procedure of dispute resolution is compelling each country to perform the duty of the liberalization & protection of investment. Such procedure of dispute resolution is also applied even to the pre-establishment processes. In addition, it not only rules dispute resolution procedures among nations but also grants investors the right to directly claim the nation. In short, MAI is nothing other than the 'Bill of Rights for transnational capitals'. > > **Next contexts are following... If you want to read full text, please click an attached file. > > 3. The debate on global financial crisis, struggle against MAI and their significance in the context of class struggle > > 4. Alternative debates for the control over finance markets and transnational financial capitals > 4-1/ The case of Malaysia and Chile > 4-2/ The Global Financial Crisis, the IMF and Strategies Towards > Resolving the Crisis(John Dillon) > 4-3/ Third World Network > 4-4/ Campaign for Labor Rights > 4-5/ Citizens & People Agreement on Investments and Wealth (CPAIW) > > 5. A concise review on alternative debates > > 6. How Korean People Intervene > > by Changgeun Lee(International Coordinator of KoPA) >
¸µÅ©
÷ºÎÆÄÀÏ
Copylefted by
JINBO.NET