Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Why Have the Euro and the European Central Bank Been So Successful Essay

Why Have the Euro and the European Central Bank Been So Successful - Essay Example The analyst expresses that the number of inhabitants in the EU zone is somewhat higher than the United States. So that, as a cash Euro is significant for the advancement of the worldwide economy. The utilization of Euro as a typical cash by the part conditions of European Union (EU) will help in dispensing with money dangers, exchange expenses and limited the premium spread in the part nations. The European Central bank (ECB) was made as a free foundation for the foundation of a typical money related arrangement. The specialist expresses that as a solitary European cash, Euro has prevailing with regards to breaking obstructions between individuals, markets and organizations. It likewise spared Europe from the credit emergency that began in US in 2007-08 that later spread around the world. The achievement of Euro is obvious from the reinforced political associations and turnaround of financial fortunes. It has procured the second situation after U.S. dollar in its utilization and posi tion in the capital and universal currency showcase. For a money flowing in the market for only four years, it is an exceptional accomplishment. The achievement of Euro can be credited to the advantages got from it some of which are referenced in the investigation, for example, help in cross fringe exchange, that is the primary advantage of utilizing Euro as a money and improved arranging and venture that was done to pick up benefits in overall markets. The analyst then concluds that Euro has all the elements that are required in a contender of dollar yet it despite everything does not have the political force.

Saturday, August 22, 2020

Writing Tips Paraphrasing a Source

Composing Tips Paraphrasing a Source Summarizing a Source It tends to be enticing to cite sources finally when composing a school paper. All things considered, you’re advised to reference your sources, and how preferred to do that over utilizing the genuine words you’ve read? In any case, more often than not there’s a superior alternative: summarizing. Be that as it may, what is summarizing? How would you rework a source? What's more, what are the points of interest? Allow us to clarify. Rewording versus Citing Rewording and citing are the two different ways of sharing somebody else’s thoughts in your own work. At the point when you quote a source, you utilize the specific expressions of the individual you’re citing (encased in â€Å"quote marks†). In any case, while summarizing you have to clarify the different person’s thoughts in your own words. You should reword a source so as to: Show your comprehension of the topic Abstain from utilizing such a large number of citations in an archive Clarify a convoluted thought (particularly if the first content is difficult to follow) Concentrate on one part of a thought that is applicable to your own work Actually, the main time you really need to cite a source as opposed to summarizing is the point at which the specific wording is significant (e.g., on the grounds that you’re drawing on a key bit of phrasing or deciphering the particular words utilized by a creator). In most different cases, summarizing will work similarly too or better. Keep in mind, however, that you despite everything need to refer to a source in the event that you rework it. Regardless of whether you have revised something in your own words, you despite everything need to show where your thoughts originate from. 5 Tips on Paraphrasing Revising something in your own words can be dubious, however we have a few hints: Peruse the first source cautiously to ensure you completely get it Consider whether you have to reword the entry in full (i.e., with all the subtleties contained in the first) or essentially sum up it (i.e., choosing key subtleties applicable to your work) Before you start composing the summarized form, consider how you would disclose the entry to a companion Compose your reworded form and contrast it with the first section to ensure you haven’t missed any significant data On the off chance that you have utilized any accurate expressions or key phrasing from the first, encase these in quotes and refer to the pertinent page numbers In the event that you do the entirety of the abovementioned, you ought to have the option to impart your thoughts plainly without citing your sources finally inevitably.

Monday, August 17, 2020

Introducing the Class of 2013 Christy 13

Introducing the Class of 2013 Christy 13 Im frequently asked about the students that are admitted to MIT. Who are they? What is their story? Beginning today, Im going to be posting a series of articles about incoming MIT students. These articles mostly come from local newspapers. The stories are pretty inspirational, and the students are going to be great members of the MIT community. A few notes on these articles: The students profiled so far, I have 13 student-articles are not demographically representative of MIT. Some groups, like athletes, seem somewhat overrepresented, while other groups, like Californians (California, of course, is our largest represented state in the class), are very underrepresented. For a full look at the demographics of the Class of 2013, see the Freshman Class Profile (freshly updated!). A number of the journalists focus on the financial aid packages of the students as if they are merit scholarships. Please remember that at MIT, we only award need-based scholarships, and we meet the full financial need of every student. The 13 articles I have compiled come from my Google and Yahoo news feeds. If theres an article about you or a friend that youd like to see here, let me know! The profiled students to date: Christy Swartz 13 Terence Dalbert 13 Sean Fannin 13 Jonte Craighead 13 Chandler and Taylor Burfield 13 Trevor Zinser 13 Henrique de Oliveira Pinto Pondv © 13 Chika Ugboh 13 Qinxuan Pan 13 Scott Landers 13 Cory Ward 13 Edner Paul 13 Jeremy Dalcin 13 Bee Vang 13 The Class of 2009: Science whiz knows just where she belongs: MIT By Eric Stevick, Herald Writer Sunday, June 7, 2009 Stanwood High School graduating senior Christy Swartz. [Michael OLeary / The Herald] STANWOOD Christy Swartz could appreciate the symbolism. On March 14, at 1:59 p.m., the Stanwood High School senior received an e-mail from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology letting her know she had been accepted to the university renowned for its math and science. The month, day and time the e-mail was sent translate to 3.14159, better known as pi, the mathematical symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. I loved that, said Christy, 17, who sees math and science everywhere, be it the sound waves from the harp she plays or the dimensions and composition of a homemade trombone she built for a science project. People see confusion between the arts and science, she said. I see them as interrelated. Its just a matter of seeing the connection. During her freshman year at Stanwood High, Christy set her sights on MIT after reading a story in Scientific American magazine about students with a passion for math and problem-solving. I thought, Oh my gosh, I belong with those people. It became an obsession. It always has been my dream. Christy, one of four valedictorians at Stanwood High, is considering studying physics and electrical engineering at MIT, but shes already had her hands in meaningful science. She and classmates Jimmy Besancon and Derek Britain recently won $10,000 in a statewide technology competition at Washington State University based on their work converting tidal energy from Saratoga Passage into usable power that charges a 12-volt battery. Half their winnings go to their school, but they get to split $5,000. They spent 250 hours on their project. To Christy, the pursuit of math and science and taking the toughest classes her school offers is worth it. If you love something, its not hard, she said. Its just fun and challenging.

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Why Youth May Join A Gang - 2637 Words

Why Youth May Join a Gang According to Barkan and Snowden (2008), the conditions that lead or induce a person to join a gang are: changes in the political system of a country; the rigidity or flexibility of the society (rigidity makes life stressful for people); a need to protect loved ones; and/or difficult life conditions, such as job loss, that result in high levels of frustration and threat. Street gangs join together for various reasons, such as to protect themselves from feared neighborhood members, in response to a competing gang in their area, lack of institutional resources and the decaying urban environment, and/or neglectful parents. A number of risk factors are associated with gang membership, gang activity, and gang involvement, but there is no single factor or set of factors than can be used to successfully predict which youth will, or will not, become gang members. Hill et al. (2004) use The Seattle Social Development Project (SSDP)—a longitudinal study that tracked 808 persons since 1985, when the participants were 5th grade students at 18 Seattle, Washington public schools that serve high-crime neighborhoods—to outline childhood risk factors that predict joining a remaining in a gang. The risk factors associated with gang membership were found in the neighborhood—availability of drugs, youth in trouble, low neighborhood attachment; family—family structure, bond with parents, low household income, etc.; school—leaning disabled, low academic achievement,Show MoreRelatedCharacteristics Of A Criminal Street Gang1212 Words   |  5 Pagescriminal street gang. Not only does MLO fit the definition of what a reasonable person would believe a street gang to be, but most importantly it fits the definition of a criminal street gang as it is defined in the California STEP act. According Ludeke’s article, MLO has been responsible for nearly killing a young man, beating another, and threatening witnesses with death if they went to the police. While he recognizes that MLO is not as big a threat or as notorious as other well-known gangs, it doesRead MoreThe Is A Gang And His Article Develops A Convincing Argument1640 Words   |  7 Pages Ludeke believes MLO is a gang and his article develops a convincing argument. According to the STEP Act, a gang is: Any ongoing organization, association, or group of three or more persons . . . having as one of its primary activities the commission of one or more of the criminal acts enumerated in paragraphs (1) to (25), inclusive, or (31) to (33), inclusive, of subdivision (e), having a common name or common identifying sign or symbol, and whose members individually or collectively engage inRead MoreA Formal Description For A Youth Gang1503 Words   |  7 Pagesyoung individuals may enter into groups that society often refers to as gangs. It is accurate to say that gangs contribute immensely to crime and delinquency however, to say that this is the purpose of all gangs would be misleading. Gangs should instead be seen as existing on a continuum, some ranging from groups of peers who spend time together and may get into trouble, to others who participate in more serious crimes (Gorden, 2000, p. 4). In terms of a specific definition for a gang, there really isRead MoreEssay On Juvenile Gangs973 W ords   |  4 Pages The History Of Juvenile Gangs Jerry L. Page East Carolina University Introduction The History Of Juvenile Gangs Gang Types Over the course of history, there have been many gangs that have come to light. There are three different types of gangs that have been around for many years. These gangs are politicized gangs, neo-Nazism gangs, and street gangs. Politicized gangs promote political change by making other citizens scared of them. Street gangs are commonly known to cause violenceRead MoreYouth Gang Membership : A Serious Problem Affecting Many Youths Essay1272 Words   |  6 PagesYouth Gang membership is a serious problem affecting many youths in America. Per the National Youth Gang Survey by the U.S. Justice Department puts the number of youths in gangs at only about 302,000. But a 2015 study by G. Gately found that there are more than 1 million youth gang members. Many youth gang members join around 12 and 13 years old, peaking at 14 years of age (Tara Young, 2014). This review will detail the main reasons youths enter gangs, outreach programs that are making a differenceRead MoreYouth Ga ng Membership And It s Implication Adolescent Development Essay1566 Words   |  7 Pagesover 700,000 adolescents who are involved in youth gangs. (Thomas). America has a youth gang culture that is present in its society. This paper will focus on youth gang membership and it’s implication to adolescent development. First to be discussed will be the demographics of adolescents involved in gangs. Then the reasons why youth join gangs and how it is related to their natural development. Next, we will turn to contemplate the implication of gang culture and involvement in America’s publicRead MoreWhat Drives Adolescents to Join a Gang?683 Words   |  3 PagesJoining a Gang and Their Mind Mentality Parents want the best for their children. They try their best to keep them happy. However they tend to lose their children to the streets and the gangs. Why adolescences join these gangs should not be the question. There are many reasons why they join. Some reasons could be the absence of a parent, whether it is the mother or father. Lack of discipline or their parent’s could be a drug abuser. What motivates an adolescence to desire and acquire gang membershipRead Morere various reasons behind young people joining street gangs. One of the reasons young people800 Words   |  4 Pagesre various reasons behind young people joining street gangs. One of the reasons young people join street gangs is because of neighborhood disadvantages. A theory that can contribute to why young people might join street gangs is Social Disorganization Theory. Social Disorganization theory assumes that â€Å"delinquency emerges in neighborhoods where neighborhood relation and social institutions have broken down and can no longer maintain effective social controls (Bell, 2007).† Social DisorganizationRead MoreCauses Of Gangs1461 Words   |  6 PagesWhen the word â€Å"gangs† comes to mind, one can immediately picture a big, tall male figure often covered with tattoos, piercings, and maybe even a bald-headed guy. One might think that gangs only occur in areas like Los Angeles, Brooklyn, and areas illustrated in movies. Gangs are also becoming more glorified in the media. For example, while listening to a rap song on the radio, some sort of gang reference will come up. Gangs can often target the young and the vulnerable due to m any reasons, such asRead MoreThe Strengths Of Labelling Theory And Differential Association Theory1703 Words   |  7 Pagescan explain how the factor of family as reasons why some youth join gangs. This paper compares the relative strengths and weaknesses of Differential Association theory and Labelling theory and I argue that Labelling Theory offers the most compelling theoretical perspective to help account for how these factors influence youth to join gangs. I also argue that unlike the other two theories, a Marxist approach deals with the issue of why youth join gangs by investigating the broad effects of inequality

