EDITORIAL : THE GLOBAL TIMES, CHINA

Restructuring of economy essential

For the first time in three years, China's economy dipped below 8 percent in the second quarter of the year, leading to plenty of pessimistic discussions in the Western media. There is fear overseas that the "below-8" is an omen of China's "economic collapse", something that has also confused some Chinese.

China has long been discussing structural adjustment aimed at slowing down excessively fast economic development.

However, it seems our rationality is not that solid. Although we concede that 7 percent would be ideal after a theoretical assessment, we have become psychologically dependent on a higher development speed.

Admittedly, a fast increase is always somewhat desirable even though it's not cost-efficient, as a fast economy creates plenty of jobs and revenue. But the negative effect accompanying this speed overwhelms its merits.

This forced change of path has been carried forward proactively and in an orderly manner.

The overall speed of 7.8 percent in the first half of the year was still the best result among major world economies, and the other economic figures were not bad either, especially as inflation has been brought under control. The economic slowdown brings a structural reshuffle and prompts the economy onto a healthy path.

Of course, the more China's economy develops, the more conducive it is to bolstering the slumping Western economy, but an abnormally high speed also translates into domestic suffering. The opinion of the West on China's economic restructuring should be taken as nothing more than a reference.

China's economy must create more jobs, boost consumption by increasing individual incomes, and improve social harmony by reducing the income disparity. 

Change inevitably causes discomfort, and sometimes doubt and risk. If economic slowdown is implemented in a "democratic" country, these risks may well escalate into a political crisis for those in power. Even now in China, the risk also exists of the move being politicized.

Some people assert that the legitimacy of the Communist Party of China's ruling power comes from its handling of the economy. In fact, it's the same situation in all other countries, too. The difference is that the political system in China encourages the ruling party to work according to the economic rules and secure people's long-term welfare, while Western political parties tend to eye the short-term effects to achieve seemingly prosperous but unsustainable economies, as they don't have to worry about how the situation will develop in the future.

Restructuring is important for China, and once it proves successful, it will bolster China's rise and create new records for all the indicators.

EDITORIAL : THE DAILY MIRROR, SRILANKA

Alarm bells ring on unrestricted imports

Just as we swallowed wholesale the globalised capitalist market economy and are now paying a heavy price for it with a dangerous gap between the rich and the poor, we also appear to be swallowing the good and bad factors in information and communication technology.

Senior Minister and Communist Party Leader D.E.W. Goonesekera, addressing the party’s 69th anniversary sessions lashed out at the capitalist economic policy and the unrestricted imports which were draining millions of dollars out of Sri Lanka. He referred to mobile phones, pointing out that though Sri Lanka’s population was about 20 million, the number of mobile phones in use was more than the population. He said some people had two or three mobile phones including the latest 3G variety. Even domestic aides and others doing low-pay jobs were flaunting their mobile phones which now have snob value or give social status.

While we commend Mr. Goonesekera for speaking out on such issues we also need to ask why he and other socialists like Ministers Tissa Witharana and Vasudeva Nanayakkara do not have the courage to resign on a matter of principle. The reason or excuse they give is that they could bring about some moderation or a middle-path policy by being within the Cabinet. If that excuse has any validity, they have miserably failed so far because the capitalist policies are continuing with wholesale corruption, fraud and blatant abuse of public funds turning the misery into a mess and a muddle.

Not only mobile phones, we see unrestricted and unmonitored imports in so many other areas, so much so that the cost of imports is more than double what we earn from exports, and the country is facing a balance of payments crisis though the Government’s economic pundits are boasting or bluffing about high growth rates and per capita incomes.

We wish to focus today on the unrestricted imports of food, so-called nutritional supplements and medicinal drugs. Sri Lanka is losing hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign exchange because of the lack of comprehensive and effective national food, nutrition and medicinal policies. Loads of the food we import are unnecessary or non-essential, while some items are unfit for human consumption. As for nutritional supplements, it was sad if not shameful to see the subtle promotion of such items at the recent annual sessions of one of Sri Lanka’s leading medical associations. While Sri Lanka’s dairy farmers are struggling to sell their fresh milk which has all the necessary nutrition at a low cost, the promotion of imported nutritional supplements tantamount to an act of child abuse. As for medicinal drugs, a homeopathic medicine has cured hundreds of people of the dreaded dengue. But the multi-million-dollar allopathic medical business continues to reject or scoff at it while more people are dying and hundreds are suffering.  

