http://www.publishaletter.com/readletter.jsp?plid=29245 Dear Editor: The Eleventh of July was the World Population Day The UN Secretary General in his message on this day has stated "This year’s World Population Day falls during a milestone year, when we anticipate the birth of the earth’s seven billionth inhabitant. This is an opportunity to celebrate our common humanity and our diversity. It is also a reminder of our shared responsibility to care for each other and our planet....Later this year, a seven billionth baby will be born into our world of complexity and contradiction. We have enough food for everyone, yet nearly a billion go hungry. We have the means to eradicate many diseases, yet they continue to spread. We have the gift of a rich natural environment, yet it remains subjected to daily assault and exploitation. All people of conscience dream of peace, yet too much of the world is in conflict and steeped in armaments" The UN Secretary General has rightly hit upon some important points. As per the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), "World military expenditure in 2010 is estimated to have been $1630 billion, an increase of 1.3 per cent in real terms over 2009. The region with the largest increase in military spending was South America, with a 5.8 per cent increase, reaching a total of $63.3 billion. ...This continuing increase in South America is surprising given the lack of real military threats to most states and the existence of more pressing social needs....Part of the explanation for this rise is to be found in the strong economic growth the region has experienced in recent years, while in other regions the effects of the global economic recession caused military spending to fall or at least rise more slowly in 2010.... Although the rate of increase in US military spending slowed in 2010—to 2.8 per cent compared to an annual average increase of 7.4 per cent between 2001 and 2009, the global increase in 2010 is almost entirely down to the United States, which accounted for $19.6 billion of the $20.6 billion global increase". http://www.sipri.org/media/pressreleases/milex The question, however, which the UN Secretary General has failed to look at is whether greater growth in economy (south America) is going hand in gloves with more spending on arms (and comparatively less on social services) and whether less economic growth (US) is also accompanied by greater spending on arms to boost economy and usurp oil of resource rich countries due to so called "war on terror" and "democratisation". The Global Gini index (distribution of family income) which measures the degree of inequality in the distribution of family income in a country is 45.0 in the case of US, 56.7 in the case of Brazil and 47 in the case of China (latest available year, http://www.mongabay.com/reference/stats/rankings/2172.html). Rather than set its own house (recession and inequalities) in order, is raiding another country used by US as a strategy to boost its economy? Is Brazil dealing with economic inequalities and drug mafia (a bi product) through greater arms spending? Is China suppressing dissent through greater arms spending, as well as investing in becoming a super power? This could be equally true of India where officially Gini Index is placed at 36.8 (latest available year, http://www.mongabay.com/reference/stats/rankings/2172.html). Yet another question, is arms being used to protect MNCs from industrialized countries from appropriating natural resources of other countries, as is happening in Thervoy Kandigai village, Thiruvalluvar district, Tamil Nadu, India wherein police is protecting the France based Michellin Tyre company than the people. The company is appropriating grazing land and forests of dalit (majority), Backward castes and tribal people when the Gram Sabha (village council) and public tribunal had ruled otherwise. In fact the forest acts as watershed for not only this village but 24 other villages. Amongst these oppressed groups, women bear the brunt of such appropriation more than men. http://kafila.org/2011/02/18/anbulla-kaadu-my-beloved-forest-madhumita-dutta/. Police and force is also used to support family planning in some countries like China, with son preference leading to elimination of daughters http://www.lifenews.com/2004/12/14/nat-1042/ IF ECONOMIC GROWTH WITH INEQUALITIES AND ECONOMIC RECESSION ARE DEALT WITH THROUGH SPENDING ON ARMS and MNC APPROPRIATION OF COMMON PROPERTY RESOURCES IS SUPPORTED BY USE OF ARMS ONE NEEDS TO QUESTION THE PARADIGM OF DEVELOPMENT THAT IS FOLLOWED BY COUNTRIES, UN AND BRETTON WOODS INSTITUTIONS. HOW CAN FUNDING BE RAISED FOR SOCIAL SERVICES? ANDRE GUNDER FRANK'S THEORY OF DEVELOPMENT AND UNDER DEVELOPMENT (https://www.rienner.com/uploads/4858093a03883.pdf) SHOULD BE ADAPTED AND USED TO ANALYSE THE PROBLEM AND PAULO FRIERE'S PEDAGOGY OF OPPRESSED (http://www.pedagogyoftheoppressed.com/) SHOULD SHOW PATHWAYS AHEAD. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT UN SECURITY COUNCIL IS RULED BY COUNTRIES WHICH SPEND LEAST PERCENT OF GDP ON ARMS AND MOST ON SOCIAL SERVICES, HAVE LEAST GINI INDEX AND PREFERABLY KEPT MNCs OUT, DO NOT APPROPRIATE NATURAL RESOURCES OF OTHER COUNTRIES THROUGH THEIR INDUSTRIES and FOLLOW PEDAGOGY OF OPPRESSED. ARE THERE ANY? ranjaniIndependent Researcher and Activistaffiliated with Dalit Mukti Morcha and other social movements
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