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Background On Islamic Banking Example For Free - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 19 Words: 5835 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Argumentative essay Tags: Banking Essay Did you like this example? Since the 1970s, Islamic banking has emerged as a new reality in the international financial scene. Its philosophies and principles are however, not new, having been outlined in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) more than 1,400 years ago. The emergence of Islamic banking is often related to the revival of Islam and the desire of Muslim to live all aspects of their live in accordance with the teachings of Islam. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Background On Islamic Banking Example For Free" essay for you Create order The Islamic Banking System (IBS) is defined as a banking system whose principles underlying its operation and activities are founded in Islamic or Shariah rules. The main factor that distinguishes Islamic banks from conventional banks is that all transactions are administered without involving elements of interest or Riba. The principles objective of the establishment of Islamic banking is to cater the needs of Muslims in banking transactions. The success of the Islamic bank in catering the deposit and credit needs of clients proved that Shariah principle were still applicable and could be adopted by modern-day business. In Malaysia, split Islamic legislation and banking regulations exists side-by-side with those for the conventional banking system. The legal basis for the establishment of Islamic banks was the Islamic Banking Act (IBA) which came into effect on 7 April 1983. The IBA provides Central Bank of Malaysia (BNM) with powers to supervise and regulate Islamic banks, si milar to the case of other licensed banks. The Government Investment Issue (GII), which are government securities issued based on Shariah principles. As the GII are regarded as liquid assets, the Islamic banks could invest in the GII to meet the prescribed liquidity requirements as well as to invent their surplus funds. The first Islamic bank established in the country was Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB) which commenced its operations starting from 1 July 1983. In line with its objectives, the banking activities of the bank are based on Shariah principles. After more than a decade in operations, BIMB has proved to be a practicable banking institution with its activity expanding rapidly throughout the country with a network of 112 branches. The bank was listed on the Main Board of FBM KLCI formerly known as Main Board of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange on 17 January 1992. The long-term objective of BNM is to create an Islamic banking system operating on a parallel basis with the conventional banking system. However, similar to any banking system, an Islamic banking system requires three fundamental elements to qualify as a viable system, i.e.:- A large number of players; A broad variety of instruments; and An Islamic money market. In addition, an Islamic banking system must also reflect the socio-economic values in Islam, and must be Islamic in both substance and form. Recognizing the above, BNM adopted a step-by-step approach to achieve the above objective. The first step to spread the virtues of Islamic banking was to disseminate Islamic banking on a nationwide basis, with as many players as possible and to be able to reach all Malaysians. After a careful consideration of various factors, BNM decided to allow the existing banking institutions to offer Islamic banking services using their existing infrastructure and branches. The option was seen as the most effective and efficient mode of increasing the number of institutions offering Is lamic banking services at the lowest cost and within the shortest time frame. Following from the above, on 4 March 1993 BNM introduced a scheme known as Skim Perbankan Tanpa Faedah (Interest-free Banking Scheme) or SPTF in short. In terms of products and services, there are more than 40 Islamic financial products and services that may be offered by the banks using various Islamic concepts such as Mudharabah, Musyarakah, Murabaha, Nai Bithaman Ajil (Bai Muajjal), Ijarah, Qardhul Hasan, Istisna and Ijarah Thumma Al-Bai. To link the institutions and instruments, the Islamic Interbank Money Market (IIMM) was introduced on 4 January 1994. In October 1996, BNM issued a model financial statement for the banking institutions participating in the SPI requiring the banks to disclose the Islamic banking operations (balance sheet and profit and loss account) as an additional item under the Notes to the Accounts. As part of the effort to streamline and harmonize the Shariah interpretati ons among bank and Takaful companies, BNM established the National Shariah Advisory Council on Islamic Banking and Takaful (NSAC) on 1 May 1997 as the highest Shariah authority on Islamic banking and Takaful in Malaysia. The conceptual development of Islamic banking gained momentum after the mid-1940s. Islamic scholars such as Qureshi (1946), Ahmad (1952), Uzair (1995), Maududi (1961), Al-Arabi (1996), Siddiqi (1967), and Al-Sadr (1974) made significant contributions to the evolution of the Islamic banking model. Islamic banking has made steady progress over recent decade. In recent years it has emerged as the fastest-growing segment of global finance. There has been an unprecedented growth and deepening of Islamic banking products Sukuks or Islamic bonds, Takaful or Islamic insurance services, equity funds, hedge funds, assets and wealth management, risk and liquidity management, real estate and corporate finance. In contrast, conventional banking has been established much l onger than Islamic banking. In terms of experience and product choices conventional banks are more advanced. Conventional banking is based on a pure financial intermediation model, whereby banks mainly borrow from savers and then lend to enterprise or individuals. They make profit from the margin between the borrowing and lending rates of interest. They also provide banking services, like letters of credit and guarantees. A proportion of their profit comes from the low-cost funds that they obtain through demand deposits. Conventional banks are prohibited from trading and their shareholding is severely restricted to a small proportion of their net worth. Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB) is a member of the Standard Chartered Group was established in Malaysia in 1875 when its first branch opened for business at Downing Street, Penang. The bank was locally incorporated as a Standard Chartered bank Malaysia Berhad on 29 February 1984. As Malaysias first bank with over 1 30 years of history, SCBMB employs more than 5,000 employees within its Malaysian operations which covers more than 30 branches across the country, a global market shared service centre, a wholly owned subsidiary Price Solutions which markets its retail financial products, an offshore facility in Labuan. SCBMB leads the way through product innovation, consistent and strong growth performance and sustainability initiatives. It provides a comprehensive range of financial products and services including retail, Islamic and wholesale banking for individuals, small and medium-sized enterprise, as well as corporate and institutions. Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank) is Malaysia largest financial services group and has a strong regional presence in South East Asia. Maybank aim to maximize value for their shareholders by staying diversified across geography and business units and capturing growth opportunities in high growth markets. Malayan Banking Berhad or also known as Maybank Group is the leading financial services provider in Malaysia catering the needs of consumers, investors, entrepreneurs, non-profit organizations and corporations. The Group, which has expanded international, has the largest networking among Malaysian banks of over 1,750 branches and offices in 14 countries, employing 40,000 workers and serving over 18 million customers. This study are been carried out to examine and analyze the experience with Islamic banking of Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB), in order to evaluate the Islamic banks performance in comparison with the Conventional banks in Malaysia, in this case are Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB) and Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank) through financial ratios and tested by Descriptive Statistics and ANOVA by using Minitab version 15.0. This study is performed to measure the performance of BIMB, SCBMB and Maybank for the period of 10 years ranging from 2000 until 2009. 1.2 Differences between the Islamic Banking and Conventional Banking One must refrain from making a direct comparison between Islamic banking and conventional banking. This is because Islamic banking and conventional banking are extremely different in many ways. The main difference is that Islamic Banking is based on Shariah foundation. Thus, all dealing, transactions, business approach, product feature, investment focus, responsibility are derived from the Shariah law, which lead to the significant difference in many part of the operations the conventional banking. The foundation of Islamic bank is based on the Islamic faith and must stay within the limits of Islamic Law or the Shariah in all of its action and deeds. The original meaning of the Arabic word Shariah is the way to the source of life and is now used to refer to legal system in keeping with the code of behavior called for by the Holly Quran. Among the governing principles of an Islamic bank are: The absence of interest-based (Riba) transactions; The avoidance of economic activi ties involving domination (Zulm); The avoidance of economic activities involving speculation (Gharar); The introduction of an Islamic tax, Zakat The discouragement of the production of goods and services which contradict the Islamic value (Haram) On the other hand, conventional banking is essentially based on the debtor-creditor relationship between the depositors and the bank on one hand, and between the borrowers and the bank on the other. Interest is considered to be the price of credit, reflecting the opportunity cost of money. Islamic law considers a loan to be given or taken, free of charge, to meet any contingency. Thus in Islamic banking, the creditor should not take advantage of the borrower. When money is lent out on the basis of the interest more often that it leads to some kind of injustice. The first Islamic principle underlying for such kind of transactions is deal not unjustly, and ye shall not be dealt with unjustly [2:279] which explain why commercial banking in an Islamic framework is not based on the debtor-creditor relationship. The other principle pertaining to financial transactions in Islam is that there should not be any reward without taking a risk. This principle is applicable to both labor and capital. As no payment is allowed for labor, unless it is applied to work, there is no reward for capital unless it is exposed to business risk. Thus, financial intermediation in an Islamic framework has been developed on the basis of the above-mentioned principles. Consequently financial relationships in Islam have been participatory in nature. REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 Islamic Banking and Conventional Banking In 1963, Islamic banking came into existence on an experiment basis on a small scale in a small town of Egypt. The success of this experiment opened the doors for a separate and distinct market for Islamic banking and finance and as a result, in 1970s Islamic banking came into existence at a moderate scale and a number of full-fledge Islamic banks was introduced in Arabic and Asian countries. Most of these Islamic banks were in Islamic countries. Having started on a small scale, Islamic banks and non-banking financial institutions are now operation even on more intensive scale. Today, Islamic banks are operating in more than sixty countries with assets base of over $166 billion and a marked annual growth rate of 10%-15%. In the credit market, market share of Islamic banks in Muslim countries has risen from 2% in the late 1970s to about 15% today. These facts and figures certify that Islamic banking is viable and efficient as the conventional banking. (Aggarwal and Yousaf 2000). Islamic banking is regarded as a fastest growing market, on the other side, it is not free from issues, problem, and challenges. Numerous studies have been performed since the inception of the modern Islamic banking and finance. Conceptual issues underlying interest free financing (Ahmad 1981, Karsen 1982) have been the prime focus of these previous studies on Islamic banks. It is hard to find enough coverage in the existing