The U.S. has undergone several civil service reforms through its history. From the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act in 1883 that mandated that government positions should be filled according to merit rather than other criteria to lesser State reforms. In recent years, different states, including Georgia, Florida, Arizona, Colorado, and Tennessee, have been reforming their civil service policies. These reforms, in general, are aimed at making it easier to hire and retain government employees based on their merit and job performance.
These reforms also make it easier for government agencies within these states to seek the most competent employees. In a large part, this is achieved by removing protections current employees enjoy, such as seniority, and converting their positions to “at will” status. This status means that an employee can be laid off without having to find a justifiable cause for termination. The exception is illegal termination, such as that based on discrimination on the grounds of sex or religion.
Tennessee saw a major reform of its civil service in 2012, addressing the issues mentioned above. In the previous system, seniority was considered the primary criterion for employment, giving preference to more senior employees rather than ones who are more competent or suitable for the job (Barrett & Greene, 2015). The test given to applicants was described as “antiquated” and not necessarily related to the skills required by the position (Barrett & Greene, 2015). Finally, only the top 5 scorers on the test could be hired, giving preference to the most senior candidates, and thus severely limiting an agency’s hiring options (Barrett & Greene, 2015). State legislators targeted these issues with their proposed reform.
The 2012 Tennessee Excellence, Accuntability and Management (TEAM) Act sought to change that, as well as introduce other improvements to the state’s civil service system. It concerns both hiring and layoff practices, and makes civil employees’ performance easier to evaluate. Specifically, the TEAM Act requires agencies to clearly define the knowledge and skills required for each position (Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions, n. d.).
Furthermore, in case two candidates with equal qualifications are available, preference will be given to veterans (Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions, n. d.). Employees performance is now evaluated through setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-sensitive (SMART) goals, a system commonly used in private businesses (Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions, n. d.). Finally, though seniority is considered in cases of layoff, it is secondary to job performance (Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions, n. d.). These changes shift the focus in hiring, layoff, and performance evaluation practices away from seniority and towards merit and performance.
In the state of Arizona, similarly outdated civil service rules caused significant problems, highlighting why the subsequent reforms were necessary. A lack of at-will employment policies led to major complications when trying to lay off employees and an overuse of paid administrative leave within state institutions (Kelley, n. d.). Furthermore, a lack of reliable tools for performance evaluation made it difficult to determine a government employee’s competence and, therefore, decide whether to discipline or fire him or her (Kelley, n. d.). Moreover, the protections afforded to current employees made laying them off difficult even in cases where insufficient performance or disciplinary issues could be proven (Kelley, n. d.). Such issues with the previous system have prompted the state to launch its reform in 2012.
References
Barrett, K., & Greene, R. (2015). How Tennessee transformed the way it hires and fires people. Governing. Web.
The entire historical course of transforming the Roman Catholic Church into a powerful secular monarchy persistently led to its inevitable departure from the principles of the Universal Church and internal contradiction. The principle of general unconditional obedience was linked not to the Holy Roman Church but its sole leader – the Pope. The latter acted as the sovereign of the monarchs, resorting to armed force to suppress heresies and completing a series of crusades.
In the sphere of moral concepts, there was a departure of Roman Christianity from the Gospel principles. The doctrines of papal indulgences and satisfaction for sins distracted the attention of laity from striving for moral purity and directed to ways of avoiding punishments. Among other challenges, there was simony, the replacement of church positions with people completely inappropriate for pastoral service, the decline of morality among the clergy, large fees, and overall excessive enrichment of the Church.
Main Body
Martin Luther, a German theologian who was indignant by the widespread trade in indulgences, decided to hold a theological dispute over the identified situation. He disputed whether a sinful soul could be saved for money as the Pope and the Roman curia asserted. According to Luther, this was contrary to the Scriptures and the very idea of a church. The theologian considered that a sinful person who truly believed in an omnipotent and perfect God becomes righteous in His eyes, and he or she does not need any indulgences.
Justification understood as forgiveness of sins is, according to Luther, exclusively God’s grace that does not depend on a person’s actions, righteous deeds, or money. The dissatisfaction with the activity of the church had already begun to rise among the laity, but nobody spoke about it since people were frightened to fall into disgrace of the Pope of Rome.
The assumptions proposed by Luther undermined the foundation on which the spiritual power of Catholicism was built and threatened to destroy this foundation completely. Through his theses, Luther declared that the church should not be a mediator between a person and God. It was also claimed that the Pope is not entitled to give absolution because a man can save his or her soul only through faith in the Lord but not by means of the church.
At first, the Pope paid no attention to the mentioned ideas since he regarded them as the manifestations of feuds between parishes, which were quite common in that period. Then, the Church regarded Luther’s ideas as threatening, which was based on extremely raising confusion among people and support to such ideas. As a result, the Reformation as a broad religious and socio-political movement in Western and Central Europe of the 16th and early 17th century aimed at reforming Catholic Christianity in accordance with the Bible.
The impact of Luther’s reforms on the laity was enormous since the theological rejected the Papal decree forbidding continuing the controversy and continued to struggle against the infringement of church foundations. Luther wrote and published three temperamentally written books in which he outlined his program, including ting the papal yoke from Germany, abolishing monasticism, priesthood, and ecclesiastical landownership, and focusing on baptism and communion.
In particular, the following actions were suggested: to cancel the mass and cult of the saints as idolatry since God does not need intermediaries, open free access to the Bible, as well as eliminate indulgences and overall secular power. The speech of the identified theologian shook the laity who started to organize the movement, which demanded church transformations and the elimination of monastic rules. Luther gained special support among the emerging capitalists as the papal church rejected the commercial activity along with the economic autonomy of the population by denouncing personal savings.
Luther was a key persona that affected the onset and further transformation of the Catholic Church. As stated by Luther, the focal idea of the Reformation was to non-violently restrict the authority of the Pope of Rome without conflicts. However, the unstructured demonstrations of the population were often followed by massacres of Catholic parishes. Luther began with a critique of indulgences and simplified views on repentance in the Roman Catholic Church, and he came to rather important spiritual and practical generalizations that aimed people at a new attitude to God, the church, and social foundations.
The impact of Luther was revolutionary as it changed the attitudes of people towards the very way of life. The market economy, technical progress, social protection institutions, and struggle for various rights – all these consequences were promoted by the Reformation.
Speaking of Luther’s understanding of God, it is important to pinpoint that his ideas changed with time. In particular, the goal of his life was striving towards God, believing that the soul needs God’s mercy, and it is saved only when it follows the Word of God. The adoption of the thesis of salvation by personal faith, which implies opening one’s soul to the action of God’s grace, contributed to the formation of anti-Catholic and, eventually, an anti-Pap sentiment. Time of the Diet of Worms was the most brilliant moment in Luther’s life – he was not yet the founder of the new church, but he defended the right of people to freedom of conscience. His true greatness was that he solemnly, in the face of the whole world, declared that there is a part of a human life with which no power can interfere.
The main statement of Luther was the idea that the church organization as an intermediary between God and a man is not needed as every believer can communicate directly with God through prayer, fasting, and reading the Bible. No one should authoritatively and coercively instruct people in matters of faith, and they have the right and the ability to decide how to believe and what to do in life. In other words, Luther attempted to state that every person perceives God differently, and it is correct until the universal norms are followed. The provision of a specific definition might lead to social, political, and economic problems based on the fact that Luther wanted to integrate various social layers and resolve the largest political and economic concerns.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is essential to emphasize that the Reformation was largely driven by Luther’s 95 theses and arguments. They showed the decline of the papal church and defended theological approaches to the ideology of bourgeois emancipation. The theologian justified the secularization of church property and legitimized the shift in property relations in favor of the burghers and nobility. The doctrine of justification only by faith and the priesthood of all believers were put in the foundation of the reformational ideology consistent with the interests of the burghers, the humanist intelligentsia, and laity.
