In The News

Sarkozy Pledges Police Crackdown after Riots in Paris

Jon Henley November 1, 2005
Following four nights of violent rioting in the Parisian suburb of Clichy-sous-Bois, French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy vowed to aggressively police many of the nation’s poorer, largely immigrant ghettoes. The unrest – the likes of which France has not seen in years – began on Thursday when two boys of North African origin, named only as Ziad, 17, and Banou, 15, died of electrocution after...

International Migration: Brain Drain or Brain Gain?

Caglar Ozden October 31, 2005
The surge in globalization since the end of World War II has been fueled chiefly by an international exchange of goods and capital rather than people. There are signs, however, that international migrants are playing an increasingly important role in globalization as the world enters the twenty-first century. What are the costs and benefits of this new wave of migration? The principal cost of...

China, India Superpower? Not so Fast!

Pranab Bardhan October 25, 2005
Every day, countless commentators prophesize the ascendance of the world's next superpowers, China and India, the two "Asian giants" shaking off their ancient slumber and rising to the call of the 21st century. According to popular punditry, their place in the firmament of globalization's success stories is already guaranteed. Yet economist Pranab Bardhan argues that a much...

Terrorism and Oil

Mohamed Sid-Ahmed October 24, 2005
When the price of oil spiked in the 1970s, the profits were lost to corruption and thus only deepened oil-producing nations’ social problems. We can do much better this time, argues Mohamed Sid-Ahmed: the current boom in oil prices is an opportunity for oil producers to further develop their economies and lift their societies from poverty. There are signs of encouragement on this front: today...

Kashmir: Amid Tragedy, Peace Beckons

Ahmed Rashid October 17, 2005
For half a century, India and Pakistan have disputed ownership of Kashmir. Now that a devastating earthquake has reduced the cities and towns of Kashmir to rubble, the opportunity – and necessity – for peace between the two nations is greater than ever before. On the Pakistani side of the border, the enormous devastation has left at least two million people without homes. On the Indian side,...

Cracks in the Social Net

Alexander Osang October 13, 2005
“We left that city like the colonial powers left Africa,” lamented the ex-head of personnel at what was one of the largest textile mills in North Carolina. In 2003, the Pillowtex plant, based in the city of Kannapolis, closed and laid off its five thousand workers overnight. In a region where unionization was militantly discouraged, the mill provided an entire framework of life for the community...

Don't Tell Anybody It's Africa Calling

Nayan Chanda October 4, 2005
Six hundred years ago, France exported slaves from what is today Senegal. Now, the West African country imports jobs from its former colonial master – causing panic in France, but bringing hope to workers at home, writes YaleGlobal editor Nayan Chanda. More and more French call center companies now outsource to Senegal, where they can conduct business at a fraction of European operating costs....