Monday, May 25, 2020

The Tensions Between Muslims And Jews - 1908 Words

Despite current misconceptions of the tensions between Muslims and Jews, the current political conflict began in the early 20th century. The Palestinians, both muslims and christians, lived in peace for centuries. Control of the city had historically, since 637 AD, been under Muslim control with guarantee of Christians’ safety, right to property, and right to practice religion. The collapse of the Ottoman Empire led to European nations colonizing many of its former lands, and the British gained control of Palestine. Social and political issues prompted European jews to flee from political unrest from their homes in Europe, and migrate to Palestine. Seeing the influx of Jews as a European colonial movement, the Arabs fought back. The British couldn’t control the violence, and in 1947 the United Nations (UN) voted to split the land into two countries. The continued political unrest in the Middle East is the cause of United States involvement. In â€Å"Everything you need to know about Israel-Palestine,† Zack Beauchamp reports, The Jewish residents accepted the deal. The Palestinians, who saw the plan as an extension of a long-running Jewish attempt push them out of the land, fought it. The Arab states of Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, and Syria all later declared war on Israel as well (albeit not to defend the Palestinians). Israeli forces defeated the Palestinian militias and Arab armies in a vicious conflict that turned 700,000 Palestinian civilians into refugees. The UNShow MoreRelatedConnection of Terrorism and the Middle East Essay702 Words   |  3 Pagesgarment that distinguishes him as a Muslim. Instantly, flashes of the 9/11 attacks come rushing in your mind as you confronted the man about his nervousness. The man explained that his flight was arriving soon and that his friend is running a little late. You still wanted to pry the man more, but then the man’s friend came and they were on their way. Many people today in our society get the impression of a terrorist when meeting someone from the Middle East or a Muslim for the first time. Because theRead MoreAnti Islam Sentiments On American Culture Essay1696 Words   |  7 Pagesprovides a chart that encompasses attitudes of Muslims toward Americans and Americans toward Muslims (Figure 5) . From the chart we can see that Muslims have a si gnificantly more negative view of Americans than Americans do of them, which again can be attributed to media attention and different international decisions that affect the world. Though the report it is obvious that there is a disconnect between those that agree with the discrimination of Muslims in society and those that oppose it. But fromRead MoreThe Holy City, Peace971 Words   |  4 Pagesin the Holy City, peace is difficult to find. In recent decades, tensions have continued to rise in the city between the Jewish and Muslim populations. These tensions have always been present between the religions of Judaism and Islam virtually since their foundations; especially taking root with the building of the Al Asqa Mosque and other Islamic places of worship on the Holy site of the Temple Mount (â€Å"the Noble Sanctuary† to Muslims) in the seventh century (Sites and Places in Jerusalem: The TempleRead More Why Is Religion Important?995 Words   |  4 Pageshave argued over various issues of faith. It has led to much tension between them. The most striking of these tension is in Northern Ireland where the Protestant leaders are constantly at odds with one another. It has led to terrible violence, which continues even to this day. Jews make up another of the world’s major religions. Jews feel that they are the Chosen People of Yahweh (God) because of the covenant that God made with the Jews through Abraham who was considered the founder of Judaism andRead MoreThe Iranian Revolution1494 Words   |  6 Pagesking Cyrus issued a proclamation ending the Babylonian exile, allowing the Jews to return to the land of Israel and rebuild the Jerusalem temple. This triggered a temporary friendship between the Jews and the Persians. During Reza Shah’s reign in Iran, Israel and Iran cooperated on many levels as they were united by a common enemy and shared interests. However, there has always been a substantial ideological split between the Iranian theocracy focused on the triumph of Islam, and a Jewish stateRead MoreThe Middle East: The Birthplace of Three Major World Religions834 Words   |  4 PagesThose religions are Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Although on the surface, these three religions se em quite unrelated, they are actually intricately bound together and very similar. No matter how different the practices and beliefs of Jews, Christians, and Muslims may seem, these three religions are similar because they all began in the same region and built upon similar beliefs. Since the Middle East is the birthplace of three related major world religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, theseRead MoreEssay about The Cause of Hatred and Distrust in the Middle East1610 Words   |  7 PagesThe Cause of Hatred and Distrust in the Middle East The war in Iraq is further poisoning the already noxious political atmosphere between Arabs and Americans. It has intensified and increased dangerous feelings of humiliation and outrage among the Arab public, while paranoid rhetoric about Western attacks against Islam elsewhere is spreading from the religious fringe to the mainstream. It is simplistic and self- serving for political leaders in the West to tell us thatRead MorePolice Arrestness In Israel1105 Words   |  5 Pagespolicing. Israel is known as a deeply divided society which Jews and Arabs relationship with the police greatly differ (Weitzer, 1995). In Israel, Jews have stronger relationships with the police than Arabs in general. The Druze minority group of the Israel is similar to the Jews in regard to the views of the police, but the Christian and Muslim Arabs as well as ultra-orthodox Jews generally share negative relationships with the police. The tension that is prevalent in deeply divided nations has been associatedRead MoreNostra Aetate Essay914 Words   |  4 PagesYears ago, a man was crucified for saying he was God’s Son. His name was Jesus Christ. Those who followed his teachings were named Christians; and Christians soon resented Jews for their sinful act. This tension between Christians and Jews lead to increasing hatred for one another. Not too long ago, anti-Semitism was common. Anti-Semitism led to the death of an entire population during the Holocaust. Luckily, the church has taken measures to rectify this anti-semitism with the publication of NostraRead MoreCBA: Israel-Palestine Conflict 688 Words   |  3 Pagescontentious argument between both groups because with the geocultural perspective, the religious tensions between Muslims and Jews have resulted in the problematic issue over the holy structures in Jerusalem. The second most contributing factors in the Israel-Palestine conflict were psycholog ical factors. These were the second greatest factors that started the dispute because with the psychological perspective, the aftereffects of the holocaust have traumatized the remaining Jews and also the Palestinian

