Mercy Killing or Just Killing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 4

Mercy Killing or Just Killing - Essay Example Proponents for euthanasia have passionately defended their position for accepting and adopting its practice. World people are facing ever-growing moral dilemmas. With the advancements in the medical field also come new procedures as well as easier ways to deal with problems. A popular moral dilemma that comes to mind is abortion. Now many people are against abortion for religious reasons. Moreover, just like abortion, many consider assisted suicide as murder. However, it is both ridiculous and irrelevant to argue on whether assisted suicide should be legal. When I was young, my Oma (grandmother) was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. For years, she lingered in the home as her mind slowly decayed over time. First, she could not remember how to speak English. She would be talking and resort to her childhood language at random points. Therefore, she would say a 10-word sentence and a half of it would be spoken in English. Next came the hard memory, she would forget simple tasks and could not be left on her own. She would forget the location of the bathroom was in her own home. Next was perhaps the hardest to deal with, she forgot our names. First came distant relatives but finally, she could not remember my mom’s name, her own daughter. Lastly, she forgot how to do pretty much anything; she could not button shirts, she could not even move at all. When she was in the home, she got bedsores from lack of movement. Moreover, she could not get up to go to the bathroom. Now, this is obviously horrible but the worst was the few mom ents where she had a small amount of clarity where 2 seconds here 3 seconds there she would remember how to talk. I recall one such moment when she simply said to my mom who was visiting her in the home, she simply said, â€Å"help me.† I remember how it crushed my mother and crushed me. Now everyone has his or her own religion and personal belief but I will now ask you a very philosophical question.  

Technological device Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Technological device - Essay Example After staying in college for three months, my parents sent me money to buy a cell phone. Unlike Gathman (42) who preferred a bilingual phone, I preferred a phone with internet access. I acquired a Nokia 2330 Classic model. This device increased my urge to use the internet. I deviated from searching for academic material to searching for famous quotes and biographies of famous people. From famous philosophers like Aristotle, Socrates to the greatest mafia such as Al-Capone I passed through their lives. This information was not much related to my field of study but I fancied searching for it. The quotes and biographies, I downloaded them, printed, and documented them. This was not only outside the lecture room; I could search for this information even during lectures if I found the lecturer to be boring. My colleagues found my character weird because at that time we were overburdened by assignments and less time was available for leisure. I had heard about Facebook several times even b efore I joined college and when I came to college I found it was very popular among the students. We were raised in a Christian family and my parents instilled in me strict Christian values. They had warned me against sites like Facebook over and over again. They told me that Facebook was a dating site that enhances moral degradation in the society. I heed to their advice and no matter how much my friends convinced me to join the network, I resisted the temptation. In fact, I commenced a campaign to discourage my friends from being on Facebook. I usually used to search for my friends on the internet and sent them messages requesting them to delete their Facebook accounts because it was an â€Å"immoral† site. One time a lecturer gave to one of our colleagues an assignment, we did not have a lecture that day so reaching all students in our class was an uphill task. The student decided to post the assignment on Facebook because making phone calls would have been costly for her. Information went round but I could not get it because I was not part of the â€Å"Facebook community†. The next day the assignment was due for submission yet I heard not heard about it. My friends blamed me for being rigid towards embracing the new technological paradigm. Since that day my thinking was transformed; was it for better or for worse? During the lunch hour, I disregarded my parents’ advice and went and opened a Facebook account. Even though I had opened the account, I was very cautious. I researched about social networking sites in depth. It was then that I came to learn that Facebook unlike dating sites offered a platform for people to make friends and share views and thoughts (Jain, Anand and Gupta 2). My whole attitude towards Facebook changed. I sent friend requests to my colleagues and friends. My friendship search did not stop at home; I crossed the borders and even searched for friends in other continents like Africa, Australia, and Europe. Sometime s I sent them messages in their in box and commented on their status. This site now provided me with information about lecture schedules, assignments, and meetings. I became so used to Facebook that most of my time was spent on Facebook. My passion for searching for quotes and biographies faced and was replaced with Facebook networking. The reason as to why I had resisted Facebook was now contradicted. I commenced