EDITORIAL : THE DAWN, PAKISTAN

Balochistan unrest

SEPARATISTS and nationalists, secular political party workers, settlers, Hazaras, policemen, civilians killed by landmines and IEDs — is anyone safe in Balochistan anymore? The last few days and weeks have seen the front pages of newspapers filled with stories of all shades of violence in the province, whether sectarian, Islamist, political or ethnic. The Awami National Party has been the latest victim, but the day before the Kuchlak blast saw the discovery of the dead bodies of six miners — likely settlers from Swat — and dozens of Hazaras have been killed this year. Alongside these stories have been running reports of the Supreme Court’s persistent efforts to get security forces to produce missing people in court and restore law and order.

But the SC has done about as much as it can, and its limited success so far points to the real roadblocks standing in the way of peace in Balochistan: the issue of missing persons requires a political solution spearheaded by a committed federal government and accompanied by a change in the mindset of security agencies. Underpinning all of this will have to be a genuine resolve to address the concerns of Baloch nationalists and even separatists; measures like Aghaz-i-Huqooq-i-Balochistan are important, but will not be enough. Prime Minister Gilani’s government had made feeble attempts to bring Baloch leaders to the negotiating table, and the new prime minister has made a similar effort through his call for talks in Quetta yesterday. But nothing has come out of such rhetoric in the past, and there will be no movement until capable interlocutors with contacts and respect among Baloch leaders are given a concrete mandate to launch talks in a meaningful way, through back channels if necessary. That would also provide a basis to ask security agencies to rein in their zeal to ‘disappear’ people with real and imagined links to separatist activities.

When it comes to the broader law and order problem, however, the provincial government has a larger role to play, and is failing miserably. It is true that the Raisani government has limited room to manoeuvre; despite, for example, repeated declarations that the Frontier Corps should report to the provincial administration, most recently at the end of May, the organisation is widely perceived to operate outside civilian control. But policing is also inadequate, failing to prevent the kidnappings and killings of settlers and Hazaras, and provincial lawmakers are perceived as being corrupt and more concerned with personal feuds than the province’s law-and-order and development problems. Along with the federal government, they continue to let the people of Balochistan down.

Moody’s downgrade

THE downgrade of Pakistan’s sovereign creditworthiness was neither unexpected, nor will it affect the country’s economic fortunes (or rather misfortunes?) At worst, it may have a psychological impact on the markets, which are already edgy on account of the same reasons that have led Moody’s to demote Pakistan’s bond ratings. The country’s economic outlook remains negative, and it is unlikely to change in the short to medium term unless we put our house in order.

The key drivers debilitating the country’s economy include its eroding capacity to finance its budget owing to its inability to raise domestic tax revenues or to repay its foreign loans because of drying foreign official and private inflows and a rising trade deficit.

Needless to say that its political problems are keeping the coalition government’s focus away from taking tough policy decisions to improve business confidence and addressing structural weaknesses, such as addressing growing energy shortages and increasing domestic revenues. The downgrade of sovereign creditworthiness should sound a warning to the country’s policymakers. The government has already defaulted on its (domestic) sovereign obligations to the IPPs only a few weeks ago.

And the possibility of Pakistan defaulting on its foreign debt repayments over the next couple of years cannot be ruled out with the large $6.3bn in principal and interest falling due because of the IMF between 2013 and 2015. With foreign private capital moving into safer assets due to the eurozone debt crisis, Islamabad can avoid a repeat of the 2008 crisis only with the help of official bilateral and multilateral creditors and donors like the IMF and the World Bank. While the US has promised to resume disbursement of suspended Coalition Support Funds of $1.2bn following the reopening of Nato supply routes, that is not enough to resolve our medium- to long-term balance of payment woes. The government will ultimately have to go to the IMF for another loan. This time it may have to accept even tougher conditions for the Fund’s help. And those conditions will not be easy to implement in the absence of a stable domestic political environment.

