The Paradox in US-China Relations

The Paradox in US-China Relations The Paradox in the US-China Relations: A Commentary Almost a decade and half ago, one of the leading thinker and strategic expert on China; Gerald Segal prophetically described the implications of Chinese power especially in the East Asian region. He argued, â€Å"There is no more weighty uncertainty for East Asia, than the future of China. If China staggers amid leadership struggles and perhaps even disintegrates as a state, the region will fear mass migration and spreading chaos, if China forges ahead with a double digit growth, East Asia will fear the implications of Chinese power[1] Segal in the concluding remarks of his article titled, â€Å"Tying China into International System† (Survival; 1999) presented few assumptions. He foresaw that the uncontrolled economic growth in China would result in an increasing need and desire to trade with the outside world and China needs to be tied into the international system on the basis of these assumption about China’s future. One of them was a) that it will not disintegrate in chaos, will have a looser political system b) second that East Asian region will fail to develop any serious multilateralelism. There will be much talk in the region about the need to work more closely at the ASEAN and CSAP forum on the security of the region, however no real action was perceived. Surprisingly the East Asian region will have ramification of the Chinese power and the lead in dealing with China in the coming years would not be initiated by the East Asian countries. This would leave China unchallenged in the region. He a lso asserted that China would also likely to have a major long term adversarial relationship with the west. The aforementioned analysis describes some of the reality of the Chinese rise as of today. Beijing has certainly not disintegrated into chaos, through a steady projection of its influence, it has established that it is indeed a rising power and would continue to do so. The West especially the US may not have a direct adversarial relationship with China but all that is not hunky-dory in the Sino-US relationship. Interestingly this becomes evident when the trajectory of the bilateral relations is analysed at a profound level. Both the US and China are ambitious countries as far as projecting their influence is concerned. China is the only country which has directly challenged the US hegemony after Soviet Union. In the post-Cold War era of multipolarity the decline of the West (US) has also been juxtaposed with the rise of the rest (China) even by American scholars. (Zakaria; 2008). While the US was preoccupied with the global war on terror campaign and entangled itself in Iraq and Afghanistan; the People’s Republic effectively utilised this opportune moment of US occupation to its advantage by extending its international interactions and maximised its inventory of allies in the international political system. The Chinese influence in the international politics was regarded significant to such an extent that US too responded to the emerging threat discourse with an accommodating view. In a Congressional Report (2008) and the US Quadrennial Defense review (QDR-2001), the US administration was counselled to adopt ‘engagement’ as the best way to integrate China into prevailing global system. Today, China is engaging itself with the international community like never before by crafting a multitude of bilateral agreements and partnerships. Beijing has sought trade agreements, oil and gas contracts, scientific and technological cooperation, and de-facto multilateral security arrangements with countries both around its periphery and around the world such as Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It has also extracted oil and gas exploration contracts with Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela, and Cuba; and with Central Asian states such as Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan; in search to satiate its hungers for energy security International Negotiations Diplomacy The emergence of multiple centres of power in the international politics have not only declined the pre-eminence of the American power but have also made space for China to exerts it influence in various spheres such as international economy, international negotiations on significant issues such as climate change, the South East China Seas and even in the nuclear realm. On all these issues China has taken a powerful stand. For instance on the issues of currency, China maintains a low exchange rate of its currency for its economic growth. Financial experts from both US and Europe have called China to allow its currency to rise. This sentiment was resonated even by the US President himself during his first visit to China in 2009. The same year Presidents of major banks like Europen Central Bank; Jean-Claude Trichet, and Dominique Strauss-Kahn; the former managing director of the IMF have also called for a stronger yuan but China did not adjust its currency in response to a foreign pressure.[2] China has boldly stood up against the US on the issue of Climate Change too. It is referred as the world’s largest Green House Gases (GHGs) emitter and suffers from a poor record as far as environment issues are concerned. In-fact China occupies a unique position in the Climate Change negotiations. It is one of the largest emitters of Co2 but it is also a developing country and possesses a valid claim of right to further develop like the US. It is one of the major voices in the Climate Change talks and some experts has suggested that it was China that blocked the last Copenhagen (2009) talks by asking for an appalling deal such that western leaders can walk away and thus creating a stalemate. At the Copenhagen it not only insisted on removing the binding targets for itself but also for other countries.