literature on the issues of viability of Islamic banks and ability to mobilize savings, pool risk and facilitate transactions (Hassan Basher 2005). However, there are few studies that have focused on policy implications of eliminating interest payments. (Khan and Mirakhor 1987) 2.2 Ratio Analysis Kader Asarpota (2007) applied financial ratio analysis to assess the performance of the Malaysian Islamic bank and UAE Islamic banks respectively. Similarly, to measure efficiency of Islamic banks in Bangladesh, Sarkar (1999) utilized banking efficiency model and claimed that Islamic banks can stay alive even within a traditional banking architecture in which Profit-and-Loss Sharing (PLS) modes of financing are less dominated. Sarkar (1999) further claimed that Islamic financial products have different risk characteristics and consequently different prudential regulations should be in place. Samad (1999) evaluated the relative efficiency position of the Islamic bank during 1992-1996, and compared it with the conventional banks in the country. His finding was that Bank Islam Malaysia enjoyed relatively higher managerial efficiency than the conventional banks. Samad and Hassan (2000) evaluated inter-temporal and interbank performance in profitability, liquidity, risk and solve ncy, and community involvement of an Islamic bank (Bank Islamic Malaysia Berhad (BIMB) over 14years for the period 1984-1997. The study is inter-temporal in that it compares the performance of BIMB between the two time period 1984-1989 and 1990-1997. This is not a new method (Elyasiani 1994). To evaluate interbank performance, the study compares BIMB with two conventional banks (one smaller and one larger than BIMB) as well as with 8 conventional banks. Using financial ratios to measure these performance and F-test and T-test to determine their significance, the results show that BIMB make statistically significance improvement in profitability during 1984-1997, however, this improvement when compared with conventional banks is lagging behind due to several reasons. This result is consistent with that of Samad (1999) and Hassan (1999). The study also revealed that BIMB is relatively less risky and more solvent as compared to conventional banks. These results also conform to risk-ret urn profile that is BIMB is comparatively less profitable and less risky. Performance evaluation of BIMB indicates that it is more liquid as compared to the group of 8 conventional banks. Results of the primary data gathered by surveying 40% to 70% bankers identify that lack of knowledgeable bankers in selecting, evaluating and managing profitable project is a significant cause why Musharaka and Mudarabah are not popular in Malaysia. Abdus Samad (2004) in his paper examined the comparative performance of Bahrains interest-free Islamic banks and the interest-based conventional commercial banks during the post Gulf war period 1991-2001. Using nine financial ratios in measuring the performances with respect to (a) Profitability, (b) liquidity risk, and (c) credit risk, and applying Students t-test to these financial ratios, the paper concludes that there exists a significant difference in credit performance between the two sets of banks. However, the study found no major difference in probability and liquidity performances between Islamic banks and conventional banks. Kader and Asarpota (2007) utilized bank level data to evaluate the performance of the UAE Islamic banks. Balance sheets and income statements of 3 Islamic banks and 5 conventional banks in the time period 2000-2004 are used to compile data for the study. Financial ratios are applied to examine the performance of the Islamic banks in profitability, liquidity, risk and solvency, and efficiency. The results of the study show that in comparison with UAE conventional banks, Islamic banks of UAE are relatively more profitable, less liquid, less risky, and more efficient. They conclude that there are two important implications associated with this finding. First, attributes of the Islamic profit-and-loss sharing banking paradigm are likely to be associated as a key reason for the rapid growth in Islamic banking in UAE. Second, UAE Islamic banks should be regulated and supervised in a different way as the UAE Islamic banks in practice are different from UAE conventional banks. According to Munawar Iqbal (2001) there is a serious lack of empirical studies on Islamic banking. This research attempts to fill that gap to some extent. Using data for the 1990-1998 periods, several hypotheses and common perceptions about the practice of Islamic banking have been tested. The performance of Islamic banks has been evaluated using both trend and ratio analyses. For this purpose, some objective benchmark for various ratios has been developed for the first time. The performance of Islamic banks has also been compared with a control group of conventional banks. It has been found that in general Islamic banks have done fairly well during the period under study. Studies which used financial ratio analysis have generally found, contrary to the earlier hypotheses, that Islamic banks are more efficient than conventional banks in terms of resource use, cost effectiveness, profitability, asset quality, capital adequacy and liquidity ratios than conventional banks (Iqbal 2001, Hassan and Bashir 2005). Commercial banks, however, have a more favorable operations ratio. (Hassan and Bashir 2005). According to Muhammad Jaffar and Irfan Manarvi (2011), the study examined and compared the performance of Islamic and conventional banks operating inside Pakistan during 2005 to 2009 by analyzing CAMEL test standard factors such as capital adequacy, asset quality, management quality, earning ability, and liquidity position. The financial data for the study was mined from the banks financial statements existing on state bank of Pakistan website. A sample of 5 Islamic banks and 5 conventional banks were selected to measure and compare their performance. Each year the average ratios were considered, because some of the young Islamic banks in the sample do not have 5 years of financial data. CAMEL test which is a standard test to check the health of financial institutions was used to d etermine the performance of Islamic and conventional banks. The study found that Islamic banks performed better in possessing adequate capital and better liquidity position while conventional banks pioneered in management quality and earning ability. Asset quality for both modes of banking was almost the same, conventional banks recorded slightly smaller loans loss ratio showing improved loan recovery policy whereas, UNCOL ratio analysis showed nominal better performance for Islamic banks. Jill Johns, Marwan Izzeldin and Vasileos Pappas, examined efficiency in Islamic and conventional banks in the GCC region (2004-2007) using financial ratio analysis (FRA), Islamic banks are less cost efficient more revenue and profit efficient than conventional banks. Siti Rochmah Ika (2008) investigated whether the financial performance of Islamic banks in the period before fatwa is different from that in the period after fatwa. Furthermore, this study intends to examine the comparative financi al performance of Islamic banks and conventional banks in the period both before fatwa and after fatwa. In evaluating banks performance, this study used various financial ratios categorized as profitability, liquidity, risk and solvency, and efficiency. To determine the difference, this study used t-test. The result of this study indicates that, in general, comparison of financial performance of Islamic banks in the period before fatwa and after fatwa does not show statistically difference. Likewise, the result of interbank analysis also indicates that there is no major difference in performance between Islamic banks and conventional banks in the period both before fatwa and after fatwa. Studies which use financial ratio analysis have generally found, contrary to the earlier hypotheses, that Islamic banks are more efficient than conventional banks in terms of resources use, cost effectiveness, profitability, asset quality capital adequacy and liquidity ratios than conventional ba nks (Iqbal 2001, Hassan and Bashir 2005). Commercial banks, however, have a more favorable operations ratio (Hassan and Bashir 2005). PROBLEM DEFINITION AND OBECTIVES OF THE STUDY 3.1 Problem Definition Islamic and conventional bank was different from each other from many aspects in which the Islamic bank have to follow the Shariah rules, while the conventional bank have no constraint in their transactions and day to day operation. Besides that, conventional bank offered high interest rate to the customers. Many are skeptical about Islamic banks performance. There are several reasons for this. First, Islamic banks are non-conventional financial institution since interest is the corner stone of conventional banks. Second, Islamic banks operate under dual-constraints. While operating as a commercial bank, Islamic banks obey not only conventional business laws of the land, but also the Islamic laws. They have to sacrifice many profitable investment opportunities because those are not permitted under the divine laws of Islam. Given the afore-mentioned scenario, how has Islamic bank in Malaysia performed as compared to its counterparts in the banking sector? 3.2 Objectives of the Study The present study attempts to examine, analyze and compare the performances of Islamic bank and two conventional banks in Malaysia in terms of the following: Profitability; Liquidity; Risk and solvency; and Efficiency SIGNIFICANCE, SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY Significance of the Study This study will provide information of the evaluation in terms of profitability, liquidity, risk and solvency and efficiency of an Islamic bank, Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB) over ten years for the period ranging from 2000-2009. The study compares the performance of BIMB between the conventional banks of Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB) and Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank). This research project provides useful information about the strength and weaknesses of the BIMB, SCBMB and Maybank, so that the BIMB, SCBMB and Maybank may improve its operation. The findings of this study show the performance of BIMB, SCBMB and Maybank for the period over the 10 years. Besides, this study also will provide useful information that can be used as a reference or guideline to help other researcher in conducting any similar research. The study focuses only on one selected Malaysian Islamic Bank and another two selected Malaysian Conventional Bank. These banks are Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB), Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB), and Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank). Scope and Limitations of the Study The presents study focuses on only three selected Malaysian Commercial Banks which comprise one Islamic bank and two conventional banks. These banks are Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad, Malayan Banking Berhad, and Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad included in the sample for the following reasons: Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB) As the first Islamic bank in Malaysia As a leader in Islamic bank in Malaysia Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank) As the largest financial service group in Malaysia. As a leader in banking industry over a 5 decades in Malaysia Largest networks among Malaysian banks over 14 countries. Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad (SCBMB) As the first bank established in Malaysia. Leading the way of Asia, Africa and Middle East. The sample period for the study is only ten years which using yearly basis ranging from the year of 2000 until 2009. The data are analyzed in terms of performances for selected banks included in the samples by the Financial Ratio Analysis (FRA) approach and tested by using Descriptive Statistics and ANOVA by using Minitab version 15.0 only. HYPOTHESES Given the objectives of the study that have been highlighted in section 3.2, the study attempts the following null hypotheses. There are no significant differences in the statistical distributions of performances among the banks included in the samples which are BIMB, Maybank and SCBMB, in terms of: Profitability; Liquidity; Risk and solvency; and Efficiency DATA AND EMPIRICAL METHODS 6.1 Data According to the Subramanyam Wild (2009) financial statement is a commonly used measure of managerial performance. Financial Statement analysis involves using the output of the standard business information system found in all businesses to judge the performance and riskiness at an instance or over time. A business may have other information systems for managers but all business must conform to generally accepted standards with their financial statements. In examining and comparing the performances of Islamic and conventional banks in Malaysia four banks are included in the sample. These banks are Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad, Bank Muamalat, Malayan Banking Berhad, and Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad while Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad and Bank Muamalat and Malayan banking Berhad are local commercial banks, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad is a foreign bank. Two banks in this sample are listed on the Bursa Malaysia (i.e., Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad and Malayan Banking Berhad), whereas Bank Muamalat and Standard Chartered are not listed. Since the study would be based on ratio analysis, the data for the study are obtained from financial statements of the selected banks in the sample. The sample period of the study is only for ten years, ranging from 2000 to 2009. 