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Globalization As A New Form Of Colonialism

When globalization

began many decades ago, poor and rich countries alike were promised the

opportunity to enter a globalized market. Consumers in Europe and America would

be able to buy products manufactured thousands of kilometers away, and the drop

in trade barriers would support many small business to export their goods to a

different country. Unfortunately, as

time passes, globalization has allowed rich, developed nations to take control

of underdeveloped countries as a form of neo-colonialism. It has allowed the

rich to become richer while the poor get poorer. There are several ways in the

which globalization has allowed richer nations to “colonize” developing

countries. Consider the following examples as proof of how globalization is a

new form of colonialism.

Colonization

is the practice of acquiring political control over a foreign nation, often to

exploit its resources and to increase borders. The modern world was shaped by

years of colonization, as people migrated from their original settlements to

new countries. Early European powers (such as England, France, and Spain) used military

force to seize foreign lands, expand their borders and exploit its resources.

At its peak, the British Empire was the largest empire in the history of the

world. They used religion, trade, and technological superiority to conquer close

to a quarter of the world. It wasn’t until the end of World War 1 that the

British Empire began to lose most of its colonies, and in 1945 it was

practically gone. It is around this time that colonialism ended. Although there

is no concise date, many scholars agree that globalization started shortly

after, driven by the creation of the first General Agreement on Tariffs and

Trade in 1947. This treaty saw the average tariffs on goods decrease from 37.5%

in 1947 to 4% in 1997. This decrease in tariffs boosted international trade.

Since then, many specialist argue that globalization has allowed many small

businesses in developing countries to easily tap into an international market

with relative ease. However, globalization has also allowed rich countries and

companies to establish themselves in a poor country and exploit its resources,

no unlike colonization. Nations also use something known as the dependency theory

to take control of poor nations.

The dependency

theory was first proposed by Raul Prebisch in the late 1960’s, when he found

that the increases in the wealth of the richer nations tend to be at the

expense of poor ones, since rich nations invest heavily on nations that are

willing to follow their ideals in exchange for their investment. The developing nations then become

economically dependent on the rich ones, which allows them to easily exploit

their resources for their own gain. The introduction of globalization has made

it easier for foreign nations to invest in host countries, making the

dependency theory possible. Even though the investment of major corporations

creates thousands of employment opportunities, the working conditions are

inhumane. Major corporations are able to benefit from the low living standards

of poor countries.

Transnational

corporations are taking advantage of how easy it is to invest in foreign

countries, opening factories overseas to take advantage of the cheap labor

offered to produce their products cheaply. These corporations have no regards

for the needs of the workers, which often makes working conditions inhumane.

Many big corporations use child laborers to produce their goods. The need for

foreign investment in underdeveloped countries leads them to compete by making

the investment more attractive, lowering regulations drastically. As a result,

companies are able to exploit the resources and laborers of poor countries. It

is clear that globalization has enabled powerful nations to exploit developing

ones, allowing them to take advantage of the cheap working hands.

An

undercover investigation by Greenpeace found that the main companies

responsible for the deforestation of the Amazon forest are international

corporations such as Nike, Adidas, Wal-Mart and Ikea. Brazil’s cattle industry

is the main largest source of deforestation and CO2 emissions. Quoting

Greenpeace, "Brazil is the fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gasses in

the world in large part because of deforestation-related emissions.”. According

to a study by the The Brazilian Business, exported cattle products from Brazil

is a 2 billion dollar industry. However, the main benefactors of this industry

are international companies such as Wal-Mart, Ikea, Nike, and Adidas. This is a

clear example of how globalization has allowed international corporations to

easily exploit natural resources found in foreign underdeveloped companies.

Since products are very cheap to import, These companies have taken advantage

of the cheap prices found in impoverished or underdeveloped countries such as

Brazil.

In

conclusion, globalization is has helped rich nations become richer, whilst

making the poor poorer. Unfortunately, underdeveloped countries do not have the

resources or technologies to compete on an international market. This has made

it easier for developed to exploit the resources of the poor, making them

economically dependent of big, international corporations. Colonization has

evolved over the centuries. Early European powers used military supremacy to

take control of foreign lands, expand their borders and exploit its resources.

However, as capitalism gained power and influence, mayor corporations started

to take advantage of underdeveloped countries, exploiting the lack of work

regulations and the low investment needed to establish industries in foreign

countries. The exploitation mechanism of globalization is based on economic

power rather than military might. Nations in need of monetary aid become

dependent of the investment made by lenders, allowing them to exploit natural

resources and cheap human laborers.

References

Garfolo, B.

(2016). Globalization: The "New" Colonialism of the 21st Century. [online]

Available at:

https://www.academia.edu/4814383/Globalization_The_New_Colonialism_of_the_21st_Century

[Accessed

15 Sep. 2016].

Mouffac,

L.-2016. Why is globalization considered as a form of neo colonialism? - Quora.

[ONLINE]

Available

at:

https://www.quora.com/Why-is-globalization-considered-as-a-form-of-neo-colonialism.

[Accessed 19 September 2016].

ArticlesNG. (2013). Globalization

as It relates to Neo-Colonialism - ArticlesNG. [online] Available at:

http://articlesng.com/globalization-relates-neocolonialism/

[Accessed 19 Sep. 2016].

Tigweb.org. (2016). Globalization as Neo

Colonialism - Panorama - TakingITGlobal. [online] Available

at: http://www.tigweb.org/youth-media/panorama/article.html?ContentID=4363

[Accessed 14Sep. 2016].