[3] The strange power play by the Chinese delegation can also be viewed as an effort to weaken the Climate Change regulation regime. Very recently the UN Climate Summit at New York was concluded in which both the US and China seems to have agreed on reaching an agreement on reducing emission from 26 to 28 percent for the United State by 2025 and China to reach the emissions warming peak by 2030 or earlier[4]. Being a top emitter of Co2 China’s budge towards a substantial position on emission cuts ; only after the US has promised to take a step ahead on emission reflects nothing but geopolitics manifesting at the negotiation table. Nuclear Relations A similar Chinese behaviour of pushing the US to do its bit first can also be seen in the realm of nuclear security as well. Nuclear capability symbolises power in international politics. While China is far away from matching the US inventory of nuclear weapons, it cannot be ignored that being the only P-5 that is increasing its nuclear arsenal; China’s potential in influencing the nuclear debate at the international multilateral forum remains strong. It is interesting to note here that the official Chinese position on nuclear arms race is that, â€Å" the nuclear-weapon states with the biggest stockpiles should undertake special responsibility for nuclear disarmament and take lead in reducing their nuclear arsenals and delivery systems,†[5] China expects the US to first pave way for the other nuclear-weapon states to join the nuclear disarmament process. Furthermore the 2013 nuclear notebook of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists describes the Chinese nuclear capability as growing slowly and increasing in capability. Many in the US presume that the growing Chinese nuclear capability especially the long range missiles which includes as many as many as 60 LRBMs can reach some portion of the United States. In-fact according to the US intelligence community prediction by the mid-2020s, China could have more than 100 missiles capable of threatening the US.[6] In-fact the American experts for nuclear issues believe that there is a need to maintain a long term stability in the US-China nuclear relations even though the nuclear dynamics between the two countries are relatively stable at the present. The exponents of such idea have based their judgement on the US concerns about the Chinese expansion of the quality and quantity of its nuclear arsenal. The analysis of US-China nuclear relations by the working group reveals a possible intensification of strategic arms race between the two countries. This might manifest in increasing the uncertainties about the nuclear deterrence and thus crisis management between the two must take effect. In-fact it is advised to the US government to take up informal ways to shape China’s nuclear decision making.[7] Geopolitical Ends at the Asia Pacific Region The current Chinese Ambassador to the US; John Kerry in his remarks described the bilateral relations as â€Å"the most important as well as the most sensitive, the most comprehensive as well as the most complex, and the most promising as well as the most challenging †[8] and referred it as the most consequential one determining the shape of the 21st century world. While officials from the White House have diversified adjectives to describe beautifully the US-China synergies, they have also acknowledged the difference the two countries have a two distinguished countries. Moreover, these two distinguished countries also have comparable power interests in the same geographical entity called the Asian Pacific region. For both the countries the region is a crucial one and the most promising as far as security is concerned. The US has blatantly announced its pivot to Asia Pacific in order to execute its rebalancing strategy. One must reckon that in the recent years China too has started looking at the region more prominently. The US has categorically announced its reservations on the Chinese assertive foreign policy behaviour in the South and East China Seas region. Even though the US is not directly related to any of the South China Sea dispute; the United States maintains a strong position on the Chinese claims on the South China Sea Vis-a-Vis claims of other littoral states. The South-China Sea region is a strategic pass way containing critical sea lanes of communications. It is also a region through which half of the world’s oil transport passes through. The sea connects the Pacific Ocean with the Indian Ocean it has utility for major naval power. It must be reckon that the United States considers itself as a influential player in the Asian Pacific region and it has sustained its pre-eminence over this region for over six decades. [9]The region not only has a symbolic utility for the United States but it is also practically being used as a transit point and an operating area for its Navy and Air Force to shuttle between the military bases in Asia the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. Similarly on the East China Sea, the similarity of ambitions and the difference in policy approaches towards the region also appear to be clear. Very recently the US deepened its commitment to the East Asian region and invited Japan and Australia for a military co-operation towards collectively working on strengthening maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. It is noteworthy that in the same platform revealed President Obama’s subtle hint to China that aggressive acts on territorial disputes concerning the region might, â€Å"spiral into a confrontation†.