6.2 Empirical Methods 6.2.1 Financial Ratio Analysis Using financial ratios financial performances of banks in the sample are examined from four prospective; namely, profitability, liquidity, risk and solvency and efficiency ratios. Various indexes have been provided by financial management theories for measuring banks performance. Using financial ratios is one of them. To measure performance, financial ratios have been used quite commonly and extensively in the literature. For example, bank regulators use financial ratios to evaluate banks performance (Samad Hassan 2000), Patnam (1983), Meister and Elyasiani (1988), Spindler (1991), Akkas (1994), Sabi (1996), and Samad (1999), Ali Rami (2006) gave employed ratios for evaluating a banks performance. In order to see how Islamic bank has performed in comparison with the conventional banks over 10 years, the study uses financial ratios for the banks performance. These ratios are broadly categorized into four groups: (a) profitability ratios; (b) liquidity ratios; (c) risk and so lvency ratios and (d) efficiency ratio. 6.2.1.1 Profitability Ratios Generally, accounting profits are the difference between revenues and costs. Profitability is considered to be the most difficult attributes of a firm to conceptualize and to measure (Ross, Westerfield, and Jaffe 2005). These ratios are used to assess the ability of the business to generate earnings in comparison with its all expenses and other relevant costs during a specific time period. More specifically, these ratios indicate firms profitability after taking account of all expenses and income taxes, the efficiency of operations, firm pricing policies, profitability on assets and to shareholders of the firm (Van Horne 2005). Profitability ratios are generally considered to be the basic bank financial ratio in order to evaluate how well bank is performing in terms of profit. For the most part, if a profitability ratio is relatively higher as compared to the competitor(s), industry averages, guidelines, or previous years same ratios, then it is taken as indicator of better perform ance of the bank. In measuring profitability two financial ratios would be used: Return on assets (ROA) and Return on Equity (ROE). (a) Return on Assets (ROA) Return on assets indicates the profitability on the assets of the firm after all expenses and taxes (Van Horne 2005). It is a common measure of managerial performance (Ross, Westerfield, Jaffe 2005). It measures how much the firm is earning after tax for each dollar invested in the assets of the firm. That is, it measures net earnings per unit of a given asset, moreover, how bank can convert its assets into earnings (Samad Hassan 2000). Generally, a higher ratio means better managerial performance and efficient utilization of the assets of the firm and lower ratio is the indicator of inefficient use of assets. ROA can be increased by firms either by increasing profit margins or asset turnover but they cant do it simultaneously because of competition and trade-off between turnover and margin. ROA is calculated as follows: ROA = Net profit after tax Total Assets (b) Return on Equity (ROE) Return on equity indicates the profitability to shareholders of the firm after all expenses and taxes (Van Horne 2005). It measures how much the firm is earning after tax for each dollar invested in the firm. In other words, ROE is net earnings per dollar equity capital. (Samad Hassan 2000). It is also an indicator of measuring managerial efficiency [(Ross 1994), Sabi (1996), Hassan (1999), and Samad (1998). By and large, higher ROE means better managerial performance; however, a higher return on equity may be due to debt (financial leverage) or higher return on assets. Financial leverage creates an important difference between ROA and ROE in that financial leverage always magnifies ROE. This will always be the case as long as the ROA (gross) is greater the interest rate on debt (Ross, Westerfiled, Jaffe 2005). Usually, there is higher ROE for high growth companies. ROE is calculated as follows: ROE = Net profit after tax Total Equity 6.2.1.2 Liquidity Ratios Liquidity ratios measure the ability of the firm to meet its short term obligations, maintain cash position, and collect receivables. In general sense, the higher liquidity ratios mean bank has larger margin of safety and ability to cover its short term obligations. Measures of liquidity are: Loan to Deposit Ratio (LDR) and Loan to Asset Ratio (LAR). (a) Loan to Deposit Ratio (LDR) Loan to deposit is the most important ratio to measure the liquidity condition of the bank. Here, loan means the advances for the conventional banks and financings for the Islamic banks. Because Islamic banks are prohibited to extend loans and earn interest (Riba) and restricted to follow Islamic Shariah Principles while conducting their banking business operations so the only way the Islamic banks can utilize their deposits is to provide financings through different Islamic financial products. Bank with Low LDR is considered to have excessive liquidity, potentially lower profits, and hence less risk as compared to the bank with high LDR. However, high LDR indicates that a bank has taken more financial stress by making excessive loans and also shows risk that to meet depositors claims bank may have to sell some loans at loss. LDR is calculated as follows: LDR = Loan Deposit (b) Loan to Asset Ratio (LAR) Like LDR, loan to assets ratio (LAR) is also another important ratio that measures the liquidity condition of the bank. Whereas LDR is a ratio in which liquidity of the bank is measured in terms of its deposits, LAR measures liquidity of the bank in terms of its total assets. That is, it gauges the percentage of total assets the bank has invested in loans (or financings). The higher is the ratio the less the liquidity for the bank. Similar to LDR, the bank with low LAR is also considered to be more liquid as compared to the bank with higher LAR. However, high LAR is an indication of potentially higher profitability and hence more risk. LAR is calculated as follows: LAR = Loan Asset 6.2.1.3 Risk and Solvency Ratio This is a class of ratios that measures the risk and solvency of the firm. These ratios are also referred to as gearing, debt or financial leverage ratios. The extent to which a firm relies on debt financing rather equity is related with financial leverage. These ratios determine the probability that the firm default on its debt contacts. The more the debt a firm has the higher is the chance that firm will become unable to fulfill its contractual obligations. In other words, higher levels of debt can lead to higher probability of bankruptcy and financial distress. To measure risk and solvency of the bank, measures usually used are: Debt-Equity Ratio (DER). (a) Debt to Equity Ratio (DER) It is one of the tools to measure the extent to which firm uses debt. It measures ability of the bank capital to absorb financial shocks. In case, creditors default in paying back their loans or the asset values decrease bank capital provides shield against those loan losses. A bank with lower DER is considered better as compared to the bank with higher DER. DER is calculated as follows: DER = Total Debt______ Shareholders Equity 6.2.1.4 Efficiency Ratios These ratios measure how effectively and efficiently the firm is managing and controlling its assets. These ratios indicate the overall effectiveness of the firm in utilizing its assets to generate sales, quality of receivables and how successful the firm is in its collections, the promptness of payment to suppliers by the firm, effectiveness of the inventory management practices, and efficiency of firm in controlling its expenses. Higher value of these ratios is taken as good indicator which means firm is doing well. Ratios used to measure efficiency of the bank are: Asset Utilization (AU), and Income to Expense Ratio (IER). (a) Asset Utilization (AU) How effectively the bank is utilizing all of its assets is measured by assets utilization ratio. The bank is presumably said to using its assets effectively in generating total revenues if the AU ratio is high. If the ratio of AU is low, the bank is not using its assets to their capacity and should either increase total revenues or dispose of some of the assets (Ross, Westerfield, and Jaffe 2005). Total revenue of the bank in this study is defined as net spread before provision plus all other income. AU is calculated as follows: AU = Total Revenue Total Assets (b) Income Expense Ratio (IER) Income to expense is the ratio that measures amount of income earned per dollar of operating expense. This is the most commonly and widely used ratio in the banking sector to assess the managerial efficiency in generating total income versa controlling its operating expenses. High IER is preferred over lower one as this indicates the ability and efficiency of the bank in generating more total income in comparison to its total operating expenses. Total income in this study is defined as net spread earned before provisions plus all other income while the other expenses in the income statement are treated as total operating expense for the study. IER is calculated as follows: IER = Total Debt______ Total Operating Expenses 6.2.2 Analysis of Variance The analysis of variance is a powerful and common statistical procedure in the social sciences. It can handle a variety of situations. The procedure also known as ANOVA is general technique that can be used to test hypotheses concerning means among two or more groups are equal, under the assumption that the sample populations are normally distributed. In statistics, analysis of variance (ANOVA) is a collection of a statistical model, and their associated procedures, in which the observed variance in particular variables is partitioned into components attributable to different sources of variation. In its simplest form ANOVA provides a statistical test of whether or not the means of several groups are all equal, and therefore generalizes t-test to more than two groups. ANOVAs are helpful because they possess an advantage over a two-sample t-test. Doing multiple two-sample t-tests would result in an increased chance of committing a type error. For this reason, ANOVAs are useful in comparing two, or three or more means. In this study, ANOVA is used to comparing means between the Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad, Malayan Banking Berhad and Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad. ANOVA will be calculated using Minitab version 15.0 program. CONCLUDING COMMENTS The present research project report is made up of seven chapters. Starting with chapter one, introduces the project, chapter two reviews of the related literature, chapter three identify the problem definition and objectives of the study, chapter four recognize the significance, scope and limitations of the study, chapter five cover the hypotheses of the study, chapter six discover the empirical methods of the study to be used, and chapter seven cover up the conclusion of the study. Under chapter 3 can be concludes as the performance of Islamic bank performed as compared to its counterparts, conventional banking in Malaysia. Moreover, this study has the target to achieve as listed in the objectives of the study. Finally, overall of this study reveals the important in using the results of the study, area of the study involved and the drawback in chapter 4. Since the accurate data are obtained and hypotheses have been constructing, the suggested methodology can be run to acq uire the results of the study. As suggested in chapter 6, this study interested to look the comparative analysis between the Islamic bank and conventional banks in Malaysia. The simple financial analysis ratio and Minitab version 15.0 models as suggested above have willingness to recognize the performance between both types of banks which are Islamic bank and conventional bank. RECOMMENDATION

