Neutrality Helps the Oppressor, Never the Victim

The acceptance speech of Elie Wiesel was a description of his personality as human being who went through the pain and still remembering the tormented past of his own and his people. The people that killed without justice suffer without sin and burning their bodies and their future. The speech made Elie speak the truth of what is happening in the past and that is also happening now in different countries. He is speaking in behalf of the victims who died without words received the suffering without asking why. Experience torment from the tormentor who gains more power in killings the innocent. This research aims to explore Elie Wiesel being an activism that speak for the victims and spread words of the past memory to awaken the Jewish who are the first victims of the oppressor. The writers to continue being a spoke person of the tormented who remain in silence that call help for justice. The leaders who were continuously use their power at the expense of torturing other people just to gain more power. To the ordinary people who remain silent even in their injustice moment to be vigilant and speak the truth that contribute your future. According to Encarta English Dictionary [North American Edition] (2006), â€Å"Activism is a vigorous and sometimes aggressive action in pursuing a political or social end.† However, Elie Wiesel defines it in many ways in not doing harsh action but done it in a soft spoken and written way that succeeded him in delivering to the people. Elie has reason in doing this type of activism which is express in the next paragraph. Human Rights Activist As journalist Elie believed that activism can play more by spreading the words of the victims. His experienced being a victim and a witness to terror done by the Nazi to his people made him a journalist activist that writes the words that the buried victims want justice for killing them. He is a human rights activist that hears and writes the wounded emotion of the victims of the past that shape his future now as a journalist. He make himself a â€Å"messenger† of the dead to speak justice for them so that their tortured moment will no be forgotten by the people and the country who done tormented acts to innocent people. In his Novel Acceptance Speech delivered in Oslo (December 1986), indicated that â€Å"Human rights are being violated on every continent. More people are oppressed than free. How can one not be sensitive to their plight? Human suffering anywhere concerns men and women everywhere.† This words of Elie show that he is an activist of human rights that helps the armless victims to have justice and stop continues terrorizing human being across the country that right now suffering pain from terror leaders. As a journalist there so many things to be done Elie added on his speech that refugees’ misery and children’s fear must be stop with the millions of lives of Jewish and Palestinian people that have shed too much blood. I need your support and cooperate and remove hatred and danger to gain peace in the holy land. Elie agree that Violence is not the answer. Terrorism is the most dangerous of answers. (Wiesel, Elie 1986) Peace Activist Instead of using guns and fight for the rights of the injustice he created foundation for humanity that supported various humanitarian projects.   He also organized International conferences on the theme Anatomy of Hate that intend to light up this human weakness of supremacy. (Temple Education Website) Elie being a peace advocator he addressed true men rights issues to others countries who also experiencing injustices like South Africa, Bosnia, Burma, Tibet to Central America, Cambodia and Vietnam. Listening to the cry of the oppressed and counseling the emotion of the victims to move on and speak for the truth. His experienced being a witness to the history of bloodshed that he saw directly from his eyes the innocent Jewish children burning alive without any words of asking why. Those made him a strong witness that will spread the pain of the past through writing calling the awareness of the people and not through the act of violence. Believing that hope and peace will come if there would be awareness and cooperation to stop this terrorizing act. Political Activist Elie is a political Activist by using his influence to speak with the leaders and challenge Reagan when this leader wanted to go to Germany and honor the NAZI SS officers who are buried in the Bitburge. He challenges Reagan not to go to Bitburge for it will mean siding to the oppressor who tormented Jewish. (Temple Education Website) It was learned that Nazi kills the large Jewish population of Hungry. Where Jewish were undressed of all their rights force into a Ghetto, and then deported to Poland. Where the father of Elie and other Jewish people have died in starvation and tortured. Bankier, David 2005). All those moment of suffering was witness by Elie Wiesel it hurt him so much that asked why those incidents happened. It was supported by Isador Stone author of New York Star and Daily Compass (1944), that â€Å"the essence of tragedy is not the doing of evil by evil men but the doing of evil by good men, out of limitation, hesitancy, laziness, inability to act in accordance with what they know to be right. The terrible element in the fate of the Jews of Europe lies in the failure of their friends in the West to shake loose from expected war and bureaucratic habit, to risk inexactly and confront prejudice, to be whole-hearted, to care as deeply and fight as hard for the big words we use, for justice and for humanity, as the revolutionary Nazi does for his master race or the militant Jap for his Emperor.† For the bad experienced of Elie Wiesel he calls Reagan to be sympathetic with the survivor victims of NAZI who does not deserve to be honored in response to the millions of live kills without justice. The horrible experiences of the victims done by Nazi give an incomparable trauma to the survivor that needs more attention now to help them face the future without hatred. Elie believed being an Activist is calling for the Jewish, the writer and the universe to Continue listening and writing for the betterment of the future that is full of hope Jewish Elie asking cooperation from speech (1986) to the Jewish people to continue speak up and cooperate by removing the hatred and violence to see the hope in the future. By removing the burdens in their hearts they can easily move and see the bright future which lies ahead. Make the past as the tool to be more mature and responsible citizens. Writers Isador Stone (1944) assert that â€Å"Anything newspapermen can write about this in their own papers will help. It will help to save lives, the lives of people like ourselves.† This are the words that Elie Wiesel wanted to hear from the people especially in the media people to be vigilant of the issues that suppress the rights of people. While it is true that media play great responsibility to spread and highlights the issues on the awareness of the injustice victims that cry in the dark without due process of law. The writers as what Elie done to be a messenger that brought their voice to the people and authority that injustices happened anywhere and it can happen to anyone if we allow this. Leaders Stop ignoring to the cry of the unjust and use abusive power in oppressing the poor just to gain more power and give benefits to minority while majority are suffering and starving socially, politically and economically. It was emphasize by Elie Wiesel in his speech that â€Å"There is so much injustice and suffering crying out for our attention: victims of hunger, of racism and political persecution – in Chile, for instance, or in Ethiopia – writers and poets, prisoners in so many lands governed by the Left and by the Right.† This suffering must end by continue speaking out for the truth and eliminate fear for the right justice to be prevail. Ordinary People To ordinary people who are still in their comfort zone don’t wait for the injustice come into your life but instead start to help and speak for others who can not speak. For according to Elie Wiesel during the Hiroshima Conference (1995) that in spite of the despair, hope must exist. In spite of suffering, humanity must prevail. And in spite of all the differences in the world, the worst enemy, the worst peril, is indifference.†   As an ordinary people we must not lost hope and continue to struggle for our future generation. Our voice contributes so much in shaping the lives of our children. Conclusion The sad experiences of Elie Wiesel contribute of what he is now. Being an activist that does not act violently made him well-known by prominent leaders and president. For he believed that an activist can succeed without using guns instead use writing as a tool in expressing the rights of the victims. Hearing the cry of the oppressed and encouraging them to speak is more effective than being violence. Elie speak for his tormented past to all the people asking sympathy to diminish terror that happening in different countries. He added, in calling the attention of different people to be aware of their rights not to be a victim again by the tyrant who take advantage of their ignorance. Finally, he asserts that activism can done peacefully through communication by words or written to the concern authority to have a better place for our future generations. References â€Å"A Political Reading†. Elie Wiesel History. Access 5 February 2007, from . â€Å"Activism†.   Encarta English Dictionary [North American Edition] (2006). 5 February 2007, from   . Bankier, David. â€Å"Holocaust.† Microsoft Encarta 2006 [CD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2005. Stone, Isador F. â€Å"For the Jews—Life or Death?† The Nation, June 10, 1944. Retrieved 5, February 2007, from Microsoft   Encarta   2006. Wiesel, Elie. Novel Acceptance Speech delivered in Oslo (December 1986). 5 February 2007, from . Wiesel, Elie. Hiroshima Conference. Retrieved 5 February 2007, from .      

Museum Essay

` Judge, Stephanie Art 100 Museum Essay and Online Museum Essay Bibliography: â€Å"William-Adolphe Bouguereau Biography. † Bouguereau Biography. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Oct. 2012. . â€Å"MFAH | Top 100 Highlights | #1 – The Elder Sister. † MFAH | Top 100 Highlights | #1 – The Elder Sister. N. p. , n. d. Web. 22 Sept. 2012. . Online Museum Essay William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905) The Elder Sister, 1869 Oil on canvas, 51 ? x 38 ? inches The Museum of Fine Arts, HoustonOne of the finest French artists of the 19th century thought of by many is William Bouguereau. He was well known for his traditional academic style and depicted paintings in such a way where they would seem life like and flawless taking away any imperfections. He was admired by the wealthy and known for painting portraits of others, in which he won many awards for. He also enjoyed painting portraits of his children. In Bouguereau’s The Elder Sister he created a life like portrait of his daughter and son on canvas in 1869. One thing that distinguished him from other artists was his attention to precise detail.It has been said that there were no other artists were as original that could create such beautiful paintings as him. When taking a closer look at this particular painting The Elders Sister, it becomes evident why he is considered one of the finest 19th century artists. Bouguereau’s The Elder Sister is a traditional oil painting on canvas that measures 51 ? x 38 ? inches. At first glance the viewer will notice the overall soft contoured lines while looking at a pair of young children, whom are surrounded by rural landscape into the vanishing point that meets the cloudy blue-grey sky in the horizon.The elements of analogous earth tones seen throughout the painting are accompanied by a few complimentary colors seen on the children’s clothing which produce a great sense of calmness and ease. The composition as a whole is asymmetrically balanced b y a dark pigmented green bush in the right near corner which is placed beside the children. To the left of them is a small grayish house that displays fine lines and geometric shapes that depicts organic tall green trees that hover well above the house.The positive shape and focal point of the composition is the elder sister whom is sitting in the near distance on a rock, which is covered by abstract textures and shades of green grass that surround the whole landscape. Slouched a bit forward, one arm is quietly holding her sleeping infant brother while cradling his small torso as her other arm rests vertically over his legs onto her right knee as she gazes directly at the viewer with an intense stare. The infant seems to be comfortable in her arms by the way he is laying. Noticeably the children are exquisitely portrayed leaving no signs of any flaws.They are dressed in earth toned pristine clothing, which are painted with such delicacy and show great detail in the value. In the dis tance behind the space where the infant’s head lays a small pond below what appears to be grassy hills and mountains, these all appear smaller than the children which create depth and distance. Above the horizon towards the vanishing point shows a sky filled with darkened clouds combined with lighter ones that appear to encompass the top portion of the plane down to the waist of the girl. The way in which Bouguereau painted represents how passionate he was in depicting what he saw.The way the portrait is conveyed creates unity and keeps every element of the painting easy for the viewer to follow. One example would be the use of rhythm and repetition used in the clouds. It is evident that he displayed complete control when creating the contoured and implied lines in the space. The overview of The Elder Sister is yet a timeless work of art and creates a perfected masterpiece of the quiet beauty of the children and the natural green hues of the landscape. The peaceful feeling th at The Elder Sister recommends is something that one can take with them after viewing this work of art.This is a painting that brings serenity and shows how siblings can care for one another. It is showed in the way the sister is holding her infant brother in her arms giving him a sense of ease. Bouguereau obviously has a passion for painting his children and demonstrates it through the soft delicate details. http://www. mfah. org/art/100-highlights/Elder-Sister-Bouguereau/ In person Museum Paper OVER- MODELED SKULL 20th Century Vanuatu, Melanesia Different from any other art such as traditional arts are not actually created for any other reason other than religious rituals or conceivably community functions.The OVER-MODELED SKULL is a dynamic piece of art from the twentieth century that caught my eye while I was at the Bowers Museum. This particular skull came from Vanuatu, Melanesia otherwise known as Oceania. It is an island in the South Pacific Ocean where only chiefs and men of high rank would be honored after their passing. After a year of someone of this rank died, the modeled skull would be created by a skilled craftsman to resemble the deceased man and then used in ceremonies and placed in their house.It is believed that the spiritual power would remain there for about twenty years. After observing this body of material a few times over again, it is evident that this particular culture of Oceania takes pride in making such art and it is an important part of their everyday life. This modeled skull was composed from vegetable matter, sap, pigment and the deceased man’s skull. Upon walking into the exhibition that was called Spirits and Headhunters I came across a well lit glass display that housed this art form.At first glance I felt quite intimidated and chilled by overall structure of the mask. The structure itself was biomorphic and oval shaped resembling that of human form. The hollowed oval eyes that seemed like blackened tunnels were the fo cal point. The skull portrayed a long widened nose was the most prominent form of the man’s face which made it appear to be closed form. There is a space where the mouth once was as if the man were to be half smiling. There are cracks in multiple places suggesting that this piece has been around for many years.Complimenting the face are three dull contrasting colors that the craftsman used which are orange, black and brown giving a form of balance. The orange takes up most of the forehead painted in an upside triangle form and continues down the center of the face. The black covers the other part of the forehead as well as the eyes and the rest of the face. Towards the side by the temples is the color brown where the paint tends to end. Laterally the view is the side of the painted face which extends back to the rounded back of the skull which I was not able to view.The foremost part of the skull towards the back appears to be marbled by different tones of beige. The structur e itself seems hardened yet fragile. The craftsman that made this traditional work of art possible for spiritual reasons created a simple yet unique face from the skull. Though my first impression was a bit startling I came to appreciate what this OVER- MODELED SKULL was about and entails. Since this is a way of life for the people of Oceania they would not look at this skull the same way others that were not educated on their way of life might.This fragile looking skull teaches us about one of the traditions of the Oceania people. After one of the high ranking men passed a modeled skull was to be made by a local craftsman to resemble him so the people could keep his spirit alive. There were ceremonies and rituals that were held for twenty years after the skull was remodeled. The skull was kept in the man’s house and after twenty years was disposed of because they thought the spirit couldn’t survive longer than that. This shows how diverse the world is in art and how w e might perceive what the meaning was intended to be. http://www. bowers. org/