Divisions in Asean

THE dispute over some resource-rich islands in the South China Sea is assuming menacing proportions, with the just concluded Asean summit failing to issue a joint communiqué that could signal a united stand on the issue. Four Asean members — Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam — resist China’s claims to the islands, known as Scarborough Shoal, but do not find support among other Asean members. Apparently the eight other members resisted the demand by the Philippines and Vietnam that the joint communiqué contain a reference to the dispute with China. This split on the Shoal is in direct contrast to the unanimity Asean members showed a few days earlier by adopting a common code of conduct on shipping and other maritime issues. Since its foundation by five countries in 1967, Asean membership has grown to 10 because of the success of the common economic policies the members have followed. Yet the Shoal issue has prevented the grouping for the first time in its 45-year history from issuing a joint communiqué.

Behind the regional dispute lurks the presence of America and China in the Asia-Pacific region. Even though the two countries continue to remain committed to a policy of friendship, serious misgivings exist on both sides, with Beijing accusing Congress of erecting barriers to Chinese imports and American congressional leaders seeing a threat to US interests in China’s growing military muscle. However, meeting on the sidelines of the Asean summit, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jeichi talked friendship and promised to work together. Publicly, America has pledged not to take sides in the Shoal dispute, but China has often seen American policies as subtle moves designed to check Beijing’s influence in the region. How things go in the Asia-Pacific region will basically by decided by these two powers.

EDITORIAL : THE DAILY YOMIURI, JAPAN

China must try to halt economic slowdown

The Yomiuri Shimbun

Spillover effects of the European debt crisis have become a drag on the Chinese economy, an engine of world growth.

China's slowdown could deal a serious blow to already gloomy prospects for the world economy. Measures to halt the slowdown are needed.

The Chinese government has announced the country's real gross domestic product grew 7.6 percent in the April-June period over a year earlier, falling below 8 percent for the first time in about three years. The country's growth slowed for a sixth straight quarter.

Eight percent growth is regarded as the minimum needed for China to maintain its economic activity and employment levels. China's stagnating growth since the so-called Lehman Shock in 2008 has been significant.

The economic weakness is mainly due to the slowdown in exports to Europe and other countries amid the lingering European debt woes. A slump in public investment and corporate capital spending has sent the country's manufacturing activity into decline. Consumer spending has also lost impetus. These three areas--exports, manufacturing and consumer spending--all slowed together.

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Steps to shore up economy

Last week, China's central bank lowered key interest rates for two consecutive months. Before announcing the GDP numbers Friday, China apparently aimed to reduce the news' negative impact on the economy by slashing the rates.

Beijing has taken a series of steps to shore up the economy, such as introducing an incentive program for buyers of energy-saving home electronic appliances and eco-friendly vehicles and bringing future infrastructure investment plans forward.

The Chinese government has lowered the country's growth outlook for this year from 8 percent to 7.5 percent. It must be wary now that its economy has begun to cool at a pace faster than it anticipated.

China plans to change its top leadership this autumn. Even though China cannot achieve high growth at a rate of more than 10 percent as it once did, moderate growth must be secured to enable the leadership transition to go smoothly.

However, China's economic prospects are unclear.

The debt crisis in Europe, China's major export destination, has yet to be resolved, while the U.S. economy has seen signs of slowdown. Alarmed by the current situation, the International Monetary Fund next week reportedly plans to lower its forecast for global economic growth.

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Boost domestic demand

To achieve stable growth, China urgently needs to shift its economy to one led by domestic demand that will allow it not to depend excessively on exports. For that purpose, the country should spend more on environmental measures and infrastructure projects, such as development of subway systems.

As commodity prices have been steady, China also has room to take additional monetary easing measures. Steering the economy in the right direction is difficult, but we urge Beijing to consider effective measures as soon as possible.

Brazil, India and South Korea have cut key interest rates one after another. Moves to ease monetary policy have gained momentum in the world.