[10] In addition to this President Obama categorically conveyed his idea of an effective security order in Asia that ought to be based on alliances of mutual security and driven by international norms and laws instead of spheres of influences or driven by acts of intimidation of big nations ( such as China)[11] Cyber Space It is a known fact that the United States was the progenitor of what we know today as the world wide web/internet. The internet owes its birth to the US Department of Defense in the 1960’s where it was developed and used for defence communication. Today the commercialised internet has grown so big and forms part of much bigger virtual domain known as cyber space. This cyber space in its totality is, practically out of a complete control of one singular country let alone the United States, which ironically gave birth to it. The cyber space has escalated itself in international politics as a powerful domain. It is regarded as one of the battle domain for future wars among countries. China is notorious for practicing all forms of cyber theft, hacking, cyber terrorism, etc. towards the United States. China is an increasingly growing player in the Cyber security realm. It is the only Asian country with one of the most internet users, which is state controlled. While the domestic environment of China’s internet is largely defined as strict; externally China is identified by the United States as real cyber threat for other countries. According to the US reports on China uses cyber warfare for data gathering, to constrain an adversary’s effective communications etc.[12] United States has suffered the most out of these evil intentions of China. Many instances of cyber-attacks such as ‘Titan Rain’ from China have been reported. In-fact it was revealed in 2004-2005 that the Chinese hackers have compromised the computers of NASA and other military and technological centres across the United States. Not only have the Chinese denied all these allegations as baseless, but have also refused to cooperate with the American investigations. The White House has recognised cyber security as linked to America’s economic prosperity national security, and individual liberties. Indeed the cyber space touches the American lives closely on a daily basis and to safeguard the security in this realm, the US has been evolving a policy to shape the future Cyber security regime. It starts from domestic ownership of critical infrastructure combined with an improved reporting of incident and response. Since the Cyber domain involves virtually all countries with no boundaries any cyber policy would only be effective if international partners are engaged effectively. Under this context the co-opting of China becomes really critical. The United States seeks to build a consensus based approach as far as implementing international cyber norms are concerned[13]. The American concern for the on growing Chinese Cyber warfare capabilities appears evident from the statement of a former US Defense Secretary; Leon Panetta two years ago have reiterated the need for both the countries to work together in the realm of cyber security as both of them have developed technological capabilities in this arena to a great extent. [14] Concluding Observations: China too has registered its presence as influential players in the international politics. Interestingly it has raised concerns in the US about its ramifications upon the American goal of sustaining its pre-eminence. Indeed China continues to ameliorate its presence in the strategic calculus of the US almost daily with the American strategic narrative painted with the shades of Sino-US Strategic partnership, competition, bilateral ties, cooperation etc. There are number of American experts such as Selig Harrison, Aron Friedberg, David Lampton etc who have predicted a rise of a peer competitor in Beijing especially bearing in mind the Chinese power influence in the Asian region. These experts have categorically highlighted the prospects of a regional threat to the US from China. The China watchers in the US; even after a decade have analysed that China would look outward as its foreign policy ambitions are as aggressive as the United States. [15] The US views on China could be assessed from various perspectives such as realist and liberal and each lens is likely to put forward a conflicting rudimentary divide between the two countries. This is clear from the analysis of former Deputy Assistant for National Security Affairs; Aron Friedberd and even the greatest practitioner of diplomacy in America; Henry Kissinger himself. While Friedberg argues that both countries have locked themselves in an increasingly intense struggles for power and influence; Kissinger have put forward his advice to the US in dealing with China and have insisted that both sides should be open to convincing of each other’s activities as a normal part of international life. He further argued that, â€Å"the inevitable tendency to impinge on each other should not be equated with a conscious drive to contain or dominate†[16] The US-China interaction in international politics cover so many arenas that is has become rather tricky for scholars to identify one set of variable to describe the bilateral relations that both share. In the most recent times the labels for US-China relations have ranged from business-partnership, strategic partnership, strategic competitors and even Sino-US cold confrontation.