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

The Crucible Critical Lens Free Essays

Dolly Parton once said †¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain. † In other words you have to go through struggle to see success. I agree with this quote because in my opinion nothing in life is handed to you easily, you have to work through it and overcome many obstacles in order to get pleasing results . We will write a custom essay sample on The Crucible Critical Lens or any similar topic only for you Order Now This idea is clearly established in the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller. It is shown through the main characters; John Proctor, Abigail Williams and Reverend Hale. The Crucible by Arthur Miller was based on the Salem witch trials that occurred between 1692 and 1693. More than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and 20 were executed. Eventually the colony admitted the trials were a mistake and compensated the families of those who were convicted. Ever since, the story of the trials has become a symbol of injustice and continues to influence more than 300 years later. In the play John Proctor is a married man who previously had an affair with Abigail Williams while she was working at his house as a maid. Eventually John’s wife, Elizabeth Proctor, becomes conscious of what was happening and she immediately dismissed Abigail. When the girls started accusing people of witchcraft, Abigail Williams accused Elizabeth Proctor because she wanted John to herself. Little did she know that John would begin defending his wife. He also pointed out his disbelief in the girls, fingers where then pointed at him as well. John Proctor then started challenging the court because of its lack of evidence this led to a petition signed by 32 neighbors in his favor. He was tried and found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging. Proctor was executed on mid-august of 1692. As he stood on the scaffold he recited the Lord ’s Prayer. This shows how John’s actions support the quote because although It didn’t end happily he tried proving he was right and succeed because him praying made a drastic impression on the villagers as those convicted of witchcraft were not supposed to be able to perform such act. In The Crucible Abigail Williams is Samuel Parris, the minister’s niece. Her and her cousin Betty where the first two accusers. Williams was 11 years old at the time. Everything started when all the girls were at the woods and Abigail was trying to put a spell on Elizabeth Proctor, since her health was already delicate. Her purpose was to keep John Proctor to herself. She had become obsessed with him after their affair and couldn’t seem to get over him. While doing witchcraft in the woods they get caught. After that they started faking being bewitched. They all start accusing people saying they’ve seen them with the devil. Because of Abigail and Betty’s claims to be possessed, false accusations would soon be made resulting in the death of 20 people and 3 women were arrested, including Tituba, Parris’s slave and two other women who one was hanged and the other died in prison. This demonstrates how Abigail’s cruelty knew no boundaries. She didn’t mind innocent people being killed just to hide the fact that she was the one attempting witchcraft in the woods. Abigail went through all that to keep her reputation and be seen as the victim, and she excelled. Reverend Hale is a young minister who has studied witchcraft in the hope of being able to destroy it in the name of God. Salem’s minister, Samuel Parris, had requested his presence so that he could examine Betty Parris. Reverend Hale is the one in charge of discovering who has marks of the devil for the witch trial. After seeing the horrors of the witch trial and watching the loss of both human and the justice rights he speaks out against them telling Judge Danforth that they are morally wrong. Reverend Hale then leaves the court after hearing Mary Warren accuse John Proctor of witchcraft. How to cite The Crucible Critical Lens, Papers

Monday, May 4, 2020

Ethics and Moral Agency Essay Sample free essay sample

Whistle-blowing is the disclosure by anterior or present employees of the organisation of illicit. dissolute or dishonest Acts of the Apostless under the administration of their employers. to individuals or organisations who can straiten signal ( Near A ; Miceli 1985 ) . Carrying employees to blow the whistling when they are witting of their organisational misdemeanour enforces a constructive responsibility on whistle blowers. a responsibility to make good to others or to set a halt to the injury that the organisation may do to others ( Vandekerckhove A ; Tsahuridu 2010 ) . In July 2005. Singapore revised her codification of Corporate Governance to promote the confession of company whistle-blowing patterns and processs. Harmonizing to the European Corporate Governance Institute ( 2005 ) . policy 12. 7 of the Singapore codification of Corporate Governance states that the Audit Committee should measure the policy and agreements by which employees of the organisation and any other individuals may. in assurance. describe any possible impropernesss in footings of fiscal coverage or other affairs. Whistle-blowing policy should be made known in the company’s Annual Report. and steps for conveying up such concerns should be revealed publically as appropriate. Tsahuridu and Vandekerckhove ( 2008 ) argued that organisations must put to death internal steps to let employees to convey up issues internally so as to procure the right to whistle-blowing. However. by put to deathing these steps. employees are so morally obliged to blow the whistling. In this essay. we will speak about the importance of whistle-blowing. moralss and corporate administration in an organisation. moral bureau and duty every bit good every bit whistle-blowing as an internal control mechanism. Based on all these factors. we will so reason on whether employees should hold a responsibility to blow the whistling on unethical or illegal Acts of the Apostless. IMPORTANCE OF WHISTLE-BLOWING Recent fraud instances in the populace sector and non-profit organisations like National Kidney Foundation every bit good as suspected breaches by Singapore-listed companies such as China Sky Chemical Fibre have highlighted the issue on whistle-blowing. Many of these instances have acknowledged important negative effects of organisational error for victims. such as employees. clients. and society at big. The chief professional organic structure in Singapore. The Institute of Certified Public Accounts of Singapore ( ICPAS ) had alerted companies to set up a civilization of moralss and administration ( Channel News Asia 2012 ) . Organizations should besides stress and establish policies for its employees and external parties to be more observant and describe any misconducts. Modern organisations have become so complex these yearss that it is improbable for foreigners to go cognizant of organisational actions. The society has to trust on inside information from prior or present employees of the organisation. Therefore. the duty of whistle blowers such as Susan Leong in the National Kidney Foundation dirt has become indispensable to the sensing of organisational error. Without whistle blowers. the givers will neer larn of the false declarations and misused of charity financess in the organisation. Since whistle blowers are important. Miceli ( 2008 ) suggests that organisations should happen better processs for back uping appropriate whistle-blowing. Furthermore. the legal domain for whistle-blowing has changed significantly over the old ages. particularly with Singapore implementing Torahs to protect the individualities of whistle blowers. employees should so hold a duty to inform the society of any illicit or unethical Acts of the Apostless by their organ isation. ETHICS A ; CORPORATE GOVERNANCE Ethical motives is defined as being just. and finding between right and incorrect. placing the policies and ordinances that emphasize behaviour between persons and groups ( Connock A ; Jonhns 1995 ) . Every organisation should hold a codification of moralss in topographic point to guarantee that employees purely adhere to the values and beliefs of the company. McNutt ( 2002 ) suggests that a codification of moralss oversee behavior through a set of moral rules or processs that preserve values and beliefs. Harmonizing to Picou and Rubach ( 2006 ) . corporate administration guidelines are a tool where a company can back to cut down organisation costs and better support the involvement of the stockholders and stakeholders. To capitalise on the shareholder’s investing. organisations should supply precise information to stockholders by doing usage of corporate administration mechanisms so that they can make up ones mind on whether to regenerate their contracts with direction ( Wheeler 2002 ) . Ethical motives and corporate administration are hence indispensable in every organisation because they protect the company’s fiscal place ; set up strategic programs and assess employee’s public presentation and behaviour ; guarantee that the company obeys the jurisprudence and protect the involvements of all the stockholders every bit good as the stakeholders. Organizations are advocated to implement whistle-blowing procedures in their codification of moralss so as to construct an ethical environment for their employees. On 26th January 2010. Singapore house Q2 Consulting Partner and United States’ Global Compliance launched a whistle-blowing hotline for employees to describe claims against their ain company ( Channel News Asia 2010 ) . Employees have a pick whether to stay anon. or non when unveiling the contents and probes will so be carried out to authenticate the instance. It is evident that companies in Singapore realized the importance of whistle-blowing as harmonizing to a Global Compliance interpreter. 40 Singapore houses have signed up for the hotline service after the launch ( Channel News Asia 2010 ) . After the dirt of the National Kidney Foundation. there was a monolithic public call and citizens have become disbelieving in donating to charities. Recently launched on 21st August 2012. an moralss hotline by Shared Services for Charities ( SSC ) serves as a new whistle-blowing platform for charities ( Leslie 2012 ) . With these whistle-blowing hotlines in topographic point. employees can now confidently raise any issues that they feel is non morally right in their organisation without endangering their calling or life. Whistle-blowing will so let organisations to observe and rectify any errors before its repute and public trust are damaged. MORAL AGENCY AND RESPONSIBILITY Harmonizing to De George ( 1992 ) . an agent in ethical theory is any single that performs and is expose to ethical regulations. is a rational being. and is non an agent for anyone or anything else. Once an agent accepts an ethical theory. he should be independent and rational. Hence he should move in his best involvements and neer let his actions to be influenced by others. Whistle blowers are considered to be moral agents. and are accountable for their behaviour and actions ( Tsahuridu A ; Vandekerckhove 2008 ) . They should hold a moral duty towards the stockholders and stakeholders by describing the errors of their organisation. They should besides believe in that by making so they would be able to rectify these errors and take their organisation to the right path. hence heightening shareholders’ value. Moral agents should be held morally responsible when they perform the act out of their ain agreement or failed to forestall the act despite cognizing the effects behind it. Attributions of duty are dependent upon a person’s place as a moral agent ( Lisa 2010 ) and they are frequently closely related to ascriptions of penalty. Therefore. Tsahuridu and Vandekerckhove ( 2008 ) suggest that moral bureau plays a critical function for us to size up the undertakings of employees at work and the moral position of whistle-blowing processs. The cardinal construct of moral bureau is moral duty. which means we can keep a moral agent morally accountable for his or her behaviour and actions. Moral bureau can so be used to measure the moral behavior of an agent. One of the standards necessary for moral bureau is the capableness for an person to link in moral traffics based on their moral judgements in advantage of a moral motive ( Lisa 2010 ) . The ability for moral motive involves a general ability to be motivated every bit good as the ability to be motivated by visibly moral grounds and considerations. Lisa ( 2010 ) besides mentioned that an person will be required to get a clearly moral concern. which means that an person should be concerned with what is right or incorrect taking into considerations of the public assistance of other persons in their organisations. their stockholders and stakeholders. The most evident illustration of morally right actions within an organisation are in peculiar those in which an employee’s fortitude to move in conformity with responsibility prevails over their apparent self-interest and apparent desire to make otherwise ( Patrick A ; Charlie 2005 ) . Therefore. employees should be morally compelled to blow the whistling when they witness any organisational error. CONTROL MECHANISM Whistle-blowing has been identified as a control mechanism to support the organization’s long-run involvements and to vouch good corporate administration by debaring unethical behaviour ( Eaton A ; Akers 2007 ) . In recent old ages. instances such as Enron. the National Kidney Foundation. China Aviation Oil etc have intensified the consciousness of whistle-blowing within organisations. Whistle blowers have non merely amplified in figure but besides in significance as a social control mechanism over organisational misbehaviors. Organizations have developed to be so intricate and adept at concealing wrongdoing. that merely employees in the organisation are capable of detecting any errors and uncovering them ( Miethe 1999 ) . Trapp ( 1998 ) besides states that whistle-blower serves a critical demand as an of import cheque on answerability. Legal amendments to promote whistle blowers. such as the add-on of whistle-blowing policy in the Singapore Code of GC. have persuaded organisations to reenforce mechanisms for internal whistle-blowing. Accusations of the occurrences at Enron. the National Kidney Foundation and China Aviation Oil. etc could all have been discovered earlier. if these organisations had reinforce whistle-blowing processs in the first topographic point. Take for illustration the instance of China Aviation Oil. ‘failure at every degree of the company’ caused it to finally to clasp under US $ 550 million of approximate options trading losingss in 2004 ( Quah 2005 ) . A whistle blower would hold been one of the most effectual ways of informing the governments about the error of the company in this instance. Quah ( 2005 ) besides mentioned that the effectivity of whistle-blowing is shocking when it is done right. based on a 2004 study by the Association for Certified Fraud Examiners in the US. about 40 per cent of frauds were revealed from an insider information. This shows the effectivity of whistle-blowing in exposing any unethical or illegal Acts of the Apostless within an organisation. Time Magazine ( 2002 ) has obviously demonstrated whistle-blowing as an of import internal control mechanism by having three whistle blowers from Enron. WorldCom. and the FBI as Persons of the Year for 2002 ( Patel 2003 ) . Martin A ; Dixon ( 2002 ) have besides province that these episodes in the U. S. have sparked rise involvements in other developed states such as Australia. the U. K. Canada. and France on the topic of whistle-blowing as an internal control mechanism. Whistle-blowing may perchance be a manner of uncovering evildoings in our economic environment where organisations can non be trusted to be ethical. Besides being a control mechanism. whistle-blowing can besides be an effectual path for employees to describe misbehavior or supply feedback to assist better the company and yet remain anon. . The cardinal prevarications in blowing the right whistling. which is besides a challenge for companies to guarantee that their employees understand the mechanism of whistle-blowing.

