THE ROHINGYA CRISIS: WHY THE WORLD MUST ACT DECISIVELY

The dimensions of the crisis generated by the systematic persecution and expulsion of Rohingyas by the Myanmar authorities have been a sustained subject for global debate in these present times. The refusal of the Myanmar government to heed the world's warnings, its obfuscations in the matter of following through on the recommendations of the Annan Commission, and the dogged reluctance of Aung San Suu Kyi, once an ardent advocate of democracy and human rights in her country, to speak up for the Rohingyas have left the international community deeply disappointed. And disturbing too is a report by UN investigators on human rights abuses in Myanmar's Rakhine state. The problem does not look about to be resolved any time soon, with more than 750,000 Rohingyas taking refuge in neighbouring Bangladesh, pushing social dynamics in an already over-populated country to the edge. The fear is that the crisis could fester before getting dangerously out of hand, unless the global community goes for decisive action.     

Dynamics of remittance practices and development: Bangladeshi overseas migrants

Remittances from migrant workers play a significant role in keeping the economy of Bangladesh vibrant, adding around six per cent to the country's GDP and helping to maintain the balance of payments. This article examines remittance flows from Hong Kong and Malaysia to Bangladesh; the dynamics of remittance practices; and the impact on the well-being of migrant families. Data were collected from 126 labour migrants (56 in Hong Kong and 70 in Malaysia) between November 2004 and October 2006. The article presents empirical data showing that while remittances are significant component of the Bangladeshi economy, a considerable amount goes to ‘unproductive’ schemes. Hence remittances at the micro level that do not significantly contribute to increasing household capacities fail to bring about the anticipated sustainable development at the macro level.

La dynamique des pratiques d'envoi de fonds et le développement : migrants bangladais à l'étranger

Les envois de fonds par les travailleurs migrants jouent un rôle considérable dans le maintien du dynamisme de l'économie du Bangladesh, car ils comptent pour environ six pour cent du PIB du pays et contribuent à maintenir la balance des paiements. Cet article examine les transferts d'argent de Hong Kong et de Malaisie vers le Bangladesh, la dynamique des pratiques d'envois de fonds et l'impact sur le bien-être des familles migrantes. Des données ont été recueillies parmi 126 ouvriers (56 à Hong Kong et 70 en Malaisie) entre novembre 2004 et octobre 2006. Cet article présente des données empiriques qui montrent que, si les envois de fonds constituent effectivement un élément considérable de l'économie bangladaise, une quantité importante va vers des programmes « non productifs ». Ainsi, les envois de fonds au niveau micro qui n'apportent pas une contribution importante à l'accroissement des capacités des ménages ne donnent pas lieu au développement durable prévu au niveau macro.

Dinâmicas de práticas de remessa e desenvolvimento: imigrantes bengaleses

As remessas feitas por trabalhadores imigrantes desempenham um papel significativo em manter a economia de Bangladesh vibrante, adicionando cerca de seis por cento do PIB do país e ajudando a manter o balanço de pagamentos. Este artigo examina os fluxos de remessa de Hong Kong e Malásia para Bangladesh, as dinâmicas das práticas de remessa e o impacto sobre o bem-estar das famílias de imigrantes. Os dados foram coletados de 126 trabalhadores imigrantes (56 em Hong Kong e 70 na Malásia) entre novembro de 2004 e outubro de 2006. O artigo apresenta dados empíricos mostrando que embora as remessas sejam um componente significativo da economia de Bangladesh, um montante considerável vai para esquemas “improdutivos”. Assim, as remessas no nível micro que não contribuem significativamente para melhorar as condições da família, não conseguem promover o desenvolvimento sustentável previsto no nível macro.