Bibliography
Bobo, David. “The Concept of the Church in the Reformation Movement.” Restoration Quarterly 2 (1958): 220-227.
Luther, Martin. Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the power and efficacy of indulgences. Delhi: Prabhat Prakashan, 2000.
The counseling setting could be described as rather soothing and prepossessing. The counseling sessions took place at a private school, in which the therapist communicates with the group in question and creates positive patterns of a therapist-patient interaction.
Age Group
The people participating in the therapy belonged to the teenage group. The participants included young girls (13–14) and girls aged 15–16. Therefore, the target audience could be split into two key age groups.
Introduction (Brief)
Carrying out counseling sessions aimed at increasing awareness regarding essential issues related to women’s health is a challenging task, as it required convincing the people, who have reached the stage of development, at which they become rather skeptical, and convincing them to adopt particular behavioral patterns, therefore, changing their lifestyles. Altering the way, in which people perceive reality, as well as changing the traditional communication patterns used by them in their daily conversation, one will be able to change their behavioral patterns and their concept of a healthy lifestyle.
Background
Group Name
The group is called OB and is represented by the organization, which appeals to women of all ages as its target demographics (Gwinnett physicians group OB/GYN, 2015).
Goals and Objectives
Group OB aims at promoting awareness concerning women’s health and the related issues among the specified denizens of the population.
Theoretical Framework
To address the issue in question, one will have to consider the Fair Process Theory (Williams, Robinson, & Dickinson, 2011). Seeing that the theory in question promotes collaboration between the patient and the therapist, it can be viewed as a solid basis for the further evaluation of the interactions between the members of the group and the location of the ways to help the participants.
Analysis
Populations Served
Group OB caters to the needs of women, in general, and the needs of girls and young women, who have entered the stage of puberty, in particular. Therefore, the population served embraced teenage girls aged 13–14 and 15–16. The information provided at the official site of the counseling services claims that women of any age are welcome to join the group: “Our OB/GYN Physicians Group is committed to providing excellent service and care to women of all ages” (Gwinnett physicians group OB/GYN, 2015, par. 1). However, seeing that teen pregnancy and STD among young women are getting an increasingly topical issue, the choice of the target group can be considered rather adequate.
Nature and Extent of Services
The services provided by the organization concern primarily counseling. The course in question, particularly, offers an extensive amount of information promoting awareness among girls aged 13–16. The counseling services, which the group in question provides to the participants, are quite numerous; however, for the most part, they are restricted to the traditional array of services for girls, who have reached puberty and need to know about sexual relationships, protection, and pregnancy. Indeed, the course offers the assistance of physicians, midwives, and certified specialists (Gwinnett physicians group OB/GYN, 2015, par. 1).
It is quite remarkable that the course in question refrained from relying solely on the organization’s resources and suggested visiting the sites belonging to other organizations, such as the National College of Nurse-Midwives, the Baby Center, etc. in other words, the leaders of the Group OB did their best to provide the participants with as many sources of information as possible, which certainly should be appreciated. The nature of the group services, therefore, can be defined as the need to eradicate ignorance concerning the issue of sexual relationships (Hogg & Holland, 2012).
Facilitators to Effective Counseling Services
The counseling process is enhanced by a variety of factors, the timeliness and the qualifications of the staff being the key ones. Indeed, Group OB delivered the required services on time, therefore, promoting faster knowledge acquisition and making sure that the continuity of the sessions should not be interrupted. The specified characteristics of the training are especially important given the fact that they are aimed at enhancing awareness among the target population and shedding more light on the issues related to pregnancy, safe sex, and the associated issues (Armstrong, 2012).
Inhibitors to Effective Counseling Services
Unfortunately, the counseling process did not go as smoothly as it could have because of a range of obstacles standing in the way. Particularly, the fact that the members of the OB Group refused from using the patient-centered therapy approach can be viewed as the prime reason for the lack of connection between the patient and the therapist; as a result, the effect of the sessions is reduced significantly (Healey & Evans, 2014; Keating, McDermott, & Montgomery, 2012).
Thoughts and Feelings
I felt rather positive about the class. Although the lack of connection between the participants and the therapist rubbed me the wrong way a bit, it felt that the creators of the course wanted to share an important piece of information with the participants. The course needs improvements, but it is a useful experience.
Lessons Learned
The fact that a patient and a therapist must have trustworthy relationships and a good connection is the most important lesson. Additionally, it became clear as the course advanced that education regarding women’s health is essential as many young women nowadays do not seem to have the necessary knowledge. Eventually, the course has shown that group communication can and must be used to bust the myths regarding personal healthcare among women.
Reference List
Armstrong, P. (2012). Thinking women and health care reform in Canada. Toronto: Canadian Scholars’ Press.
Healey, B. J., & Evans, T. M. (2014). Introduction to health care services: Foundations and challenges. New York City, New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Gwinnett physicians group OB/GYN. (2015). Web.
Hogg, C., & Holland, K. (2012). Cultural awareness in nursing and health care, second edition: An introductory text. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press.
Keating, M. A., McDermott, A., & Montgomery, K. (2012). Patient-centered health care: achieving co-ordination, communication, and innovation. New York City, New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Williams, I., Robinson, S., & Dickinson, H. (2011). Rationing in health care: The theory and practice of priority setting. Chicago, IL: Policy Press.
The twentieth century was the period of many significant agrarian reforms in the countries of Latin America. In spite of the fact these reforms were developed in order to address the interests of peasants and landless rural population, in most cases the definite results of these reforms were not associated with the social and economic aspects, but reflected the peculiarities of the political situation in the countries.
However, to have the opportunity to make certain conclusions about the phenomenon of agrarian reforms in Latin America, it is necessary to concentrate on its peculiar features. This paper will focus on the examination of the positive and negative results of the agrarian reforms for the rural population in the countries of Latin America because each process or phenomenon always has two sides of its representation.
Positive Effects of Agrarian Reforms
The period of agrarian reforms started in Latin America with the Mexican revolution which was developed at the beginning of the twentieth century and ceased with the progress of neoliberal policies in the territories. Providing agrarian reforms, governments were inclined to attract the rural masses and contribute to their political goals.
That is why the question of the agrarian reforms’ positive effects for all the social classes is rather controversial. The poor peasantry was not discussed as the potential force for the progress in the field of the countries’ economy and agriculture. All the accents were made on the capitalist farmers. Their activity was connected with the income distribution. Thus, the opportunities to invest in agriculture and to develop the land market appeared (Gwynne & Kay, 2004, p. 233).
However, the situation changed with the period of neoliberal policies when the governments began to accentuate the importance of privatization land taxes. Thus, the advantages which were acquired by the poor peasantry as a result of the agrarian reforms were incomparable with the benefits which were provided for the developed capitalist farmers.
Negative Effects of Agrarian Reforms
In spite of definite positive shifts in the sphere of agriculture, the majority of the rural population is not satisfied with the agrarian reforms because the main promises are not completed (Gwynne & Kay, 2004, p. 235). Poverty and landlessness remain the main issues for the rural population of the countries in Latin America.
From the social point, the agrarian reforms had not positive effects on the changes in the situation of unemployment and poverty in the territories. From the economic point, many agrarian reforms in the countries of Latin America can be considered as the causes for the development of the further more influential and even dramatic reforms which were the part of the political context.