Sociological Concepts of the Family Modern Day Family

Sociological Concepts of the Family Modern Day Family Introduction In this essay, I will be explaining the family structure of my case study (who we will refer to as Andrew to protect his identity and in keeping with the Data Protection Act 1998) and the influence the family has had in his life. I will identify and explain two sociological perspectives and compare them with todays idea of the family with the traditional idea of the family, I will also provide three sociological concepts and explain them in relation to the role of the family. There have been many changes to the family since the 1950s when a typical family would have been described as a nuclear family which was made up of a married couple and their dependent children, the husband would have been the bread winner and the wife the homemaker. Today, however the structure of the family has gradually changed over the years since then, we are now seeing a rise in single parent families which is defined as families with children (under 18 years old) headed by a parent who is widowed, divorced and not remarried, or by a parent who has never been married. In Scotland, it is believed that there are just over 170,000 single parents looking after 291,000 children (www.news.gov.scot/news/lone-parents), divorce rates in Scotland between 2000 and 2007 steadily rose and at its peak in 2007 stood at 13,767, since then the number of divorces decreased (www.statista.com) a total of 9,700 marriages legally ended in 2012-13, a drop of 14% over the previous 4 years (www.bbc.co. uk/news/uk-scotland-26714426). Nowadays there are also more couples choosing to cohabitate rather than get married as it is seen as more acceptable, in a report by the Telegraph it is believed that divorce rates are at their lowest in 40 years due to the rise in the cost of getting married and couples choosing to live as common law husband and wife. (www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/12011714/divorce-rate-at-lowest-level-in-40-years-after-cohabitation-revolution.html). With more and more women becoming independent and building careers, the man is now seen to be sharing the responsibilities of the childcare and housework, this is known as the symmetrical family which basically means more similar roles exist. We have also seen a rise in a blended family, also known as step family, reconstituted family. It is when a family unit where one or both parents have children from a previous relationship, but they have combined to form a new family. The parents may or may not have children togeth er. In 2011 step-families made up 8% 26,000 of the population and household in Scotland (www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk). Andrews family structure could best be described as a single parent family before being taken into care. His mother ended her relationship with Andrews father before she gave birth due to domestic violence and them both being dependant on drugs, to date Andrew has never met his birth father. Sociological perspectives such as functionalism are a theory that all positions in society serve a function and is essential to the continuation and structure of that society. Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) was a sociologist who argued that society had to be studied in its own terms and not of that of the individual. Durkheim believed that societies were knitted together by everyone sharing the same values, which through time would change as these societies get bigger and more complex.   Durkheim referred as how society comes together through a shared view of rules, norms and roles. Mechanical solidarity is a form of social cohesion that arises when people in society maintain similar values and beliefs and engages in similar types of work, organic solidarity is a form of social cohesion that arises when people in society are interdependent, but hold varying values and beliefs and engage in various types of work.   Another perspective is based on the conflict theory, which is primaril y based on the work of Karl Marx (1818-1883). The conflict perspective focuses on the class divide, how the wealthy control the poor and the weak in the competition of scarce resources. The bourgeoisie represents the class with the wealth and means and the proletariat represents the working class or poor, Marxs theory was that the bourgeoisie would control the proletariat with their wealth and power therefor subjecting them to worsening conditions, bringing inequality to light and the possibility of revolt. If conditions were addressed to the concerns of the proletariat, the conflict circle would eventually repeat. Using these perspectives in comparison with todays idea of the family with the traditional idea of the family, the functionalist perspective has some similarities and differences. The similarities are that society still shares the same views, beliefs and norms, however through time these have changed, before the idea of the traditional family would be the nuclear family which would consist of a father, mother and dependent children, but with the rise in divorce rates and couples choosing not to get married in the past years we are now seeing more of single parent