AMD Case Final

Finally, MAD needs to switch the consumer's fixation from specifications such as GHz and KGB, to visual experience. Although Llano is already delayed, it will be ready by mid-201 1 . The next selling cycle, right after mid-2011 , is the Back – to – School season. This means that waiting until mid-2011 is not necessarily a bad thing. Intel already rushed out a CHIP+SPIN processor called Sandbagging in order to be the first to market, and in doing so produced a mediocre product. According to analysts, â€Å"Intel GAP technology is a generation behind its CPU technology and cannot Offer a outing-edge graphics experience. Unlike Intel, Mad's strength is in dedicated Spies, due to the acquisition of AT I. Therefore, MAD can release a more complete CHIP+SPLIT processor, aka APP, in time for the Back-to-School season. Usually incentives are negotiated prior to each selling cycle: Back-to- School, Holiday season, and Spring. MAD can offer incentives to retail stores such as Be st Buy, H. H. Gregg and Office Depot prior to the Back-to-School season. The incentives would benefit the retailers because they would be paid an extra 5-10 dollars per PC sold, that contains one of Mad's chips.MAD would also benefit from giving retail incentives by getting more exposure on prominent displays, promotional merchandise available at the retail stores, PC's with MAD chips featured in ad circulars, and MAD would have access to sales associates for training purposes in return for the incentive. MAD specifically should have a combination of merchandising and training because studies show that when merchandising and training are combined, the VISION brand is better communicated and recommended to customers via retail sales associates.For example, when comparing VISION awareness, Merchandising Alone scored 88%, whereas Merchandising + Training scored 97%. For VISION recommendation, Merchandising Alone scored 46%, whereas Merchandising + Training scored 69%. The Fusion produc t line consists of one high end product called Llano that was suitable for high-performance desktops and laptops, one mid-tier product called Acetate suitable for low-end notebooks, and one low-end product called Ontario mainly used for notebooks. Acetate and Ontario were also referred to as Bravos.The reason why we choose to launch Llano first, and not Bravos, is because the VISION rand needs to be associated with quality processors and reasonable prices in comparison to Intel. We assume that if MAD launches Bravos first, the VISION brand will run the risk of being miscommunication as a low-end, weak processor and thus MIS-positioned in consumers' minds, due to a negative first impression. In the past, MAD lacked the ability to court high-end markets, and VISION's Llano is an attempt to break into high-end markets which will give MAD an opportunity for larger profit margins and market share gains in PC's.Odessa said, â€Å"Internal projections forecasted that Llano, which would co ver all mainstream and high-end products, would account for 70% of Fusion APP sales and that Acetate and Ontario would account for 30%†. Looking back at Mad's history with Intel, the companies seem to always have a response to one another, or a way to get back at each other. Whether it is by launching a better product, price-cutting, acquisitions, or rushing products to the market, they usually respond within a year or two.For instance, when Intel's Titanium failed because it could not service 32-bit software, MAD developed the Petrol, which could service both 64-bit and 32-bit software hush creating success for MAD. Part of its success was due to the fact that users did not have to buy new software packages for the processor, unlike Titanium which required new software and proved to be costly. We would rather have the Llano be like a repeat of the Petrol in comparison to Intel's Sandbagging.This means that even though Intel went to market first with a CPU+SPIN processor, MAD can release a better APP about six months later, which is a relatively quick retaliation to Intel when compared to their history. In order to not make the same mistake that Titanium did, we recommend MAD ark with content and software makers before launching Llano. Another important characteristic about Llano is that it needs to be able to function with both 64-bit and 32-bit programs. The plan is to release Llano with only a few major necessary software applications and programs optimized for 64- bit, so that the Llano APP can be fully experienced by users.As mentioned in the case, â€Å"the lead time for optimizing applications was typically a yea'. Releasing Llano with only a few optimized programs allows Llano to roll out in mid-2011. Also, the idea is that developers can create optimized software ever time, much like how Google Chromate was released with a few notable APS and has gained more over time. Some programs we would optimize are: Direct 1 1, Directorates, Photo and vid eo editing APS, Adobe Acrobat. A large number of optimized programs and applications will come after Llano's debut.MAD should be concerned with improving relationships with Memos by not forcing the Memos to exclusively use MAD processors and logos, unlike Intel, which according to management â€Å"used its dominant position to dictate terms to Memos or threaten not to work with them if they did not use Intel chips exclusively†. By not imposing on Memos, MAD opens itself to being used by companies such as Apple, which prefers not to put other brands on its devices. MAD should continue following its new branding strategy VISION, which focuses on how the computer is used and not on how fast the computer can calculate excel spreadsheets. If we make the experience matter most, the VISION campaign has done its job. † Currently the conversation between salespeople and consumers revolves around hardware specifications, but MAD wants the conversation to be about what the compute r can do. MAD should define its CPU and JPG in simple terms that re straightforward, unlike Intel which is very technical. Communicating the change from Intel style specifications to MAD visual experience will require in person demonstrations done by retail sales associates.Retail sales associates will carry out blind tests for consumers by showing shoppers two computers side by side, one with an Intel Sandbagging processor and the other with an MAD Fusion processor. Customers will then choose which computers they feel have the better graphics and visuals, from the demonstrations of the Intel vs.. MAD blind test. Another way to communicate to consumers that MAD APP processors are better, not only for use of Excel but also for visuals, is to show them an experience comparison with the competitor; in this case it is Intel.The VISION Experience Comparison would be signage that translates industry standard specification lingo; it would show that Intel's processor is equal to choppy, fix ated gamely, whereas Amid APP is equal to vivid, clean, smooth game play. The VISION Experience Comparisons would be displayed on the retailer's shelf, where the specifications are typically shown for each computer. The VISION Experience Comparisons would only be splayed for computers that contain MAD Pap's. Strategy #1 Add Apes for new form factors such as smoothness and tablets to the Fusion product line.Create relationships and incentive Memos to use the smartened and tablet APES. Rationale #1 The Fusion line currently consists of three different processors: Llano, Acetate, and Ontario. Each processor in the Fusion line is geared toward a certain type of PC. For example, Llano is for powerful desktops and laptops, whereas Acetate is for low-end notebooks. Ontario is for notebooks. The Fusion line up competes with Intel's ‘Core' product line nicely. One area of concern is new form factors, such as tablets and smoothness. Currently, Intel is selling the Atom for tablets and s moothness.MAD should include an APP that can service these tablets and smoothness, as well. Looking at the competitive landscape, one can see that tablets and smoothness are under great demand from consumers. Apple's phone has had major success since 2007 and pads, which were recently released in April 201 0, have shown strong sales. MAD has the ability and should position itself in the tablet and smartened markets as a graphically strong PAPAL maker. It is in Mad's best interest to become an industry standard for smoothness and tablets. MAD can do this by creating good relationships with manufacturers through flexible deals.For example, MAD will not require Apple to show MAD labels or logos on its products. Also, MAD will strive to have better prices than Intel. In addition, since some of the smartened Memos are also the same companies that create PC's, MAD can offer bundles. For example, if the same MEMO uses MAD processors in both desktops and smoothness, MAD could Offer a larger discount on advertising or products. Strategy #2 Keep Mad's VISION marketing strategy, but include a marketing campaign using various media to better portray the VISION marketing strategy.In addition, improve retail and Memos relationship with MAD, to further increase sales. Rationale #2 Mad's new branding strategy for the introduction of the integrated CHIP/ SPIN, VISION, focuses on consumers' experience, visuals, and graphics instead of concentrating on the specifications, speed, and numbers a computer may have. The MAD PC purchasing study showed, â€Å"consumers want a simple, straight forward way to compare and choose computers†, which indicates hat most consumers are more concerned with â€Å"what the computer does, over what is inside Of it†.An example Off circular ad featuring VISION is provided in the case; however, it only shows specifications on the MAD processor found inside the Notebooks, completely omitting the message of the VISION strategy. The idea is to provide customers with the most important specifications and also integrate the message, ‘the experience matters most†. For the Fusion processor, customers would want to experience HAD quality video online gaming, enhanced video and photo viewing, high performance photo editing, and AD gaming. This would be a more social, recreational use for a computer or notebook.The new Vision marketing strategy would include a marketing campaign that involves an initiative to change the consumer message throughout various types of media. The campaign will communicate to consumers that MAD APP processors are better, not only for use of Excel, but also for visuals. The ads in the campaign will show consumers a direct comparison with the competitor, in this case Intel. The campaign will be called the VISION Experience Comparison. The VISION Experience Comparison itself would include ads hat show translations of industry standard specification lingo.For example, the ads will demonstra te that Intel's processor is equal to choppy, fixated gamely, whereas Mad's APP is equal to vivid, clean, smooth game play. The campaign will be in use two months before each Computer selling cycle. For instance, VISION Experience Comparison commercials will be displayed most heavily two months before the Back-to-School cycle, in order to generate demand. Marketing strategy is important, but relationships with retailers and Memos are also crucial in order for MAD to deliver its new APP processor to ND-users.Intel has the lead on MAD when it comes to MEMO relationships; Intel goes as far as using threats as one of its partnership strategies by making Memos deal exclusively with them. MAD needs to use a non- threatening strategic partnership; make deals with Memos by not forcing them to place Mad's VISION logo on its devices. For example, â€Å"Apple hasn't allowed Intel to place a logo on its computers and the company has the most market share for notebooks over $1000†. This m eans that MAD has the opportunity to make a business deal with a top tier computer brand like Apple.This is cause MAD will not threaten to not cooperate with Apple, in case Apple does not wish to display MAD logos on its devices. MAD should partner with leading Memos such as Hewlett-Packard and Dell Inc. , which have the lead in sales over Leno and Acre as seen on Exhibit 4 of the case. By introducing incentives, MAD could make itself more appealing to Memos. As mentioned in the case, â€Å"MAD can offer Memos 75% refund on full price of all print ads if Memos use the VISION brand†. Instead of reimbursing HP 3-5% of the purchase price of the chip, MAD could raise the percentage to 10%, making the deal appear more appealing to Memos.

State-sponsored oppression Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

State-sponsored oppression - Essay Example From then on, various other agencies were created, addressing specific human rights concerns. (Joseph, Schultz, Castan, 2004) Notable examples of this are the International Labor Organization and the UNICEF. However, the international legal system was saddled with a limitation: only states could be parties to an international law dispute. This paper will argue that this conception of international law is anachronistic in light of the atrocities committed by individuals that deserve punishment in the international regime. The Holocaust, the butchery in Serbia, the genocide in Rwanda, and most recently, the barbaric killings in Sudan are crimes of such magnitude that it requires nothing less than an international tribunal to try these crimes against humanity. II. Substantive Issues History and Evolution of International Individual Criminal Responsibility International individual criminal liability is, in essence, the ascribing of responsibility for certain crimes against individuals in an international forum. The crimes for which individuals may be held responsible are not simply ordinary crimes of theft or of reckless imprudence. They must be of such a nature that they invite universal condemnation. They are considered erga omnes obligations, or obligations owed to the world. Examples of these are piracy, genocide, crimes against humanity and slavery. According to Kelsen, "The offenses for which retribution may be claimed are, in the first place, violations of international law committed by having resorted to war in disregard of general or particular international law." (1943) In a manner of speaking, the assigning of individual criminal responsibility in the international sphere is a huge departure from...International individual criminal liability is, in essence, the ascribing of responsibility for certain crimes against individuals in an international forum. The crimes for which individuals may be held responsible are not simply ordinary crimes of theft or of reckless imprudence. They must be of such a nature that they invite universal condemnation. They are considered erga omnes obligations, or obligations owed to the world. Examples of these are piracy, genocide, crimes against humanity and slavery. According to Kelsen, â€Å"The offenses for which retribution may be claimed are, in the first place, violations of international law committed by having resorted to war in disregard of general or particular international law.† (1943) In a manner of speaking, the assigning of individual criminal responsibility in the international sphere is a huge departure from traditional conceptions of international law. Pursuant to Article 34 of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Statute, â€Å"only states may be parties in cases before the Court.† In the famous Nottebohm case, such principle was likewise applied with the International Court of Justice held that only a state may seek redress for crimes or offenses perpetrated against its citizens, and the â€Å"nexus of nationality† must be established between the state seeking redress and the citizen for whom it seeks redress. However, in view of the atrocities being committed by individuals, the concept of international individual criminal liability emerged.

Week 3 Reflection paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Week 3 Reflection paper - Assignment Example The origin of multi-cellular organisms is from colonies of single-cell protists. Despite this emphasis of the autonomy of cells, Haeckel a scientist did note that their independence becomes controlled by the bonds of the community as the division of labor The cell was also seen as the essential element of pathological processes according to the illustrated theories. Diseases came to be considered (irrespective of the causative agent) as an alteration of cells in the organism. Andrew a researcher emphasized the primacy of cells for comprehending pathological and normal form and function in the human body. This would therefore draw conclusion that remedies or solutions to pathological ailments must be cell centered if success is to be achieved. In coming up with treatments for pathological ailments, the cell is primary to getting the remedy in relation to compatibility of the remedy produced ensuring that there is life and continuity is not hampered

IT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

IT - Essay Example Affect-based Trust is related to the the benefits that the client would get directly like quick and improved services whilst Cognition-based services relates to those advantages that a client would see and have evidence of like reduced cost of transactions and access to money without queuing and the like. Jointly, these two add up to the satisfaction a client would gain by patronizing e-commerce products of a bank. In this research, we therefore ask, what are the important factors that affect e-banking in UAE? What are the main consumer attitudes towards e-banking services in UAE? What is the effectiveness of e-banking services rendered by banks to individuals and organizations in UAE? The research seeks to add up to the stock of knowledge on the effectiveness of e-banking services rendered in UAE and the customer attitudes to e-banking services in UAE. ... The research would provide a background for the study of trends and matters pertaining to e-banking. This can enable banks, consumers and potential consumers to get a good understanding of the reaction of consumers to e-banking products and services that are offered in the UAE. Literature Review Online banking is the â€Å"process that allows a consumer to perform banking functions online. Online banking can be accomplished through the internet with specific account information and a consumer password† (Sam, 2008: 7). Online banking refers to an electronic form of carrying out traditional banking processes and transactions through the Internet and other forms of computer software systems. This implies that online banking enables a consumer to complete a banking activity using the internet and other related electronic tools like mobile phones and other sophisticated computer systems. This is also referred to as e-banking, which encompasses banking carried out in an electronic f ormat. In a bank, e-banking a typical e-banking department consists of groups responsible for marketing and sales, internet activities, electronic commerce, call center services, ATM operations and mobile phone bank services (Hlupic, 2003: 109). In other words, e-banking combines the operations and activities of several related departments in a bank to ensure that the clients of the bank get the opportunity to undertake normal banking services through electronic means. This requires the co-operation and combined efforts of several units to ensure that customers get prompt attention about their transactions, reduce fraud and get a good understanding of the internet banking