Peasants remained to be the weakest class in the social system which were also negatively influenced by the implemented land titling projects (Gwynne & Kay, 2004, p. 233). Thus, the agrarian reform in Cuba was closely connected with the revolution and developed in the political field. Moreover, many results of the reforms were rather unexpected for the governors and that is why are difficult to be overcome effectively.
The agrarian reforms of the twentieth century in Latin America can be discussed from the point of their positive and negative effects on the rural population of the countries. The positive effects are connected with the development of the countries’ market, the change of the position according to the global market, and the role of the capitalist farmers. The negative effects are associated with the position of the peasants and the situation of poverty of the rural population which are more influential from the social point.
Reference
Gwynne, R. N. & Kay, C. (2004). Latin America transformed: Globalization and modernity. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
The health care reform debate has continually heated up in the recent years among various interest groups, government officials, the House and the Senate and the media. This debate is of different interests to different interest groups as some look into the long term benefits where as others are profit-driven at the expense of the public.
HR 3962: The Affordable Health Care for Americans
This bill was crafted by the House of Representatives in November 2009 but later on December, 2009 the Senate passed a substitute bill, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which was later abandoned for the Healthcare Reconciliation Act of 2010.
List of recommendations by interest groups
A group of health policy experts, health insurance executives, business leaders, economists, hospital administrators among other experts held several workshops to discuss health care reforms in a forum known as the Fresh-thinking Project and came up with the following recommendations;
Change the existing fee-for-service payment to a system that promotes and rewards improvement in the well-organized provision of quality care and put in the expansion of outcome, procedures to direct payment. Payments ought to be allied to improving patient products, reducing racial and further inequalities in outcomes, mounting effectiveness, and restraining the growth in the cost of care. Consequently connecting payment to outcomes will necessitate constant investment in the regular growth of outcomes measures (Terry, 1).
There is a need to pool a risk and therefore exchanges both regional and state to guarantee the Americans without access employer based insurance or any other type of insurance is enabled to obtain an average benefits package. Employers are also supposed to also be permitted to play a part in these exchanges designed for their employees’ coverage. Typically, underwriting individual and small group insurance firms do not perform well due to risk selection. Therefore in order to reduce poor selection there should be compulsory coverage for standard benefits and risk accustomed payments on the part of the exchanges. These mandates ought to be matched with mechanisms that ensure adequate participation of those qualified to avoid the buildup of just the high-risk people in the exchange. These mechanisms should include considerable subsidies, probably joint with enforceable directives. It is also important to recognize the efforts of the employers in their employees’ coverage.
According to the experts revenue source which includes a cap on the tax exemption which touches on employer-based insurance to support health care should be implemented to insure all Americans. There are tens of millions and budding numbers of Americans who are not insured and approximately 70% of these Americans cannot afford to pay for their insurance (Jost, 1). Consequently, more savings should be mobilized to insure all Americans like passing on accessible health income or levying tax on tobacco.
President Obama’s new health care reform and the recommendations
The health care reforms recommended by Obama is meant to radically reform the insurance market by barring pre-existing stipulation, eradicating underwriting which is founded on gender, education, occupation or health status. It will also provide a guideline on the crucial benefits that the insurance plans must cover, to improve transparency and insurance disclosure.
Therefore his reforms to some extend will concur with their recommendations because it is going to create a national health insurance exchange where every new non-group policies will be put up for sale and make insurance accessible for employees of small and possibly even the large employers. The exchanges should raise competition and reduce the rising administrative costs so as to reduce overall costs and enhance accountability.
As a way of insuring all the Americans the Obama reforms if legislated would oblige employers with payrolls above $500,000 annually to grant health insurance to their insurers or forfeit a penalty (Jost, 1 and alternatively majority will be insured through House leadership.
It will as well recognize small businesses who have covered their staff by granting them tax credits. However, this idea has not been welcomed by many business owners. Similarly, many people look at it as a means of making those who are well off to pay taxes for the poor.
To raise money to cover such people, reforms are proposing taxation of medical device manufactures because this is likely to offer the government about $20 billion. The senate bill intents to reach or raise $40 billion from the device makers.
However, this may be difficult because national lobbyists for the industry on the other hand are favoring reconciliation to the lower amount and therefore this could increase lobbying.
The health care reforms proposed by president Obama’s administration have both losers and gainers and therefore everyone is pulling their side so that they will not be affected negatively (Terry,1).
The insurers feel that the reforms do not favour them whereas other stakeholders and interest groups feel that this will affect delivery system as well as ensure almost all Americans have access to healthcare.
Children’s hospitals on the other hand feel that they will have more to lose as a result of the reforms than full-service hospitals. I think in the long run all these reforms will work out to the advantage of all Americans if the end result actually moves America closer to sustainable healthcare system.
Since its attainment of independence from British in 1919, Afghanistan has had a turbulence history characterized by foreign invasions, sectarian wars and poor governance. From the 1980s the Taliban, which began as a resistance group fighting against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, has played a key role in the affairs of Afghanistan.
While the Taliban governance may have appeared to be limiting the rights and freedoms of Afghans by their strict enforcements of religious laws, they brought about relative peace and stability by ending the near anarchy state that ensued following Afghanistan’s splitting along ethnic lines after the Soviet withdrawal in the late 1980s.
Following the US led invasion of Afghanistan, the Taliban lost the almost absolute control it held in the country. However, the Taliban is still a potent force and the group still has some influence in the county.
Through the course of the last two decades, Taliban has made a number of reforms which affect the lives of the people in Afghanistan. This paper shall argue that Taliban reforms are by the large good for the wellbeing of Afghanistan citizens. To buttress this assertion, this paper shall give a detailed description of some of the Taliban reforms which resulted in an improvement in the lives of the people of Afghanistan.
Arguments for Taliban Reforms
One of the most significant reforms by the Taliban was the crushing of the drug industry in Afghanistan. Afghanistan is hailed as the world’s biggest opium producer and its production capacities are reported to have increased significantly following the toppling of the Taliban regime.
While it would be a fallacy to assume that there was no poppy cultivation during the Taliban reign, it is a well documented fact that on July 2000, the Taliban “issued a decree banning opium poppy cultivation” (Perl 2). Following this decree, the drug production was almost stamped out of the Taliban controlled regions in Afghanistan.
This reform demonstrates the Taliban’s commitment to establishing a drug free Afghanistan. However opponents of the Taliban rule have argued that the Taliban regime did in fact encourage the production of poppy and subsequently used the poppy-derived income to fund their arms purchases and training of their police. This is a view that is refuted by Whitaker who concedes that the Taliban only threatened to allow the resumption of opium production in light of imminent military action against them by US in 2001.
In addition to this, the invading forces and the interim government that replaced the Taliban showed great reluctance in putting pressure on local farmers to stump out poppy production. One especially damaging report by Nathan of the USA today magazine affirms that the Afghan authorities continue to enjoy up to 12% in taxes from opium sales.
Arguably one of the most notorious laws by the Taliban was the strict application of Islamic law which in some instances compelled doctors to “cut off the hands and feet of thieves in accordance with the Shariah”. Another significant reform by the Taliban justice system was that killers were tried promptly and punishment handed down in a matter of hours (Matinuddin 35).
This strict law enforcement resulted in a marked decrease of crimes in Afghanistan as the severe punishments acted as deterrence. Owing to the prompt manner in which sentences were handed out, there was a sense of justice by the population for as the old dictum goes, “justice delayed is justice denied”. However, there are those who feel that this strict laws practiced by the Taliban were too severe and amounted to a gross abuse of human rights.
Considering the remarkable decrease in the levels of crime and a restoration of Afghanistan from its previous state of near anarchy to some semblance of order, one must contend that despite their harsh nature, the laws imposed by the Taliban were indeed good for the people of Afghanistan. The prompt dealing of punishments to criminals also evoked a sense of fairness and justice which resulted in harmony in the country.
