|
By Lisa Batiwalla More people than ever think that global trade threatens their jobs and harms the environment. But there is still strong support overall for economic globalisation, which many see as beneficial to national economies and responsible for improving living standards
Globalisation has been a positive force but environment and labour standards need stronger protection from unfettered trade, according to the results of a recent 18-country online poll. Overall, a majority of populations in all countries covered by the poll said globalisation had been “mostly good” for their economies and for living standards. Dissent with this point of view was strongest in France, with 42% believing that trade liberalisation and economic integration had been “mostly bad”, and in the United States of America (35%). The survey, which is the fifth in a series of analytical reports on public attitudes toward key international issues, was released recently by the US-based Chicago Council on Global Affairs and WorldPublicOpinion.org, part of the University of Maryland. Polls were conducted in China, India, the United States, Indonesia, France, Russia, Thailand, Ukraine, Poland, Iran, Mexico, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Argentina, Peru, Israel, Armenia and the Palestinian territories, over the past nine months. Collectively, these countries represent more than half the world’s population. The highest levels of support for globalisation are found in countries with export-oriented economies: China (87%), South Korea (86%) and Israel (82%). Positive answers fall below 50% in only three countries, though such responses still outweigh negative replies by wide margins. Pollsters say they found the strongest scepticism about globalisation in Mexico (41% good, 22% bad), Russia (41% good, 24% bad), and the Philippines (49% good, 32% bad). In the United States, 60% think globalisation is “mostly good”, and 35% call it “mostly bad”. According to the survey, a majority hold the view that trade benefits their country’s companies. Israelis (86%), Chinese (78%) and South Koreans (78%) top the list of those saying trade is “good” for their country’s companies. The highest percentages of negative replies are found in the United States (45%), France (43%) and Russia (34%). Respondents in developed countries overwhelmingly support incorporating labour standards into international trade agreements, including nine out of 10 respondents in the United States (93%), Israel (91%), Argentina (89%) and Poland (88%). Adding labour protections to trade agreements also receives particularly strong support in many less developed countries that are known for low-cost labour markets, contradicting the widespread belief that workers in these countries prefer lax regulation to press home their competitive advantage, says the survey. “It is possible that the requirement of higher standards is attractive because it generates outside pressure to improve working conditions in their countries,” the report explains. In China, 84% favour them, as do majorities in Mexico (67%), India (56%), and the Philippines (55%). “It is clear that publics around the world support the growth of trade,” says Steven Kull, editor of WorldPublicOpinion.org. “But it is also clear that many are looking for ways to soften its disruptive impact on the environment and jobs by including environmental and labour standards in trade agreements.” Crucially, while respondents around the world tend to support international trade as an engine of economic growth, pollsters say there is less enthusiasm for the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which was founded in 1995 to resolve trade disputes among member states. The survey suggests that most countries lean toward compliance with adverse rulings by the WTO, but there is substantial variation. The American public, despite its reservations about international trade, shows the highest support (73%) for obeying WTO decisions. Pollsters say American residents’ views about compliance with WTO decisions are consistent with the support they have shown in this and other polls for strengthening multilateral institutions. These findings could “strengthen the political will” for liberalisation in arenas like the World Trade Organisation, says Christopher Whitney, executive director for studies at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Key findings of the survey: Globalisation’s impact on the environment
Around the world, people seem increasingly worried about the effects of trade on the environment. In four countries, most people now clearly think trade is bad for the environment: France (66% bad, 29% good), the United States (49% bad, 45% good), Argentina (46% bad, 27% good), and Russia (44% bad, 25% good). Explaining that result, pollsters say some believe trade stimulates growth and consumption, resulting in more factories and cars and ultimately more pollution, while others assume that by opening domestic markets to foreign goods, trade allows companies to evade environmental laws. Environmentalists say one way to mitigate this negative impact is to include minimum environmental standards as part of trade agreements. Critics say, however, that including such standards in trade agreements hurts the developing world by raising costs and discouraging investments. Nonetheless, the survey suggests that ordinary citizens in developing as well as developed nations show strong support for such standards. Some 60%-93% of respondents in 10 countries said that trade agreements should include “minimum standards for protection of the environment”. Those in favour include two of the world’s largest developing economies: China and India. The Chinese favour environmental protections by 85% to 8%, and Indians endorse them by 60% to 28%. Standard of living
On whether trade is good or bad for “your own standard of living”, more than 50% of respondents in all but three countries expressed positive views. But even those three countries expressed more positive than negative views -- Argentina (good 42%, bad 30%), Russia (good 45%, bad 19%), and France (good 50%, bad 44%). Employment opportunities and job security
The pollsters say there is significant concern, however, about the effect of trade on employment, especially in developed countries. According to the survey, 80% of French respondents believe that trade has a negative impact on job security, and 73% think it is also bad for the creation of jobs. In the United States, 67% consider trade harmful for US workers’ job security, and 60% said it was detrimental for job creation. However, in the other countries polled, a majority view trade as positive for job creation; a majority also think it is good for job security. Israelis, Mexicans and Thais are those most positive that trade helps create jobs (74% each). The largest majority saying trade is good for job security is in China (65%). Foreign policy
Anxiety about global trade’s impact on labour is also expressed in a question about foreign policy goals. Respondents in seven countries were asked to judge the importance of several foreign policy goals, including “protecting the jobs” of their country’s workers. In all seven countries, a majority gave this goal the top rating of “very important”: Armenia (84%), Australia (83%), the United States (76%), China (71%), South Korea (68%), Thailand (66%), and India (54%). Impact on consumers
On the impact of trade on consumers, according to the survey between 56%-77% of people hold positive views in all but one country, Argentina, where only 46% think trade is good for consumers. Interestingly, another recent global poll by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) found that globalisation, together with the power of the United States, posed a bigger threat to the world than war and terrorism.
In April, 1,500 BBC World viewers in Europe, Asia, North and South America, the Middle East, Africa and Australasia ranked the power of the US and large corporations as the biggest worry (52.3%). Conflicts -- war and terrorism -- ranked third, with 50%, followed by hunger, 49%, and climate change, 44%.
InfoChange News & Features, May 2007
|