Thursday, May 14, 2020

Human Rights as an Imperial Corporate Responsibility - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 10 Words: 2986 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Law Essay Type Narrative essay Tags: Human Rights Essay Did you like this example? Human Rights as an Imperial Corporate Responsibility It has been argued, time and again, that human rights have the potential to function as the new tool of civilization that they are motivated by international political and economic aims. I attempt to synthesize and visualize these critiques in the context of the human rights industry à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" an institutionalized market that seeks to capitalize on the plight of the suffering. The rhetoric of corporate social responsibility campaigns bears a striking resemblance, both in conception and language, to the burden of the civilizing imperial. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Human Rights as an Imperial Corporate Responsibility" essay for you Create order That far from serving as a real emancipatory tool, these campaigns (the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"responsibility of corporatesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢) have become a standard part of the justification of the neo-liberal project. They deviate attention from the evident harms of the market economy to pose the hegemonic framework as a saviour of the downtrodden. With such an understanding, I conclude that the hegemony of the neo-liberal system has firmly established itself as the inevitable and the saviour, serving numerous concealed objectives at the same time. In this sense, the human rights campaign, driven by the glamour of sympathy evoking rhetoric, will march on. The word à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"campaignà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ has an interesting etymology. It comes from an early French usage campagne used to describe à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“a tract of open countryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ . Stretches of bucolic terrain were often used by armies to prepare, manoeuvre and fight. Gradually, this practice became semantically sy nonymous with the topology it referred to. The space became no different from the purpose for which it was occupied: military operation. Further in time, the militaristic connotation of the word takes the meaning of establishing a set of political goals with a system. From à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"taking the fieldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, it set its sights on a normative shaping of the field it has taken. Closer to today, the word is most closely associated with the ubiquitous à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"ad campaignà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, the corporate-controlled, media-propelled vehicle of presenting particularistic desires as emancipatory wants, predicates of happiness. In many ways, the military occupation, political configuration and consolidation through consumptive desire that is implicit in the history of the word à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"campaignà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ is also implicit in the history of campaigns within the human rights industry. The human rights campaign is the tainted smile of the Empire. The desire to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"make the world a better placeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ through the diversionary mission of corporate social responsibility, has proven to be a lucrative space to be occupied, configured and consolidated. In the paper I argue, albeit rhetorically, that the emancipatory countenance of human rights campaigns are avatars of transnational economic hegemony. Costas Douzinas argued that the sovereign was established on the basis of unlimited individual desire but by assuming the function of the party, the class or nation, it could turn its desire into a murderous rage and a denial of all right.[1] He further argued that when the sovereign is devised according to the characteristics of the desiring self, it had the ability, to empirically deny individuals and frustrate all human desire and surrender people to the horrors it was made to protect them from. In this paper, sovereign will be construed to mean an à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"industry ´ whose desire is to promote certain right s for its own propaganda, thereby systematically denying access to all rights, except the ones this industry promulgates. This paper will be broadly divided into three parts. First, I will ground the premise of a human rights industry in theory. Second, I attempt to explain the necessity of that industry to capitalize on emancipatory desire, and the role of the human rights campaign and neo-liberalization therein. Third, I explore how the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Corporate Social Responsibilityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ campaign, by selectively invoking images of suffering and calling for intercession converts à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"voicelessnessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ into a discursive space to be occupied, configured and consolidated. The Human Rights Industry Article 28 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realizedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ , is the quintessential ambition that the human rights campaign in the 21st century strives to achieve, i.e. to be acultural and ahistorical. But despite its totalizing claims of universality, this system did not always exist as undisturbed, unchallenged as it seems today. The geopolitical history of how western liberal capitalism was won is rooted in the invasion of territory through bloody conquest, colonial dehumanization, forced religious conversion, destruction of indigenous economies, and so on in a list longer than one of all the rights one can possibly compile. In other words, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“to argue that human rights has a standing which is universal in character is to contradict historical realityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ [2] Given this track record, it becomes imperative for the neoliberal economic system to obscure the history and consolidate the future. The neoliberal corporate order, as Pierre Bourdieu puts it, devotes à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“as much time to concealing the reality of economic acts as it spends in carrying them outà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ .[3] The system of corporate social responsibility is thus preoccupied with appearances to cover up its own rapacity, to cover up the impossible irony of declaring everyone equal when it feasts on inequality. Within this paradoxical space, the marketization of human rights becomes a venture that is not merely useful, but integral to keeping appearances while maintaining profits: the human right industry.[4] The idea of a market, in Anthony Cartyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s threefold legal phenomena, becomes pertinent here.[5] He claims that western language about human rights favours a voluntarist understanding of these rights, i.e. rights are a matter of statements of personal preference. The market is then the legitimacy of personal preference and the satisfaction of desire, confirmed through the institution of contract. Anthony Carty affirms that this contradiction between moral claim and economic reality is the discursive space from whence the modern human rights project becomes the face of the neoliberal order.[6] The language and symbolism of human rights, presumed to be universal, becomes an immensely valuable commodity in the perpetuation of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the materialist-hedonist culture that requires a militarized control of the planet to ensure its continued expansion.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ [7] Public opinion itself becomes a commodity. Opinion polls exist somewhere beyond any social production of opinion. They rebound incessantly in their own images: the representation of the masses is merely a simulation, as the response to a referendum. In this Janus-faced order, it becomes a primary impulse to contract away the responsibility for human life by declaring allegiance to the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"human rights campaignà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. Similarly, Baudrillard speaks of human rights campaign as commodity par excellence- its circulation has become all but indistinguishable from the circulation of c apital.[8] In this context, it may not be difficult to reimagine the semantic economy of the human rights campaign through the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“messianic ethosà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  of the transnational human rights industry.[9] The appearance of saviour is necessary for hegemonic stability which is in turn contingent on there being a victim to save: but save cost-effectively i.e. profitably. Of course, as discussed, the neoliberal propensity to conquer, configure and consolidate is the only way to maintain profits. This situation presents a macabre, but ingenious opportunity: proactively use the neoliberal vehicle to spread the good emancipatory news of human rights. This potential to disaggregate and recombine the semiotics of universal human rights becomes a perfect space for the fusion of modern hegemonic corporate interests with emancipatory desire. An infamous example of this effortless synthesis is Lucky Strikeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Torches of Freedomà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ ž ¢ campaign of 1929. Looking to expand its clientele for Lucky Strike cigarettes to include women, for whom smoking in public was a social taboo, the American Tobacco Company sought the help of Edward Bernays, the so-called à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"father of public relationsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. Bernays, in turn was advised to advertise the act of smoking as symbolic of womenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s equality and emancipation.[10] He paid young debutants to walk down the streets of New York smoking Lucky Strike cigarettes by then dubbed à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"torches of freedomà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. The campaign was met with instant adulation from notable feminists such as Ruth Haley who encouraged American women to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Light another torch of freedom! Fight another sex taboo!à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ [11] This is exemplary of how consumption and emancipation merge under corporate commission to form the modern human rights campaign. The post-Cold War consolidation phase, if we go by Vasuki Nesiahà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ â„ ¢s idea of intervention, it can be interpreted as the outcome of the grotesque fusion of imperial hegemonic power and human rights activism. She speaks of an almost physical transfusion of humanitarian NGOs with wealthy, hegemonic donors in this period.[12] The NGOà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s openly engaged with the political fervour involved in their activism, although within the terms of liberal internationalism. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Humanitarian work in the field was shaped by an intricate interplay of changes in how human rights and humanitarian institutions were funded and how their projects were defined.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ [13] This phase, I argue sees the emergence of a renewed human rights campaign: impossibly powerful, swathed in the garb of human emancipation, drunk on neoliberal idealism and of course, swimming in profit. Neo-Liberalization Human Rights: Capitalizing on Emancipatory Desires The human rights campaign speaks self-referentially and articulates its mission as tempo rally different from geopolitical history, for example, military intervention in Afghanistan becomes a campaign for the rights of women à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" as Laura Bush told the American people, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Because of our recent military gains in Afghanistan, women are no longer imprisoned in their homes.