[Reading Assignment 3] What is the relation between politics and globalization?

What is the relation between politics and globalization?

  Globalization has led to the emergence of a new transnational political organization based on the state. Due to the development of transportation and communication, trade between each country increased and dependence increased. Accordingly, various countries have created a national coalition political body to further promote common interests through cooperation between states. There are transnational institutions in various fields such as the UN and the IMF. The UN is an international organization established to prevent war and maintain peace. Activities are largely divided into peacekeeping activities, armament reduction activities, and international cooperation activities, and consists of major organizations, auxiliary and specialized organizations. In the case of disputes between countries, mediate them or assist in cooperation between countries. The IMF aims to contribute to the increase in employment, income and productive resource development of member states through stable expansion of world trade.

  Globalization triggered the creation of non-governmental organizations led by civil society. Political globalization not only promoted exchanges between countries but also promoted exchanges among citizens across borders. Through this, the discourse of cross-border civil society on various issues around the world was formed, and a non-governmental organization was created based on this. Representative non-governmental organizations include Greenpeace and Amnesty International, and they strive to solve problems that each country does not care about or does not address. Greenpeace is an international environmental protection organization established in 1971, and is engaged in activities to preserve the earth's environment and promote peace through anti-nuclear tests and nature conservation movements. Amnesty International is an international organization established to rescue political prisoners from each country who are punished and oppressed by state power. It aims at arresting political prisoners for reasons of ideology, political, or religious beliefs or opinions, the release of imprisoned political prisoners, fair trial and improvement of prison treatment, and the abolition of torture and death penalty.

  Also, globalization expanded democracy globally. Democracy, a political system adopted by many countries in the modern world, gradually expanded to many countries, including Asia, South America, and Africa as globalization progressed starting with Europe and the United States in the early days. The process of achieving this and the speed of development differs from country to country, and even if the same political regime was adopted, it was applied slightly differently to each country according to the culture, environment, and trend of the times. For example, in the case of Korea, the direct presidential system was chosen, while the British adopted the constitutional monarchy of the political system. Korea achieved full democratization in the 1980s, influenced by the democracy of Europe and the United States, and continues to this day.

   From the preceding articles, it can be seen that globalization has promoted the formation of global cultural norms and global civil society. Due to the democratization of each country, autonomy and freedom of expression through sovereignty spread. This happened not only within the country, but across borders and helped shape the global civil society. In addition, the birth of international and non-governmental organizations formed global cultural norms. In the case of the United Nations and Amnesty International, global standards and discourses on human rights have been formed while dealing with human rights issues. In addition, global diseases such as corona and problems that cannot be solved in one country, such as the environment and climate, were discussed by forming discourses through transnational organizations.

  However, world organizations created through cooperation between countries can also represent their interests, led by a few powerful countries. In order for international organizations to be maintained, national donations are required, but depending on the national donations, international organizations may be biased. In the case of the WHO in recent years, there is an opinion that it has delayed the declaration of the crisis situation about Corona 19 that broke out in China, and that this was not noticed by the dissenting opinion of China, which paid a large amount of sponsorship. In the 2000s, it was pointed out that the United States had a war that was not necessary to secure stable oil for its own country, even for the legitimacy of declaring war on various countries in the Middle East.

  As I read lectures and articles on political globalization, I learned anew about the political influence of civil society in the world. Previously, when considering the relationship between politics and globalization, only the relations between states and transnational political institutions based on the state were considered. However, it was interesting to see the creation of a global non-governmental organization led by citizens rather than state-led through the writings and lectures. I felt that the fact that individual citizens are taking over the things the state cannot and cannot do by forming global ties and discourse on the issues they are interested in, and even making non-governmental organizations. It was also an opportunity to rethink the power of citizens.

  In the future, it is necessary to discuss the direction of political globalization. Political globalization has occurred in many directions and methods now, but political globalization will emerge in more and more ways and directions in the future. If this is expanded, a phenomenon in which a new coalition or an existing coalition will expand its power will appear, but if it is reduced, a situation where the state withdraws from the existing coalition will also occur. What is certain is that the transnational political form that appears due to globalization is currently underway, and there is only a difference in direction and speed, but will not disappear and will continue to unfold in the future. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully discuss the political globalization that will emerge in the future.