families. With laws and attitudes changing we are now also seeing it more acceptable in society for same sex couples getting married and starting families, something that would have been unacceptable in past years. The advance in technology is something that has had an impact on family life, before families would gather round for dinner, play games, watch TV etc. but with the technical advances in mobile phones, social media and gaming consoles this is something that has dwindled and we are now seeing less of. Using the conflict perspective, we still have the divide in class with the wealthy having the majority of power and means. We still see competition for the scarce resources and the poorer and weaker families suffering as a result, mainly due to low minimum wage, benefit sanctions and the lack of social housing. We have seen a rise in social conflict in that communities have been divided by religion and race, with the rise in terrorist attacks many minorities and people seeking asylum are feeling isolated and victimised as a consequence of other peoples actions. The roles of the family are broken down as mum, dad, sister, brother, grandparents etc., in Andrews case this is something that was quite confusing to him as he had never known his father and seen his older sister and grandmother as his primary care givers and parental figures. Even though his sister was not much older than him he realised that his mother was not acting in the role she should have been. This was due to neglect through drug use and his sister taking on the role of his mother and for Andrew his role as a son was never accomplished due being unable to form an attachment with his mother. This is something that we have seen all too often in Scotland which the Scottish government are highlighting through a report called Hidden Harm. It highlights that, parental drug use can and does cause serious harm to children of every age. With Andrew not having a father figure in his life he seen his mother as the sole provider of the household. With most of the financial resources be ing brought into the household being used to fund his mothers drug use, Andrew had noticed the social divide in class when he started school as the other children would be dressed better and spoke about the things they had that he didnt, this lead to Andrew being bullied which contributed to the behaviours he displayed at home. The norms of the family may include doing together such as going to church, having dinner, holidays picnics, watching movies etc., the definition of norm is something that is usual, typical, or standard. In todays society, it is much harder for families to spend time together. According to a report by the daily mail it is estimated that families spend less than eight hours a week together due to the stresses of modern life. this could be due to parent/parents working long hours or anti-social hours to keep up with the bills, with the advance in technology parents and children spending more time on social media, children playing gaming consoles and watching TV, however it is important for families to spend time together to create an environment that helps shape childrens character and self-esteem and brings the family closer. Family values are something that is passed on from generation to generation and contribute to the familys structure, function, roles, beliefs and attitudes. The importance of family values is something many people take for granted and is highlighted in times of crisis, this is when our values influences the decisions we make and seek protection from outside influences such as peer pressure. This is when parental guidance is needed, in Andrews case he never had the values or parental guidance needed to steer him through his childhood and adolescence, something that might have helped manage his behaviours towards others. Conclusion My research into the family has helped me to understand my case study more and how the influences of the family can have a big impact on how a person is shaped in society. Word count 1570 References http://www.statista.com/statistics/367809/scotland-divorce-rate/ accessed 06.02.17 http://www.gov.scot/news/lone-parents-in-work accessed 06.02.17 http://sheknows.com/parenting/article/831061/5-reasons-family-time-rocks accessed 09.01.17 http://www.gov.scot/resource/doc/114027/0027764.pdf accessed 27.02.16 http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk accessed 07.02.17 http://www.medlineplus.gov>ency>article accessed 19.12.16 http://www.psyhologytoday.com>basics accessed 19.12.16 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/12011714/Divorce-rate-at-lowest-level-in-40-years accessed 30.12.16 http://www.sociology.com/001/Profiles/fl/Why-Emile-Durkheim-Matters-to-Sociologists.htm accessed 05.01.17 http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/conflict-theory.asp accessed 06.01.17 http://.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-236193/No-time-family-You-Parents-children-spend-hour-day-modern-demands.html accessed 04.01.17 http://www.cecp.air.org/wraparound/family.html accessed 04.01.17 http://www.healthofthechildren.com/s/Single-Parent-Families.html accessed 05.02.17 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-26714426 accessed 06.02.17