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ [14] The contemporary human rights campaign has evolved into a dealer in the world of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"emancipation is human rightsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. By relying on the symbolic value of emancipation, the human rights campaign decides to apply its own standards of right and wrong to benefit hegemonic expansion. In other words, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“save the girl-child, save the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  becomes the call to arms of an economically-propelled endgame. Naomi Klein orients a different thought process on the interrelation of human rights, morality and politics.[15] The problem, as she assesses, is depoliticisation à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the transformation into moral panics of phenomena that are rooted in the political economy of contemporary capitalism. She argues that governments, financial institutions and other powerful economic agents are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"looting with the lights on, as if there were nothing at all to hideà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢.[16] Klein characterizes neoliberalism as a holy trinity à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" privatization, deregulation and cuts to social spending à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" in which governments dismantle trade barriers, abandon public ownership, reduce taxes, eliminate minimum wage, cut health and welfare spending and privatize education. She calls the means of achieving this goal à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“disaster capitalismà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  and describes how it has resulted in a worldwide redistribution of income and wealth to the already rich at the expense of economic solvency for the middle and lower classes. While Moyn advances the claim that human rights is a relatively new phenomenon than is generally assumed. For Moyn, the revol utionary charters following the Universal Declaration of Human Rights bear little relation to human rights, which are concerned with rights against the State, not popular sovereignty. It was in the 1970à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s that human rights became a movement, a mode of activism and a language of claim, aspiration and justification that would be heard throughout the world. On the other hand, Klein believes that part of the context for the consolidation of neo-liberalism itself was the emergence of the human rights movement, with its non-political creed. Moyn contends that in recent years things have begun to change.[17] From alternatives to political utopias, today the agenda for human rights is much larger. They are called upon to address not just repression and violence, but humanitarian concerns about suffering in all forms. But what he omits to mention, is highlighted by Klein who states, that the interrelation between human rights and neo-liberal version is now of private capital ism, with familiar policy prescription of privatization, deregulation and state retreat from social provision.[18] In a presumably similar vein, Stephen Hopgood notes that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“as with power and money, the creed now apparently on its deathbed becomes a mean to the end of globalizing neoliberal democracyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ .[19] Selective Voices and the idea of Corporate Social Responsibility Lastly, the idea of corporate social responsibility at once invokes the desire to enlist or at least pay homage to the noble venture of the visibly underprivileged yet smiling à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"othersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ on the campaign banners. On August 19, 2013, Vedanta, as part of its à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Khushià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  initiative, launched the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Our Girls, Our Prideà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ campaign in association with NDTV.[20] Its aim? Alleviate the plight of undernourished, unhealthy, undereducated and vulnerable young girls in India. In NDTVà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s press relea se video[21] of the campaign-launch, images of visibly underprivileged yet smiling young girls embellish a banner that backdrops a choice gathering of members of civil society, NGOs, government and of course, corporations. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Our Girls, Our Prideà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ by the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Khushià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ initiative- the semantic barrage of crippling joy in pain, vicarious ownership, personal responsibility and hope of salvation all at once invokes the desire to enlist or at least pay homage to the noble venture. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Stakeholdersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, concerned citizens from à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"all walks of lifeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ have come together in solidarity, all in one place, all for one cause (1:20); surely this has to be democracy if there ever was. The emancipatory appetite is whet and the insignia of unity is drawn as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"the poor girl childà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. Now, the visual celebration of poor-but-happy on the banners start to makes se nse. The images now fit perfectly without qualm in the luxurious hall of The Leela, Chanakyapuri, a hotel estimated by Forbes to have cost 391 million USD to build.