Meanwhile, it is of concern that there is no sign that the extreme strength of the yen will end soon, in light of a spate of rate cuts and the sluggishness of the U.S. and European economies. It is vital for both the government and the Bank of Japan to better respond to the situation by trying foreign exchange intervention and other possible measures.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, July 14, 2012)

(Jul. 15, 2012)

Waste no time in designating landslide-prone districts

The Yomiuri Shimbun

Disastrous landslides triggered by downpours have swept away entire communities in mountainous areas again this year.

Torrential rain that pounded the Kyushu region this time left about 30 people dead or missing in Kumamoto and Oita prefectures. An active seasonal rain front remains in place over the region. The strictest possible watch must be kept on weather conditions.

This is certainly a record-breaking deluge.

In the city of Aso, Kumamoto Prefecture, where the largest number of fatalities has been reported in the latest disasters, hourly rainfall reached a maximum of 108 millimeters Thursday. The cumulative precipitation during 24 hours--507.5 millimeters--was the most on record.

The municipal government of Aso issued evacuation orders to every household in the city, about 10,000 in all, but the orders came after the city had already been drenched by heavy rains.

Instead of going to shelters, many residents stayed home and were buried in landslides with their houses. They may have been hesitant to leave their homes because the rainfall was extremely heavy.

Whether the evacuations orders were timely must be scrutinized.

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Hazard maps essential

In an attempt to call attention to the potential for a disaster, the Japan Meteorological Agency issued a warning using unprecedented language, describing the rainfall as being at levels "that have never been experienced before." Such wording can be said to have conveyed a sense of urgency.

But such warnings were disseminated on TV and by other media after landslides had occurred in Aso. Lessons must be drawn in this regard for the future.

With hilly areas accounting for a great majority of land of this country, disastrous landslides have occurred in various parts of the nation almost every year. The number of people killed in landslide disasters stood at about 280 in the 10 years through 2011 across the country. Countermeasures must be taken as quickly as possible.

Hazard maps are an effective way to protect residents from the risks of landslides. These are color-coded maps drawn in accordance with degree of susceptibility to landslides in areas designated as landslide danger zones.

The government made it obligatory in 2005 for city, town and village governments to distribute hazard maps to every household under their jurisdiction. The maps make it easier for city, town and village governments to issue evacuation orders or advisories when the need arises.

However, prefectural governments have made little progress in designating landslide danger zones.

The situation is bleak: Aomori Prefecture was the only prefecture in the country to complete its danger-zone designation by 2011. The other prefectures must speed up their efforts.

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Bridges, roads left unrepaired

Especially noteworthy in the Aso disaster this time is the fact that part of the city where the landslide damage was particularly heavy is not included in the prefecture's partially completed landslide danger designations.

Thorough nationwide inspections should be conducted to ensure no dangerous spots where the ground can become saturated with water in heavy rain are overlooked.

It is also indispensable to confirm the safety of such facilities as bridges and roads that will be used by residents during evacuations. Bridges spanning swollen rivers in the disasters this time were washed away one after another.

Many of the obsolescent bridges around the country have reportedly been left unrepaired because of stringent fiscal circumstances of local governments.

It is crucial that local entities use limited revenue wisely in funding public works projects that are necessary for disaster prevention.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, July 14, 2012)

(Jul. 15, 2012)

EDITORIAL : THE TIMES OF INDIA, INDIA

Your body is God's palace

Creation has many aspects and among the various beautiful creations of God, the human body stands out prominently as His most wonderful creation. Swami Sivananda calls the body a mysterious moving palace within which God dwells. Buddhi or intellect is His prime minister; mind is the commander; the 10 indriyas or senses are soldiers; the eyes are the windows of the palace; and the devatas who preside over the indriyas — eyes, nose, ears, for example — are the gatekeepers. 

The human body is therefore without doubt a work of art. Observing the artistic manner in which all the muscles are attached to the bones by tendons, joints balanced with the help of ligaments, fat deposited in a manner that imparts good shape to the limbs, trunk and abdomen; the skin pigment that makes the body look attractive — looking at all of these, one cannot help marvelling at God's creative output. 

God makes use of the five elements of nature while creating the body: bone is nothing but earth or clay; blood is water; the radiance of skin and eyes is fire; and the prana or breath that moves through the nostrils and lungs is nothing but air which derives its support from ether. The four elements — air, fire, water and earth have all emanated from ether. 