The Joke by Milan Kundera and how it relates with history of European, Essay

The Joke by Milan Kundera and how it relates with history of European, the Czech society, socialism, totalitarianism and any oth - Essay Example Consequently, the thesis statement of this paper is that the author criticises the communist ideology in Czechoslovakia. Analysis The idea of communism when it was introduced in many of the Eastern Europe countries was to create optimism on the people that they will be equal in acquiring and enjoying social and economic benefits (McKay, 2007). Ideally, the ideology was targeting the equal distribution of the resources in the society to enable people to grow equally on social benefits. This political idea has been castigated by the author as an opium system. Indeed, the author illustrates how one of the characters in the fiction novel wrote in a postcard critiquing the notion of optimism in a society. "Optimism is the opium of the people! A healthy atmosphere stinks of stupidity! Long live Trotsky!" (Kundera 18). This observation of the author through the use of the character in the fiction novel, illustrates how the writer thought of the communist ideology in the republic of Czechosl ovakia during those days. Inasmuch the idea of communism in the country was to draw equality in the lives of the population, the system according to the writer, was pegged on optimism to the people that social and economic benefits will be distributed equally for their own good. ... Consequently, the statement from the novel depicts how the writer blames the communist ideology in Czechoslovakia in beholding them from participating in innovative and creative activities to improve their lives. Another aspect that has been demonstrated in the fiction novel by the writer in critiquing the communist idea is the imprisonment of the mind. This implied the effect of the political system that was practiced in the country in preventing the population in questioning the rationale of the government actions. Thus, the writer demonstrates how the communist ideology in his country had blinded the minds of the population in holding the government accountable in carrying out the state’s affairs. Indeed, the writer illustrates how one of the characters described another character in the fiction novel as unable to go beyond the government rhetoric in questioning its action. In addition, the writer demonstrates how the population is politically constrained in understanding t he ills of the government actions due to the legal system that was introduced by the communist ideology. "She was constitutionally unable to look behind anything; she could only see the thing itself" (Kundera, 143). In contrast, the communist idea in the history of European society was agitated to end the capitalism ills in imprisoning the population. Indeed, it was argued that the capitalism ideology had imprisoned the minds of the population due to its embracement of materialism in the society (McKay, 2007). However, the fiction novel demonstrates how the communist idea failed in liberating the population in questioning the actions of their own government. Indeed, the author demonstrates how one of the character

The Cold Fusion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Cold Fusion - Essay Example The assumption was that the environment of transitional metal deuterides makes fusions of two deuterons realistic, increasing their probabilities by a certain magnitude. The research drew a lot of criticism about its reality making several energy researchers and engineers around the world dive into the issue. The future of energy resources had been a bother among the industrial nations on how to tap energy for industries and households. If Fleischmann and Pons hypothesis was true, it could solve the energy issues. Cold fusion is hence a proposed type of nuclear reaction that is believed to occur at relatively low temperatures unlike hot fusion. However, its destiny is unclear (Kozima 11-16). Nuclear fusion occurs at super high temperatures, super high environment and requires big sets of apparatus which are extremely expensive. As a new type of nuclear reaction, cold fusion was proposed to explain reports by experiments of unusually high generation of energy under specific laboratory conditions. Researchers have continued to conduct investigations of cold fusion and have found out that the interaction of hydrogen or deuterium with Palladium, Nickel or Platinum produces excess heat effects under extreme conditions. The original reports failed to replicate consistently and reliably causing the rejection by mainstream media. Fleishmann and Pons discovery eventually became invalid as it had not actually detected the by products of nuclear reactions (Fleishmann, and Pons 301-308). Trombay initiated experiments in 1989 to verify the claims of cold fusion. Large busts of neutrons were detected with a Pd-Ni electrolyte cell. Significant amount of neutrons and tritium were found to be produced in gas loaded Ti and Pd samples. D2 loaded Ti disc targets have also revealed some hot spots indicating an uneven distribution of tritium production in the near surface region. Trombay experiments have confirmed the occurrence of cold fusion reaction in both Pd and Ti metallic lat tices loaded with deuterium at certain temperatures. Neutron emission has also been observed even when the electrolytic cell is switched off or when there are no externally induced processes like heating, cooling and evacuation are effected (Kozima 11-16). Findings The main product of cold fusion reactions is Tritium. However, its presence inside the palladium electrodes has not been quantitatively evaluated. Cold fusion can be characterised as being ‘aneutronic’ with a neutron to tritium channel branching ratio of less than 10-8. Neutrons from electronically loaded Pd and gas loaded Ti are emitted one at a time. It is hence unclear whether the neutrons are generated in the D-D fusion itself or produced in a secondary reaction involving energetic protons or tritons. Autoradiography of loaded gas loaded Ti targets demonstrates both the occurrence of cold fusion and tritium production. The estimated tritium to deuterium isotopic ratios is several orders of magnitude highe r in the initial stock D2O. There is a high concentration of tritium on localised regions or hot spots on the target surface as well as along the periphery of the disc. The high probability of tritium branch in cold D-D fusion reactions indicate processes of neutron transfer across the potential barrier (Report on the workshop on cold fusion, June 3). Some departments of energy like the U.S Department have reported on the inadequate conviction of experiments done by earlier scholars. Based on the review of published reports, reprints, journals and many communications, the results of the experiments of excess heat with the calorimetric cells do not present convincing evidence that useful source of energy would result from the results attributed from cold fusion. Similar

Feminism, Environmentalism, and Postmodernism Essay

Feminism, Environmentalism, and Postmodernism - Essay Example The essay "Feminism, Environmentalism, and Postmodernism" gives a detailed information about feminism, environmentalism, and postmodernism. Postmodernism developed as a result of man’s rejection of ideas and practices of the modern era. Postmodernism is an attempt to change the way man formerly thought and used language. Feminism developed in three waves. The first ended in all women over the age of eighteen obtaining the right to vote. The second wave was a continuation of the struggles of the first as well as the awareness of the female’s personal life as absolutely joined to the politics of the day. The female viewed her life as a struggle in a male dominated source of political power. The woman as child bearer and homemaker was challenged at every corner during this wave. Hence this second wave was concerned with an end to discriminatory practices in society against women. The third wave denoted a response to the apparent failure of the initiatives of the second wav e. The third wave feminism adopted an ideology that is purported by postmodernism. Thus, the third wave usually focused on â€Å"micro politics†. These contemporary feminists advocate reconstruction of the entire society in order to bring about positive change. They incorporate postmodernism as well as post-structuralism into the feminism debates. Hence, they viewed language as the source of construction for sex and gender. As postmodernist in nature, contemporary feminist view the history of females’ discrimination as unimportant.

Mary Shellys Frankenstein Essay Example for Free

Mary Shellys Frankenstein Essay Mary Shellys novel is structured in a way, which attempts to give authority to her views. Opening with an authors introduction, and supported with a preface with her famous husband. Mary Shellys novel starts with a series of letters claiming to know the truth of Victor Frankensteins story. This family involvement, followed by professional distancing, reveals the strength of the authors feelings on the responsibilities of family and scientists. For a century and a half, many readers of the Mary Shellys novel Frankenstein have debated over which character could be associated with the expression Monster. Mary Shelly said in the preface the reason why she produced this nineteenth century novel was a ghost story oh! If I could only contrive one which would frighten my reader as I myself had been frightened that night. She wanted her readers to feel the terror that she had dreamed one night. The readers of Mary Shellys novel Frankenstein might believe that the creature is the monster, however there are two potential monsters in the novel. These two characters from the novel are the Creature itself and the creator of the creature, Dr Victor Frankenstein. One candidate who might be believed to be the monster is Dr Victor Frankenstein. At the age of seventeen Victors parents suggested that he should become a student at the university of Ingolstadt. Unfortunately Victors mother passed away while giving birth to his brother. The death of his mother shocked him and caused him to search for ways to extend life. After the death of his mother, Victor took his parents advice and went to university. My departure for Ingolstadt which had been deferred by these events it appeared to me sacrilege so soon to leave the repose, akin to death, of the house of mourning and to rush into the thick if life. This suggests he wasnt sure if it was the respectable move to make, to leave his mourning family behind and go off to university. While at university Victor became fascinated in biology: One of the phenomena, which had peculiarly attracted my attention was the structure of the human frame, and indeed any animal endued with life. Victor was focused to stop death. He was grieving so much because he had lost someone so important and close to him: I thought that if I could bestow animation upon lifeless matter renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption. His fascination with extending life overtook his studying; he became so committed to finding a way, he had set himself a challenge and he was so sure to achieve that challenge. A time in the novel where we are shown that Victor is related as a monster is the time when he begins to dig up the dead and raid graveyards. Who shall conceive the horrors of my secret toil as I dabbled among the unhallowed damps of the grave or tortured I collected bones from charnel-houses secrets of the human frame. This is a sign of immoral, abnormal attitude and is offensive towards the bodies. The definition of a monster is a misshapen animal or plant; person of wickedness; huge animal or thing. The part of the definition where it says a person of wickedness is what should be used to describe Victor Frankenstein. No normal person would dig up the dead and use body parts to make a creation. Another way, in which Victor could be considered as the monster is the way he treated the creature once he had brought it to life. Victor disowned the creature; he refused to acknowledge it and to accept that the creature was his own: For this I had deprived myself of rest ad health. I had desired it with an ardour at length lassitude succeeded to the tumult endeavouring to seek a few moments of forgetfulness but it was in vain. Victor had no intention of caring for the creature, it was as if he was afraid of his own creation. He discards the Creature immediately after its creation, calling it a wretch and leaving it to fend for itself. This shows how irresponsible he is. It is also another example of him neglecting his family, since the Creature sees him as its father. The creature approaches Victor like a baby would to its father: He held up the curtain of the bed; and his eyes, if eyes they may be called, were fixed on me while a grin wrinkled his cheeks. How could Victor abandon the creature, he had no sympathy towards it. The way in which the creature is described when it approaches Victor is just like the way a baby would approach its parents, maybe at this part of the novel, we readers are to feel sympathy for the creature and to consider Victor as the monster for the way he treated the creature, it was his own creation he should of cared for it and been its companion. Victor should of treated the creature like his own child, possibly if he did show care for the creature and not show fear, maybe the creature wouldnt have been so vile because he knew no different. The creature didnt know how to treat or care for other people. So really it wasnt the creatures fault for the deaths caused and for the way in which he treated people because overall he didnt know any different and wasnt taught by Victor how to treat others.