Taliban reforms were credited in restoring security in a war-torn Afghanistan. By use of their police force, Taliban was able to come up with security policies that resulted in a decrease in the cases of crime and insecurity in much of Afghanistan. Bryden and Hanggi note that following the collapse of the Taliban regime, there has been a steady growth of insecurity which has rapidly spread throughout the country (210).
It is for this reason that Taliban still continues to enjoy the passive support of the majority of the population since they concur that for all its ill, Taliban reforms are able to bring about relative stability to the volatile region.
Critics of the Taliban movement argue that the increased insecurity in Afghanistan is as a result of Taliban insurgency which has resulted in the death of thousands of civilians. While there is some truth in this statement, one must consider such claims in light of the fact that the violence only erupted following the overthrowing of the Taliban. In addition to this, Taliban forces are not the sole sources of violence in Afghanistan.
Warlords and criminal gangs fighting for control over territories have also been responsible for a big percentage of the insecurity problems in the country. This is very similar to the situation that existed in the late 80s and early 90s before the Taliban took power in Afghanistan. As such, it is a credible assumption that only the Taliban reforms can lead to peace in Afghanistan.
Arguments against Taliban Reforms
The most contentions reforms by the Taliban are those that dealt with the treatment of women. One of the issues which have been focused on is the encouragement of wedding off of girl children. According to the Taliban, it is “good and Islamic to marry your daughters off while they are young’ (Ellis 143).
In the modern age that we are living in, this is tantamount to child abuse and studies indicate that girls who are forced into such marriages have a higher chance of suicide or mental problems. Taliban reforms also led to a ban on employment of women and a temporary halt to formal female education; these reforms were very retrogressive in nature (Marsden 88).
From the above examples, it is evident that Taliban reforms as pertains to the female population were mostly adverse in nature. The Taliban religion police were also often accused of beating women with sticks in the street undoubtedly led to a deterioration of the already bad situation for the women in Afghanistan.
Discussions
Arguably the most significant argument presented against the Taliban reforms is as concerns their treatment of women. The Taliban rules which resulted in the lack of education for the girl child and a restriction on their movement evoked wide spread criticism from the Western world.
However, It can be argued that the Taliban’s gender policies which led to a restriction on the education of women and generally placed them under the protection of men was an attempt to protect Afghan women from influences that could weaken the society from within.
Ayub, Kouvo and Wareham note that while the 2001 Afghanistan invasion by the US let military force may have been largely welcomed by the general Afghan public, the ensuing breakdown of security and reemergence of sectarian war largely undermined the efforts of the new government and its international backers (7).
Nearly a decade after the dramatic fall of the Taliban, the country is full of violence, drug-related crimes and other abusive behavior that have cast a dark cloud over Afghanistan. While there is no doubt that Taliban is far from perfect, looking at the current state of affairs in Afghanistan, one cannot help but acknowledge that the country is in a sorrier state that it was in during the Taliban rule.
Conclusion
This paper set out to argue that Taliban reforms are generally good for the welfare of the Afghans. By taking a critical look at some of the specifics of these reforms, this paper has shed light to the advantages that these reforms presented to the population of Afghanistan. This paper has also presented some reforms which have been perceived as negative so as to provide a balanced view of the Taliban reforms in Afghanistan.
While the reforms are in some areas largely flawed, from the evidence provided in this paper, it can be seen that these reforms presented the best means for Afghan to be a functional society. It can therefore be authoritatively stated that Taliban reforms are good for the welfare of the Afghanistan people and as such, ways in which they can be incorporated into the current government should be looked into.
The healthcare system of a country is of great significance since it determines the health of the country’s population. The population’s health is important due to the fact that it directly impacts on the productivity of the country. This means that healthcare should be available to every citizen.
Access to healthcare services is determined by the costs associated with their provision. Thus the services should be affordable if they are to be accessed by the majority. It is for this reason that the US government is committed to reform its healthcare system. This essay analyzes the economic impact of the newly signed US healthcare proposal. Three articles on the healthcare reform proposal will be analyzed.
Analysis
In an article titled “healthcare reforms” (New York Times), the new legislation on healthcare came into effect on 23/03/2010 after being signed by president Obama. The new legislation aims at overhauling the country’s healthcare system by enhancing access to healthcare services (New York Times). The reform will require majority of Americans to be covered under health insurance policies. 30 million people are expected to be covered in the proposed system (New York Times).
To achieve this objective the government will subsidize the premiums for private health insurance policies held by low income and middle income earners (New York Times). This means that the government’s expenditure on recurrent costs will increase. On the other hand the citizen’s disposal income will rise as they spend less cash on health insurance premiums and medication. The legislation will also monitor private insurers by banning them from denying sick or costly clients insurance cover (New York Times).
Besides, those with per-existing conditions will be insured. This is a risk in the insurance industry since the customers with pre-existing conditions are likely to die or claim payments on regular basis. The profits will reduce as insurers pay more claims per year. The cost of the new system is $938 billion (New York Times). The federal deficit is expected to reduce by $138 billion under the new system (New York Times).
In a second article titled “what is at stake if the healthcare reform passes” (Biheri), the US healthcare system is described as inefficient. The current system is characterized by high costs, inconsistent and complex health covers (Biheri). Consequently, there is low demand for health covers and access to healthcare.
Currently, insurers are offering covers only to customers who are less risky in order to reduce cost associated with paying claims (Biheri). Consequently, they are able to maintain their competitiveness. The proposed system will facilitate access to healthcare through affordable insurance cover (Biheri). Thus the health of the population will improve and this will lead to high productivity in terms of higher GDP.
In a third article titled “Obama’s healthcare reform bill and its impact on the healthcare markets” (Sunita), the US healthcare system was ranked at position 37 out of 200 nations that were studied by WHO. The US spends 17.5% of its GDP on healthcare and this has contributed to the nation’s budget deficit (Sunita).
Hence there is a need for a reformed system that promotes cost reduction. The proposed system will reduce the federal deficit by minimizing costs and generating income through tax accruing form the manufacture of medical devices (Sunita). The demand for health insurance is set to rise as more citizens get covered. The competition in the insurance market will increase as more firms enter the industry to take advantage of the high demand.
Conclusion
The proposed healthcare system should be fully implemented since it will lower the costs of providing healthcare services. An efficient healthcare system will reduce expenditure on health services. The savings made under the new system can be used by the government to develop other sectors of the economy. However, there should be provisions for protecting insurers from the risk associated with providing cover to citizens with pre-existing conditions. This will promote investors’ confidence in the industry.
Works Cited
Bihari, Michael. “What is at stake if the healthcare reform passes?” About.com. 16 Apr. 2010. Web.
New York Times. “Healthcare reforms.” New York Times. 3 Nov. 2010. Web.
Sunita, Jane. “Obama’s healthcare reform bill and its impact on the US healthcare markets.” The Today News. 10 Oct. 2010. Web.
The US healthcare reform was signed into law on March, 2010 after extensive debate within congress, at regional governments and at the national government. A great part of the healthcare reform was aimed at eliminating malpractices and inequalities propagated by insurance companies (BBC 2010, 2). The Obama healthcare reforms were however achieved after a number of previous healthcare reforms were undertaken by previous governments.
For example, in 1965, the then president, Lyndon Johnson introduced healthcare reforms that were to cater for hospitalization and general insurance for senior American citizens only (in the course of their retirement) (New Tech Media 2010).
Afterwards, the same regime also introduced a Medicaid scheme to take care of poor American citizens. In 1985, new healthcare reforms were also introduced through the employee retirement security act to provide health insurance to Americans who had left employment (New Tech Media 2010, p. 3).