Swami Sivananda says that after demise of the body, all the elements get dissolved. What happens is that the bones merge with the earth and by doing so they go back to their source. When the body is placed on the funeral pyre, mantras are chanted with the purpose of invoking the blessings of the Lord so as to ensure that the body gets dissolved with its five material components of earth, water, fire, air and ether from where it originally emanated. The body is then offered to the fire. 

It is rather ironical that despite the Lord dwelling right within the innermost chambers of one's heart, people remain unaware of His presence throughout their lives. Under the influence of maya or illusion, the power that deludes, people tend to cling to the perishable body even though it is filled with impurities like urine, faecal matter, pus and so on and they get trapped in the vicious circle of the unending process of transmigration. 

Coaxing aspirants to become aware of the transitory nature of life, Swami Sivananda urges them to wake up from their slumber. Use the present time and devote the precious moments of your lives to the practice of meditation in order that the Eternal Lord — who provides support to all the pranas, mind, intellect, senses and the body — could be realised. He says that when the body is free from disease and decrepitude, when old age is still far off, when the powers of the senses are not affected and life is not decaying, the person of discrimination ought to constantly endeavour to attain Self-realisation through meditation. It is useless to dig a well when the house is on fire. 

We may conclude with the following words of Swamiji: "O friends, wake up, sleep no more. Meditate. Open the gate of the temple of the Lord in your heart with the key of love. Hear the music of the soul. Melt your mind in His contemplation. Unite with Him. Immerse yourself in the ocean of Love and Bliss". 

How to turn the tide

To restore investor confidence, the UPA government must create a business-friendly tax regime

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recently took over the finance port-folio. One of his first announcements was to re-examine the recently proposed General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR) tax provisions. This is one of those rare occasions where i agree with the PM.

I spent 11 years in international investment banking firms around the world. I didn`t become an expert, but i can say two things about foreign investors. One, they love growth. Two, they hate uncertainty. India attracted foreign investors for the first reason. Now, with our arrogant government`s policies such as the GAAR we have created the uncertainty, and given them a reason to hate us. No matter how wonderful the growth prospects, people just can`t part with their money in an uncertain, arbitrary environment. Hence, India is no longer a hot investment destination right now. Three top international rating agencies have downgraded India.

The unattractiveness of India to foreign investors is a matter of great concern. Our government`s finan-ces are in jeopardy, with little room to invest in the country`s infra-structure or job-creating industries. Private Indian capital is limited, and cannot provide as much growth as the country needs. It is obvious; we need foreign capital if we want to be a high-income growth nation.

And yet, the government managed to enact such a disaster as the GAAR. Under these provisions, tax inspectors have sweeping powers to question any transaction ever done by a company and label it as tax avoidance. The company has to prove itself innocent. As we know, any power in India is abused. One can only predict what will happen because of these provisions.

The fallout of these announcements was terrible, with every investor across the world receiving a warning about investing in India.

Things became so bad that our ever-silent PM, who does not believe in verbal communication as a human need, had to comment on how the new tax policies need to be re-examined. There is no need to sugarcoat it. The GAAR needs to be not just relooked at, or postponed for a year, or deliberated. It needs to be thrown out.

Perhaps there was a positive intent in it somewhere, but now the perception of these draconian rules is so bad, that nothing short of flushing them down the toilet will work. In fact, even scrapping the GAAR may not be enough. For now, investors have a sneaky suspicion that the Indian government is out to get us. If a hapless investor puts the money in our country, works hard and waits patiently for years, the government will come running to pluck the fruit right when it ripens. In fact, this is what happened in the Vodafone case. The Supreme Court had ruled in the investor`s favour. In most countries, that would have been enough. However, our much too clever government passed a retrospective law to void the Supreme Court judgment. The greed to collect some extra taxes was too much for the government to ignore the repercussions to investor sentiment. Such government tyranny hardly depicts India as a good place to do business. In fact, most investment advisers would only give one advice to investors — run.

So why did the government do it? It isn`t passing the necessary reform laws or doing much to open the economy. Why then pass these draconian measures that spooked even the most ardent India believers out?