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Discourse Analysis of Journal Article Essay Example

Discourse Analysis of Journal Article Essay Example Discourse Analysis of Journal Article Essay Discourse Analysis of Journal Article Essay DISCOURSE AND GENRE: THE ANALYSIS OF STRUCTURE AND PATTERN OF JOURNAL ARTICLE IN CONAPLIN 6 I. INTRODUCTION The demand for scholars to publish journal-article is increased due to the need to develop education quality in Indonesia. In the era knowledge and globalization, the ability to write scientifically becomes very important. Therefore, the fact that the number of research papers emanating from universities in Indonesia is just a seventh of the total published by neighbouring Malaysia has indicates the lack of writing ability of scholars (Nurdiani, 2013). This phenomena results in the implementation of graduation policy in Indonesia. In 2012, Indonesia’s Ministry of Education and Culture has determined to require all university students to publish papers in academic journals as a condition for graduation. However, since from the beginning the students are more exposed toward undergraduate thesis writing rather than journal article, students might find it difficult to make o ne, let alone to publish it in particular prestigious journals. Summers (2001: 405-406) lists four main reasons why articles are rejected by leading academic journals: 1. The research does not make a sufficient contribution toward a specific discipline; 2. The literature review is not well developed; 3. The methodology is flawed; and 4. The article is not structured properly. Compared to undergraduate thesis which has the fixed structure, journal article might vary in terms of organization of the paper. Kotze (2007) provides the typical structure of an academic article reporting the findings of a quantitative study. The detailed of structure can be seen below. TitleAbstractKeywordsIntroductionLiterature Review (Alternatively: Background, conceptual development or conceptual framework)Methods (Alternatively: Methodology) * Sampling 1. Target population and research context 2. sampling 3. respondent profile * Data collection 1. Data collection

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Lab Report Example Invention of polymerase chain reaction and thermo stable DNA polymerase has revolutionized this concept. Many techniques like Variable tandem repeat (VNTRs) and Short Tandem Repeat(STRs) based Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism(AFLP) or DNA fingerprinting, Gender ID (Amelogenin), Mitochondrial D-Loop DNA for Maternal identification etc. have been developed for forensic investigations. PM&DQA1 is the first PCR based typing system, developed by the scientist at Cetus Corporation and commercialized by Applied Biosystems. Inc. PM& DQA1 is simple and rapid technique mainly employed in case of limited DNA sample or in case of highly degraded DNA. The test is performed on 6 different loci to investigate pleomorphism using hybridization based Reverse DOT-BLOT methodology. The major limitation of this technique is its differentiating power due to limited diversity found among 6 loci among different human population. Crime investigation obtained new direction after invention of DNA based techniques for identification of criminals. The biggest advantage of DNA based techniques is the requirement of very small amount of biological samples which includes blood, hair, semen etc. Invention of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and thermo stable DNA polymerase has revolutionized these DNA based techniques due to its immense power of DNA multiplication. There are many DNA based techniques that are employed for detection of crime and criminals including Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP), Variable tandem repeat (VNTRs) and Short Tandem Repeat(STRs) based Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism(AFLP) or DNA fingerprinting, Gender ID (Amelogenin), Mitochondrial D-Loop DNA for Matrilineal identification. Criminal identification based on human body parts or component has been used since last century as part of forensic investigations. The classical example being Human finger prints which was recogn ized by British physician Sir Francis Galton (1). In the beginning of 20th century many physiologists and doctors realized that blood cell has distinct antigens and they are different from individual to individuals. Initially blood cell antigens were taken into consideration only in case of blood transfusion and surgery but later on its forensic utilities were realized and it was employed to solve problem of paternity dispute, child mix-up etc. Those days blood samples saliva and semen samples were produced in court as evidence against criminals but it was not taken as conclusive evidence due to its limited distinguished power. In 1970, the things started to change after discovery of DNA structure and the increases in the understanding of its variability between individual to individual. Once DNA was established as target molecule for forensic investigation, many researchers came forward with different methodology and different locus having higher variability like micro and mini sat ellites. Initially there were many questions that were raised over methodologies and interpretation of DNA based identification systems. But thorough investigation and population genetics based

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

Responsive Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Responsive - Essay Example He has stayed amongst the Kung Bushmen of the Kalahari Desert for a number of years, but he barely knows them in totality. The best time that he learns something substantial about their behavior is when he has only one Christmas to celebrate in their land. This is a group of people that are of a funny character. They make us marvel at values of their society. These include their togetherness that they uphold in the society. In so many ways, they used to enjoy in unity through sharing their hunt almost in each and every single day. The story in this article exposes the true nature of the Kung Bushmen. As a matter of fact, they are a group of people in the society that enforces humility in people who do not have it at hand. They try as much as possible to resist pride that may crop up in someone after a little achievement of victory. For instance, it is seen in the text how people hunted and brought fatty meat at home, but in rejoinder received the least of appreciation. The anthropologist himself wondered why gratitude was barely shown to those who went hunting and gathering. To set the facts right, a member of the Kung Bushmen community gives a hidden answer, all about arrogance! This is what I realize that the Bushmen Community try as much as possible to resist for its existence would only lead to a feeling of superiority over the others. In short, members of society at large prefer to be equal to one another. In this article, what comes out more vividly is mockery of the highest order. In the first instance, it took a lot of sacrifice for Ontah, the anthropologist to have the fattest ox for his last Christmas celebration amongst the Kung. In return, what he receives before that big day is ridicule and travesty. It is amazing how each person confronts him with a similar scorn. Exposing his folly, he hardly realizes the pure intentions of these people and to make him do, he has to inquire and seek judgment from a few