Causes of Currency Crises and Banking Crises

Causes of Currency Crises and Banking Crises Introduction Based on my readings, I have found that currency crises often accompanied by banking crises or banking crises preceded by currency crises or even has no significant relationship between the two. So, why are currency crises often accompanied by banking crises? In this paper, I will discuss on how such problem may occur based on historical perspective, in which the countries that have experienced Twin Crises. The next issue is  the effectiveness and desirability of capital controls as a means by which developing countries can manage sudden capital inflows and/or outflows. This is where the credibility of capital controls are being challenged whether such restriction should be taken into a serious consideration for the policymakers to implement. It is important to analyse these economic situations due to past economic disasters in which the issues stated were significant in the 1994 Mexican peso crisis, 1997 Asian Financial crisis and the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Twin Crisis The simultaneous occurrence of currency crises and banking crises is known in economic term as Twin Crises, introduced by economists Carmen Reinhart and Graciela Kaminsky in the late 1990s. This phenomenon became a common problem in financially liberalized emerging market economies in the 1990s which started with the  1994 Mexican crisis, followed with the 1997 Asian financial crisis  and the  1998 Russian financial crisis. Kaminsky and Reinhart (1999) did an extensive research on the relationship between financial and banking crises for 20 countries and over a 25-year sample and found that banking crises often precede currency crises. The mechanism basically relies on two features. Firstly, governments hold a fixed exchange rate system and secondly, a mismatch between domestic assets and foreign liabilities by domestic banks, thus, exposing to exchange rate risks( Goldstein, Itay 2005 ). A currency crises, also known as the Balance of Payment crises,is a situation in which a nation is suffering from a chronic balance of payment deficit. This problem exists when a nation is unable to finance the imports and debt repayments. The country’s central bank would be in a doubtful position whether, given the fixed exchange rate, it has sufficient foreign exchange reserves to maintain the value of domestic currency. Government often intervenes by using the countrys own currency reserves or its  foreign reserves to satisfy the excess demand for a given currency ( Wikipedia, 2014 ). It came to a period when these emerging market economies were experiencing rapid economic growth, creating massive capital inflows, which will then lead to the crises. A banking crises, however, is a financial crisis that affects banking activity which includes bank runs, banking panics and systemic banking crises, in which a country experiences a large number of defaults and financial institutions face difficulties repaying contracts. A bank run occurs when depositors believe that the bank may fail which led them to withdraw all of their deposits from that bank. This causes the banking system to be insolvent if it cannot pay its debts as they fall due. Insolvency can be defined as the inability to pay ones debts. Cash flow insolvency, or a ‘lack of liquidity’ may occur as well when the bank might end upowingmore than itowns or is owed ( postivemoney.org, n.d ). Twin Crises started off when investors begin to lose their confidence as the massive capital inflow in the country creates uncertainty among investors in which the debt their capital is generating. The country’s currency will be at stake as the resulting outflow of capitals created by investors as they withdraw all of their funds will devalue the affected nation’s currency. Firms of the affected nation who have received the inbound investments and loans will suffer, as the earning of those firms is typically derived domestically but their debts are often denominated in a reserve currency ( Kallianiotis, 2013 ). Once the nation has exhausted its foreign reserves trying to support the value of the domestic currency, government can raise its interest rates to try to prevent from further decline in the value of its currency. While this helps those with debts denominated in foreign currencies, it generally further depresses the local economy as high interest rate usually enc ourages saving and discourages investment. Real-World Financial Crises The 1997 Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis which affected many economies in the East Asia. It began in Thailand when they had accumulated a massive foreign debt. In the effort to support the value of baht, the government had no choice but to float the Thai baht due to insufficient of foreign currency reserves, reducing peg against the US dollar. Until 1999, economies in South East Asia enjoyed a prosperous period as they had received large inflow of money. High interest rates in emerging economies attracted many investors due to the fact that it may give a high return for the investors. As a result, price of assets in these countries began to rise at an alarming rate which created insecurity among investors. Lenders started to withdraw all of their funds at a large scale, creating credit crunch and bankruptcies. Furthermore, there was a depreciative  pressure on their exchange rates as the supply of currencies of the crisis countries was high in the exchange market. Governments from these countries had to intervene in the exchange market. To prevent any loss in value of domestic currency, they had to raise domestic interest rates by buying up any surplus of the domestic currency. The Mexican government’s move to devalue the peso against the US dollar created an outburst which led to the Mexican peso crisis in 1994. In order to maintain in the value of peso, the Mexico’s central bank allowed the peso to free float within a narrow band against the US dollar through an exchange rate peg ( Wikipedia, 2014 ). Furthermore, the central bank would constantly intervene in the open market by purchasing or selling the pesos. The central banks intervention involved issuing new short-term public debt instruments denominated in U.S. dollars, using the borrowed dollar capital to purchase pesos in the foreign exchange market, will cause an appreciation in its value. Since the peso is reckoned to be increasing in value, the high purchasing power by domestic businesses, firms and consumers created an incentive to purchase more imported goods, resulting in a large trade deficit. Speculations regarding the over-valuation of peso began to circulate which encouraged investors to purchase more of U.S assets. It will be more profitable for investors as they will be able to capitalize the high exchange rate when they exchange dollars for pesos later. The resulting capital outflow from Mexico to United States caused a capital flight which put a downward market pressure on the value of peso. To curb this issue, newly inaugurated President Ernesto Zedillo in 1994announced the Mexican central banks devaluation of the peso between 13 and 15 percent. Due to the unpredictability of Mexican policymakers, investors felt insecure and afraid of further devaluations in the currency, putting an upward market pressure in the interest rates and a further downward pressure on the value of peso. Foreign investors began to rapidly withdraw their capital from Mexican investments due to possible devaluation of peso. As a result, the Mexican central bank had to raise the interest rates to prevent from capital flight. Capital Flows Capital flows is simply defined as the transaction of real and financial assets and it is recorded in the capital account. When a country has a deficit in the capital account, it means the country is experiencing a capital outflow, like Japan. The country is supposedly purchasing more assets or making more loans or both at the same time, thus accumulating net claims on other countries. It is a situation in which it is undesirable to the economy. Contrarily, if the country is having a surplus in the capital account, depicting capital inflows, it is said that other countries are accumulating claims on that particular country. Capital flows provides many great economic advantages. Countries are now able to â€Å"catch-up† with the advancement of other countries by capitalizing on their differences. Capital flows enables residences of different nations to invest in other countries by engaging in inter-temporal trade, allowing them to reap benefits or profits for future consumption. Be it an economic boom or recession, optimum level of national consumption or expenditure is vital in every economy. Thus, capital flows helps to prevent from a fall in national consumption in case of an unexpected economic downturn, by selling domestic assets or borrowing from the rest of the world. Thus, overall improvement in economic performance can be achieved as it will aid substantially in terms of productivity and efficiency. Free capital mobility may seem desirable, though, in reality it comes at a cost. Given the exchange rate, developing countries or emerging market economies tend to acquire more assets by purchasing a massive amount of goods and services than the rest of the world. This is due to several reasons. These countries may not be on par in terms of economic performance, efficiency as well as resources compared to the rest of the world. Besides, it may be due to fluctuation in the world price of commodities. The implementation of expansionary economic policy by government will increase the demand for imports. As a result, appreciation of foreign currency will occur due to high demand of foreign goods and at the same time, a depreciation in own currency due to a low demand for domestic commodities. Since government would want to hold a fixed exchange rate regime, they can implement a contractionary monetary policy, a method of selling domestic bonds which increases the domestic interest rate, in order to maintain the value of domestic currency. The demand of domestic currency will be improved which will increase the value of domestic currency. Again, it proves to be costly as high interest rate will discourage investment, since it is now more expensive to borrow from the bank, reducing a potentially larger economic growth. This shows that free flow of capital may cause an upward pressure in the value of currency which may jeopardise local firms, making them less competitive in the global market. Emerging market economies are the usual target for â€Å"hot money† with sudden injection or withdrawal of funds, thus, creating distortion or instability in the market. Large volumes of capital inflows on search for higher yields causes dislocations in the financial system. Foreign funds might fuel asset price bubbles, encourage excess risk taking by cash-rich domestic intermediaries ( Magud, Reinhart Rogoff, 2005 ). Having a strong and independent monetary policy is more viable than sustaining free flow of capital. Due to potential harmful effects of free flow of capital to the economy, capital controls is introduced to prevent such consequences from happening. A capital control is any policy designed to limit or redirect capital account transactions and may take the form of taxes, price or quantity controls, or outright prohibitions on international trade in assets ( Neely, Christopher J. , 1999 ). Capital Controls There are two types of controls which are the controls on inflow and outflow of capital. Like Malaysia during the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s, control on capital outflows was introduced to supposedly generate revenue, correct balance of payment deficit as well as preserve savings for domestic use. Control on capital inflows, used by Chile during the Latin American debt crisis, was used to prevent potential volatility inflows, financial destabilisation and real appreciation as well as correcting balance of payment surplus and limit foreign ownership of domestic assets. This shows various type of capital controls are targeted at specific type of movement. The question is, how effective capital control is and to what extent should it be implemented ? During the Asian Financial Crises, Malaysian government imposed controls on outflows in 1998 by pegging the exchange rate at RM 3.80 for every US dollar. Their objective was to delay from exhaustion of foreign reserves and provide as much time possible for policymakers to implement reflationary policies as well as eliminating speculation against the ringgit. Malaysia’s stock market capitalization ratio at 310 percent of GDP, compared to 116 percent in the U.S., and 29 percent in Korea and domestic debt-GDP ratio at 170 percent were, at the time, highest in the world (Perkins and Woo, 2000). In response to the crisis, Malaysian government raised the interest rates to stem the decline of the ringgit and restructured their expenditure by reducing it by 18 percent ( Ethan Kaplan and Dani Rodrik, 1999 ). However, the economy showed no sign of improvement. Their effort to reduce domestic interest rates seemed to be pointless as speculation against the ringgit in offshore markets was circulating widely. The speculation lead to the borrowing of ringgit at premium rates to purchase dollars, which created a devaluation pressure on ringgit. Worried of capital flight and further depreciation of the currency, the Malaysian government also banned for a period of one year all repatriation of investment held by foreigners. Malaysia also lowered the 3-month Bank Negara Intervention Rate from 9.5% to 8% and the liquid asset ratio was reduced from 17% to 15% of total liabilities ( Ethan Kaplan and Dani Rodrik, 1999 ). On February 15th, 1999, the Central Bank of Malaysia changed the regulations on capital restrictions, shifting from an outright ban to a graduated levy and replacing the levy on capital with a profits levy on future inflows ( Ethan Kaplan and Dani Rodrik, 1999 ). After the imposition of capital controls in 1998, Malaysia showed a strong and quick revival from the Asian financial crisis. The fact that Korea and Thailand, which had opted for IMF’s progra mme, recovered remarkably suggesting that capital controls imposed in Malaysia did not make any significant difference than the IMF’s financial aid. Chile seemed to favour controls on capital inflows and been relying on it in two different occasions (1978-82 and 1991-98). The effectiveness is questionable, however, as in 1981-82 Chile went through a currency crisis despite with controls and restrictions. The peso was devalued by almost 90 percent and a large number of banks had to be, bailed out by the government ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ). The controls were being reintroduced in 1991 with the objectives of slowing down the volume of capital inflows into own country, reducing the real exchange rate appreciation resulted from these inflows, allowing the Central Bank to maintain a high differential between domestic and international interest rates. In 1984, Chile has adopted a slightly flexible exchange rate system, where the peso-dollar rate was allowed to fluctuate within an upward-moving band. The authorities argued that by maintaining domestic (peso) denominated interest rates above international rates, inflation would decline gradually (Massad, 1998). This policy mix worked relatively well until the late 1980s, when Chile regained access to international financial markets, and capital began to flow into the country putting pressure both on the real exchange rate and domestic interest rates ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ). By early 1990, domestic firms were considerably affected, as the rapid strengthening of peso has reduced their level of competitiveness and profitability. To sum it up, the effectiveness of Chile’s controls on capital inflows has been overestimated. After the controls were imposed, the maturity of foreign debt contracted by Chile increased significantly. The evidence suggests more than 40 percent of Chile’s debt to G-10 banks had a residual maturity of less than one year ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ). Although the policy affected the composition of capital inflows, it did not reduce the total volume of aggregate flows moving into Chile during the 1990s. The controls on inflows had no significant effect on Chile’s real exchange rate in which it appreciated by approximately 30% during the 1990s. The controls had a short term effect on domestic interest rates. The magnitude of the effect was very small, however, raising the question of whether the central bank’s ability to undertake independent monetary policy really enhanced by the controls on capital inflows ( Edwards, Sebastian 1999 ) . Conclusion Control on inflows seems to be more favourable among authors and economists than those on outflows. Controls on outflows usually create corruption as it easier to evade than the inflows (Reinhart and Smith, 1998; Eichengreen, et al. 1999). If there is an anticipation in the depreciation of domestic currency, this creates an incentive for investors to evade controls on outflows to prevent from losses.When faced with the prospect of a major crisis, the private sector finds ways of evading the controls, moving massive volumes of funds out of the country. Controls on capital outflows have resulted in corruption, as investors try to move their monies to a â€Å"safe haven.† In almost 70% of the cases were controls on outflows were used as a preventive measure, there was a significant increase in â€Å"capital flight† after the controls had been put in place. Cuddington (1986) reached a similar conclusion in his study on the determinants of capital flight in developing countr ies. Evading controls on inflows, however, proved to be less beneficial among investors as investing in other countries would be less viable compared to domestic return. REFERENCES : L. Kaminsky, Graciela and M. Reinhart, Carmen (1999) The Twin Crises: The Causes of Banking and Balance-of-Payments Problems Vol. 89 No. 3 Online at :  http://home.gwu.edu/~graciela/HOME-PAGE/RESEARCH-WORK/WORKING-PAPERS/twin-crises.pdf Accessed 20 December 2014 Goldstein, Itay (April 2005) Strategic Complementarities and the Twin Crises Economic Journal. Online at :  http://www.res.org.uk/details/mediabrief/4392181/Explaining-Twin-Financial-Crises.html  Accessed 20 December 2014 Tornell, Aaron (2002) Twin Crises The National Bureau of Economic Research Online at :  http://www.nber.org/reporter/winter02/tornell.html Accessed 20 December 2014 J. Neely, Christopher (1999) An Introduction To Capital Controls Online at :  http://research.stlouisfed.org/publications/review/99/11/9911cn.pdf Accessed 27 December 2014 Baba, Chikako and Kokenyne, Annamaria (2011) Effectiveness of Capital Controls in Selected Emerging Markets in the 2000s IMF Working Paper Online at :  https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2011/wp11281.pdf Accessed 27 December 2014 Edwards, Sebastian (1999) HOW EFFECTIVE ARE CAPITAL CONTROLS? The National Bureau of Economic Research Online at :  http://www.nber.org/papers/w7413.pdf Acccessed 27 December 2014

Restorative Justice: Benefits and Limitations

Restorative Justice: Benefits and Limitations Systems of Restorative Justice have been utilized around the world for many centuries, examples can be found in many civilizations throughout history. In recent times there have been numerous concepts and reinventions of what many believe or feel is the modern restorative justice model of today. This essay will consider some of the strengths and critics of restorative justice, with a focus on some of the latest research and studies. The vast majority of early studies concluded and indicated that the type of restorative justice model, that each examined, was achieving good positive results and appeared to be a viable alternative to incarceration. Later studies however appear to place limitations on these findings and many question the definition and cultural context of restorative justice, concluding that there could be limited merit in the application of restorative justice in modern society. This apparent shift in the thinking of the true efficacy of restorative justice raises many more questions that will need to be addressed with the primary question what is restorative justice? Until a comprehensive and unified definition is developed and all studies and reviews are truly comparative, there may only be limited reliability in the findings or conclusions of any research or study.What is restorative justice? Does it work? Who does it benefit? Is it relevant today? Can it be used for all forms of offending? These are just a few of the many questions that require some form of answer to establish the efficacy of restorative justice in todays society. There are as many supporters as there are critics of the use and efficacy of restorative justice around the world (Daly, 2002). A mixture of restorative justice style paradigms have been in existence and utilized as a method of penalty or reparation in many cultures around the world for many years. The wide spread use has resulted in many styles, forms and types of restorative justice being developed, redeveloped and conceptualized throughout the centuries. Several paradigms are still evolving even today. Progression from the early retribution style practices, to the use of the circle process has been the key component in some cultures. The early use of the circle process by the indigenous people of Canada (Department of Justice Canada, 2000) was one of the first primal steps to what is now developing and considered by many to be the modern form of restorative justice. The circle process of mediation has many forms but the basic principle is a conference style meeting or discussion in a non threatening environment that involves all the relevant parties, victims and offender. The modern concepts of restorative practices, which have evolved from the original circle process, characteristically contain a focus which promotes mutual understanding, respect, acknowledgement and a mutually agreed resolution between the victim and the offender. However there are many who believe that there are some major problems with the modern concept of restorative justice. In a recent study Kathleen Daly (Daly, 2002) highlights the myths that are portrayed by many who advocate the success of restorative justice and who promote the concept as being a successful modern ideology. Daly (Daly, 2002) also suggests that those who promote these myths may be endeavouring to reform the justice system and therefore are accentuating these myths which may also be in part politically motivated to maintain the funding for restorative justice. The view of possible political motivation promoting positive reviews is also expressed in by White (White Perrone, 2005). What is evident is that the re is a lack of reports, studies and information covering the failures of restorative justice. The vast majority of evidence highlights the positives and as suggested by Daly (Daly, 2002) thereby giving the appearance of success for restorative justice. In a 2010 thesis Roberts (Roberts, 2010) evaluated the methodology of how the evaluation of restorative justice practices is conducted. The thesis highlighted the considerable differences in results and outcomes primarily related to the different types of paradigms assessed and in use around the world. The main concerns that regularly appear in most critical reviews and studies focus on the issues related to the lack of a recognised singular definition of restorative justice and how evaluations are conducted (Walgrave, 2011). Around the world there are literally hundreds of definitions each specific to their own culture, ideology and political will. Many discussions have been focused on comparing community justice to restorative styles endeavouring to answer, are they the same or different? (McCold, 2004).This lack of continuity or agreement raises concerns as to the legitimacy or efficacy of many if not all studies and research and the outcomes reported(Walgrave, 2011). Braithwaite (Braithwaite, 2007) pointed out that political desires can also be influential on the application of restorative justice principles. Negative findings on the use of restorative justice or if the public perceived that there was a breakdown in law and order by the overuse of restorative practices, there c ould be a reduction in political support for restorative justice. There however appears to be an element of strength when restorative practices are implemented within the education system (Shaw, 2007), in particular with the very young. The practice of restorative justice has found some merit within the education system, however the success is qualified. In 2007 a report on restorative type practices in Australian schools (Shaw, 2007) highlighted some of the success with these practices and principles in initiating some cultural change within the school environment. The study also found there was considerable support for restorative type practice when actively utilized in facilitating bullying, alienation and harassment situations as well as the reintegration of marginalised students in the school system. Further support for the application of restorative justice style practices within the youth justice system (Hayes Hayes, 2008), concluded that with the requirement for the offender themselves to meet face to face and speak to the victim imparted a strong influence on the outcome. The requirement for the offender to speak to the victim without another person representing them was seen as a strong reinforcement to t he offender of their unacceptable behaviour. A recent study however, conducted in the United Kingdom observed a single student participating in restorative practices to address behaviour problems. The study concluded that restorative practices had no overall effect on improving the students behaviour despite isolated qualified success (Standing, 2012). The study also highlighted a major issue that could have contributed to the failure of the restorative practices. The inability of all sectors of the school staff, in a whole of school approach, to actively and positively engaging in the process created gaps in the continuity thereby reducing the positive outcomes. This result reinforces the necessity for all parties to be willing and dedicated to achieving the desired outcome. Despite some reports and studies showing that there is potential for restorative justice to be successful, as shown in the Victorian schools study (Shaw, 2007), there is however a distinct possibility that the merging of 2 or more of the numerous paradigms, community justice and restorative justice, may lead to uncertainty, ambiguity and misinterpretation thereby creating a doubt in the efficacy of either (McCold, 2004). In other studies the face to face benefit or disincentive to the victim is considered and investigations (Stubbs, 2009) have shown that the impact on the victim in sexual assaults, where they are required to face the offender may create more problems for the victim and be far from beneficial as a restorative practice. Apologies (Choi Severson, 2009)appear to be the main criteria that many practitioners of restorative justice promote and the actual impact on the victim may not be as favourable as most believe. One study that had appeared to report a positive conclusi on (Okimoto, Wenzel, Feather, 2012) supporting restorative justice however examination of the results showed a tendency favour the offender rather than the victim. The victims of crime are still peripheral to the justice system and feel intimidated and can find the offender has no remorse and that the apology is insincere (Choi Severson, 2009). Some offenders have been observed making positive assertions, promises and apologies with the desire simply to obtain a reduction or dismissal of punishment only to later reoffend with no remorse or consideration for the affirmations previously made (Walgrave, 2011). Recidivism is an area of concern as was demonstrated and highlighted by Pranis (Pranis, 2004). Despite what appeared at first to be a successful use of restorative justice in a case involving theft the youth offender apologised to the elderly victim and promised not to reoffend. However the victim later became aware of another incident involving the same youth and requested another face to face meeting with the youth offender. The victim reinforced the disgust at the offenders lack of respect for the victim and the disappointment of broken promises previously made. The victim requested the offender reaffirm the promises, maintain contact with the victim and refrain from further offending (Pranis, 2004). The offender showed great remorse and has remained free from offending post the second meeting. This success however relied heavily upon the very strong character and tenacity of the original victim which would probably not be replicated in the vast majority of situations. The outcome s for some processes appear to be offender orientated with very little consideration for the needs of the victim. There has been a consistency demonstrated in many studies reporting positively how effective restorative justice practices have been found. These positives may be creating a mistaken attitude to the effectiveness of restorative justice. Choi (Choi, Bazemore, Gilbert, 2012) highlights the lack of negative reviews and reinforces some of the problems, as demonstrated within this essay, that may result from the overabundance of positive results. In conclusion the questions proposed at the beginning of this essay will still need to be carefully examined in other forums. What is restorative justice? There is no simple answer. Does it work? In very limited and qualified situations. Who does it benefit? It appears to favour the offender in the majority of situations. Is it relevant today? Many would suggest that it is more relevant. Can it be used for all forms of offending? Agreement appears to support limited use within targeted offending. With no widely accepted definition and the lack of a standard paradigm, comparisons and the true evaluation of the strengths and critics of restorative justice may remain a contentious issue for many years to come. There appears to be a growing amount of information available that indicates that the use of restorative justice has only limited effectiveness, primarily with youth, and the use of restorative justice in the adult realm may have no measurable efficacy. There is much ambiguity and contradiction in the use of restorative justice, much of which will need to be rectified to allow the advancement of the principles. The strengths and success of current restorative practices must largely rest with the facilitators, whilst allowing the academics to solve the dilemmas in definition and paradigm.

