Reader's Response to "Assessing Globalization"

In the article “Assessing Globalization", published by Harvard International Review in 2008, Andrew Kohut and Richard Wike from Pew Research Center analyzed how countries respond to globalization and the rising international trade. The article revolves around the economic, environmental, cultural, and immigration impacts of globalization. The authors expressed that "workers in poor countries have moved to cities in search of new jobs, while some in wealthier nations have lost jobs and moved overseas". A survey revealed that while Senegal, one of the world's poorest nation, have 98 percent of people willing to leave the country for better income, wealthy nations like Poland and Slovakia both have 96 and 94 percent of people respectively  willing to do so as well. However, this effect brought about another concern which is the immigration of people. Though poorer nations welcome multinationals, majority of people believed that immigrants will bring negative impacts to the country.

I agree with the statement of "average citizens are more apprehensive about globalization" (Kohut & Wike, 2008) especially in the case of mass global migration of people. After all, compared to political elites, we are the ones facing the issues in the community. In the case of immigration issues, the average citizens in the community are the ones facing the direct impacts.

One of the problems with the increase in immigrant population from underdeveloped countries is the rise in social ills. These include increase in crime rates, drug abuse and teenage pregnancy. I can personally relate to this as these situations occur in my home country where there is influx of low-skilled foreign workers. Crime rates are on the rise with countless cases of snatch theft and robbery trends spreading across the country. Even with such severity, law enforcers are still unable to resolve these issues affected by foreign workers. The sense of insecurity would eventually jeopardize the country's unity as people lose trust in each other.
 
Social ills arise with economic inequality as well. Singapore is the best example for income inequality. Due to the dependence of low-cost foreign workers, the top financial hub in Asia has the highest Gini coefficient of 0.478 in 2012 (“Here are 6”, 2013), which is considered to be at a dangerous level. Though social ills in Singapore remains low, the possibility of the occurrence should not be taken lightly.

On the other hand, the immigration of people from richer nations might cause stress on local infrastructures. Singapore, for example, faces this issue to support the growing population under the challenge of land scarcity. As immigrants seek housing as well, there will be competition between the locals and immigrants. This would cause the sense of injustice when a foreigner is able to obtain better housing compared to a local of the same income status.

In conclusion, I think immigration issues will bring negative impacts to a country and should be better controlled in this globalized world. Governments should regulate these issues through proper policies to protect and secure the livelihood of the local people.


Reference: Kohut, A., & Wike, R, 2008. Assessing Globalization: Benefits and Drawbacks of Trade and Integration. Havard International Review.

Here are 6 ugly facts about Singaporeans' income. (2013, March 27). Singapore Business Review. Retrieved from: http://sbr.com.sg/economy/news/here-are-6-ugly-facts-about-singaporeans-incomes