Monday, January 27, 2020

Impact of the Maoist Insurgency on the Nepalese Society

Impact of the Maoist Insurgency on the Nepalese Society CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 1. The Nepalese people had a positive, but to a large extent unrealistic, expectation with the new political establishment of 1990, which had installed a democratic system of governance in the country. This form of governance was unable to meet the peoples expectations. Midterm parliamentary elections of November, 1994 resulted in a hung parliament that further led to a power-centric rivalry between various political parties. Maoists, a radical fraction of the Nepalese communist movement, whose ultimate goal was to establish a communist republic through armed struggle, found the prevailing environment most appropriate for triggering a long awaited armed struggle. The Maoists started an armed insurgency amidst political instability from the remote hills of mid Western region, and finally emerged as a threat to Nepals democracy. The Nepalese government, in its various capacities, fought the Maoist insurgency. The government was able to contain a growing insurgency, but had not been abl e to achieve the desired political end state within the existing constitutional framework. 2. Nepal endured the Maoist insurgency for more than a decade and this truly posed a formidable threat to national security. The government failed to anticipate and diagnose the problem properly in the first place and a frequently changing government could not effectively employ the instruments of national power by devising a coherent and coordinated national strategy. Ultimately, the government relied on security/military measures without formulating a viable and broader political and socio-economic strategy. The governments response to the Maoist challenge in general was reactive, inconsistent, and far from effective.   The extreme friction and division within the ruling circles prevented the state from articulating a clear, consistent and convincing response during the most critical phase of democratic transition. The conflict resolution and long-term stability in Nepal is still uncertain, yet the conflict settlement process has started after more than a decade long conflict. Ha d there been a better understanding of the insurgency from the beginning, conflict would have been less costly. 3.Emergence of Nepal Communist Party (Maoist).Understanding the birth of the Nepal Communist Party (Maoist), relates back to the conquest of Kathmandu valley in 1769 by a king from Gorkha, a small principality in central Nepal. By the end of the eighteenth century, the Shah dynasty of Gorkha through conquest, marriage and diplomacy had succeeded in annexing the small principalities and forming the country that is today known as Nepal. Towards the end of the unification campaign in the early nineteenth century, the Kings power waned and control of the state slid into the hands of the military families. Competition for the control of the state led to bloody struggle between different military families. From the mid nineteenth century onwards, the state machinery became the preserve of one family the Ranas. 4. With its aim to overthrow the Rana rule, the Nepali National Congress (NC) was formed in 1946 in Banaras by fusing the Akhil Bharatiya Nepal Rashtriya Congress, the Nepali Sangh and the Gorkha Congress. Pushpa Lal Shrestha who served as the office secretary for Nepali National Congress was dissatisfied with the NCs policies for a non-violent struggle. He quit the party and started working on setting up a communist party. He translated and published Marxs Communist Manifesto which was released on 15 September 1949, the date that is considered the founding day of the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN). Although political parties were legally prohibited during this time, Nepali students in India had been exposed to Marxist views and many were even affiliated to CPI (Communist Party of India). At the time of the 1950 uprising, the CPN was in the early stages of party formation. Although it enunciated its ideology of class struggle and armed revolution, the party was not explicit about its objectives nor was it clear about its role in the 1950 movement in which NC had professed overthrowing the Rana regime and establishing democracy with constitutional monarchy. Therefore, NC dominated the 1950 revolution and CPN began expanding its support base and exercising its strength only after 1950. 5. Ideological and personality clashes among the leaders began eroding the organizational unity of the CPN during the decades of 1960s and 1970s. The party divided into three branches: the moderates, the extremists and the radicals. In 1974 the ‘central nucleus split into the CPN led by Mohan Bikram and Nirmal Lama and the CPN led by Man Mohan Adhikari. The communist party led by Adhikari joined with smaller groups and formed the CPN (ML) in 1978. By 1991 the CPN (ML) joined hands with Pushpa Lals CPN (Marxist) to form the CPN (Unified Marxist Leninist) a nomenclature that is retained to this day. At the time of the 1990 movement, the CPN (UML) was the largest Communist organization in the country. 6. While the Communist party led by Man Mohan Adhikari was consolidating with smaller groups and expanding its base, the other CPN was experiencing numerous break offs. In May of 1979, King Birendra announced a national referendum. Disputes arose between the two leaders of this party regarding the referendum. Mohan Bikram Singh was unwilling to participate in a referendum called by the King while Nirmal Lama, general secretary, accepted the referendum and faced opposition within his party. As a result, he was forced to resign from his post. Ultimately, Mohan Bikram Singh and Nirmal Lama parted ways. Singh formed his own party the CPN (Masal) in 1983. In 1985, Masal fragmented into Mashal and Masal. Mashal, led by Mohan Baidya, was subsequently replaced by Pushpa Kamal Dahal alias Prachanda, who would later be known as the Maoist supremo. The subsequent development and emergence of the Maoist party is shown in Appendix â€Å"A†. 7.Background of Maoist Insurgency in Nepal.The start of armed insurgency was not only the result of an opportunistic response to the emerging political instability after 1990 but also the product of a rational and deliberate calculation. Some form of radical elements of the leftist movement in Nepal has always believed in armed insurgency. The root of the communist movement in Nepal goes back to the birth of the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) in 1949. The CPN had secured four seats out of 104 in the first ever parliamentary election conducted in 1959. The CPN was split on the question of supporting a royal takeover in December 1960. Towards the latter half of the 1970s, the communist movement in Nepal had also developed its radical factions which were influenced by the Chinese Cultural Revolution and the Naxalites movement of India. Following in the footsteps of Naxlites, CPN (Marxist-Leninist) carried out killings of local land owners in eastern Jhapa district of Nepal during the la te 1970s, also known as Jhapa Uprising. This uprising was immediately suppressed by the then Panchyat government, a party-less government system under direct rule of the monarch. The Nepalese communists were generally divided into two groups until the end of the Panchayat system. One group was ready to follow democratic system and another believed in seizure of power through armed insurgency. CPN (Maoist), who started the armed insurgency in February 1996, was always in favor of armed insurgency. Maoists, through their open political front, forwarded a 40 point demand to the government in February 1996, as an ultimatum otherwise to begin an armed insurgency; however, the Maoists started the armed insurgency even before reaching the deadline. 8.Governments Counter Insurgency Strategy.Nepal had experienced 15 different governments from 1990 to April 2006. Political instability made democratic transition difficult and prevented the government from acting appropriately against the insurgency. Various governments endeavored to respond to insurgency with a range of policy instruments during their respective tenure. Weak administrative infrastructure, frequent changes in government, hung parliaments, lack of determined leadership, diverse interest and different views of major political forces towards insurgency contributed to reactive, inconsistent and sometimes counterproductive response. Maoists completed preparation of the armed insurgency by keeping the government unaware, in order to avoid government repression. As an initial response, the government preferred to use police forces without anticipating the long term consequences. Police operations engaged the Maoists, but never controlled the local population. These repress ive and heavy handed law and order measures further alienated the local populace, which ultimately benefited the insurgents for organizational expansion. Only with the November 2001 offensive by the Maoists, did the government become more serious. After initial setbacks, the government decided to take a immediate approach to address grievances at the local level. It was conceived as the Internal Security and Development Program (ISDP). Increased Maoist violence prevented the government from running such types of programs together with combat operations in the insurgency infested areas. The government was forced to back out of this program.   Nepalese government counter insurgency measures from 1996 to 2006 included programs as followings: Initial Police/administrative measures. Security/military measures with ISDP programs. Counter Insurgency Operations. Peace Talks Promulgation of Terrorist and Terrorism Act. Activation of special courts to try insurgents. METHODOLOGY Statement Of The Problem 9. The researcher intends to analyze the impact of the Maoist insurgency on the Nepalese society in terms of political, social, economic and security aspect which they were forced to undergo during the period. The researcher also lays suggestions and recommendations to assist the future military leaders for better understanding of the problems and ways to address all societal needs if exposed to similar type of environment in the future. Hypothesis 10. The Nepalese society and the people were the main victim of the conflict during the decade long insurgency, in terms of social, economic and political losses. Justification Of The Study 11. Conflict, war and warlike events themselves are intolerable events in a peaceful society and automatically their impact on the society and its organ is more intolerable. The research will limit itself to a brief description of the then prevailing political situation. The main focus of the research will be concentrated towards how the society experienced the insurgency/counterinsurgency operations. A detailed analysis of the states inability to visualize the social, political, security and economic impact realized during the counter insurgency will be analyzed in detail. 12. The sole intent to scrutinize the above mentioned aspects is to provide an insight view to all the readers to understand the psychological pressure that the Nepalese society had undergone during the counter insurgency operations. Despite being one of the most significant subjects, there were some limitations regarding preparation of the paper which includes; the time limitation to make detailed study and the other commitments of the researcher in the college as well. 13. There are various national and international books, research paper written, prepared published by military professionals, academicians journalist about the Maoist insurgency and the governments approach to the problem, but only few of them that were relevant to the subjects were studied for the preparation of the paper. Methods Of Data Collection 14. This paper is based on a review and examination of information gathered from a variety of secondary sources. Due to the nature and availability of numerous research works on the subject matter the researcher did not opt for any field based research. This study is based on a descriptive along with analytical study of the Nepalese governments counter insurgency strategy along with its impact on the Nepalese populace at large. For this, the researcher has mainly studied and analyzed books and various websites. This research is by no means a complete picture of the conflict in Nepal and neither a complete picture of the Nepalese experiences during the insurgency period. Neither does this research claim to cover all impacts, but merely constitutes a review dependent upon available information. Organisation Of The Dissertation 15. It is proposed to study the subject in the following manner: The chapter II highlights the background reasons behind the decade long conflict, in which more than 13 thousand innocents lost their lives. The chapter III briefly tries to explain the societal experiences of the insurgency in various levels and facades. The chapter IV tries to analyze the victims of the insurgency. The chapter V finally concludes the research, with proving of the hypothesis. CHAPTER II BACKGROUND REASONS BEHIND THE CONFLICT General 16. On February 13, 1996, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), initiated a Peoples War with over 5,000 actions being carried out throughout the country including armed assaults on police stations in rural districts, the confiscation of property from oppressive landlords and punishment of local tyrants. The Maoist movement in Nepal grew out of imbalance within the society due to poverty, unemployment and frustration among the youths. Inaccessible hills, lack of communication and illiteracy further created an environment where insurgency could easily take its roots. Political instability in the country and failure of political leaders to respond to the hopes of mass population further attributed to the rise of Maoist movement. 17. Geographical disparity.Mid Western and far Western regions are basically remote areas of Nepal suffering from widespread poverty, disparity, structural inequality, injustice and discrimination. This in turn provided the Maoist with perfect breeding ground. Hence, the insurgency started from the mid-Western region (namely Rolpa, Rukum, Salyan and Jajarkot districts). Gradually they were able to increase their influence across the country and later were virtually present in all seventy five districts from rural to urban and hills to terai (plain) areas. The geographical expansion and growth of the Maoist insurgency was sharp and ubiquitous mainly because of two reasons. First, they effectively and successfully utilized media, rights activists, frustrated masses (e.g., ex-bounded laborers, unemployed youths, etc.) and poor, marginalised and underprivileged groups. They also created reign of terror to help expand their activities. Second, complete failure of the government to address geographical inequalities and provide regionally balanced development opportunities and infrastructures. All form of governance had completely neglected these two regions as they were inaccessible and remote. 18.Impacts of the Security Forces.Nothing can be more appalling to innocent rural community than when security forces move in, searching for insurgents. Because of the poor training of the police personnel and their lack of knowledge and proper orientation, instead of resolving the problem, they usually end up becoming major problems themselves. Police Operations like Operation Romeo, Operation Kilo Shera-2 and Jungle Search Operations (1998-99) and Silent Kilo Shera-3, Delta and Operation Chakrabihu (2000-May 2001) did not prove effective. Instead they helped escalate the conflict from certain geographical areas to across the country. Large numbers of innocent people were victims of these operations, which developed further resentment and feeling of revenge. The government completely failed to recognize the gravity of the problem of geographically neglected areas. Thus the Maoist were able to give the impression to the general public that they truly represented their interests, need s and aspirations of geographically isolated poor rural population who had been excluded from the economic, political and social opportunities mainly because of staying in geographically remote and backward areas. 