[22] The violence of the contrast is erased. The spectral presence of the subaltern is ritualistically invoked. And then begins the ventriloquism of the human rights  © campaign: A video-clip is projected on screen. More poor-but-happy girls are presented, statistical information is brought to notice, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Nirbhayaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, the infamously anonymized Delhi gang-rape victim, is mentioned (3:05), and the video ends with poor-but-happy girls singing a vernacular rendition of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“We Shall Overcomeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (3:33). Celebrity, Priyanka Chopra, then addresses the gathering in her capacity as UNICEFà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Goodwill Ambassador for India and newly appointed à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"brand ambassadorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ of the campaign. The delegates then exchange views and reaffirm the decision that the campaign will make a change, bring happiness. The assimilative tendency of the human rights campaign is showcased here. Not only are images of structural disenfranchisement displayed as objects of consumption, the recent outrage against violence fresh in memory, the Nirbhaya protests, is captured in a few moments, stripped of voice and repackaged as an à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"eventà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. As the song of emancipation is sung, the images on screen are replaced with the image of the celebrity on stage. Revealing her à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"human sideà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, she speaks of colonial discovery. She speaks of how she, at a young age, came to notice à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the mind-set that people have towards the girl-childà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (05:07). She determines that it is à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"usà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ who must change it. The invocation of the self-other paradigm is especially apt here as the camera focuses on the impeccably dressed, visibly wealthy audience (5:45). Coincidentally, it is clear who à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"usà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ refers to here- those who have the social capital to be aggrandized from the hegemonic power structure. Only they have the power to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"bring a changeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ to the pitiable, alien world the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"otherà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ inhabits. Recall here the propulsion of emancipatory desire of the French mission civilisatrice in West Africa through the hegemonic colonial vehicle. The occupied space must be consecrated in the language of changing a savage culture by setting it to human rights. The pretext of this à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"mega-eventà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ of change serves to simultaneously exonerate and justify any traces of irony that may be associated with a vicious mining corporation backed by media-conglomerate and UNICEF and government and local activists initiating a mission in the name of human rights. Even as the video plays and right now, Vedantaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s crimes, its attemp ted siege of the Niyamgiri hills in Orissa, its record of displacing hundreds of Dongria Kondh, its destruction of forests, poisoning of water and pollution of air, are being erased.[23] Appearances and hegemonic power are consolidated simultaneously through the semantic force of the human rights campaign. On November 25, 2013, Vedanta announced its plans to invest 3 billion USD into its oil and gas campaign in India and acquire bauxite in Orissa.[24] The newspaper article relates Vedantaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s statement that the denial of their mining project in the Niyamgiri hills in 2012 is à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“no setback to the groupà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ . Plans to expand operations to Punjab are disclosed. The article ends with the announcement that Vedanta plans to start the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Khushià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ initiative in Punjab soon.[25] The campaign marches on. [1] Costas Douzinas, The End of Human Rights: Critical Legal Thought at the Turn of the Century 374 (Hart Publishing Oxford 2000) [2] Peter Schwab, Human Rights: A Western Construct with Limited Applicability in Human Rights: Cultural and Ideological Perspectives (1980) [3] As explained in: Vanessa Smith, Intimate Strangers: Friendship, Exchange and Pacific Encounters 112 (2010) [4] Anthony Carty, The Philosophy of International Law 193-197 (2007) [5] Anthony Carty, Legalisation of Human Rights Discourse in a Coercive Legal Order 1 [6] Ibid. [7] Id at 196. [8] Jean Baudrillard, Power Inferno 63-83 (2002). [9] Makau Mutua, Human Rights: A Political and Cultural Critique 215 (2001). [10] Larry Tye,The Father of Spin: Edward L. Bernays and the Birth of Public Relations(1998). [11] Allan Brandt, The Cigarette Century 84-85 (2007). [12] Vasuki Nesiah, From Berlin to Bonn to Baghdad: A Space for Infinite Justice, 17HHRJ (2004). [13] Id. [14] Id. [15] Susan Marks, Four Human Right Myths, London School of Economics Working Papers 10/2012 [16] Naomi Klein, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Looting with the lights onà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, The Guardian, (August 2011). [17] This debate was discussed in: Samuel Moyn, Human Rights and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Neoliberalismà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (Nov. 29, 2014, 7:00 PM), https://hhr.hypotheses.org/215 [18] Ronnie Steinberg, The Shock Doctrine Review (Nov. 29, 2014, 7:00 PM), https://www.naomiklein.org/reviews/ms-magazine-review-shock-doctrine [19] Stephen Hopgood, The Endtimes of Human Rights, (Cornell University Press 2013) [20] Priyanka Chopra names Campaign Ambassador for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"NDTV-Vedanta Our Girls Our Prideà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢, NDTV, Aug. 19, 2013, https://www.ndtv.com/article/india/priyanka-chopra-named-campaign-ambassador-for-ndtv-vedanta-our-girls-our-pride-407688. [21] Video available on the top-left side of the webpage at: https://www.ndtv.com/article/india/priyanka-chopra-named- campaign-ambassador-for-ndtv-vedanta-our-girls-our-pride-407688. [22] Modern Day Splendor in New Delhi: The Leela Palace Hotel, Forbes, Jan. 10, 2012, https://www.forbes.com/sites/annabel/2012/10/01/modern-day-indian-splendor-in-new-delhi-the-leela-palace-hotel/. [23] Survival International provides a consolidated list of government documents relating to Vedantaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s activities at: https://www.survivalinternational.org/behindthelies/vedanta. [24] Newspaper article available at: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Vedanta-Plc-to-invest-3-billion-in-India-in-3-years/articleshow/26374817.cms. [25] Id.