These reforms were later followed by new healthcare reforms introduced in 1997 by the State insurance healthcare program to cater for children below the poverty line (New Tech Media 2010). After these healthcare reforms, the Obama healthcare reforms were birthed. The kind of healthcare reforms undertaken by the Obama administration is to make healthcare more affordable to all Americans, as opposed to previous programs where discriminatory health insurance was practiced.
The above mentioned healthcare reform changes (that occurred in previous years) defined the only two large-scale healthcare insurance programs that existed before the Obama healthcare reforms (Medicaid and Medicare). This means that before the healthcare reform process; it was up to individuals to look for their personal healthcare arrangements. In fact, most of working Americans got health insurance from their employers while others had to make their own private arrangements to pay for their health bills.
It was also a requirement in existing health insurance schemes that people pay regular premiums throughout the course of their coverage but when it came to payment of health costs by the companies, some required the insured individuals to shoulder part of the costs before they paid their part. This sort of practice contributed to the ills that were plaguing the American healthcare sector.
The Obama healthcare reforms were brought about by a number of challenges which existed in the US healthcare system. For instance, it was estimated that the cost of healthcare in the US was exorbitantly high when compared to other countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (BBC 2010, 3).
Past estimates gathered in 2007, reported that the US spent close to 2.2 trillion dollars in healthcare alone (BBC 2010, 3). This was an equivalent of 16.3% of the total country’s gross domestic product (GDP) (a figure which was estimated to be roughly twice as much as countries in the OECD regional block spent) (BBC 2010, 3).
The Obama healthcare reforms were also brought about by the realization that more than 40 million of America’s population (out of the country’s 300 million) was not covered in any given healthcare scheme (BBC 2010, 3). These kinds of estimates were derived from 2008 national healthcare reports.
Nonetheless, from the 40 million (plus) people who were uninsured, it was estimated that 9 million of them were immigrants while about twice the number earned more than $50,000 per year (BBC 2010, 3). However, it should be understood that also among the number of people estimated to be insured, a good majority were also presumed to be “underinsured” (BBC 2010, 3).
The rationale for choosing Healthcare reform as an important topic for this study is based on the fact that the healthcare reform debate elicited a lot of mixed reactions within congress and within the public as well. The debate was therefore an important national issue that affected practically every American citizen. Furthermore, there were increased concerns in some quarters that the healthcare reform changes were going to increase the federal budget deficit by a considerable amount (BBC 2010, 3).
In fact, there was no consensus in voting for the bill (before it became law) because a number of democrats opposed the bill while no republican congressman supported the bill. The selection of the topic was also motivated by the fact that the healthcare reforms were an important policy issue that practically determined the performance of the Obama administration in handling national issues. Moreover, the healthcare reform was also an issue that affected many electoral candidates, parties and the electorate in general.
Some of the problems observed during the analysis of this topic were the legal hurdles that surround the understanding of the implications of the healthcare reforms. A glimpse of the potential hurdles experienced when understanding this topic can be evidenced from the critiquing of the healthcare reform, which was evidenced from intense debate that shifted from congressional and parliamentary levels to a constitutional matter (Fitzpatrick 2010, 3).
Debates on the constitutionality of the bill could be evidenced from the conflict that existed in the implementation of the healthcare reforms. This could be evidenced from the Virginia Healthcare Freedom Act which was signed into law before the Obama healthcare bill was signed into law (Fitzpatrick 2010, 3). There was therefore ensuing debate about the constitutionality of the healthcare bill with the Virginia attorney general vowing to challenge the law based constitutional grounds (Fitzpatrick 2010, 3).
This sort of constitutional debate (regarding the legality of the healthcare reforms) becomes quite complex for ordinary citizens and it was equally divisive to the legal fraternity with a number of law experts noting that such sort of legal challenges were bound to fail while others noting that they were likely to succeed eventually (Fitzpatrick 2010, 3). However, through thorough research on the subject and extensive consultations with faculty members, and other knowledgeable individuals, the understanding of the healthcare bill became much clearer.
These channels are only some of the sources that will be used to understand this topic in detail but other sources to be used will be sourced from media excerpts and congressional records. These factors withstanding, I have high expectations in understanding the dynamics of the healthcare reforms and understanding how it is going to impact the American public and me as an individual. More importantly, it will be very interesting to see how the insurance companies are going to adjust to the new healthcare reforms.
Actual Experiences with Healthcare Reforms
The healthcare reforms are bound to save Americans from the burden of shouldering increased healthcare costs. Considering the cost of healthcare is increasing worldwide, the new healthcare reforms are bound to shoulder most Americans from absorbing such financial costs individually.
Current statistics show that the government used to spend nearly 4% of the total GDP on Medicare and Medicaid healthcare schemes (in 2007) (BBC 2010, 7). Due to the increasing healthcare costs, the total cost the government is projected to spend in healthcare would surpass 7% of GDP in 2025 (BBC 2010, 7). In 2050, the figure is expected to increase further to 12% of GDP (BBC 2010, 7). This kind of estimations are expected to set healthcare costs as one of the biggest cost driving factors in the increasing level of US budget deficit.
However, due to the fact that the US healthcare reforms are on course, there is enough consolation to the American citizenry that the increased healthcare costs would not be shouldered on an individual level, but rather on a governmental level. This is a better situation when compared to previous times where uninsured individuals would have been forced to dig deeper into their own pockets to shoulder their healthcare costs.
This is also a very good consolation for most Americans because it will save them a lot of economic and social burdens arising from financial costs incurred in healthcare. For instance, it is estimated that half of all bankruptcy cases in the US are specifically caused by some health-related financial costs (BBC 2010, 7). The healthcare reform is therefore set to offer a reprieve to people suffering from such risks.
Insurance companies which had perfected the art of health insurance discrimination, based on how much financial muscle one had, are set to be kept in check by the new healthcare reforms. This is true because the healthcare reform seeks to favor tougher regulations for health insurance companies so that a universal medical scheme is achieved in future.
The new healthcare reforms are also set to establish individual mandate in the sense that every person will be required to have an insurance scheme and those who didn’t enjoy any insurance scheme (in the past) were to enjoy an insurance exchange program. It is also worth noting that the new healthcare reforms are set to offer subsidies to those who cannot effectively shoulder their health costs; a strategy that is to be achieved by simply saving on the wastage that was experienced in the Medicare health insurance scheme.
However, in spite of the adverse opportunities the healthcare reform brings to the American population, there is still debate regarding whether it was advisable to undertake the healthcare reforms, as opposed to establishing a public healthcare scheme that would be run by the federal government.
From a personal point of view, the healthcare scheme, advocated by the Obama administration, was the best alternative for Americans because it seeks to increase the efficiency of medical schemes in the entire country. This is to mean that the reforms are meant to reduce the level of fraud, mismanagement, waste and abuse that was synonymous with previous healthcare institutions in the country.
Moreover, Americans lagged behind in establishing a universal healthcare scheme when other developed countries had successfully managed to do so. The healthcare reforms were therefore practical and an achievable dream in ensuring Americans enjoyed an affordable healthcare scheme.
The new healthcare reforms also seek to increase the insurance coverage for most Americans; meaning that most Americans would find reprieve in paying for their health premiums, and more businesses would be encouraged to provide healthcare because of the incentives and subsidies that are to come from the healthcare scheme.
Since most insurance companies were synonymous to establishing caps, limitations, and exclusions in their medical schemes, the new healthcare reforms are likely to put the accessibility of healthcare services for all Americans at a uniform level.
This means that many Americans who had initially been discriminated against because of having a pre-existing medical condition, or any other exclusionary criterion would receive medical insurance, like someone who did not have such conditions. Instances of medical impoverishment (which is only characteristic of the American population when compared to other developed countries) will be eliminated as well (BBC 2010, 9).