19.Social Exclusion and Acute Inequalities. Absolute poverty, lack of access to resources and failure of political structures to address these issues made the Nepalese society extremely vulnerable to conflict. Deep rooted social cleavages in terms of caste, ethnicity, gender, regional, cultural, linguistic and religious forms of discrimination provided fertile ground to escalate the conflict.Maoists successfully capitalised the widely discernible disillusionment of people towards poor performance of political structure. Dominance of certain groups (e.g., Brahmin, Chhetri and Newar) in all social, political and economic sectors promoted feeling of injustice and revenge as lower caste people strongly believed that they had been excluded from opportunities and resources. Maoists tactically utilised these feelings. The emergence of ethnic interest groups, awareness on social exclusion, ethnic inequalities and governance failure fuelled the conflict. 20.Unstable Government and Their Lack of Responsiveness.There has been considerable political instability since the inception of democracy in the country.   The performance of parliamentary democracy for years had repeatedly failed by its frequent shifting of alliances, changing stands with the alternative governments and seeking fresh elections. This trend created an unhindered and favorable environment for the Maoist to widen their influence, the government being unable to take any bold steps for the economic as well as social upliftment of the people. The people, who had great expectations from the political leaders after the restoration of democracy, were disheartened by their irresponsible acts of engaging themselves in internal wrangling. 21.Lack of good governance.The revolving door charade of ministers with the formation and fall of different governments only increased the corrupt practices across the board.The splitting of major parties created a weaker government which inspired the rampage corruption in the administrative sector. The nepotism and favoritism made people feel the class discrimination. Such conditions decreased the faith towards the government and the Maoists were successful in exploiting the discontented group to gain passive or active support.  Ã‚   22.Fragile Economy and Rampant Poverty. Nepal ranks among the poorest countries of the world. With no major industries for earning foreign currency and deteriorating tourism industry, the economic condition of the country is decreasing each day. No economic program had been implemented effectively in the remote areas where 85 percent of the populations are still in acute poverty. The 2002 Budget presented by the government headed by then Prime Minister Deuba painted a gloomy economic picture of the country. Out of Rs. 96.12 billion, Rs. 57.45 billion was set aside for regular expenditure and rest for developmental projects. Rs. 14 billion was allocated to the security forces. This meant regular expenses were higher than expenditure under the development section in the, and government was giving more importance to law and order than economic reform. 23.Ideology.Maoist Movement involves only a small minority of the countrys population as active participants. Most of the participants are members of the underground who perform their normal functions within the society along with their clandestine and covert activities. However, ideology has been an important factor in unifying the many divergent interests and goals that exists among the Maoist movements membership. As a common set of interrelated beliefs, values and norms, the ideology has been used to manipulate and influence the behavior of individuals with in the communities and societies. Such strategy of the Maoist has directly or indirectly motivated and attracted many innocent citizens of the country.   24.Illiteracy and ignorance. Nepals Functional literacy remains low, even though official statistics show that the literate population numbers at around 60 percent. Most of the literate or educated are again concentrated in the cities and often it is the illiterate majority that remains back in the villages where the Maoists are still active with organization building. Those without proper education are unable to distinguish between promises and practical goals and because they are â€Å"unaware† or not â€Å"critically conscious† about what they are told, they are more likely to be influenced. Inability of the people to differentiate between what is told to them and what is achievable is reason for the increase in support to the Maoists. Low literacy and lack of effective information and communication mechanisms in rural areas   provided the Maoists, the space to persuade locals to support their cause and at the same time failure of democracy to deliver up to the exp ectations of the people contributed to the frustrations of the poor and to the growth of the insurgency. Positive Aspects Of The Conflict 25. The conflict also had some â€Å"positive† aspects, i.e. if one discounts and pretends to temporarily forget the losses. These positive aspects are the social reforms initiated by the government after the Maoists began rattling the status quo by forcibly correcting some long-standing socio-cultural inequities. Some of those reforms were in the plans and programs of the government and political parties but had never really been implemented. The Maoists have effectively challenged the discriminatory and exploitative caste system and have taken the debate on ethnicity and identity to the level of discussion or regional autonomy and self-determination. 26. The Maoists advocate regional autonomy, promising nationalities and geographically specific regions the right to self-determination. Locally, Maoists women, enforced bans on alcohol production and distribution, which they claim had helped reduce social evils (domestic violence, for example), and also to improve food security by ensuring that food grains are not used for brewing alcohol. The anti-alcohol drive, however also had another side. Many of the ethnic populations need alcohol for religious ceremony and cultural events, and the industry is also a major employer. 27. In the village the Maoists are also said to have forcefully ended polygamy, by shaming or even killing those found guilty of the offense, which is something every woman would support. They also advocated equality of the sexes, and were able to portray that they are at least better than the state, on gender equality. According to published information, about one third of the Maoists militia comprises women, which is symbolically a better mix, compared to the status of women in state institutions. Furthermore, in the Maoists â€Å"base areas† places where they claimed to have complete control they tried out different development models, for example cooperatives, restoration of the tenancy rights of tillers and the setting up of â€Å"model† primary schools. CHAPTER III SOCIETAL EXPERIENCES OF THE INSURGENCY AND COUNTER INSURGENCY General 28. Nepal has endured a decade long brutal insurgency which pushed the nation to the brink of catastrophe. Notwithstanding the little knowledge and experience in Counter Insurgency (COIN), Nepals Armed forces were haphazardly deployed to mitigate the threat posed by the insurgents. Devoid of a proper political stratagem, however, the military response failed to yield the intended outcome.Any form of violence / conflict leaves behind physical scars not only on the mankind but also to its surroundings with the left away of damaged building, displaced individuals and families, disrupted public services along with the deaths and disappearances. However, the real damage is done on the hearts and minds of the people, most of them civilian peoples who stayed as bystanders during the entire period of the conflict sharing the both pain from the side of the rebel and the government forces. Hence following are some of the broad categories in terms of social, political, economic and security imp act that the researcher has identified as possible areas which were experienced by the Nepalese as a whole in the past conflict. Social Impact 29. The conflict in Nepal had resulted into death of more than thirteen thousand, from the hands of Maoist or the security forces. Many more have been impaired for life and thousands more have been displaced from their homes. There were fightings almost every day after November 2001, except during seven months of truce between January and August 2003. The conflict between the security forces and the Maoist in the past had far-reaching effects on any society, in terms of destruction, disruption, diversion and dissaving. Besides destruction of material, the conflict also disrupted the normal walk of life of the people causing social and economic losses, many of which were difficult to measure. Some of them being the pain of an individual or group that had lost their dear and near ones, anguish of bereaved widows, orphans and friends and families of those killed in the conflict, belonging either to security forces, civilians or the Maoist combatant. Besides, there is other aspect of the socio-cultural impact which includes displacement of people resulting to homeless, Human Rights violations, educational shutdown, detainees and disappearance, psychological and mental problems in children and women, degradation in environmental protection are some of the experiences faced by the society during the insurgency period. Following paragraphs discuss the socio-cultural impacts of the conflict, based on the findings from the research. 30.Displacement. Operation Romeo was the major pushing factor for the displacement of people right before the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) declared Peoples War on 13 Feb 1996 with an aim to overthrow the constitutional Monarchy and establish New Republican State. Later it was followed by the government launching Operation Kilo Sierra Two which also fuelled the displacement problem.The rate of internal displacement was further intensified after the government initiated actual counter insurgency operation. However there are no any definite statistics of the displaced people and the one available also shows the variations regarding the numbers of Internally Displaced People (IDP) which is shown in Appendix â€Å"B†, this however does not include the displaced people due to the threat of the government and security forces. 31. However it has been clear that the displacement had been both voluntary and forced. Those who left the village voluntary did so fearing they could be attacked by the Maoist, even though they were not threatened by them. Most of the voluntary migrants included members of the politician, local landlords, money lenders and the ones who were involved in illegal activities. The bitter experience of the displaced people could be understood easily since any individual that are forced to move from his/her place of residence faces multiple problems. 32.Children and Women.Where ever there is a conflict, children and women are often the worst sufferers in the conflicts, it is no doubt that many have appreciated Maoist for empowering women into their party but there are many more who blames Maoist for victimizing them as well. Though recruitment of women alongside of the men in the militia/guerilla has been termed as empowerment but at the same time the ignorance of the hardship that the women had to undergo during the conflict has always been neglected. Women experienced conflict differently than men, there were numerous cases regarding gendered form of violence during counter insurgency operations such as rape, slavery, deprivation of food, teenage widow and eviction from the family (according to Thapa, Ranjana, Impact of Armed Conflict on Women). They were victims of rape and torture and would often end up being forced to raise their children on their own, especially after their male partner were killed or captured. There were i ncidents where the young women/girls within Maoist had suffered from sexual abuse and exploitation, there was an interview in the national TV which the researcher still recalls, a 19 year old women Maoist cadre had claimed that she and many in their party had to fulfill the sexual desire of their own level Maoist cadre and she further notified that sometimes she even had to fulfill sexual desire of more than dozen per night. Overall, women had been adversely affected during these periods, whether as daughters, mothers, sisters or wives of both the personnel of the security forces and the Maoist. 33. Despite a national campaign â€Å"Children as Zone of Peace†, it was the children who were caught up in the Maoist conflict mainly as victims. Many had been killed in the Maoist Government conflict of which they were no part of. According to the INSEC, over 260 children under the age of 18 were killed in the conflict between 1996 till 2004. Many others were wounded and many had lost either both or one of their parents. According to other estimate, at least 2,000 children have lost one parent and more than 4,000 had been displaced. The Maoist at one hand had been using children as child soldier by either using them for combatant, cultural groups or as informants. At the same time the security forces have also used children in various ways such as guides, couriers and porters. Children nationwide experienced school disruptions because of Maoist attack on schools, forced closures and strikes at schools. The Maoist always use to see school going children as their potential fu ture combatant or child combatant resulting into abduction of entire class of student. 34. The framework projected in Appendix â€Å"C† provides an overview of an involvement of children in armed conflict and its impact which was distinctly experienced/ observed during the counter insurgency operations against the Maoist Peoples War. 35.Health and Food Security.Though many people had experienced death as a direct result of fighting from knife wounds, bullet, bombs and landmines, but many more died from malnutrition and disease due to Maoist Peoples war. The interruption of food supplies by the security forces, the destruction of agricultural and health services infrastructures by the Maoist, resulted into diminished food intake and severe malnutrition/infections, the target always being children and the older peoples in the society. The people living in the rural area of Nepal experienced serious cutback in local food production, caused by the migration of the merchants from the rural areas, lack of access to markets due to restriction imposed by the Maoist cadres and the displacement of able human resources from the villages. 36. In one incident in particular in 2004, Rolpa district suffered from transport blockade for nearly a year, similarly four village in Acham district faced movement restriction for over year and the Doti district faced blockade of food transportation for more than 6 months, all of them were enforced by the Maoist activists. On the other hand, in order to prevent food from falling into the hands of the Maoists, the security forces had also imposed small weekly quotas on private traders of food in some district. In some cases these amounts were so small that it was not worth for merchants to long risky journey to sell it. The quotas impacted civilians more then intended Maoist force because the Maoist regularly forced the villagers to provide them with meals, leaving very little food left for feeding families. 37.Human trafficking and HIV/AIDS. Trafficking of women and girls to India and other countries is a long standing prob