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

The Fight For Women s Rights - 1711 Words

Burke 1 The word feminism essentially represents the cumulative number of ideologies and movements that advocate the equal rights of women on all grounds. While the concept has been present for centuries, its magnitude in the United States has only become largely recognized throughout the 20th century. In particular, feminism has had its most lasting effects through two large waves in the early 1900’s, whilst fighting for women’s suffrage, and the 1960’s to 1970’s, which focused on women in the workplace and counteracting the submissive roles assigned to women in the 1950’s. These political battles for gender equality have left lasting footprints on today’s society by giving women opportunities previously unattainable. Still, the fight for women’s rights is far from over, as today’s females face a new struggle involving the media. With the rapid progression of modern technology has come the immensely degrading trend of objectifying wome n. Women’s position in the media is heavily flawed, as females are seen as little more than their physical appeal, instead of human beings with large amounts of potential. This objectification is most prominently displayed through children’s literature, the use of advertisements, and sexual abuse, and must be eradicated for the security and equality of all women. Despite the decades of progress that have elevated the rights of women in this country, society will not obtain true gender equality until the media changes, since it has counteractedShow MoreRelatedThe Fight For Women s Rights1572 Words   |  7 PagesThe fight for woman’s rights and equality is still a highly discussed topic today. While women’s rights, all over the world, have significantly increased for centuries, feminists are still present and continue to fight for more. How are women’s rights of ancient Greece, and women’s rights of â€Å"Old America†, versus womenâ⠂¬â„¢s rights in modern day Greece and modern day America, alike and how do they differentiate? Over the course of history, many events have taken place to insure the equality of women. HoweverRead MoreThe Fight For Women s Rights2271 Words   |  10 PagesIn pre civil war America women were thought of as subordinate to men and thus had less rights than free black men. African American and White women had similar political positions and rights besides the fact that white women could own slaves with their family. They even performed the same jobs when it came to house work. Black slaves were thought of to have 3/5s a vote in the senate while women had none. Abolitionist and anti slavery movements arose along with the thought that people should rallyRead MoreThe Fight For Women s Rights1359 Words   |  6 PagesThe fight for women’s rights has been a long and ongoing battle. It was not until the twentieth century that the majority of women demanded legal and social rights for themselves. Society’s way of thinking in the eighteenth century was a patriarchal and conservative one. Women stayed at home and took care of the family while the men went to work, and while there was some opposition to this, the majority of men and women did not mind. This can be seen in the formation and vast acceptance of the CultRead MoreThe Fight For Women s Rights1247 Words   |  5 PagesThe fight for women’s rights is one of the most pressing issues of our time. Women have won the vote, the right to obtain equal employment, and the right to pursue higher education just like men. However, the struggle still continues to solve various issues such as equal pay regardless of gender and maternity leave. Many women feel like they are fighting an uphill battle, and many women feel like they are being oppressed by the opposite gender. Sylvia Plath was one of these women who felt like sheRead MoreThe Fight For Women s Voting Rights Essay1810 Words   |  8 Pagesa bu sy city street, people clear the way for the thousands of women marching down the street. They are dressed in all white and bearing flags and banners that read the words, â€Å"Vote for women’s suffrage,† or â€Å"Mr. President, how long must women wait for liberty?† Floats are also seen on the street, holding women of all different ages, sizes, and races. It is a parade, a demonstration of how hard women are willing to fight for their right to vote. Scenes similar to this one were not uncommon in citiesRead MoreWomen s Rights Is The Fight For Equality1083 Words   |  5 PagesWomen’s rights is the fight for the idea that women should have equal rights with men. Over history, this has taken the form of gaining property rights, the women’s suffrage, or the right of women to vote, reproductive rights, and the right to work for for equal pay. Women were conditioned to be treated like second class citizens solely because of their gender until a crucia l movement in American history during the late nineteenth century that would inspire a long fight for equality for generationsRead MoreReproductive Rights : Women s Fight For Control1485 Words   |  6 PagesReproductive Rights: Women’s Fight for Control Women having been fighting for equal rights for many years. Because of our genitalia, we will be paid less, we will be judged more, and we will have to fight to protect our basic human rights. Most women are born with the amazing ability to carry life; this is a blessing and a curse. Because of this ability, some people believe that a woman’s body is not completely her own, but that the government has rights to that body as well. We have been fightingRead MoreWomen s Rights Of Women845 Words   |  4 PagesRights are declarations that allow people to live their lives with freedom equality and justice.Rights allow people to live freely without discrimination and dictatorship over the choices they make. But in 1800 and before, women did not have rights. Women were not free to do as they chose, but