My personal take is that the whole healthcare debate has been blown out of proportion by critics who are out to politicize the issue at the expense of finding possible solutions to remedy the ailing American healthcare sector. The healthcare reforms have therefore been politically criticized and seemingly, many of the critics may be having a political agenda as opposed to developing a long-term solution to the health problem.
This is why congress had been torn alongside political lines, with the opposing team coming from the republican side while those for the reforms came from the government side. This clearly shows that a majority of the law makers were not objective about the issue but were rather out to make political statements that would either taint the image of the government or over-magnify the commitment of government in changing the country’s healthcare sector.
It is therefore important that reason prevails as the new healthcare reforms take shape as opposed to excessive politicking (which is shifting the focus away from the real issues underlying the healthcare sector). Moreover, the issue should not be looked at from a personal point of view, but rather on a national point of view.
It also goes without saying that a number of people have analyzed the issue from a personal point of view, in the sense that, many are viewing the reforms as a personal strategy of the president, either to build his image in the eyes of the American public, or rather in a manner to suggest that he is fighting a personal battle. These insights abound, it is important that the healthcare reforms be analyzed objectively and not politically.
The Welfare Reform is hailed as being a great success probably because this legislation resulted in a very remarkable decrease in the number of welfare rolls. It’s estimated to have reduced the enrollment from 4.4 million when the legislation was instituted in 1996 to 2.1 million at the end of 2001.
However, according to Hays, the success reports did not address the plight of mothers and caseworkers who actually experienced the legislation impact. In her book, Flat Broke, With Children, she explains thorough a story the impact of the Welfare Reform by describing the challenges that the welfare recipient had to endure to manage their family issues, their work issues and deal with the laws set by the Welfare Reform.
The legislation was based on “family values” as they were (Hays 3). Hays points out that a nation’s laws are a clear reflection of the nation’s values and this is what forms the central dogma of discussion in her book.
The Welfare Reform Act which was passed during the Clinton administration helped reduce the welfare enrollment by over 50% but it pushed many families to the dead-end employment and not having not stable jobs. On the other hand, the Welfare Reform encouraged women to marry as emphasis on family values (Hays 3); they then got married to men who could not even support a family.
This vividly shows that the government is communicating contradicting messages through its unbending bureaucracies pulling the women on welfare and even those with well-intended cases in opposing directions.
From the stories given by Hays, it’s evident that the Welfare Reform did very little to address issues like sexual abuse, homelessness, poverty, disintegrated families and the extent to which women had to go through juggling through numerous part-time low-paying work, other than expressing themselves as victims.
From the emphasis of family values, it is quite clear that the statute implies that the welfare beneficiaries are lazy and egocentric swindlers without work ethics of family values, this is not the case.
To imply that the reason why the women cannot pay for their families’ needs was because they did not want to work, to get into marriage and bring up happy and healthy families was wrong and uncouth. These women are in essence burdened by real social problems like being uneducated and lacking supportive and financially stable partners plus the expensive yet unreliable childcare services.
Work Plan and Family Plan
According to Hays, the Welfare Reform is both cultural and social reflection of the society. She analyses what the welfare says about American values but the message communicated by the actual situation on the ground is confusing.
The welfare laws emphasize commitment to family values like encouraging marriage and punishing childbearing out of wedlock yet they again imply that poor people lack work ethic and are lazy and hence push single mothers to do even odd jobs to fend for themselves. One can get pushed for not doing enough to find a job and also for losing one because of flimsy reasons some like taking off to attend to an abused child.
Hays has named these two competing ides as workplace and family plan terming them and major competing ideas of the Welfare Reform. The work plan is where the reform has put in place some requirements intended to rehabilitate women by ‘moving them out of the home’ to full-fledged workers.
The “work plan” demands that mother become independent and self-reliant and to take part in paid work as one of the means to reduce welfare dependence.
The “family plan” on the other hand is set to punishing mothers through hard lesson of experiencing hardship for failing to observe the convention social responsibility by getting children outside marriage. This plan implicitly says that being married was another way of getting away from dependence on welfare.
The two plans reflect the nation’s values as Hays puts it and they are conflicting and competing at the same time (Hays 3). However, the reform has been widely accepted despite this because the competing values seem to satisfy two different institutions.
However, practically, the two objectives are counterproductive. The welfare offices are working seriously on the work plan with women required to move with speed to find even miserable jobs to get off the welfare while the government spends even more money on their children’s daycare than the mothers ears on minimum wage job.
It’s like mothers are being paid to leave their children at the daycares, contrary to family values, right? The family plan on the other hand is not doing any better because it has its own share of problems.
The men that these women get married to seem to be getting in and out of their lives having fathered even more children, becoming irresponsible, abusive and unengaged. To that extent, it seems futile to try and control things.
Because of these similar contradictions in the Welfare Reform, Hays drew conclusions that the nation’s welfare law had failed to offer a single, logical resolution to solve the nation’s social problems and did not put in more effort that seem to be solving the problems and reduce poverty (Hays 13).
The Nature of Eligibility Rules
Superficially, the manner of governing the Welfare Reform appears to be a straightforward matter. However, a close analysis shows that the recipients are divided into two major groups; the first is the group of ‘most employable’ women and the second category is for the ‘most encumbered’.
Accordingly, the group termed as the most employable are removed from the poverty assistance because the eligibility rules that are currently structured after the reform (Hays 16).
These citizens are forced to fend for themselves on meager wages and become self-reliant. The idea of expulsion from the beneficiaries of welfare has been debated with the neoliberal Welfare Reformers supporting it, because the employable women no longer bother the state for welfare.
A closer look at the real structure of the Welfare Reform law, however, there is a different picture all together. To be sure, a very big number of families had already been scrapped of the list of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program (TANF) (Hays 63).
This is basically the reason why the number of the people on welfare dropped drastically and even during the 2000 economic recession period the numbers remained low. Nonetheless, the program eligibility rules have not been improved and they remain intricate in nature and somehow harsh.
There are some that are simple to understand like the workfare and the time limits while other rules are never even discussed in public. Based on their very design, there are some measures that force single mothers to adhere to a one-size-fits-all patriarchal family system (Hays 63).
Rules like those implemented under the compulsory paternity credentials for children and the child support cooperation laws, the poor single mothers are required to give the names of the biological fathers of their children and play active roles in assisting the government to collect support payment from the fathers (Hays 63).
Practically, these rules, at times referred to as ‘paternafare’ compel TANF women to involve in very difficult and enduring demands for them to get paid, this is demeaning.
Sometimes even when the recipient has been able to meet all the program requirements, the exact structure, the paternafare laws develop a situation where the father continues paying the money to the program even after quitting the program.
These eligibility rules are intrusive as the recipients have to sacrifice vocational freedom, reproductive options, sexual privacy and even the right of making intimate decisions of how to bring up a family (Hays 67). Naturally, these right are selfishly protected by the constitution as they are key to the supreme court’s jurisprudence of personhood and family, this does not apply to these mothers in need!
The Individual Welfare Mothers’ Stories
The work by Sharon Hays is impressive and gives insightful stories of women who have to conform to the eligibility rules, observe time limit and avoid being sanctions to benefit from welfare.
Her information is quite clear to understand as she has provided a number of evaluations against actual experiences with people she interviewed of met in the welfare offices (Hays 67). These results are very crucial in analysis the Welfare Reform and its logic as well as assessing the purported long-term goals and the actual consequences of implementing the statute.