Black and TV :: Art

Black and TV Have u ever thought about African Americans invalid with television? If not in this report you will learn about how African Americans have influenced television. You will learn about television shows that have effected television and also just certain people that have effected television also. Commercial television was born in 1948 as each of the three major networks, ABC, CBS, and NBC, began broadcasting. 1948 was also a great year in African American history with the desegregation of the United States armed forces to see Blacks in the American Military and an endorsement of civil rights in the presidential platform of the Democratic Party headed by President Harry S. Truman. (http://www.africana.com/tt_178.htm) As television news shows began to report seriously on racism and the fight for civil rights television's entertainment programs became even more white. Since its birth, the medium had avoided controversy. During the 1960s, as protests rose against both racism and the Vietnam War programming became less and less realistic. For example, some of the most popular shows on television at that time were Witches, Genies, and other Escapist Fantasy. As the cultural critic J. Fred McDonald pointed out, comedies such as Petticoat Junction and The Andy Griffith Show both set in the South portrayed all-white worlds in which prejudice did not exist. (http://www.africana.com/tt_178.htm) In 1965-a movie that came out starred Bill Cosby and Robert Culp both African Americans. The name of it was I Spy. The movie was directed to race mostly. By the late 1960s television began to come out from its fantasy world to present programming more in touch with the reality of the present times. The first comedy series to deal with race was All in the Family a show with a mostly white cast. At its head was Archie Bunker a racist. While some felt that Archie's use of racial slurs amounted to prejudice most saw the series as an important move toward realism particularly in terms of race relations on television.The Bunkers' next door neighbors were a black family whose characters were later featured in a popular spin-off series. The Jefferson’s which aired from 1975 to 1985. (http://www.engl.virgina.edu/~enwr1016/amc2d.html) Then in the late 90’s the TV World came out with a whole new channel BET. Black Entertainment Television, this was to make African Americans more noticed around the world.By the late 1990s more African Americans than ever were involved in the television industry, some in executive and production roles.

Employee Theft in the Restaurant Industry Essay -- essays research pap

Employee Theft in the Restaurant Industry It has been estimated that about $52 billion a year is lost due to employee theft and that approximately 95% of all businesses experience employee theft. Employee theft amounts to 4 percent of food sales at a cost in excess of $8.5 billion annually, according to the National Restaurant Association (Neighbors 2004.) The small Business Administration indicates that 60 percent of business failures are a result of employee theft. There are several reasons why the restaurant industry is extremely susceptible to employee theft. They are: †¢ High employee turnover †¢ Easy access to cash †¢ Food and Liquor are highly desirable items There are many different way in which restaurant employees steal from their employers, some of the ways are: 1) Under-ringing of sales and the tearing up order tickets are two longtime scams in the food and beverage industry. An employee serves a customer in the restaurant, and the customer pays the check at the meal's end, but instead of putting the money and ticket in the register, the employee tears up the order ticket and pockets the cash. The restaurant owner has no record of that order or money tendered. Or an employee sold something for $17.50," and rang in $7.50 The employee put the $17.50 in the register and at the end of the night, would pocket the extra $10.00. Since the cash in the register drawer would match the transactions listed on the register tape, the theft would not be known. ... Employee Theft in the Restaurant Industry Essay -- essays research pap Employee Theft in the Restaurant Industry It has been estimated that about $52 billion a year is lost due to employee theft and that approximately 95% of all businesses experience employee theft. Employee theft amounts to 4 percent of food sales at a cost in excess of $8.5 billion annually, according to the National Restaurant Association (Neighbors 2004.) The small Business Administration indicates that 60 percent of business failures are a result of employee theft. There are several reasons why the restaurant industry is extremely susceptible to employee theft. They are: †¢ High employee turnover †¢ Easy access to cash †¢ Food and Liquor are highly desirable items There are many different way in which restaurant employees steal from their employers, some of the ways are: 1) Under-ringing of sales and the tearing up order tickets are two longtime scams in the food and beverage industry. An employee serves a customer in the restaurant, and the customer pays the check at the meal's end, but instead of putting the money and ticket in the register, the employee tears up the order ticket and pockets the cash. The restaurant owner has no record of that order or money tendered. Or an employee sold something for $17.50," and rang in $7.50 The employee put the $17.50 in the register and at the end of the night, would pocket the extra $10.00. Since the cash in the register drawer would match the transactions listed on the register tape, the theft would not be known. ...

Higher education Essay

Modern day education is aided with a variety of technology, computers, projectors, internet, and many more. Diverse knowledge is being spread among the people. Everything that can be simplified has been made simpler. Science has explored every aspect of life. There is much to learn and more to assimilate. Internet provides abysmal knowledge. There is no end to it. One can learn everything he wishes to. Every topic has developed into a subject. New inventions and discoveries have revealed the unknown world to us more variedly. Once a new aspect is discovered, hundreds of heads start babbling over it, and you get a dogma from hearsay. Not only our planet but the whole universe has become accessible. Now we have good and learned teachers to impart us with knowledge of what they know. Every one is a master in his field. We and our children are getting taught by professionals of their field. Presently our education is based on making us the best in our area of interest, to help us reach our goals more easily. More of the fact based knowledge is being grasped by us. What we learn helps us in our career and in our profession. Professionalism is deep-rooted in our society now and this education makes us so. Skill-development and vocational education has added a new feather to the modern system of education. There is something to learn for everyone. Even an infant these days goes to a kindergarten. And a little grown, mentally and physically is promoted to a Montessori. Everything is being categorized, be it a primary, middle, a higher secondary or graduate school. We have temples of education known by a familiar word the â€Å"university†. Whatsoever we are getting educated day by day and what’s good about is that it’s a never-ending process. Rightly said by Aristotle, â€Å"Education is an ornament in prosperity and a refugee in adversity. † is what everybody feels now. THE CON’S Well, that was the positive side, but every story has two telling. Of all the virtue, our education system has developed into mere schooling now. New trends are being developed which are far more a baloney that boon. Albert Einstein once said â€Å"Education is that which remains, if one has forgotten everything one learned in school. † Firstly our education is confined to schools and colleges. It has become a process of spoon feeding. â€Å"Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon† were the words of E. M. Forster. We are being fed with facts and knowledge. Not art, not books, but life itself is the true basis of teaching and learning. Cramming of facts and dates, hi-fi mathematical formulas, theories and doctrines should be at college levels when one has chosen his area of interest. What will the history pay a doctor or a mathematician, or medical terms to a historian? Secondly, an art can only be learned from a workshop of those who are earning their bread from it. Modern education has spread more ignorance than knowledge. Most of the women even don’t know, where, the fabric they are wearing, came from. The word â€Å"How† is missing in our world which causes ignorance. â€Å"Education†¦has produced a vast population able to read but unable to distinguish what is worth reading. † says G. M. Trevelyan. Thirdly all education is bad which is not self-education. Presently, children after school are sent to tuitions. This is a clear question mark on the ability of school teacher. Homework tutorials are mushrooming up in our society. Students are thought of like they can’t do anything on their own and so are sent even to do the homework. Our schoolings got a lot of loop-holes. They guide us through a well catered pathway which finally leads to professionalism. Homework is a waste of time, if it is to repeat class work done today or to be repeated as class work to be done tomorrow. Our schooling does not leave us with time to get educated. Mark Twain once said that† I have never let my schooling interfere with my education†. Our child’s normal routine has become to wake up early, brush up their minds with light reading, go to school, then go to tuition and finally come home and do the homework. Finally our education is producing machines out of pupil. They read books, they speak books and they do books. Discussing in class lead to complications, which remains as confusions for a life time if left untreated. Vladimir Nabokov, a U. S critic, poet and novelist says â€Å"Discussion in class, which means letting twenty young blockheads and two cocky neurotics discuss something that neither their teacher nor they know. † So, it’s a matter of debate that our education system is fallacious or fair.