[17] Finally, the graph of US- China relation s that started officially with the US Secretary’s ‘open door’ notes have fluctuated from being estranged countries to strategic partnership and today have become the one of the most significant bilateral relations defining the shape of the international politics. A saying about history suggests that it repeats itself. It is ironical that several decades ago the United States was driven to China for trade prospects so much so that; the Chinese silk, tea can be credited with bringing the first set of millionaires in America. The American fascination for the oriental products dates back to the year 1784 when a commercial (US flagged) vessel ‘Empress of China’[18] sailed the Chinese seas. It was the trade issues that normalised the US-China relation during the 1970’s. While the US cut the Chinese melon into sphere of influence for economic benefits, today it is the American markets flooded with Chinese goods . Moreover, it is the American ‘Apple’ that is now reverse engineered in China. The United States in the first part of its relationship with China dominated the terms but today China has turn the dynamic of relations into a partnership. It may not be incorrect to suggest that history indeed might be repeating itself in reverse. [1] Segal Gerald, (1999) â€Å"Tying China Into International System†, Survival, Vol.37, No 2, p .60 [2]â€Å"Chinas Exchange-Rate Policy: A Yuan-Sided Argument† 19 November 2009, The Economist, at http://www.economist.com/node/14921327 , accessed on 21 November 2014 [3] Mark Lynas, â€Å"How Do I Know China Wrecked The Copenhagen Deal? I Was In the Room†, The Guardian, December 22 2009 , at http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/dec/22/copenhagen-climate-change-mark-lynas, accessed on November 25, 2014 [4]Laura Barron-Lopez, November14 2014, â€Å" US Climate Envoy: China Deal Boosts Paris Talks, But Uncertainty Remains† The Hill, at http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/225206-us-climate-envoy-china-deal-boosted-paris-talks-but-uncertainty , accessed on 24 November 2014 [5] â€Å"Chinas Contributions To Nuclear Disarmament†, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, à £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€š ¬Peoples Republic Of China, at http://www.china.org.cn/e-caijun/e-caijun1.htm, accessed on December 1, 2014 [6] Hans M. Kristensen and Robert S. Norris, (2013), â€Å"The Chinese Nuclear Forces†, Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, Vol. 69, No. 6, pp. 79-85 and Hans M. Kristensen and Robert S. Norris, (2014) â€Å" US Nuclear Forces, 2014, Bulletin of Atomic Scientist, Vol. 7, No. 1, pp.85-93 [7] John K. Warden, Elbridge Colby Abraham Denmark, (201p, â€Å" Nuclear Weapons and US-China Relations: A Way Forward† Report by PONI by a Working Group on US-China Nuclear Dynamics, Centre for Strategic and International Studies [8] John Kerry, 4 November 2014, Remarks on U.S.-China Relations, at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2014/11/233705.htm, accessed on 23 November 2014 [9] Hina Pandey, (2011), â€Å" Recent Developments in the South China Sea: US China Confrontation†, World Focus ,pp. 261-268 [10] [11] Jamie Smyth, (2014), â€Å"US, Japan and Australia to Deepen Alliance† The Financial Times, at http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3a34e028-6cb3-11e4-b125-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3KuFyTEkN, accessed on 3 December 2014 [12] E. Dilipraj, (2014), â€Å"Mapping the Cyber Dragon: China’s Conduct of Terror in the Cyber World†, Defence and Diplomacy, Vol.3, No.4, July- September, pp. 85-97. [13] Cybersecurity, 4 December 2014, at http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy/cybersecurity , accessed on 4 December , 2014 [14]  David Alexander, (2012), â€Å"US- China Must Work to Avoid Cyber Conflict: Panetta†, Reuters, at http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/08/net-us-usa-china-defense-idUSBRE84700Q20120508 , accessed on 4 December 2014 [15] Selig Harrison, (2000), â€Å"China And The US in Asia: The Threat Perception in Asia† cited in â€Å" China’s Future: Constructive Partner or Emerging Threat† in Carpenter and James A. Don, CATO Institute, pp.109. and Robert Kaplan, (2010),â€Å"The Geography Of The Chinese Power: How Far Can Beijing Reach On Land And At Sea?† Foreign Affairs, May/June 2010 [16] Friedberg L. Aaron, â€Å"The Future of U.S. China Relations: Is conflict inevitable?† ,International Security, Vol. 30, No. 2, Fall 2005, pp7-45 and Henry A. Kissinger,(2012) â€Å"The Future of US-Chinese Relations: Conflict Is a Choice, Not a Necessity†, Foreign Affairs, Vol.91, No.2, p.44 [17] Chintamani Mahapatra (2014), â€Å"US-China Cold Confrontation: New Paradigm of Asian Security†, Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies, at http://www.ipcs.org/article/us-south-asia/us-china-cold-confrontation-new-paradigm-of-asian-security-4333.html , accessed on 1 August 2014 [18] Song Yuwu (2009), Empress, â€Å"Encyclopedia of Sino-US Relations,† McFarland Co., p. 99.