Hays does not shy from explaining the actual experiences she observed. One of the significant stories is that of Nadia. Nadia was simple woman having four children and she was entitled to receive welfare money. Nadia had quit her job because the pay was too low to meet her daily demands and the job was too hard for her.
She could not hold up and she had to resign after realizing that her situation was not improving at all under that job. There is also the story of Joy (Hays 163). Joy was a drug addict. Her condition was so touching, she had previously had four abortions and she was having two children.
Monica is a young woman who was also facing the Welfare Reform challenges and she openly admits that she deliberately got pregnant to have child so that she could use him to gain eligibility for collecting welfare money. Sandra on the other hand aggressively demands to be paid looking at it as her right to get welfare (Hays 163).
It seems that Nadia realizes that she is of very little value in the incumbent labor market but also appreciates her value as a mother and insists that taking care of her children was work enough that she should be paid for it and she hence receives TANF. This way, she has passed a message to the Welfare Reform about morality.
Works Cited
Hays, Sharon. Flat Broke with Children: Women in the Age of Welfare Reform. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. 2003. Print
This paper reflects on the political changes that happened in Russia. Moreover, the paper analyses the Russia political scene and why reforms in the country have to be certain. Russian is a weak authoritarian nation that has been faced social problems due to ineffective leadership.
Democratic governance of the nation has been widely debated in the European community in order to resolve different negative trends. The main political reforms implemented by Boris Yeltsin, the president who was elected in June 1991, were reversed during the five-year term of President Vladimir Putin. Putin was elected the president of Russia when Yeltsin resigned.
Political changes that happened in the federation (especially creation of the assassination of outspoken journalists, suppression of multi-party politics, and strengthening of authoritarianism rule by the president and media ownership concentration) indicated negatives changes. This let to Russian leadership change from liberal democracy to dictatorship and authoritarianism (Belin, 2000, p.14).
Russian electorate revealed that president Putin was still immensely popular, though some opinion poll reports showed that the president’s strategies were not influential and never appealed to majority of the people who felt exploited.
Furthermore, perception from other nations provided different views concerning Putin’s leadership. Many people had not doubted in Putin’s governance (Politkovskaya, 2004, p. 6). For example, there were spectrum views that portrayed Putin’s leadership such as: guided or managed democracy, democratic dictatorship and authoritarianism (Putin, 1998, p. 2).
Though, President Putin might not be responsible individually for all negative events and changes in Russia, he was responsible for causing reversible of dictatorship and anti-democratic values in the Russian Federation (Politkovskaya, 2004, p. 6). These values reinforced dictatorship and exploitation as hidden capitalism began eating into the conservative communist regime.
Russian is the fifth biggest nation, following the USA, China, Indonesia, and India. It occupies one eighth of territorial land of the world (Matejka, 1998, p. 34). Its economy had been affected severely by hype-depression with other factors which had been threatening Russia since 1990s.
Russian was a troubled nation that encountered organized crimes, serious terrorism, corruption and political assassination. These were regular and rampant cases in the country (Mansfield & Snyder, 1995, p. 7). The nation had to fight against Islamic terrorism group al-Qaeda which attacked it.
The Putin administration endeavored to crack down terrorism and crime in order to promote economic predictability and order in the society (Vladimir, 1998, p. 2). However, Putin became an authoritarian leader who controlled major television networks in the country (Mark, 1997, p. 3). He changed State Duma and Federation Council into rubber stamps that turned to be ineffective (Stone, 1997, p. 34). In addition, he weakened civil societies and political parties in Russia (Sakwa, 2004, p. 8).
Russian prosperity under Yeltsin’s rule
Russia was one of the most self-sufficient and resourceful nations in the world. Its natural reserve was based on Natural gas, Coal, Mineral salts like Nickel, Zinc, Mercury, Gold, Iron Ore, and Hydropower. People might justify that such existing industrial infrastructure and wealth of the nation would be a solid basis that would boosted the economy of the country. But this was not the case (Belin, 2000, p.14).
The government established a rigid economic policy that rejected social democracy in preference for real liberalism. The move was perceived to avoid market constraints. This was meant to enhance general social welfare within a short period of time (Matejka, 1998, p. 34). The govermment, on the other hand, lifted control, especially on wages and prices, in order to establish floating exchange to attain economic stabilization.
Such policy became very severe and caused a ‘dubbed shock’. As a result, consumer price index increased by 245% (Mark, 1997, p. 3). Women lost significantly because of rapid decline in living standards (Mansfield & Snyder, 1995, p. 7). This situation was termed as a hyper-depression, which was a national crisis (Belin, 2000, p.14). President Yeltsin resigned because people were not confident in his government.
Political revolution under Putin’s rule
Though in 1999 Russia had great power, it hobbled severely (Mansfield & Snyder, 1995, p. 7). Socially, it was a chaotic situation of lawlessness, desperation, and poverty. However, there was indication of enlightened government that aimed at restoring order. Such social challenges reflected egotist society due to repressive and despotic instincts present in several political responsibilities (Putin, 1998, p. 2).
People expected to observe whether economy of a free market and liberal democracy implemented by Yeltsin would withstand the existing pressure and instill political order (Putin, 1998, p. 2). The written constitution was promulgated first in 1993 before Yeltsin agreed to resign in1999 (Stone, 1997, p. 34).
The political impact of Yeltsin succession led to decline in living standards. Putin was never elected, but was appointed when Yeltsin resigned in December, 1999. Though President Putin might not be responsible for the bad events and changes that occurred in Russia, he was responsible for the reversible policies that were contrary to democratic trend. It is important to note that democracy is normally featured by press freedom, rule of law, and multiparty democracy.
Press freedom
In Russia, press freedom was under siege beginning from the initial days when Putin became the president of Russia. Press freedom deteriorated. Public leaders exploited media during election period. They also obstructed campaign media coverage in order to guarantee their victory. Russian official governments harassed and persecuted media outlets and journalists (Vladimir, 1998, p. 2). Putin’s administration did not know values and benefits of free media.
The government officials assaulted free press with intention to supplement it with Putin’s press coverage (Matejka, 1998, p. 34). Putin was indifferent to democratic values and he opposed such important values in Russian society. The Putin’s administration policies were ambiguous and thus hindered press media from challenging and criticizing the authority of the president (Mark, 1997, p. 3).
Government officials interfered with journalist’s daily activities. Outspoken journalists were murdered. Government established heavy regulations which were tantamount and expensive to ownership concentration of TV stations and public media (Stone, 1997, p. 34). President Putin viewed critics as opponents and enemies who were against the states’ affairs. When the government suppressed press media, absence of critical investigation became perpetuation and entrenchment of dictatorship (Sakwa, 2004, p. 8).
Rule of law
It is an essential feature just like free media. It is a claim that promotes every citizen to be equally treated according to the laws implemented in the state. This means that leaders should not choose which individuals to punish and which should not (Belin, 2000, p.14).
Rule of law is a proposition that should be followed according to the words and letters of the stipulated laws (Politkovskaya, 2004, p. 6). This means that leaders should not use power to serve their own interests. Leaders should, just like any other individual, observe the rules of law.
Fair trials may not be possible if court system is not judiciary independent (Shevt︠s︡ova, 2003, p. 67). The institutional and economic chaos during Putin’s era led to rampant corruption in the judicial system. Russian judiciary was defective of the following of areas: political leaders manipulated legal hearings and big cases were backlogged. Yeltsin administration did not understand the rule of law of the country. He entrenched judiciary into a personalized rule to serve his interests (Belous, 2004, p. 11).
Multiparty democracy
There were vital positive reforms under Putin’s governance. However, partisan alignment emerged, it was aimed at reducing a number of parties. It was a strategy of party registration which wanted to impose vital organizational and legal tests. A nation that suppresses the interest to political parties does not promote democratic values (Putin, 1998, p. 2).