Indian Banking Sector

A bank is an institution that deals in money and its substitutes and provides other financial services. Banks accept deposits and make loans or make an investment to derive a profit from the difference in the interest rates paid and charged, respectively. In India the banks are being segregated in different groups. Each group has their own benefits and limitations in operating in India. Each has their own dedicated target market. Few of them only work in rural sector while others in both rural as well as urban. Many even are only catering in cities.Some are of Indian origin and some are foreign players. India’s economy has been one of the stars of global economics in recent years. It has grown by more than 9% for three years running. The economy of India is as diverse as it is large, with a number of major sectors including manufacturing industries, agriculture, textiles and handicrafts, and services. Agriculture is a major component of the Indian economy, as over 66% of the I ndian population earns its livelihood from this area. Banking sector is considered as a booming sector in Indian economy recently.Banking is a vital system for developing economy for the nation. However, Indian banking system and economy has been facing various challenges and problems which have discussed in other parts of project. INDIAN BANKING SYSTEM Without a sound and effective banking system in India it cannot have a healthy economy. The banking system of India should not only be hassle free but it should be able to meet new challenges posed by the technology and any other external and internal factors. For the past three decades India's banking system has several outstanding achievements to its credit.The most striking is its extensive reach. It is no longer confined to only metropolitans or cosmopolitans in India. In fact, Indian banking system has reached even to the remote corners of the country. This is one of the main reasons of India's growth process. The government's r egular policy for Indian bank since 1969 has paid rich dividends with the nationalization of 14 major private banks of India. Not long ago, an account holder had to wait for hours at the bank counters for getting a draft or for withdrawing his own money.Today, he has a choice. Gone are days when the most efficient bank transferred money from one branch to other in two days. Now it is simple as instant messaging or dial a pizza. Money has become the order of the day. The first bank in India, though conservative, was established in 1786. From 1786 till today, the journey of Indian Banking System can be segregated into three distinct phases. They are as mentioned below: †¢Early phase from 1786 to 1969 of Indian Banks †¢Nationalization of Indian Banks and up to 1991 prior to Indian banking sector Reforms. New phase of Indian Banking System with the advent of Indian Financial ; Banking Sector Reforms after 1991. After 1991, under the chairmanship of M Narasimham, a committee wa s set up by his name which worked for the liberalization of banking practices. The country is flooded with foreign banks and their ATM stations. Efforts are being put to give a satisfactory service to customers. Phone banking and net banking is introduced. The entire system became more convenient and swift. Time is given more importance than money.This resulted that Indian banking is growing at an astonishing rate, with Assets expected to reach US$1 trillion by 2010. â€Å"The banking industry should focus on having a small number of large players that can compete globally and can achieve expected goals rather than having a large number of fragmented players. † KINDS OF BANKS Financial requirements in a modern economy are of a diverse nature, distinctive variety and large magnitude. Hence, different types of banks have been instituted to cater to the varying needs of the community.Banks in the organized sector may, however, be classified in to the following major forms: oComm ercial banks oCo-operative banks oSpecialized banks oCentral bank †¢COMMERCIAL BANKS Commercial banks are joint stock companies dealing in money and credit. In India, however there is a mixed banking system, prior to July 1969, all the commercial banks-73 scheduled and 26 non-scheduled banks, except the state bank of India and its subsidiaries-were under the control of private sector. On July 19, 1969, however, 14 major commercial banks with deposits of over 50 Corers were nationalized.In April 1980, another six commercial banks of high standing were taken over by the government. At present, there are 20 nationalized banks plus the state bank of India and its 7 subsidiaries constituting public sector banking which controls over 90 per cent of the banking business in the country. †¢CO-OPERATIVE BANKS Co-operative banks are a group of financial institutions organized under the provisions of the Co-operative societies Act of the states. The main objective of co-operative bank s is to provide cheap credits to their members.They are based on the principle of self-reliance and mutual co-operation. Co-operative banking system in India has the shape of a pyramid a three tier structure, constituted by: †¢SPECIALIZED BANKS There are specialized forms of banks catering to some special needs with this unique nature of activities. There are thus, oForeign exchange banks, oIndustrial banks, oDevelopment banks, oLand development banks, oExim bank. †¢CENTRAL BANK A central bank is the apex financial institution in the banking and financial system of a country.It is regarded as the highest monetary authority in the country. It acts as the leader of the money market. It supervises, control and regulates the activities of the commercial banks. It is a service oriented financial institution. India’s central bank is the Reserve Bank of India established in 1935. A central bank is usually state owned but it may also be a private organization. For instance, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), was started as a shareholders’ organization in 1935, however, it was nationalized after independence, in 1949. It is free from parliamentary control.CHALLENGES FACED BY INDIAN BANKING INDUSTRY The banking industry in India is undergoing a major transformation due to changes in economic conditions and continuous deregulation. These multiple changes happening one after other has a ripple effect on a bank trying to graduate from completely regulated sellers market to completed deregulated customers market. oDEREGULATION This continuous deregulation has made the Banking market extremely competitive with greater autonomy, operational flexibility, and decontrolled interest rate and liberalized norms for foreign exchange.The deregulation of the industry coupled with decontrol in interest rates has led to entry of a number of players in the banking industry. At the same time reduced corporate credit off take thanks to sluggish economy has resulted in large number of competitors battling for the same pie. oNEW RULES As a result, the market place has been redefined with new rules of the game. Banks are transforming to universal banking, adding new channels with lucrative pricing and freebees to offer. Natural fall out of this has led to a series of innovative product offerings catering to various customer segments, specifically retail credit. EFFICIENCY This in turn has made it necessary to look for efficiencies in the business. Banks need to access low cost funds and simultaneously improve the efficiency. The banks are facing pricing pressure, squeeze on spread and have to give thrust on retail assets. oDIFFUSED CUSTOMER LOYALTY This will definitely impact Customer preferences, as they are bound to react to the value added offerings. Customers have become demanding and the loyalties are diffused. There are multiple choices; the wallet share is reduced per bank with demand on flexibility and customization.Given the relatively low switching costs; customer retention calls for customized service and hassle free, flawless service delivery. oMISALLIGNED MINDSET These changes are creating challenges, as employees are made to adapt to changing conditions. There is resistance to change from employees and the Seller market mindset is yet to be changed coupled with Fear of uncertainty and Control orientation. Acceptance of technology is slowly creeping in but the utilization is not maximized. oCOMPETENCE GAPPlacing the right skill at the right place will determine success. The competency gap needs to be addressed simultaneously otherwise there will be missed opportunities. The focus of people will be on doing work but not providing solutions, on escalating problems rather than solving them and on disposing customers instead of using the opportunity to cross sell. STRATEGIES OPTIONS WITH BANKS TO COPE WITH THOSE CHALLENGES Leading players in the industry have embarked on a series of strategic and tactical initiatives to sustain leadership.The major initiatives include: oInvesting in state of the art technology as the back bone of to ensure reliable service delivery oLeveraging the branch network and sales structure to mobilize low cost current and savings deposits oMaking aggressive forays in the retail advances segment of home and personal loans oImplementing organization wide initiatives involving people, process and technology to reduce the fixed costs and the cost per transaction oFocusing on fee based income to compensate for squeezed spread, (e. . CMS, trade services) oInnovating Products to capture customer ‘mind share’ to begin with and later the wallet share oImproving the asset quality as per Basel II norms INDIAN ECONOMY The Indian Economy is consistently posting robust growth numbers in all sectors leading to impressive growth in Indian GDP. The Indian economy has been stable and reliable in recent times, while in the last few years it’s experienced a positive up ward growth trend.A consistent 8-9% growth rate has been supported by a number of favorable economic indicators including a huge inflow of foreign funds, growing reserves in the foreign exchange sector, both an IT and real estate boom, and a flourishing capital market. All of these positive changes have resulted in establishing the Indian economy as one of the largest and fastest growing in the world. The process of globalization has been an integral part of the recent economic progress made by India.Globalization has played a major role in export-led growth, leading to the enlargement of the job market in India. As a new Indian middle class has developed around the wealth that the IT and BPO industries have brought to the country, a new consumer base has developed. International companies are also expanding their operations in India to service this massive growth opportunity. The same thing has followed by international banks that are entering in Indian market and pulling their hug e investments in Indian economy. This is helping to accelerate the growth of Indian economy.Economy can be studied from two points of views†¦ ?MICRO ECONOMIC POINT OF VIEW The branch of economics that analyzes the market behavior of individual consumers and firms in an attempt to understand the decision-making process of firms and households. It is concerned with the interaction between individual buyers and sellers and the factors that influence the choices made by buyers and sellers. In particular, microeconomics focuses on patterns of supply and demand and the determination of price and output in individual markets.Microeconomics looks at the smaller picture and focuses more on basic theories of supply and demand and how individual businesses decide how much of something to produce and how much to charge for it. ?MACRO ECONOMIC POINT OF VIEW It is a field of economics that studies the behavior of the aggregate economy. Macroeconomics examines economy-wide phenomena such as c hanges in unemployment, national income, rate of growth, gross domestic product, inflation and price levels. Macroeconomics looks at the big picture (hence â€Å"macro†). It focuses on the national economy as a whole and provides a basic knowledge of how things work in the business world.For example, people who study this branch of economics would be able to interpret the latest Gross Domestic Product figures or explain why a 6% rate of unemployment is not necessarily a bad thing. Thus, for an overall perspective of how the entire economy works, you need to have an understanding of economics at both the micro and macro levels. ECONOMIC SYSTEMS An economic system is loosely defined as country’s plan for its services, goods produced, and the exact way in which its economic plan is carried out. In general, there are three major types of economic systems prevailing around the world they are†¦ Market Economy oPlanned Economy oMixed Economy MARKET ECONOMY In a market ec onomy, national and state governments play a minor role. Instead, consumers and their buying decisions drive the economy. In this type of economic system, the assumptions of the market play a major role in deciding the right path for a country’s economic development. Market economies aim to reduce or eliminate entirely subsidies for a particular industry, the pre-determination of prices for different commodities, and the amount of regulation controlling different industrial sectors.The absence of central planning is one of the major features of this economic system. Market decisions are mainly dominated by supply and demand. The role of the government in a market economy is to simply make sure that the market is stable enough to carry out its economic activities properly. PLANNED ECONOMY A planned economy is also sometimes called a command economy. The most important aspect of this type of economy is that all major decisions related to the production, distribution, commodity and service prices, are all made by the government.The planned economy is government directed, and market forces have very little say in such an economy. This type of economy lacks the kind of flexibility that is present a market economy, and because of this, the planned economy reacts slower to changes in consumer needs and fluctuating patterns of supply and demand. On the other hand, a planned economy aims at using all available resources for developing production instead of allotting the resources for advertising or marketing. MIXED ECONOMY A mixed economy combines elements of both the planned and the market economies in one cohesive system.This means that certain features from both market and planned economic systems are taken to form this type of economy. This system prevails in many countries where neither the government nor the business entities control the economic activities of that country – both sectors play an important role in the economic decision-making of the country. In a mixed economy there is flexibility in some areas and government control in others. Mixed economies include both capitalist and socialist economic policies and often arise in societies that seek to balance a wide range of political and economic views. IMPORTANT BANKING AND ECONOMIC INDICATORS CASH RESERVE RATIO Cash reserve Ratio (CRR) is the amount of funds that the banks have to keep with RBI. If RBI decides to increase the percent of this, the available amount with the banks comes down. RBI is using this method (increase of CRR rate), to drain out the excessive money from the banks. The amount of which shall not be less than three per cent of the total of the Net Demand and Time Liabilities (NDTL) in India, on a fortnightly basis and RBI is empowered to increase the said rate of CRR to such higher rate not exceeding twenty percent of the Net Demand and Time Liabilities (NDTL) under the RBI Act, 1934. STATUTORY LIQUIDITY RATIO In terms of Section 24 (2-A) of the B. R. Act, 1949 all Scheduled Commercial Banks, in addition to the average daily balance which they are required to maintain in the form of†¦. oIn cash, Or oIn gold valued at a price not exceeding the current market price, Or oIn unencumbered approved securities valued at a price as specified by the RBI from time to time. ?REPO RATE Repo rate, also known as the official bank rate, is the discounted rate at which a central bank repurchases government securities.The central bank makes this transaction with commercial banks to reduce some of the short-term liquidity in the system. The repo rate is dependent on the level of money supply that the bank chooses to fix in the monetary scheme of things. Repo rate is short for repurchase rate. The entity borrowing the security is often referred to as the buyer, while the lender of the securities is referred to as the seller. The central bank has the power to lower the repo rates while expanding the money supply in the country. This enables th e banks to exchange their government security holdings for cash.In contrast, when the central bank decides to reduce the money supply, it implements a rise in the repo rates. At times, the central bank of the nation makes a decision regarding the money supply level and the repo rate is determined by the market. The securities that are being evaluated and sold are transacted at the current market price plus any interest that has accrued. When the sale is concluded, the securities are subsequently resold at a predetermined price. This price is comprised of the original market price and interest, and the pre-agreed interest rate, which is the repo rate. ?BANK RATEBank rate is referred to the rate of interest charged by premier banks on the loans and advances. Bank rate varies based on some defined conditions as laid down the governing authority of the banks. Bank rates are levied to control the money supply to and from the bank. From the consumer's point of view, bank rate ordinarily d enotes to the current rate of interest acquired from savings certificate of Deposit. It is most frequently used by the consumers who are concerned in mortgage Some commonest types of bank interest rates are as follows: oBank rate on CD, i. e. , on certificate of deposit Bank rate on the credit of a credit card or other kind of loan oBank rate on real estate loan ?INTERBANK RATE The rate of interest charged on short-term loans made between banks. Banks borrow and lend money in the interbank market in order to manage liquidity and meet the requirements placed on them. The interest rate charged depends on the availability of money in the market, on prevailing rates and on the specific terms of the contract, such as term length. Banks are required to hold an adequate amount of liquid assets, such as cash, to manage any potential withdrawals from clients.If a bank can't meet these liquidity requirements, it will need to borrow money in the interbank market to cover the shortfall. Some ba nks, on the other hand, have excess liquid assets above and beyond the liquidity requirements. These banks will lend money in the interbank market, receiving interest on the assets. There is a wide range of published interbank rates, including the LIBOR & MIBOR, which is set daily based on the average rates on loans made within the London interbank market & Mumbai Interbank Market. ?GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCTThe monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country's borders in a specific time period, though GDP is usually calculated on an annual basis. It includes all of private and public consumption, government outlays, investments and exports less imports that occur within a defined territory. GDP = C + G + I + NX Where: ?†C† is equal to all private consumption, or consumer spending, in a nation's economy. ?†G† is the sum of government spending. ?†I† is the sum of all the country's businesses spending on capital. ?