Major Earthquakes are Inevitable in Indiana’s Future Essays -- Earthqu

Major Earthquakes are Inevitable in Indiana’s Future An earthquake felt throughout the Midwest on June 18 was a shaky reminder that earthquakes can occur anywhere. The earthquake, whose epicenter was located north of Evansville, was felt through most of Indiana and surrounding states, as reported by the Indianapolis Star. The quake was not the largest in Midwestern history, only registering a 5.0 on the Richter scale, nor did it do much damage. However, it was a wake-up call reminding those who haven’t paid attention to past warnings about the possibility of larger, more destructive earthquakes. Earthquakes, by Webster’s dictionary definition, are, â€Å"a shaking or trembling of the earth that is volcanic or tectonic in origin.† World Book Encyclopedia reports scientists believe that more than 8,000 earthquakes occur each day without causing damage. A little more than 1,000 each year are strong enough to be felt. Earthquakes occur in the general sense, anywhere on land. Other earthquakes go by different names, such as volcanic eruptions and tsunamis, large tidal wave storms that occur underwater, primarily in the Pacific Ocean. Earthquakes are a natural part of the Earth’s evolution. Scientific evidence leads many geologists to believe that all of the land on Earth was at one point in time connected. Because of plate tectonic movements or earthquakes, continental drift occurred separating the one massive piece of land in to the seven major continents today. Further evidence supports this theory, starting with the Mid-Atlantic ridge, a large mass of plate tectonics, which are increasing the size of the Atlantic Ocean while shrinking the Pacific. Some scientists believe that the major plate moveme... ...nd others for injuries, look for and extinguish small fires, inspect your home for damage, listen to the radio for instructions, and expect aftershocks. Tectonic plate movement can occur as close as two and up to 450 miles below the Earth’s surface. According to the Indiana Geological Survey, Indiana’s fault lines are further underground than those in California and Alaska, causing more minor quakes in the Midwest. However, Hoosiers should heed the recent earthquake as a warning for future quakes. Earthquakes can and do happen in Indiana, and almost anywhere else in the world. This is the one natural disaster that people cannot avoid no matter their location on Earth. And, being unprepared can have devastating results. Samuelson said, â€Å"Another earthquake or series of them the size of the New Madrid earthquakes is inevitable in Indiana’s future.†

Comparison/Contrast Essay Eng101

Name Professor ENG 101 November , 2012 British PSA is the best choice Although both the â€Å"British PSA† and the â€Å"AT&T PSA† use the fear of injury and death to discourage texting while driving, the British PSA is more effective than the AT&T PSA because it focuses on the details of the injury and death during the accident. Both the British PSA and the AT&T PSA show the â€Å"life changing† and â€Å"life ending† consequences that can occur when a person chooses to text while driving.The British PSA shows a deadly multi-car crash that occurs because the texting driver crosses the centerline and hits another car head-on only due to the fact that she and her teenage passengers were distracted by a text message on her cell phone. Likewise, the AT&T PSA shows several different people whose lives have been destroyed by tragic car accidents (involving injury or death) caused by texting while driving.Both videos show the devastating effects that texting whi le driving can have on the texting driver and other innocent people, but the â€Å"British PSA† is the more effective video. The AT&T PSA shows three separate storylines of people who have been affected by injury and/or death because of texting while driving. The 1st storyline is about a teenage girl who died a year earlier when she was texting while driving. The story has a policeman describing the accident scene and the victim’s family and friends describing their loss.The 2nd storyline is about a teenage boy who killed a man on a bicycle when he was texting while driving. The 3rd storyline shows a mentally and physically disabled young man who became disabled from a car accident in which he was texting while driving. These 3 storylines bring out strong feelings in the audience of compassion for the loved ones, sadness for the injured, and concern that something like this could happen to you or your loved ones.However, this video does not show any details of the actu al accident, therefore making it difficult for the viewer to imagine this all came from just a simple text message. In contrast, The â€Å"British PSA† clip uses a dramatic approach by showing the details of a full-fledge highway multi-car accident. The clip shows the terrifying effects of a deadly head-on collision in slow motion. Immediately after the head-on collision, the car with the 3 teenage girls gets broad-sided (T-boned) by a third car travelling at a high rate of speed.It provides a bloody and graphic example of the devastating effects that texting while driving can bring and strives to promote staying off cell phones while operating a vehicle by depicting an event that the audience would never want to live through. Instead of just showing the aftermath or the long term effects of the accident, The â€Å"British PSA† uses an approach to shock the audience and literally scare them from ever wanting to text while driving by showing the injury and death of seve ral people involved.The â€Å"British PSA† is more effective than the â€Å"AT&T PSA† because it allows the audience to witness the horrible details of a car accident instead of just hearing about the aftermath several months later. Works Cited AT&T Don’t Text While Driving Documentary. (2010). Retrieved November 22, 2012 from http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=DebhWD6ljZs. PSA Texting While Driving U. K. Ad. (2009). Retrieved November 22, 2012 from http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=R0LCmStIw9E.

Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde Essays

Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde Essays Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde Paper Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde Paper Teenagers do not always long to grow up. The term hanging fire refers to a firearm with its trigger pulled but is delayed in igniting. In this case, of the poem â€Å"Hanging Fire† by Audre Lorde, it represents the girl being hesitant and insecure about her future, therefore is neglected in going on, as in the bullet that is supposed to fire. Lorde’s focus is on several issues that confront the teenager within the poem and affect teenagers in the extended world: the preoccupation with death, the problem of living in a sexist society, and the fear of isolation within the home that will be the recurring problem which ultimately causes the young girl to be traumatized. Lorde uses short sentences to present the complex idea that resonates with women all over the world – the stereotype of nagging is used as an excuse for problems to be ignored. In â€Å"Hanging Fire,† the speaker talks about that time in a girl’s life when she is not yet a woman, but she is not just a girl either. The feeling of growing into one’s own skin is not comfortable for anyone, but this speaker puts this agonizing process into clear concise words. This speaker explores both the physical and the emotional aspects of puberty. The speaker, who is fourteen, speaks of her skin, her room, her braces, her boyfriend, her grades, and her clothes in a tone of despair. She talks about these things in such a desperate manner that the audience can picture their own experience vividly. She talks about how she feels ignored by her mother. Though tragic, many women can relate to this experience of self-wallowing and uncomfortable changes. That desperation and frustration cause her to think about her fear of death. Throughout the entire poem, the teenager is preoccupied with death and dying. In the first stanza, she frets, â€Å"what if I die / before morning† (8-9). In the second stanza, she worries, â€Å"suppose I die before graduation† (15). In the final stanza she is trou :

Reforms to Kenyas Corporate Law and Practice Essays

Reforms to Kenyas Corporate Law and Practice Essays Reforms to Kenyas Corporate Law and Practice Essay Reforms to Kenyas Corporate Law and Practice Essay The Companies ACTA (hereinafter referred to as the Act) Is based extensively on the united Kingdoms Companies Act 1948. This law has been in existence for the past 60 years with very minimum developments. It is imperative that laws should not be static but should change in tandem with the societal changes. Therefore, there is need to modernize Jennys company law to make it responsive to the currents needs by taking into consideration emerging trends in corporate affairs around the globe. Such emerging trends include modern means of communication, modern patterns of exultation and ownership as well as current trends of globalization and regional integration. A modern company law regime will support a competitive economy and spur Jennys economic growth as envisaged by Vision 2030. Amendments to the company law as It Is will definitely keep It In stride with the changing modes of corporate law and practice. It Is of Interest to note that the Auks Companies Act 1948 which our very own Act Is based on has undergone considerable changes. This same law has been discarded in most commonwealth countries. In UK, the changes have illuminated into the enactment of the Companies Act of 2006. An Anally Limited v. Attorney Generate, it was Lord Dinings view that: The common law cannot be applied in a foreign land without considerable qualification. Just as with an English oak, so with the English Common law. You cannot transplant to the African continent and expect it to have the same character it has in England. It will flourish indeed, but it needs careful tending The common law cannot fulfill this obligation except with considerable qualification Taking into consideration Lord Dinings words about moon law as stated above, we submit that with reference to an imported Act, It has to be tailored towards a Jurisdictions needs before or after importation. Therefore, such an Imported law needs to be updated from time to time so as to keep along with the changing circumstances In the local Jurisdiction. It is against this background that this part of our paper proposes reforms to Jennys Corporate Law and Practice. Proposed Reforms to Jennys Corporate Law and Practice (a) Company insolvency provisions The Company Act as it is today contains provisions relating to winding up of impassions. Whereas we acknowledge that such a state of affairs makes the Act a one stop shop for all company matters, it is our view that this increases the complexity of the same Act. In light of this, it is our recommendation that insolvency related provisions be expunged from the companies legislation. Insolvency related provisions should be contained In an Act specifically meant for insolvency. (b) Rehabilitation of Insolvent Companies Whenever a company becomes insolvent under the Act, it almost always leads to bringing to an end the existence of a company. This leads to loss of employment by former employees of such a company thus leading to high levels of employment which the Kenya government is grappling with. It is our view that an insolvent company should only be wound up where circumstances do indicate that the company cannot be brought back to its feet. We therefore, recommend that where there are reasons to believe that an insolvent company is capable of corporate rescue, such a company should not be wound up but it should be rehabilitated. 