La dinámica de las remesas y el desarrollo: los migrantes de Bangladesh en el extranjero

Las remesas de los trabajadores migrantes constituyen una parte importante de la economía de Bangladesh ya que representan el seis por ciento del PIB del país y contribuyen a mantener el equilibrio de la balanza de pagos. Este ensayo analiza los flujos de remesas de Hong Kong y Malasia hacia Bangladesh, la dinámica de cómo se utilizan las remesas y su impacto en el bienestar de las familias de los migrantes. Se recopilaron estadísticas de 126 trabajadores migrantes (56 en Hong Kong y 70 en Malasia) entre noviembre de 2004 y octubre de 2006. Los datos empíricos que presenta el ensayo demuestran que, si bien las remesas son un componente significativo de la economía de Bangladesh, una parte considerable se destina a actividades “improductivas”. Por lo tanto, las remesas a nivel micro que no contribuyen de manera significativa a mejorar las condiciones de los hogares no aportan al desarrollo sustentable a nivel macro que sería deseable.     

Fertility differential by husbands' occupational status and income in Dhanbad district,Jharkhand, India

The paper attempts to find out fertility differential by husbands' occupational status and income level in Dhanbad district, Jharkhand (India). The mean number of children ever born (MCEB) is used to measure fertility, and monthly income as the income variable. Older and younger cohorts of women were examined separately for assessing fertility differential. MCEB was found to be high for women with husbands employed as labourers with a low monthly income. This was true for both the cohorts, but fertility levels were much higher among the older cohort. Low MCEB was found with increasing income of husbands and for those in private jobs.

Différence de fécondité en fonction du statut professionnel et du revenu des maris dans le district de Dhanbad, Jharkhand, Inde

Cet article cherche à établir des différences potentielles sur le plan de la fécondité en fonction du statut professionnel des maris et de leur niveau de revenu dans le district de Dhanbad, à Jharkhand (Inde). Le nombre moyen d'enfants par femme (NMEF) est employé pour mesurer la fécondité, et le revenu moyen comme variable de revenu. Des groupes de femmes jeunes et plus âgées ont été examinés séparément pour évaluer la différence sur le plan de la fécondité. On a constaté que le NMEF était élevé pour les femmes dont les époux travaillaient comme ouvriers et percevaient un revenu mensuel faible. Il en était ainsi des deux groupes, mais le degré de fécondité était beaucoup plus élevé parmi les membres du groupe des femmes plus âgées. Un NMEF plus faible a été constaté parmi celles dont les maris avaient des revenus supérieurs ou occupaient des postes dans le secteur privé.

Diferencial de fertilidade pela condição ocupacional dos maridos e renda no distrito de Dhanbad, Jharkhand, Índia

O artigo visa descobrir o diferencial de fertilidade em razão da condição ocupacional dos maridos e nível de renda no distrito de Dhanbad, Jharkhand (Índia). O número médio de crianças nascidas (MCEB) é utilizado para medir a fertilidade, e a renda mensal como variável de renda. Grupos de mulheres mais velhas e mais novas foram examinados separadamente para se avaliar o diferencial de fertilidade. O MCEB encontrado foi alto para mulheres com maridos empregados como trabalhadores com baixa renda mensal. Isto ocorreu em ambos os grupos, mas os níveis de fertilidade foram muito mais altos entre o grupo mais velho. Um baixo MCEB foi encontrado com a renda crescente dos maridos e para aqueles em empregos privados.

La diferencial de fertilidad según el reconocimiento profesional y los ingresos de los esposos en el distrito de Dhanbad, Jharkhand, India

Este ensayo busca establecer la diferencial de fertilidad según el reconocimiento profesional y el nivel de ingresos de los esposos en el distrito de Dhanbad, en Jharkhand, India. El número promedio de hijos nacidos (NPHN) se utilizó para medir la fertilidad y se estableció la variable de ingreso de acuerdo al ingreso mensual. Se examinaron por separado grupos de mujeres, jóvenes y mayores, para evaluar la diferencial de fertilidad. Se determinó que el NPHN era alto para las mujeres cuyos esposos trabajaban como obreros con ingresos mensuales bajos. Esta situación prevalecía en ambos grupos de mujeres, pero los niveles de fertilidad eran más altos para el grupo de mayor edad. Un NPHN bajo se asoció a esposos con ingresos más altos o con un empleo en el sector privado.     