Three main reasons come to mind. One, the most short-sighted one, is the government was falling short on tax collections. Actually, the collections were decent, but the government wanted to spend way more money. Hence, it thought of ways to milk wealth creators more. One of those bright suggestions was to kill the golden goose for dinner. Given how desperate the government was, they accepted it.

Two, the government in India thrives on hubris. It is used to passing unjust orders that common people in India are only too happy to accept. It has power over the police, never reforms the judicial system lest it gets efficient and controls all vital resources in the economy. In such an atmosphere, arrogance is bound to set in. Deep down, the government does not believe the foreign investors are helping us, should be treated with respect or be given fair rights. The government believes that like the common man, the foreign investors too are its subjects. The market system that the government keeps talking about is a market where there are free markets, but subject to government approval for everything. It`s like a party where the parents want to sit in the middle of the room. It wants markets to function under its feudal benevolence and surveillance. Sure, parents should ensure there are no drugs at a party and some regulation is required. However, the rules have to be clear, not hamper business and not be ad hoc. The GAAR and the Vodafone cases were the exact opposite.

This kind of it`s-market-but-my-market system, will fail. The government needs to back off, and promise through strict laws that it won`t be arbitrary ever again. Foreign investors, unlike Indian janata, do have an option to not invest in India. And they will run away if you don`t play fair. Plenty of countries actually woo foreign companies to invest in their country. It adds to the GDP and creates jobs. Investors need world-class business environments to invest. We need to do everything to ensure that happens. Lately, we have done the opposite.

Hence on this rare occasion, let us support our PM. The GAAR laws need to be thrown away for good. Another law, to protect the sanctity of markets and interests of participants, needs to be passed to reassure investors. India needs to not only have an open mind, but also be open for business.




Confucian Constitution or convenient confusion?



China's intellectuals and their sympathisers have begun to peddle a bold new argument. They have started to hit international forums with the claim that China's system of governance, based as it is on pillars of Confucian wisdom, is not just superior to the liberal democratic system, it actually has more legitimacy.

We discussed one such claim in this column on March 24. In The New York Times of July 11, Jiang Qing and Daniel A Bell argue the case for a 'Confucian Constitution' for China. The political future of China will be better served, they say, by a long-standing Confucian tradition of 'humane authority' than by multiparty elections. Democracy is a flawed ideal in their view. It has only one source of legitimacy, i.e. the sovereignty of the people; political Confucianism offers much more.

Confucian tradition asserts that political power must have three sources of legitimacy: The legitimacy of heaven; the legitimacy of earth; and the legitimacy of the human. Democracy merely serves that last source through popular elections.

In modern China, write Qing and Bell, 'humane authority' would require a tricameral legislature: "A House of Exemplary Persons, that represents sacred legitimacy; a House of the Nation that represents historical and cultural legitimacy; and a House of the People that represents popular legitimacy." Only the House of the People "should be elected either by popular vote or as heads of occupational groups".

For more on this Chinese alternative to liberal democracy, you can read the op-ed. For a realistic assessment of such a proposal to make heaven, earth and people exist in Confucian harmony, we could, however, question the legitimacy of the whole idea.

Who, for instance, will have the privilege to decide the composition of the House of Exemplary Persons and the House of the Nation? Guess we can assume it will be the exclusive nine-member polit-buro that would continue to approve all such selections.

In other words, the proposed arrangement would in fact be a variation of the old Leninist concept of a Communist Party, composed of revolutionary intellectuals and their comrades, acting as the "vanguard of the proletariat" to look after the people's interests until such time as the working class has matured to governing ability.

The vanguard, or the New Class as the late East European intellectual Milovan Djilas dubbed it, doesn't let go the reins of power and privilege unless, of course, the entire edifice crumbles like the Soviet Union's did. In China, party bosses with their families do very well for themselves, living in too many cases way beyond the spending capacity of ordinary citizens. The recently disgraced Bo Xilai's family fell from power because of party intrigue but many other senior members of the party continue to live in extravagant grace thanks to heavenly authority while their children, called princelings, often live abroad in the wretched, liberal West.

To many of us, any talk of Confucian Humane Authority might sound little more than cleverly confusing mumbo-jumbo. But when thinkers from a globally powerful China start arguing for it earnestly, we ought to sit up.