5 This reform has been Justified as crucially relevant to Jennys vision twenty thirty6 which seeks to transform Kenya into a competitive and prosperous middle income economy. It is thus implicit that this proposed reform has as its inherent object the reinforcement of the poverty reduction strategies through a rehabilitation and rescue procedure whose effective implementation would save Jobs and revenue in the long term (c) Preferential treatment of creditors The Act, during a Companys winding up process, puts preference to the government as a creditors as opposed to other creditors. It is against this background that we propose for an equal treatment of all company creditors during winding up. Many bona fide creditors of insolvent companies do lose the opportunity to recover their money because of the consideration of the government as a preferential creditor. This policy is detrimental to the growth of other businesses that are not classified as secured creditors. Where businesses are unable to recover the money owed to them, they may also experience financial difficulties and eventually suffer liquidation as well with the effect that a series of receivership occur and the momentum continues to build for more business failures. Government loss in the short term will certainly e compensated when the businesses have recovered and begin to pay taxes. (d) Enhancement of monetary penalties/values The Act contains various offences which carry monetary penalties. For instance, where a liquidator fails to comply with section 269 (3) of the Act, he is liable to a fine not exceeding one hundred shillings for every day during which he is in default. On the other hand, an offence committed by a director under section 276(3) makes one liable to imprisonment for a period not exceeding twelve months or to a fine not exceeding twenty thousand shillings or to both. Further, under part VI of the Act, a bet of at least asks. 1000 owed by a company to a debtor is sufficient ground for commencement of winding up proceedings if such a debt remains unpaid for three weeks upon demand. It is our view that the monetary values highlighted above were set taking into consideration Jennys economic circumstances during the sass. We propose that all monetary values under the Act be enhanced to reflect the current economic trends. Act cannot serve as a deterrent. Offenders who are well endowed economically might commit offences at will knowing so well that consequences for such conduct are not rave. We propose enhancement of penalties and fines for offences under the Act. For instance, where a director is found guilty of a misconduct under the Act, he should be barred for life from holding a seat as a director in any other company. This reform will rid the corporate world of fraudsters masquerading as directors. (e) Need to accommodate and adopt modern business communication practices The Act demands those engaged in the formation of a company to submit hard copies of the documents required for registration of a company to the registrar. Submission of he hard copies to the registrar also involves the physical presence of whoever submits the documents at the company registry. Further, the documents are usually presented and registered solely at the Company registry situate at the State Law Offices in Nairobi. A companys annual returns are also required to be submitted to the registrar in a hard copy. The existence of a single company registry leads to long queues and congestion at the company registrars office. A single company registry in the whole country causes mobility difficulties for people resident in far flung areas eke Alloying, Hajji, Mandela, Van and Chances. We recommend that the Company Act should be amended so as to allow online registration of companies. Online registration of companies will reduce the agony and difficulties experienced by Kenya resident in far flung areas. There is need to adopt and recognize electronic communication and the use of websites for a companys communications. Online registration and submission of annual returns by companies, payment of taxes and other related issues should be done online other than the current manual and physical practices of filing the said documents at the company registry. In the event that Kenya lacks the machinery to deal with technological challenges or cyber fraud likely to arise from the proposed online reforms, it is our alternative recommendation that County Company Registries be established in all the counties. Decentralization of the Company Registry will go a long way in fulfilling the Constitution of Kenya, 2010 objects. Company registries should be established in all the regional state law offices spread across the country. (f) One Member Company Section 4 of the Act provides that a public company shall be formed by seven or more errors whereas a private company shall be formed by 2 to 50 members. We argue that there are individuals with the economic wherewithal to promote and form a company single handedly . This kind of people should not be subjected to the troubles of looking for additional people to aid them in becoming members of a company. It is our suggestion that the law should be amended to allow a single individual to form a company provided the register of Members includes the name and address of that member and a statement that the company has only one member. There should be no restrictions on increasing the number of members to ore than one other than the company ensuring that the additional details of members are entered in its register of members. (g) Company Secretaries The current Act requires that every company shall have a secretary who is qualified in accordance with section 20 of the Certified Public Secretaries Act, 1988. In our nominal capital results to an extra-economic burden to small private companies. Whereas we acknowledge that the hiring of a Company Secretary by each company instills professionalism within the corporate world, the economic implication of this requirement on small private companies should not be ignored. It is against this backdrop that we suggest an amendment to the Act in order to allow private companies with a nominal capital of less than Five Million Shillings (EKES. ,000,000) not to hire a secretary qualified in accordance with section 20 of the Certified Public Secretaries Act, 1988. Instead, a director or any authorized person may fulfill the duties of a secretary. On the part of private companies with a nominal capital of at least asks. 5,000,000, we recommend that they should hire company secretaries registered with the Institute of Certified Public