instead were expected to stay home and take care of children. They were refused rights to speak or go into politics or social problems.but on July 19, 1848, at Seneca Falls 300 people gathered toRead MoreThe United States Women s National Team1665 Words   |  7 Pagesindividual. Throughout the years, the women have accomplished so much more than the men, but yet are being paid less than what the men are making. They have experienced rough conditions of the fields when they play their matches, which can lead to serious career ending injuries. The women have had enough of this situation and they plan to bring this up to the U.S Soccer Federation, they hope the men will stick up for them and help them fight for their rights, the women hope to get rid of Astroturf altogetherRead MoreWomen s Suffrage Movement : Women1440 Words   |  6 Pageslate 1800’s through the early 1900’s, women were not given the rights they have today and were being mistreated, but because of a few brave women who gave up their lives to fight for what they knew was right, this all changed. Many of these women were educated and brave, but were still denied their rights. W omen have suffered through this long battle to get what they knew they deserved and took time out of their lives to fight for what they believed in, which was to have a voice. Women wanted to

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Investment Portfolio Construction Finance †Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Investment Portfolio Construction Finance? Answer: Introduction The selection of appropriate investment approach or strategy is crucial for the investment manager because it sets the overall direction of the investments. Basically, there are two types of investment strategy such as active investment strategy and passive investment strategy. The selection of investment strategy is influenced by risk taking capacity and willingness of the investor. Thus, before finalizing the investment strategy, it is crucial to look into the risk and return preferences of the investor (Fabozzi and Markowitz, 2011). In this context, an investment proposal has been prepared in this document that seeks to provide investment advice to the client. The proposal covers a discussion on the selection of investment strategy and construction of a portfolio. The proposal gives description of the reasons for selection of investment alternative and establishes an alignment between the selected investment strategy and the constructed portfolio. Investment Philosophy and Strategy The most commonly applied investment strategies are active investment strategy and passive investment strategy. Under the active investment strategy, the focus of the fund manager is on value creation by exploiting inefficiencies of the market. Under this investment strategy, the fund manager seeks to find out the undervalued stocks and invests money in these stocks to earn profits (Rutterford and Davison, 2007). The investments under this strategy are made with short term objective. Since, the fund manager has to track the market inefficiencies; therefore, this strategy requires extensive research and analysis. The other strategy i.e. passive investment strategy stresses on investing in the stocks which perform in line with market. Under this investment strategy, the fund manager focuses on the long term investments. Further, the trading transactions under passive investment strategy also tend to be low because the funds are tied in for long term. Both the investment strategies are correct at their place, it is the risk and return preferences of the investors which influences the selection of investment strategy. The investors willing to take high risk for higher returns prefer adoption of active investment strategy while the risk-averse investors prefer passive investment strategy (Wermers and Yao, 2010). In the current case, the investor wants to invest $200,000 to accumulate funds for his retirement. The investor is willing to take high risk to earn high returns. Further, he does not specify the particular types of investment options. The investor is comfortable with direct investment in individual securities as well as indirect investment through managed funds or investment companies. Further, the investor does not any problems whatsoever with the investment in foreign securities. He is quite willing to get the exposure of the international market. Further, the client makes it clear that he wants portfolio aiming at capital growth rather than the one which earns periodic returns in the form of dividends. Thus, considering the investors prescriptions, the active investment strategy is selected. A portfolio with capital growth motive will be constructed under the active investment strategy. The fund manager will be responsible to carry out extensive research to find out undervalued securities. The fund manager will be targeted to earn profits by exploiting the inefficiencies of the market (Wermers and Yao, 2010). Recommended Portfolio Components The portfolio is constructed with a combination of securities. However, the selection of securities depends upon the return and risk preferences of the investor. It is the objective of every investor to earn return as high as possible and keep the risk as low as possible. However, the return and risk runs in parallel, which means that if the return increases, the risk will automatically increase. Thus, the objective of portfolio construction becomes optimization of the return and risk (Prigent, 2007). In the current case, the portfolio for the investor has been constructed as show in the table presented below: Individual Equity Max Price on 07/10/2017 Share/ units purchased Amount Cochlear Ltd Health Care Equipment 10% Max 153.14 130.00 19,908.20 CSL Ltd Biotechnology 10% Max 133.32 135.00 17,998.20 Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd Hotels, Resorts Cruise Lines 10% Max 51.45 389.00 