Their argument is based, in my view, on three errors. One is a static picture of the current state of liberal democratic nations, particularly the state of their economies. It's a depressing but passing picture. It does not uphold the allegation of Qing and Bell that democracy is "flawed in practice". Sure, at a given point in time, democracy in any country can appear messy; but not if you take a longer dynamic view of the remarkable overall performance of post-World War II liberal democracies.

Second, any argument for benevolent authoritarianism assumes impartial and just benevolence at the top of the pyramid. Here's a question: What if a comparatively benevolent Deng Xiaoping had not returned to power in the late 1970s and another paranoid megalomaniac like Mao had instead run riot once again over China?

Third, popular elections are a part of democracy, not the entire substance. Assured access to fundamental rights to life and liberty, including the right to free and fair trial and the right to dissent, for all citizens is what makes a democracy liberal.

Can a Confucian Constitution, that enables the practice of Humane Authority, guarantee such simple lower-case rights for its citizens?

EDITORIAL : THE HINDU, INDIA

The depths of depravity

Just what is this awful sickness that lies within us? What malodorous disease could lead a random mob of men to molest a minor schoolgirl, stripping her and beating her by turns in the middle of a busy downtown street, as if they were engaged in some casual sport? Surely, this appalling crime — which took place barely a kilometre from Assam’s State secretariat and in full view of many — is more than just a reflection on a criminal mob of some 20 or more young men and the deteriorating law and order situation in Guwahati. Surely, it should hold up a mirror to all of us and lead us to ask what has gone so horribly wrong in our society. The sheer savagery of the gang molestation, the video of which went viral on the Internet, has fuelled outrage across the country even as it has triggered a sense of national shame. The Assam police, which took a full 30 minutes to arrive at the crime scene, should lose no time in arresting all those involved in the bestiality, many of who have been already identified because of the video. It is debatable whether or not the onlookers who passively watched the mortification of the schoolgirl are legally culpable. But their moral complicity in the crime is beyond question.

We live in a time when crimes against women — which climbed over 2.25 lakh in 2011 according to the National Crime Records Bureau — are growing alarmingly. The data also clearly reveals that over the last couple of decades, the (reported) incidents of rape have increased at a far steeper rate than other serious crimes such as murder and theft. Even so, we assiduously cultivate the patriarchal lie that women are fundamentally responsible for many of the crimes against them. The panchayat in Uttar Pradesh’s Bagpat region which recently issued a diktat against unescorted women visiting the marketplace, entering into love marriages or even carrying mobile phones, was guided by the same warped mindset. The stated objective was to protect women from being teased and harassed by men. But rather than take steps to punish those responsible for such harassment, the panchayat chose illegitimately to restrict the freedom of women and infringe on their rights. Sadly, it is not uncommon to find police officers and politicians subscribing to such a regressive belief system. Justice is rarely done in the face of such attitudes. This is why organisations such as the National Commission of Women, which is sending a team to Guwahati, must track the molestation case closely and work towards seeing that the guilty are severely punished.

Still no room for optimism

It is a measure of the very low expectations from the economy that even an anaemic 2.4 per cent increase in industrial production in May should be viewed positively in some quarters. It is only on a comparison with the previous months that the index of industrial production (IIP) data looks tolerable, though it is quite a stretch to claim that it marks the beginning of a turnaround in the economy. Industrial production had contracted in March and April by 3.2 per cent and 0.9 per cent respectively. But “a return to positive territory” is, by itself, hardly a cause for celebration. In May 2011, industrial production had grown by a relatively healthy 6.4 per cent, which at that time was considered to be inadequate. The dip in industrial production has been the prime reason for the steep fall in overall GDP growth rates during last year. A break-up of the May data reveals that manufacturing, accounting for more than 75 per cent of the overall IIP, grew by 2.5 per cent after contracting 1.25 per cent in the preceding month. If that is seen to augur well for future growth, the decline in mining — it contracted by 0.9 per cent — and in the output of capital goods by as much as 7.7 per cent are real dampeners. Capital goods are a proxy for short-term investments while the poor performance of mining points to the need for proactive, holistic government policies towards the sector.