Secretaries of Kenya (SKIPS). This will accelerate professionalism and proper accountability in company matters. H) Stan dard of proof in fraud Another difficulty with the Act is the lifting of the corporate veil. In Re William Letch Brose Ltd, the court gave the word fraud a very liberal definition and noted that, where a Company continues to carry on business and incurs debts at a time when to the knowledge of the Directors, no reasonable prospects of the Creditors ever receiving payment of these debts, it is, in general a proper inference that the Company is carrying on business with the intent to defraud and in that case, the reporter veil can be lifted. Section 323 of the Act is to the effect that the shareholders and directors can be held liable for the debts and liabilities of the Company if it is proved that they were fraudulent in their dealings. In both fraudulent conduct highlighted above, there is always a difficulty in proving fraud. The degree of proof required is higher than a balance of probabilities but not beyond reasonable doubt. This state of affairs demands a lot of evidence so as to prove fraud yet in most instances there is never enough evidence to prove it. We recommend the incorporation of Shareholders Agreements within the Act. The Shareholders Agreement can practically make any provision for any conceivable eventuality in their relationship and thereby address in advance most of the issues which lead to disputes, litigation and even winding up of the Company. 11 With a Shareholders Agreement, the need to prove fraud shall be dispensed with as one is at liberty to sue for breach of the agreement instead of raising fraud issues. O)Reforms as to memos and articles Under the Act, members are obligated to set out all the objects of the company in the memorandum, with the consequence of lengthy and bulky memos. We propose that the Act provides for submission of a simplified memorandum of association. This can be achieved by reducing the information the memos need to contain. The Act requires that where a company adopts any model articles within the Catch, members must register articles with the registrar of companies. We recommend that a company to which model articles apply should not register the articles with the registrar. The requirement to register model article only contributes to the Conclusion It is our view that the reforms highlighted above should be incorporated into the Act. Allowing communication of a companys information in electronic form and through websites will ease communication and facilitate the efficient operation of companies. The simplification of the memorandum of association and the exemption from registering articles of association for companies to which model articles apply will make formation of a company easier and faster. As such, if incorporated into the Act, the proposed reforms will simplify and demystify the formation and operation of companies.

Is the profession an outdated notion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Is the profession an outdated notion - Essay Example actice, such as information systems and controlled professions such as medicine and law where loss of member ship leads to loss of the right to practice. Professional ethics connotes the conduct, behaviour and practice of professionals. There are numerous advantages of being part of a profession; some of these are as described in the sequel. First, the professional body issues certificates that the professional has met rigorous standards recognized by the professional body. Secondly, the employers respect these certifications. Thirdly, the professional body would often reviews and verifies these credentials. Fourthly, the liability claims if any will be limited. Fifthly, such certification is a fundamental standard. Finally, the professional is made accountable for his professional actions. Profession covers a wide range of activities such as sports, journalism, choreography, law, medicine, information technology, police, army, etc. Hence, professional ethics vary from profession to profession. Another factor which is to be kept in mind is that such professional ethics may not be applicable or available in all the professions. Another important factor to be considered is whether these professional standards are compulsory or obligatory and whether such a code of ethics is practicable. A major constraint in this regard, is the difficulty of implementing such a code in the multitude of professions which have proliferated in today’s society (Davison and Kock, 23 September, 2004). If one considers the police profession, in this perspective, then one observes that one of the biggest disadvantages, inherent in this profession is the gaining of the impression that one is exclusive and that other members of society are not good enough. This tends to make policemen, all over the world, forget that most citizens are good people. The habit of viewing everyone as a law offender develops due to dealing mostly with criminals and other law –breakers, during the course of

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Constructing Deductive Arguments - Essay Example (3)Abortion is deliberate killing of the unborn human fetus. (4)My neighbors Rosa and Michal aborted their child like many other people in this country. Therefore, (5) they are all murderers and should be punished. Fetus is human because it has complete set of DNA and deliberately removing it equates that a human is killed who would have developed into a complete form if the killers were stopped. No doubt, killing is unlawful and those who abort their child should be punished according to law. The above argument develops around deductive reasoning. The premises (1, 2, 3, and 4) are accurate, therefore they lead to the conclusion (5).Conclusion (5) that they are all murderers and should be punished flow from the premises (1) Deliberate killing of human is a crime (2) murders should be punished (3) abortion is deliberate killing of the unborn human fetus (4) my neighbors Rosa and Michal aborted their child like many other people in this country. The conclusion (5) is valid and sound because it flows from the premises which are