20,014.05 Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd Restaurants 10% Max 44.93 400.00 17,972.00 REA Group Ltd Advertising 10% Max 63.35 284.00 17,991.40 93,883.85 Aberdeen Leaders Ltd Large, leading companies 10% 1.15 8,694.00 9,998.10 WAM Capital Limited Smaller companies 18% 2.43 14,908.00 36,226.44 46,224.54 US Equity 10% Min iShares SP 500 US SP 500 10% 320.83 62.00 19,891.46 Cash 20% Max 40,000.00 Total 199,999.85 Future sell contract Rate 5,663, Exposure 50% of $93,884= $46,942 The investor has total funds amounting to $200,000 which he wants to be invested in the individual equities, managed funds, and international equities. The investor has provided specifications regarding maximum and minimum amounts to be invested in the particular type of investment avenues. Considering the investors specifications, the portfolio has been constructed by allocating the total available funds of $200,000 in different asset classes. The investor has specified to invest not more than 50% of the funds in the individual equity securities in aggregate. Further, there is a restriction on investment of amount in the individual securities taken singly. It is stipulated that not more than 10% of the total funds are to be invested in a single company. Five stocks namely Cochlear Ltd, CSL Ltd, Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd, Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd, and REA Group Ltd have been selected from the top 100 companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. The companies have been selected in such a manner so that perfect diversification is achieved and the risk is reduced to the optimal level. All the companies belong to different sectors or industries as could be observed from the table given above. The data of risk and return of the companies for previous 7 years has been analyzed to assess the suitability of the stocks for investment. Along with the analysis of stocks, ASX market data has also been analyzed. The data analysis has been presented in the appendix. It could be observed that Cochlear Ltd has provided a monthly average return of 1.30% with standard deviation of 7.55% over the period of 7 years (Appendix). Further, CSL Ltd earned a monthly return of 1.66% with volatility of 5.07%. Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd has earned a return of 3.01% with volatility of 8.30% and Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd has provided a return of 1.40% with volatility of 9.16%. REA Group Ltd has been observed to be earning a return of 2.33% with volatility of 8.01%. The monthly average return on ASX index has been 0.30% with the volatility of 3.59%. This implies that all the five stocks selected in the portfolio are earning returns higher than the overall market return. Apart from this, approximately 28% of the total funds have been invested in the investment companies that further invest the funds in the different avenues. The investment in the investment companies provides larger diversification and reduces the risk further. Besides this, 10% of the total funds have been invested in US equities through 'iShares SP 500. Further, funds amounting to $40,000 have been kept in cash management account. This cash balance has been kept in account to meet the requirements of marginal pay for short selling of future contracts. The future contract at the rate of 5,663 has been taken to hedge 50% of exposure in individual Australian equities. Alignment of Portfolio Recommendations with the Investment Strategy The investment strategy selected for the client is active investment strategy. The active investment strategy requires selection of stocks that have potential to make higher returns. As it is known that higher stock returns would be coupled with higher risk; therefore the stocks having higher volatility in the prices have been selected from the list of top 100 companies. All the stocks provide returns higher than the market return. The primary aim of the active strategy is to beat the market by exploiting the market inefficiencies. The selection of stocks in the current portfolio aligns with this strategy because all the stocks comprised in the portfolio have the potential to beat the market (Haight, Ross, and Morrell, 2008).; Conclusion This document presents an investment proposal for a client who seeks to invest a sum of $200,000. From the discussion, it could be inferred that the assessment of risk and return preferences of the investor is the first and primary set in investment planning and portfolio construction. Based on the investors willingness to take risk, active investment strategy has been proposed to the client. Further, a well diversified investment portfolio has been constructed for the client. The portfolio involves individual stocks from Australian equities, investing companies, and exposure to US equity market. Further, since, the active investment strategy is considered risky, therefore, the risk exposure in Australian equities has been hedged with the use of future contracts derivatives. The client is recommended to review the portfolio on a regular basis and switch the positions from time to time as per market trend.; References Fabozzi, F.J. and Markowitz, H.M. 2011. Equity Valuation and Portfolio Management. John Wiley Sons. Haight, G.T., Ross, G., and Morrell, S.O. 2008. How to Select Investment Managers and Evaluate Performance: A Guide for Pension Funds, Endowments, Foundations, and Trusts. John Wiley Sons. Prigent, J. 2007. Portfolio Optimization and Performance Analysis. CRC Press. Rutterford, J. and Davison, M. 2007. An Introduction to Stock Exchange Investment. Palgrave Macmillan. Wermers, R. and Yao, T. 2010. Active vs. Passive Investing and the Efficiency of Individual Stock Prices. [Online]. Available at: https://finance.uni-mannheim.de/fileadmin/files/areafinance/files/Paper_Finance_Seminar/Wermers.pdf [Accessed on: 08 August 2017].