The relatively strong performance of consumer goods might be short-lived if the monsoon remains erratic, dashing hopes of a robust rural demand. The performance of various sectors that form the IIP is, therefore, mixed and merely reflects the ground realities. Interestingly, even at a much broader level, the value of this index to policymaking has, for quite some time, been questioned for very basic reasons. Even in the new series, revised with 2004-05 as the base, the index has been extremely volatile and subject to frequent revisions, a glaring, recent example being the April number which was revised downwards to negative territory from a small 0.1 per cent increase. The IIP series has been considered unreliable and inaccurate by important users of economic data including, notably, the Reserve Bank of India. Its governor has, more than once, complained that the index’s negative attributes hinder monetary policy formulation. There is of course a case for improving government statistics including the IIP. As for the May figures, while they may not indicate a bounce-back, they do send out a clear message to the government to frame policies that will put industrial growth back on track.

EDITORIAL : THE DAILY STAR, BANGLADESH

Let this accident be an eye opener

Turn the railway into safe and profitable mode of transportation

The derailment of a Khulna-bound train in Gazipur once again brings up to us the poor infrastructural state of Bangladesh Railway. Two carriages along with the locomotive went off the track, killing one and injuring several passengers. Although the precise reasons behind the accident were not instantly known, the committees constituted to go into it should not only pinpoint the human or infrastructural flaws but also fix responsibility for the mishap.

We recall the new communications minister who, having assumed the portfolio of the railway ministry, assured us of breathing new life into this hugely potential communications sector. And we are indeed happy to note that some positive changes have occurred in matters of expanding the fleet and maintaining punctuality in arriving at and departing from stations. But basic infrastructural flaws, shortage of trained manpower and over all corrupt practices have induced a paralysis of this sector.

We have repetitively stressed that railway is the most ideally suited communications system as bulk carriers of passengers and goods across Bangladesh. This is more so because both road and river communications have become increasingly perilous and expensive due to poor maintenance and inflated fares.

For long this sector has received step-motherly treatment. Resultantly, the engines and carriages have worn out; shortage of fleet has persisted; railway stations along with the signaling systems badly needed doing up and be upgraded. Added to these are poor maintenance of amenities, and pilferage and grabbing of its assets. All these have accounted for the huge loss incurred by railway that amounts to nearly TK 7500 million by 2010.

Therefore, we are pinning hope on the communications minister to restore railway to its former glory by ridding it of corrupt elements, retrieving its landed assets from grabbers and providing it with all the necessary support including infrastructural modernisation, increasing manpower and above all, giving it a sense of direction.

Passengers' woes mounting

CNG strike needs to end

With the strike called by CNG drivers commuters are suffering the full brunt of the lack of this fleet of public carrier in the city. Dhaka is one of the few mega-cities in the world that lacks a proper network of public transportation and a practically non-existent taxi fleet. The private bus operators continue to field mini-buses will little headroom and dreadful seating capacity form the backbone of the city commuting. Government run BRTC has recently inducted some modern buses into its fleet, but these are too few in number to cater to a population of some 15 million inhabitants of Dhaka city.

The indefinite strike however cannot be supported for a variety of reasons. How does one justify the demand made for canceling requirement for route permits? Every commercial vehicle regardless of size has specific route permits, so why should it be different for three-wheelers. One may easily ask why drivers refuse to ply the roads on the recalibrated digital meters recently installed as per government decision. Again, one may enquire as to why the bulk of these vehicles refuse to travel to destinations of commuters' choices.

Indeed, this culture of refusing to abide by government regulations on the question of traveling and charging as per meter has become a common phenomenon with all taxi services. The most common answer for refusing to go to a particular destination or extorting undue amounts from hapless commuters is due to lax enforcement by the police. Again when enforcers try to enforce the law, it is the commuter that must pay the price when a particular service is taken offline through a strike. It is time to take some tough decisions for authorities to address this issue head on. A dialogue needs to be initiated immediately with the unions but relevant authorities must show a zero tolerance to law breakers. Only when errant drivers find themselves confronted by a system that cannot be bought off will city dwellers' traveling woes lessen.