† NX† is the nation's total net exports, calculated as total exports minus total imports. NX = Exports – Imports) GDP is commonly used as an indicator of the economic health of a country, as well as to gauge a country's standard of living. ?INFLATION Inflation can be defined as a rise in the general price level and therefore a fall in the value of money. Inflation occurs when the amount of buying power is higher than the output of goods and services. Inflation also occurs when the amount of money exceeds the amount of goods and services available. As to whether the fall in the value of money will affect the functions of money depends on the degree of the fall.Basically, refers to an increase in the supply of currency or credit relative to the availability of goods and services, resulting in higher prices. Therefore, inflation can be measured in terms of percentages. The percentage increase in the price index, as a rate per cent per unit of time, which is usually in years. The two basic price indexes are used when measuring inflation, the producer price index (PPI) and the consumer price index (CPI) which is also known as the cost of living index number. ?DEFLATION It is a condition of falling prices accompanied by a decreasing level of employment, output and income.Deflation is just the opposite of inflation. Deflation occurs when the total expenditure of the community is not equal to the existing prices. Consequently, the supply of money decreases and as a result prices fall. Deflation can also be brought about by direct contractions in spending, either in the form of a reduction in government spending, personal spending or investment spending. Deflation has often had the side effect of increasing unemployment in an economy, since the process often leads to a lower level of demand in the economy. ?DISINFLATIONWhen prices are falling due to anti-inflationary measures adopted by the authorities, with no corresponding decline in the existing level of employment, output and income, the result of this is disinflation. When acute inflation burdens an economy, disinflation is implemented as a cure. Disinflation is said to take place when deliberate attempts are made to curtail expenditure of all sorts to lower prices and money incomes for the benefit of the community. ?REFLATION Reflation is a situation of rising prices, which is deliberately undertaken to relieve a depression.Reflation is a means of motivating the economy to produce. This is achieved by increasing the supply of money or in some instances reducing taxes, which is the opposite of disinflation. Governments can use economic policies such as reducing taxes, changing the supply of money or adjusting the interest rates; which in turn motivates the country to increase their output. The situation is described as semi-inflation or reflation. ?STAGFLATION Stagflation is a stagnant economy that is combined with inflation. Basically, when prices are increasing the economy is de ceasing.Some economists believe that there are two main reasons for stagflation. Firstly, stagflation can occur when an economy is slowed by an unfavourable supply, such as an increase in the price of oil in an oil importing country, which tends to raise prices at the same time that it slows the economy by making production less profitable. In the 1970's inflation and recession occurred in different economies at the same time. Basically, what happened was that there was plenty of liquidity in the system and people were spending money as quickly as they got it because prices were going up quickly.This gave rise to the second reason for stagflation. ?FOREIGN INSTITUTIONAL INVESTMENTS Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs), Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) are allowed to invest in the primary and secondary capital markets in India through the portfolio investment scheme (PIS). Under this scheme, FIIs/NRIs can acquire shares/debentures of Indian companies through the stock exchanges in India. The ceiling for overall investment for FIIs is 24 per cent of the paid up capital of the Indian company and 10 per cent for NRIs/PIOs.The limit is 20 per cent of the paid up capital in the case of public sector banks, including the State Bank of India. ?FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVES Foreign exchange reserves (also called Forex reserves) in a strict sense are only the foreign currency deposits held by central banks and monetary authorities. However, the term in popular usage commonly includes foreign exchange and gold, SDRs and IMF reserve positions. This broader figure is more readily available, but it is more accurately termed official reserves or international reserves.These are assets of the central bank held in different reserve currencies, such as the dollar, euro and yen, and used to back its liabilities, e. g. the local currency issued, and the various bank reserves deposited with the central bank, by the government or financial institutions . Large reserves of foreign currency allow a government to manipulate exchange rates – usually to stabilize the foreign exchange rates to provide a more favorable economic environment. ROLE OF BANKS IN DEVELOPING OF ECONOMY A safe and sound financial sector is a prerequisite for sustained growth of any economy.Globalization, deregulation and advances in information technology in recent years have brought about significant changes in the operating environment for banks and other financial institutions. These institutions are faced with increased competitive pressures and changing customer demands. These, in turn, have engendered a rapid increase in product innovations and changes in business strategies. While these developments have enabled improvement in the efficiency of financial institutions, they have also posed some serious risks.Banks play a very useful and dynamic role in the economic life of every modern state. A study of the economic history of western country shows that without the evolution of commercial banks in the 18th and 19th centuries, the industrial revolution would not have taken place in Europe. The economic importance of commercial banks to developing countries may be viewed thus: oPromoting capital formation oEncouraging innovation oMonetsation oInfluence economic activity oFacilitator of monetary policy Above all view we can see in briefly, which are given below:PROMOTING CAPITAL FORMATION A developing economy needs a high rate of capital formation to accelerate the tempo of economic development, but the rate of capital formation depends upon the rate of saving. Unfortunately, in underdeveloped countries, saving is very low. Banks afford facilities for saving and, thus encourage the habits of thrift and industry in the community. They mobilize the ideal and dormant capital of the country and make it available for productive purposes. ENCOURAGING INNOVATION Innovation is another factor responsible for economic development.The entre preneur in innovation is largely dependent on the manner in which bank credit is allocated and utilized in the process of economic growth. Bank credit enables entrepreneurs to innovate and invest, and thus uplift economic activity and progress. MONETSATION Banks are the manufactures of money and they allow many to play its role freely in the economy. Banks monetize debts and also assist the backward subsistence sector of the rural economy by extending their branches in to the rural areas. They must be replaced by the modern commercial bank’s branches. INFLUENCE ECONOMIC ACTIVITYBanks are in a position to influence economic activity in a country by their influence on the rate interest. They can influence the rate of interest in the money market through its supply of funds. Banks may follow a cheap money policy with low interest rates which will tend to stimulate economic activity. FACILITATOR OF MONETARY POLICY Thus monetary policy of a country should be conductive to economic development. But a well-developed banking system is on essential pre-condition to the effective implementation of monetary policy. Under-developed countries cannot afford to ignore this fact.A fine, an efficient and comprehensive banking system is a crucial factor of the developmental process of economy. RESERVE BANK OF INDIA AS A REGULATORY INSTITUTION IN INDIAN ECONOMY The RBI was established under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 on April 1, 1935 as a private shareholders' bank but since its nationalization in 1949, is fully owned by the Government of India. The Preamble of the Reserve Bank describes the basic functions as ‘to regulate the issue of Bank notes and keeping of reserves with a view to securing monetary stability in India and generally, to operate the currency and credit system of the country to its advantage'.The twin objectives of monetary policy in India have evolved over the years as those of maintaining price stability and ensuring adequate flow of cred it to facilitate the growth process. The relative emphasis between the twin objectives is modulated as per the prevailing circumstances and is articulated in the policy statements by the Reserve Bank from time to time. Consideration of macro-economic and financial stability is also subsumed in the mandate. The Reserve Bank is also entrusted with the management of foreign exchange reserves (which include gold holding also), which are reflected in its balance sheet.While the Reserve Bank is essentially a monetary authority, its founding statute mandates it to be the manager of market borrowing of the Government of India and banker to the Government. The Reserve Bank's affairs are governed by a Central Board of Directors, consisting of fourteen non-executive, independent directors nominated by the Government, in addition to the Governor and up to four Deputy Governors. Besides, one Government official is also nominated on the Board who participates in the Board meetings but cannot vote . IMPORTANT FUNCTIONS PLAYED BY RESERVE BANK OF INDIA IN ECONOMY MAIN FUNCTIONS oMONITORY AUTHORITY The Reserve Bank of India formulates implements and monitors the monetary policy. Its main objective is maintaining price stability and ensuring adequate flow of credit to productive sectors. oREGULATOR AND SUPERVISOR OF FINANCIAL SYSTEM Prescribes broad parameters of banking operations within which the country’s banking and financial system functions. Their main objective is to maintain public confidence in the system, protect depositors’ interest and provide cost-effective banking services to the public. MANAGER OF EXCHANGE CONTROL The manager of the exchange control department manages the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999. Its main objective is to facilitate external trade and payment and promote orderly development and maintenance of foreign exchange market in India. oISSUER OF THE CURRENCY The person who is issuer issues and exchanges or destroys currency and co ins not fit for circulation. His main objective is to give the public adequate quantity of supplies of currency notes and coins and in good quality. oDEVELOPMENTAL ROLEThe reserve bank of India performs a wide range of promotional functions to support national objectives. The promotional functions are such as contests, coupons, maintaining good public relations, and many more†¦.. oRELATED FUNCTIONS There are also some of the relating functions to the above mentioned main functions. They are such as Banker to the Government, Banker to banks etc†¦. ?BANKER TO THE GOVERNMENT It performs merchant banking function for the central and the state governments; also acts as their banker. ?BANKER TO THE BANKS Maintains banking accounts of all scheduled banks. ?SUPERVISORY FUNCTIONSThe Reserve Bank act, 1934 and the Banking Regulation act, 1949 have given the RBI wide powers of supervision and control over commercial and co-operative banks, relating to licensing and establishments, br anch expansion, liquidity of their asset, management and methods of working, amalgamation, reconstruction, and liquidation. The RBI is authorized to carry out periodical inspections of banks and to call for returns and necessary information from them. The supervisory functions of the RBI have helped a great deal in improving the standard of banking in India to develop on sound lines and to improve the methods of their operation. PROMOTIONAL FUNCTIONS With economic growth assuming a new urgency since Independence, the range of the Reserve Bank’s functions has steadily widened. The bank now performs a variety of developmental and promotional functions, which, at one time were regarded as outside the normal scope of central banking. The RBI was asked to promote banking habit, extend banking facilities to rural and semi-urban areas, and establish and promote new specialized financing agencies. PROBLEMS FACED BY INDIAN ECONOMY Macro-economic environment in India has taken a seriou s turn since the beginning of the year.Unprecedented rise in crude prices, surge in inflation and continued strong growth in money supply (M3) have forced the government and RBI to take strong fiscal and monetary measures leading to liquidity tightening, significant rise in interest rates and slowdown in economic growth. Economic shocks are events which adversely affect the economy and the government’s macroeconomic objectives such as growth, inflation, unemployment and the balance of payments. CERTAIN PROBLEMS FACED BY INDIAN ECONOMY oFALL IN SAVINGS RATIO The savings ratio is the % of income that is saved not spent.A fall in the savings ratio implies that consumer spending is increasing; often this is financed through increased borrowing. EFFECTS OF FALL IN SAVINGS RATIO ?HIGHER LEVEL OF CONSUMPTION This results in increase in Aggregate Demand. The increase in AD will cause an increase in economic growth and lower unemployment. However, rising Aggregate Demand may cause inf lation. Inflation will occur when growth is faster than the long run trend rate. This is now a potential problem in the India. Inflation has recently gone above 12% ?BOOM AND BUST A fall in the savings ratio is usually accompanied by a rise in confidence.It is the rise in confidence which encourages borrowing and consumers to run down savings. Therefore, there is always a danger that a falling savings ratio can be a precursor to a boom and bust situation. ?ECONOMY MORE SENSITIVE TO INTEREST RATES With a fall in the savings ratio interest rate changes will have a bigger effect in reducing spending. This is because levels of borrowing are higher and therefore a rise in interest rates has a significant impact on increasing interest repayments. Also, higher rates will not be increasing incomes from savings as much. ?BALANCE OF PAYMENTWith higher levels of consumer spending, there will be an increase in imports. Therefore this will lead to deterioration in the current account. The curren t account deficit could put downward pressure on the exchange rate in the long term. However, some people argue a fall in the savings ratio is not a problem, but, it is just a reflection of strong economy and booming housing market, which increases scope for equity withdrawal. oINFLATION Inflation is posing a serious challenge to the economic growth of India. Since Jan’08 onwards, inflation in the country has surged by 8. 2% to hit a 13-year high of ~12%.M3 growth in the economy too continued to remain strong at 20% (in July’08), well above the RBI’s comfort level of 17%. The WPI inflation rate flared up during the period driven by significant increase in the prices of commodities, primary articles and manufactured products, even though very small part of global crude price increase has been passed on to the Indian consumers. oGLOBAL RECESSION It appears that Europe, Japan and the US are entering into recession. Falling house prices, crisis in the financial syst em, and lower confidence could lead to a sharp downturn, with the worst still to come.Many argue that India’s growth is not so dependent on growth in the West. However, the Indian stock markets have been hit by the global crisis. India’s growing service sector and manufacturing sector would be adversely impacted by a global downturn. oRISE IN CRUDE PRICES How global crude prices would behave probably has no easy answers; however we believe that the current challenging and uncertain macro-economic conditions does not lead Indian financials into a state of crisis. But continued rise in crude prices and its resultant impact on inflation, interest rates and government finances has the potential to do so.Hence, crude price remains the key risk to our positive stance on the Indian financials. In the last couple of months oil prices have surged by 45% from US$ 100 to US$ 145 (and now back to US$ 115). India currently imports 70% of its crude requirement, resulting in pressure on government coffers on back of rising crude prices. oDEPRICIATING INR Surge in crude prices has severely impacted current account deficit of the country. This coupled with the outflow of FII investments has resulted in INR to depreciate sharply against dollar further fueling inflation. IMPACT OF ECONOMIC PROBLEMS ON INDIAN FINANCIALSThe current macro-economic conditions are expected to result in oSLOWDOWN IN CREDIT GROWTH oIMPACT ON MARGINS OF BANKS oPREASURE ON CREDIT QUALITY †¢SLOWDOWN IN CREDIT GROWTH While the rise in interest rates should lead to a moderation in demand for credit, Indian banks too are exercising caution while lending. Credit growth of 18% in FY09E and 17% in FY10E vs. 22% in FY08. Risks and uncertainties in the system have increased given the higher crude and commodity prices and its inflationary impact. This would curtail consumption, which would impact economic growth adversely.Further higher rates will not only impact the profitability of Indian corp orate but also impact IRRs of various proposed capex projects. This coupled with elections next year could lead to some postponement of capex plans of corporate, leading to negative impact on demand for credit. Higher rates have particularly impacted retail loan growth. As can be seen in the exhibit below, retail loan growth has slowed down significantly from 26. 5% in FY07 to ~13% in FY08. SLR Ratio of the system has started rising since mid FY08 and currently stands at 28. %. Given the expected negative impact on credit growth. †¢IMPACT ON MARGINS OF BANKS During the past 18 months, CRR has increased by 400 bps to 9. 