Putin administration harassed opposition political leaders and independent civil societies that criticized his governance. Political malpractices, such as vote rigging and others, are concerned with issues which should be resolved in order to promote multi-party politics.
Why political reform is a certainty in Russia
Russians is a nation that should, first of all, protect human dignity of the citizens. This is important because such a move will affect bilateral interaction between it and other international nations (Snyder, 2004, p. 4). Positive bilateral relationship would ensure that Russia embraces political democracy and stability, as well as economic market stability.
For example, the United Kingdom had ensured that Russia was stable both, economically and politically because of importance of bilateral relations between the nations (Sakwa, 1997, p. 1). Britain promoted a policy that was designed to merge public institutions, democracy and rule of law in order to consolidate Russia to ‘commune together’ with European economic and political space.
Britain was committed to support Russia to fulfill its obligations, since Russia became a member of the council of Europe (CoE) (Belin, 2000, p.14). Russia became member of CoE in 1966. Western strategy to support Russia had been concerned with promoting energy resources and security in Russia. The United Kingdom, for example, criticized emerging abuse cases and retrenchment of media freedom in Russia (Saikal and Maley, 1995, p. 8).
American government and United Kingdom governments intended to reverse the recent negative habit of power concentration on one individual (authoritarianism of Putin’s administration) and to strengthen the rule of law (Silverman & Yanowitch, 1997, p. 56). There had been a need to support Russia for it to adopt free media and pluralism as national objectives (Stone, 1997, p. 34).
Both were important factors that would promote democracy. Russia had to adopt momentum to attain democratic values. Russia should establish a balance between government branches (judicial, executive and legislature).
Political power in Russia had not been tied to system of law. In November 2003, Tony Blair, Colin Powell (secretary of American state), President Bush and Condoleezza Rice met and discussed about negative things which had happened in Russia (Austin and Muraviev, 2000, p. 10). Powell claimed that Putin had caused serious challenges in Russia because of his authoritarianism. The move was important to be addressed in order to promote business opportunities in Russia despite negative factors experienced in the country.
It was clear that Putin administration caused many problems in the nation. The effort to eradicate terrorism enabled positive justification to have good working interaction of Russia with other international countries (Mansfield & Snyder, 1995, p. 7). It was aimed at including Russia to be involved in post-war progress in Iraq. Russia was supposed to support democratization and peace in Afghanistan.
Besides, Government of Russia was to be involved in reforms concerning its military forces in order to contribute to annihilation of terrorism, engage in achieving peaceful solutions to conflict experienced at Chechnya, and consolidate task of Russia-NATO council. Also, Russia was to support elimination of narcotics, collaborate to terminated development of nuclear weapon of Iraq, and involve in counter-proliferation policies, such as on biological and chemical weapons (Matejka, 1998, p. 34).
Russian external policies were formulated according to wide strategic international relationship. On the other hand, its domestic development should not be a direct threat to American, United Kingdom and other nations collaborating with Russia (Politkovskaya, 2004, p. 6).
America aimed to promote liberal democracies. It was the way of electing governments through public virtue that won people’s confidence (Zakaria, 1994, p. 19). This also included respect for people’s right, rule of law, pluralism and constitutionalism. Absence of constitutional limit and procedures created super-presidency which abused human dignity. Putin was supposed to follow foot steps of Yeltsin who advocated for liberal democracy.
Discussion
This paper reflects about the current Russian perspective and developments as its starting point, which was based on the wide principle of commitment and democracy of the nation. The key issue was to focus on the future projects of the nation. This intended to reveal media coverage that showed the restriction of hard earned freedom by Russians (Putin, 1998, p. 2).
This paper also looks at the dilemmic issues of foreign policy that encountered by Britain leaders while interacting with Russians. Such dilemma looked at ways to promote and protect principle of democratic practices in order to counteract freedom entrenchment in Russia. This also was focused on how to enhance more traditional geographical, economic and security interests.
The task of future projects in Russia was focused on bringing sound and active recommendations, with effective follow up of public disseminations, particular media coverage and seminars. The future projects of Russian would depend on the prominent factors such as Russian politics, policy specialists, and advisers across the world (Matejka, 1998, p. 34).
Such projects would concern with ways by which Britain and other western governments would promote the democratic governance in Russian, which was the key focus of European politics in the recent years.
Foreign policy was focused on building of a rule-based, fair and effective world order. This policy was aimed at enhancing appropriate multilateral resolutions toward global challenges, effective governance and democratic states as the basis of development and order, collaboration of private sectors to provide public goods (Mansfield & Snyder, 1995, p. 7).
Russians is a nation that policy specialists should not ignore. Russia’s territory is vast with potential mineral resources, population size and geographical uniqueness indicating that the country is capable of influencing global issues for bad and good intention. The interest aimed at promoting Russian progress was never greater before.
The termination of triumphalism history broke the iron curtain and brought complaints on issues concerning durability of economic and political reforms in several post-soviet communities (Mansfield & Snyder, 1995, p. 7). Some people rejected the idea that reform processes might bring smooth transition governance into liberal democracy.
Ordinary people encountered problems due dictatorship that led to belief legacy about implementation of democratic values into the national context. They had negative influence toward the current Russian politics. However, some people accepted the President Putin’s motives to enhance the rule of law of the nation through implementation of political coherent policies (Austin and Muraviev, 2000, p. 10).
Though some citizens viewed that the President’s reforms were going too far from what was required to form appropriate governance mechanism. Such reforms were seriously regressed that has never matched democratic standards. This mission of liberal democracy focused on bringing the rule of law, political democracy, and freedom of media and expression to face sustained pressure (ability to criticize and abolish abuse of human right).
The protection of main human rights would positively affect bilateral interaction of Russia with other international nations like Britain (Sakwa, 2004, p. 8). This was experienced when President Putin Vladimir came in power and contributed to decline of democracy, which escalated impunity in Russia. This was the moment when Europe analyzed policies that were required to direct Russia in a democratic modernization path, in order to abolish authoritarianism in Russia.
This international collaboration was adopted through promotion of constructive and friendship spirit. It was a vital move to eliminate insincere judgments which overlooked social, economic and political implications in Russia. Single political and structural set would never be appropriate for every nation in any moment of history (Matejka, 1998, p. 34).
Russian situation had encountered many chronic challenges which need to be resolved by its formula. Though, there was a proof that the nation (Russia) was avoiding political representatives and pluralism into irreversible degree that would affect it in the long-time. There was a need to instill attitude spirit that intended to promote democratic values toward Russian young people.
The future projects in Russia will provide a vital contribution not only to European and British development, but also to other international nations on the current transformation and their implications in Russia (Vladimir, 1998, p. 2). This would stimulate greater interest, for example, in the media, general public, parliament and governments, national economic and social progress.
Conclusion
Western nations, like United Kingdom, should revitalize democratic leadership of Russia. The task of international governments is to enhance reversal of bad trends, and this need to be carried out in spirit of constructive and friendship support. International society has to play important role in order to build consistent and robust aims for devolving authority of leadership.
This calls for mobilization of international community to engage in political process to promote devolution process. Not only America and United Kingdom but other international communities should build the protection of freedom and respect of human rights of Russia citizens.
They should promote this through utilization of high level of diplomacy, use of available resources across multilateral agencies; scrutinize Russia because it is a member of the European community, utilization of proxy societies and western media like NGOs to debate about political development issues in Russia. Finally, such international community should enhance indirect and direct support to provide liberal pluralism to the country.
Reference List
Austin, G., and Muraviev, A. D. (2000). The Armed Forces of Russia in Asia. London: I.B. Tauris, p. 10.
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