Quality of Service,Expectation, Satisfaction and Trust in Public Institutions: The Abu Dhabi Citizen Satisfaction Survey

Structural equation modelling was utilised to develop and test three models while exploring the causality effect of constructs. The models hypothesised that trust in the government was a result of interactions of several other forces: namely, citizens’ expectation, perception of service quality and satisfaction with these services. The article validates and replicates the findings on the question of causality between performance and trust. The findings were very consistent with the previous ones. The model incorporating citizen's demographic data provided the best fit. According to this model, citizen demographics, expectations and quality of services influence citizen satisfaction; and ultimately, citizen satisfaction influences trust in government. The perceived quality of all services provides significant standardised estimates. However, congestion in streets, parking facilities, parks and recreation and schools are the most salient drivers of citizen satisfaction. The variables of income, education level, years living in Abu Dhabi and marital status exert the highest influence on this satisfaction construct. Perception of quality of services has a significant effect on overall satisfaction; and overall satisfaction drives trust in local government officials. In addition, citizen expectation influences perceptions of the quality of service and overall satisfaction.     

Reforming Indian agriculture and the rise of farmer's protest in India: Tracing the discourse and the way ahead

The Indian government unveiled new farm legislation on September 27, 2020, with the goal of empowering the farming community. According to the government, new farm regulations will reduce the reliance of indigenous farmers on the mandi (market yard) system, which is now in place and is quite exploitative and full of middlemen and legal cartels. The regulations made contract farming lawful with the intention of luring private sector investment in bolstering agricultural supply chains and infrastructure to give farmers better pricing. But these rules are referred to as repressive and anti-farmer by the farming community. Farmers believe that eliminating the mandi system will eliminate the minimum support price (MSP) mechanism and that contract farming will ultimately be damaging, enticing major corporations and private investors to bind them to unfair contracts that will result in exploitation. Farmers' demonstrations have begun as a result in the former territory of the green revolution. In order to determine if the new farm regulations introduced by the central government are indeed beneficial to the rural community or not, the article followed the debate among many academics, policy makers, economists, researchers, stakeholders, and politicians (the government's spokesman). The article's main focus is on analysing the farmers' demand for the new farm rules to be repealed and the economic justification for their opposition. Additionally, it contends that new farm rules will encourage capitalistic farming and endanger the viability of farming communities, particularly small and marginal farms (S&M).     

Critical Reflections on the Proposal for a Mediation Act for Scotland

This article critically analyses the recent proposal to introduce a Mediation (Scotland) Bill. The proposed Bill aims to introduce a novel process of court-initiated mediation that will oblige litigating parties to attend a mandatory Mediation Information Session. Adopting a comparative approach with the English and Irish civil justice systems, this article analyses the key elements of the proposed Bill and makes proposals to improve it.     

Why did the United States Invade Iraq in 2003?

Why did the United States invade Iraq in 2003? Most scholars cite the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), a neoconservative desire to spread democracy, or the placating of domestic interest groups as the Bush administration’s objectives, but I suggest these arguments are flawed. Instead, I proffer the “performative war” thesis resting on the concepts of status, reputation, and hierarchy to explain the Iraq war. Hegemons desire generalized deterrence, such that others do not challenge their territory, preferences, or rule. However, the challenging of a hegemon’s authority—as occurred on 9/11—generates a need to assert hegemony and demonstrate strength to a global audience. Only fighting a war can demonstrate such strength; no peaceful bargain, even a lopsided one, can achieve the same effect. Consistent with this framework, the United States fought Iraq mainly for its demonstration effect—defeating the recalcitrant Saddam would lead other states to fear the United States and submit to its authority and global order.