0% currently and RBI has also discontinued with interest payment on CRR balances. Every 50 bps hike in CRR generally negatively impacts margins by ~5 bps. Till June’08, most of the banks had restrained from hiking lending rates despite significant monetary tightening. However on account of recent measures by RBI, banks have resorted to hiking PLRs in July/ August by 50-150 bps to preserve their margins.In fact in an environment, where liquidity is tight, interest rates are at elevated levels and risk premiums have increased, the banks tend to regain the pricing power. This would not only help the banks to adequately price in risks but also help protect their margins. Apart from hiking PLRs, banks are also resorting to reprising (in fact right-pricing) the loans that were sanctioned well below PLRs. Significant portion of fixed rate loans would also get re-priced over the period of 12-18 months. †¢PRESSURE ON CREDIT QUALITY Higher lending rates are expected to impact credit quality for the banking system.The extent of the impact on credit quality would also be bank specific given the loan mix (retail vs. corporate), proportion of unsecured lending, credit profile of corporate loan book and industry wise exposure. Indian banks’ fundamentals are relatively resilient with better risk management systems, dramatically improved a sset quality, stronger recovery mechanisms (legal provisions) and with adequate capitalization and provisioning. Even Certain sectors (like real estate, airlines industry) might feel the stress due to the changing macro environment and rise in interest rates.Many companies where crude forms a key raw material component are expected to get hit more severely. Similarly, sectors like real estate and SMEs, which are interest rate sensitive, would face higher delinquencies if interest rates strengthen further by 100-200 bps. NECESSARY INITIATIVES TAKEN BY RBI & MINISTRY OF FINANCE TO TACKLE ECONOMIC PROBLEMS As most of economists feel that the most horrible problem which India is facing currently is inflation which has crossed 12%. To come out of these problems RBI and ministry of finance and other relevant government and regulatory entities are taking various initiatives which are as follows†¦ RBI MONITORY POLICY With the introduction of the Five year plans, the need for appropriat e adjustment in monetary and fiscal policies to suit the pace and pattern of planned development became imperative. The monitory policy since 1952 emphasized the twin aims of the economic policy of the government: oSpread up economic development in the country to raise national income and standard of living, and oTo control and reduce inflationary pressure in the economy. This policy of RBI since the First plan period was termed broadly as one of controlled expansion, i. e. a policy of â€Å"adequate financing of economic growth and at the same time the time ensuring reasonable price stability†. Expansion of currency and credit was essential to meet the increased demand for investment funds in an economy like India which had embarked on rapid economic development. Accordingly, RBI helped the economy to expand via expansion of money and credit and attempted to check in rise in prices by the use of selective controls. OBJECTIVES OF MONITORY POLICY ?PRICE STABILITY ?MONITORY TAR GETTING ?INTEREST RATE POLICY ?RESTRUCTURING OF MONEY MARKET ?REGULATION OF FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKET WEAPONS OF MONITORY POLICYCentral banks generally use the three quantitative measures to control the volume of credit in an economy, namely: oRaising bank rates oOpen market operations and oVariable reserve ratio However, there are various limitations on the effective working of the quantitative measures of credit control adapted by the central banks and, to that extent, monetary measures to control inflation are weakened. In fact, in controlling inflation moderate monetary measures, by themselves, are relatively ineffective. On the other hand, drastic monetary measures are not good for the economic system because they may easily send the economy into a decline.In a developing economy there is always an increasing need for credit. Growth requires credit expansion but to check inflation, there is need to contract credit. In such a encounter, the best course is to resort to credit contr ol, restricting the flow of credit into the unproductive, inflation-infected sectors and speculative activities, and diversifying the flow of credit towards the most desirable needs of productive and growth-inducing sector. It should be noted that the impression that the rate of spending can be controlled rigorously by the contraction of credit or money supply is wrong in the context of modern economic societies.In modern community, tangible, wealth is typically represented by claims in the form of securities, bonds, etc. , or near moneys, as they are called. Such near moneys are highly liquid assets, and they are very close to being money. They increase the general liquidity of the economy. In these circumstances, it is not so simple to control the rate of spending or total outlays merely by controlling the quantity of money. Thus, there is no immediate and direct relationship between money supply and the price level, as is normally conceived by the traditional quantity theories.Wh en there is inflation in an economy, monetary restraints can, in conjunction with other measures, play a useful role in controlling inflation. †¢FISCAL POLICY Fiscal policy is another type of budgetary policy in relation to taxation, public borrowing, and public expenditure. To curve the effects of inflation and changes in the total expenditure, fiscal measures would have to be implemented which involves an increase in taxation and decrease in government spending. During inflationary periods the government is supposed to counteract an increase in private spending.It can be cleared noted that during a period of full employment inflation, the aggregate demand in relation to the limited supply of goods and services is reduced to the extent that government expenditures are shortened. Along with public expenditure, governments must simultaneously increase taxes that would effectively reduce private expenditure, in an effect to minimise inflationary pressures. It is known that when m ore taxes are imposed, the size of the disposable income diminishes, also the magnitude of the inflationary gap in regards to the availability of the supply of goods and services.In some instances, tax policy has been directed towards restricting demand without restricting level of production. For example, excise duties or sales tax on various commodities may take away the buying power from the consumer goods market without discouraging the level of production. However, some economists point out that this is not a correct way of combating inflation because it may lead to a regressive status within the economy. As a result, this may lead to a further rise in prices of goods and services, and inflation can spread from one sector of the economy to another and from one type of goods and services to another.Therefore, a reduction in public expenditure, and an increase in taxes produces a cash surplus in the budget. Keynes, however, suggested a programme of compulsory savings, such as def erred pay as an anti-inflationary measure. Deferred pay indicates that the consumer defers a part of his or her wages by buying savings bonds (which, of course, is a sort of public borrowing), which are redeemable after a particular period of time, this is sometimes called forced savings. Additionally, private savings have a strong disinflationary effect on the economy and an increase in these is an important measure for controlling inflation.Government policy should therefore, include devices for increasing savings. A strong savings drive reduces the spendable income of the consumers, without any harmful effects of any kind that are associated with higher taxation. Furthermore, the effects of a large deficit budget, which is mainly responsible for inflation, can be partially offset by covering the deficit through public borrowings. It should be noted that it is only government borrowing from non-bank lenders that has a disinflationary effect.In addition, public debt may be managed in such a way that the supply of money in the country may be controlled. The government should avoid paying back any of its past loans during inflationary periods, in order to prevent an increase in the circulation of money. Anti-inflationary debt management also includes cancellation of public debt held by the central bank out of a budgetary surplus. Fiscal policy by itself may not be very effective in combating inflation; therefore a combination of fiscal and monetary tools can work together in achieving the desired outcome. †¢DIRECT MEASURESDirect controls refer to the regulatory measures undertaken to convert an open inflation into a repressed one. Such regulatory measures involve the use of direct control on prices and rationing of scarce goods. The function of price control is a fix a legal ceiling, beyond which prices of particular goods may not increase. When ceiling prices are fixed and enforced, it means prices are not allowed to rise further and so, inflation is supp ressed. Under price control, producers cannot raise the price beyond a specified level, even though there may be a pressure of excessive demand forcing it up.In times of the severe scarcity of certain goods, particularly, food grains, government may have to enforce rationing, along with price control. The main function of rationing is to divert consumption from those commodities whose supply needs to be restricted for some special reasons; such as, to make the commodity more available to a larger number of households. Therefore, rationing becomes essential when necessities, such as food grains, are relatively scarce. Rationing has the effect of limiting the variety of quantity of goods available for the good cause of price stability and distributive impartiality.Another control measure that was suggested is the control of wages as it often becomes necessary in order to stop a wage-price spiral. During galloping inflation, it may be necessary to apply a wage-profit freeze. Ceilings o n wages and profits keep down disposable income and, therefore the total effective demand for goods and services. On the other hand, restrictions on imports may also help to increase supplies of essential commodities and ease the inflationary pressure. However, this is possible only to a limited extent, depending upon the balance of payments situation.Similarly, exports may also be reduced in an effort to increase the availability of the domestic supply of essential commodities so that inflation is eased. In general, monetary and fiscal controls may be used to repress excess demand but direct controls can be more useful when they are applied to specific scarcity areas. As a result, anti-inflationary policies should involve varied programmes and cannot exclusively depend on a particular type of measure only. RECENT INNOVATIONS IN INDIAN BANKING HDFC Bank’s ‘Net Safe’ card is a one-time use card with a limit that’s specified, taken from Tendon’s credi t or debit card.Even if Tandon fails to utilize the full amount within 24 hours of creating the card, the card simply dies and the unspent amount in the temporary card reverts to his original credit or debit card. Welcome to one of the myriad ways in which bankers have been trying to innovate. They’re bringing ATMs, cash and even foreign exchange to their customers’ doorsteps. Indeed, innovation has become the hottest banking game in town. Want to buy a house but don’t want to go through the hassles of haggling with brokers and the mounds of paperwork? Not to worry.Your bank will tackle all this. It’s ready to come every step of the way for you to buy a house. Standard Chartered, for instance, has property advisors to guide a customer through the entire process of selecting and buying a house. They also lend a hand with the cumbersome documentation formalities and the registration. Don’t fret if you’ve already bought your house or car â€⠀œ you can do other things with both. You can leverage your new house or car these days with banks like ICICI Bank and Stanchart ready to extend loans against either, till it’s about five years old.Loans are available to all car owners for almost all brands of cars manufactured in India that are up to five years old. Last month, Kotak Mahindra Bank introduced a variant of the sweep-in account. If the balance tops Rs 1. 5 lakh, the excess runs into Kotak’s liquid mutual fund. â€Å"Even if the money is there only for the weekend, a liquid fund can earn you a clean 4. 5 per cent per annum,† points out Shashi Arora, vice president, marketing, Kotak Mahindra Bank. That’s not a small gain considering that your current account does not pay you any interest.And if, meanwhile, you want to buy a big-ticket home theatre system, the minute you swipe your card the invested sum will return to your account. Banks are also attempting to reach out to residents of metropo litan cities where people are pressed for time (what with long commuting hours, traffic jams and both spouses working), beyond conventional banking hours. ICICI Bank, for example, introduced eight to eight banking hours, seven days of the week, in major cities. Not to be outdone, some of the other private banks have also done this too.HDFC Bank even has a 24-hour branch at Mumbai’s international airport. INDIAN BANKING IN 2010 The interplay between policy and regulatory interventions and management strategies will determine the performance of Indian banking over the next few years. Legislative actions will shape the regulatory stance through six key elements: industry structure and sector consolidation; freedom to deploy capital; regulatory coverage; corporate governance; labor reforms and human capital development; and support for creating industry utilities and service bureaus.Management success will be determined on three fronts: fundamentally upgrading organizational capa bility to stay in tune with the changing market; adopting value-creating M&A as an avenue for growth; and continually innovating to develop new business models to access untapped opportunities. Through these scenarios, we can paint a picture of the events and outcomes that will be the consequence of the actions of policy makers and bank managements. These actions will have dramatically different outcomes; the costs of inaction or insufficient action will be high. Specifically, at one extreme, the sector could account for over 7. per cent of GDP with over Rs.. 7,500 billion in market cap, while at the other it could account for just 3. 3 per cent of GDP with a market cap of Rs. 2,400 billion. Banking sector intermediation, as measured by total loans as a percentage of GDP, could grow marginally from its current levels of ~30 per cent to ~45 per cent or grow significantly to over 100 per cent of GDP. In all of this, the sector could generate employment to the tune of 1. 5 million comp ared to 0. 9 million. Today availability of capital would be a key factor — the banking sector will require as much as Rs. 00 billion (US$ 14 billion) in capital to fund growth in advances, non-performing loan (NPL) write offs and investments in IT and human capital up gradation to reach the high-performing scenario. Three scenarios can be defined to characterize these outcomes: oHIGH PERFORMANCE In this scenario, policy makers intervene only to the extent required to ensure system stability and protection of consumer interests, leaving managements free to drive far reaching changes. Changes in regulations and bank capabilities reduce intermediation costs leading to increased growth, innovation and productivity.Banking becomes an even greater driver of GDP growth and employment and large sections of the population gain access to quality banking products. Management is able to overhaul bank organizational structures, focus on industry consolidation and transform the banks into industry shapers. In this scenario we witness consolidation within public sector banks (PSBs) and within private sector banks. Foreign banks begin to be active in M&A, buying out some old private and newer private banks. Some M&A activity also begins to take place between private and public sector banks.As a result, foreign and new private banks grow at rates of 50 per cent, while PSBs improve their growth rate to 15 per cent. The share of the private sector banks (including through mergers with PSBs) increases to 35 per cent and that of foreign banks increases to 20 per cent of total sector assets. The share of banking sector value adds in GDP increases to over 7. 7 per cent, from current levels of 2. 5 per cent. Funding this dramatic growth will require as much as Rs. 600 billion in capital over the next few years. oEVOLUTION Policy makers adopt a pro-market stance but are cautious in liberalizing the industry.As a result of this, some constraints still exist. Processes to create highly efficient organizations have been initiated but most banks are still not best-in-class operators. Thus, while the sector emerges as an important driver of the economy and wealth in 2010, it has still not come of age in comparison to developed markets. Significant changes are still required in policy and regulation and in capability-building measures, especially by public sector and old private sector banks. In this scenario, M&A activity is driven primarily by new private banks, which take over some old private banks and also merge among themselves.As a result, growth of these banks increases to 35 per cent. Foreign banks also grow faster at 30 per cent due to a relaxation of some regulations. The share of private sector banks increases to 30 per cent of total sector assets, from current levels of 18 per cent, while that of foreign banks increases to over 12 per cent of total assets. The share of banking sector value adds to GDP increases to over 4. 7 per cent. oSTAGNATION I n this scenario, policy makers intervene to set restrictive conditions and management is unable to execute the changes needed to enhance returns to shareholders and provide quality products and services to customers.As a result, growth and productivity levels are low and the banking sector is unable to support a fast-growing economy. This scenario sees limited consolidation in the sector and most banks remain sub-scale. New private sector banks continue on their growth trajectory of 25 per cent. There is a slowdown in PSB and old private sector bank growth. The share of foreign banks remains at 7 per cent of total assets. Banking sector value adds meanwhile, is only 3. 3 per cent of GDP. oNEED TO CREATE A MARKET DRIVEN BANKING SECTOR WITH ADEQUATE FOCUS ON SOCIAL DEVELOPMENTThe term â€Å"policy makers†, refers to the Ministry of Finance and the RBI and includes the other relevant government and regulatory entities for the banking sector. The coordinated efforts between the v arious entities are required to enable positive action. This will spur on the performance of the sector. The policy makers need to make coordinated efforts on six fronts: †¢Help shape a superior industry structure in a phased manner through â€Å"managed consolidation† and by enabling capital availability.This would create 3-4 global sized banks controlling 35-45 per cent of the market in India; 6-8 national banks controlling 20-25 per cent of the market; 4-6 foreign banks with 15-20 per cent share in the market, and the rest being specialist players (geographical or product/ segment focused). †¢Focus strongly on â€Å"social development† by moving away from universal directed norms to an explicit incentive-driven framework by introducing credit guarantees and market subsidies to encourage leading public sector, private and foreign players to leverage technology to innovate and profitably provide banking services to lower income and rural markets. Create a un ified regulator, distinct from the central bank of the country, in a phased manner to overcome supervisory difficulties and reduce compliance costs. †¢Improve corporate governance primarily by increasing board independence and accountability. †¢Accelerate the creation of world class supporting infrastructure (e. g. , payments, asset reconstruction companies (ARCs), credit bureaus, back-office utilities) to help the banking sector focus on core activities. †¢Enable labor reforms, focusing on enriching human capital, to help public sector and old private banks become competitive. NEED FOR DECISIVE ACTION BY BANK MANAGEMENT Management imperatives will differ by bank. However, there will be common themes across classes of banks: †¢PSBs need to fundamentally strengthen institutional skill levels especially in sales and mar marketing, service operations, risk management and the overall organizational performance ethic. The last, i. e. , strengthening human capital will be the single biggest challenge. †¢Old private sector banks also have the need to fundamentally strengthen skill levels.However, even more imperative is their need to examine their participation in the Indian banking sector and their ability to remain independent in the light of the discontinuities in the sector. †¢New private banks could reach the next level of their growth in the Indian banking sector by continuing to innovate and develop differentiated business models to profitably serve segments like the rural/low income and affluent/ HNI segments; actively adopting acquisitions as a means to grow and reaching the next level of performance in their service platforms.Attracting, developing and retaining more leadership capacity would be key to achieving this and would pose the biggest challenge. †¢Foreign banks committed to making a play in India will need to adopt alternative approaches to win the â€Å"race for the customer† and build a value-creating cus tomer franchise in advance of regulations potentially opening up post 2009. At the same time, they should stay in the game for potential acquisition opportunities as and when they appear in the near term. Maintaining a fundamentally long-term value-creation mindset will be their greatest challenge.The extent to which Indian policy makers and bank managements develop and execute such a clear and complementary agenda to tackle emerging discontinuities will lay the foundations for a high-performing sector in 2010. CONCLUSION We can conclude that the financial sector is a nerve system of Indian economy. Banking plays an important role in development of economy. For steady growth in economy innovations and development in financial sector is very important. Economy of any country faces lots of challenges and problems. To tackle those problems financial sector plays a vital role.The financial sector makes the economy efficient to the extent where it can rival other developed economies in t he world. Financial sector also faces lots of problems but it should develop certain strategies to come out of these problems which is very important for healthy growth of economy. BIBLIOGRAPHY ?FINANCIAL SRVICES AND MARKET GORDAN AND NATRAJAN ?INDIAN BANKING SYSTEM V. K. BHALLA ?INTRODUC TION TO ECONOMIC ANALYSIS R. PRESTON MCAFEE ?MONEY, BANKING, INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND PUBLIC FINANCE D. M. MITHANI ?BANKING AND PRACTICE P. N. VARSHNEW ?MONEYCONTROL. COM ?MONEYPORE. COM ?RBI. ORG. IN