Carmen :: essays research papers

Carmen is a story about a girl who is only fourteen years old and she deals with moving to a new neighborhood and her abusive, alcoholic father. As she deals with her father’s problems and her mother’s denial she quickly falls into a life of drugs and despair, which will follow her throughout most of her life. It all starts with Carmen and her family moving from Brooklyn to New Jersey they find a bigger house and buy lavish furniture that they cannot afford.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Her dad has always been an alcoholic, but lately he has become aggressive and lashes out at Carmen and her mother. After he tries to strangle Carmen she tries to run away and finally succeeds on her second attempt. Carmen then lives with her friend Lulu for awhile and she becomes addicted to heroin. Carmen meets two people through Lulu: Nancy and Bud. Bud grows fond of Carmen and she decides to live with Bud who is a drug dealer, but after she repeatedly steals drugs from him, he kicks Carmen out. Carmen who has no place to go, walks around the subway for hours and Nancy recognizes her and offers Carmen a place to stay by introducing her to Hugh and Gene, they are two men that protect her and they are known as pimps. Carmen turns to prostitution because it is the only way to pay for the drugs she uses. One day Hugh is caught and charged with operating a business illegally and Carmen becomes bored quickly and moves to the Bronx to find more work. Carmen then meets Vinnie, a man who enjoys her company and sometimes gives her money out of pity for her situation. Vinnie starts to use heroin while Carmen is away and he too becomes addicted to the drug. Vinnie’s personality changes and he is desperate for money and a way to get high, so he and Carmen plan to burglarize a home of a recently deceased person. They break into the house while the funeral takes place and as they attempt to leave, the police arrest both Carmen and Vinnie. They are put in jail and enter a drug abuse program. Carmen and Vinnie are released after ninety days and they both turn to drugs again. One day Carmen walks down an avenue and Nancy recognizes her and stops to talk. Carmen is asked by Nancy to baby sit her son Tommy and she agrees to watch him for a little while so Nancy can run some errands. Carmen :: essays research papers Carmen is a story about a girl who is only fourteen years old and she deals with moving to a new neighborhood and her abusive, alcoholic father. As she deals with her father’s problems and her mother’s denial she quickly falls into a life of drugs and despair, which will follow her throughout most of her life. It all starts with Carmen and her family moving from Brooklyn to New Jersey they find a bigger house and buy lavish furniture that they cannot afford.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Her dad has always been an alcoholic, but lately he has become aggressive and lashes out at Carmen and her mother. After he tries to strangle Carmen she tries to run away and finally succeeds on her second attempt. Carmen then lives with her friend Lulu for awhile and she becomes addicted to heroin. Carmen meets two people through Lulu: Nancy and Bud. Bud grows fond of Carmen and she decides to live with Bud who is a drug dealer, but after she repeatedly steals drugs from him, he kicks Carmen out. Carmen who has no place to go, walks around the subway for hours and Nancy recognizes her and offers Carmen a place to stay by introducing her to Hugh and Gene, they are two men that protect her and they are known as pimps. Carmen turns to prostitution because it is the only way to pay for the drugs she uses. One day Hugh is caught and charged with operating a business illegally and Carmen becomes bored quickly and moves to the Bronx to find more work. Carmen then meets Vinnie, a man who enjoys her company and sometimes gives her money out of pity for her situation. Vinnie starts to use heroin while Carmen is away and he too becomes addicted to the drug. Vinnie’s personality changes and he is desperate for money and a way to get high, so he and Carmen plan to burglarize a home of a recently deceased person. They break into the house while the funeral takes place and as they attempt to leave, the police arrest both Carmen and Vinnie. They are put in jail and enter a drug abuse program. Carmen and Vinnie are released after ninety days and they both turn to drugs again. One day Carmen walks down an avenue and Nancy recognizes her and stops to talk. Carmen is asked by Nancy to baby sit her son Tommy and she agrees to watch him for a little while so Nancy can run some errands.

Linguistic Reorganization of States and the Changing Federal Structure of India

India is a federation of states and these states are separated on the basis of major languages. The Indian leaders right after independence made it clear that they wanted a federal state. A federation is the existence of dual polity. It is a group of regions or states united within a Central government. It is a dual form of government where the powers are divided between the centre and the state governments.They each enjoy considerable independence within their sphere of Governance so as to avoid any clash between the two. However the basis on which this federal structure would be implemented was not certain. Right after independence, Jawaharlal Nehru, opposed the formation of states based on linguistic lines. According to him this would lead to the emergence of sub-nationalities that would cause agitation and then to the rising of sovereign states.Thus, initially after Independence the country was divided into states belonging to 3 classes Class ‘A’ states, which were m ade up of the former British Provinces, such as Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar; Class ‘B’ states, which were made up of former large princely states and large amalgamated unions of states, such as Hyderabad, Mysore and Rajasthan; and Class ‘C’ states, which were those formed out of smaller princely states, such as Bhopal, Delhi and Vindhya Pradesh. The Dar Commission, which was set up to deal with the question of linguistic states, expressed itself against the linguistic reorganization of states.In November 1948, the JVP committee was set up to review the Dar Commission report because of the insistence from the delegates of Andhra, Kerela, Karnataka and Maharashtra. This report too was against the linguistic reorganization of states. In 1953 following the fast unto death by Potti Sriramulu in support of Telugu speaking Andhra the congress was forced to change its position and Andhra was created in October 1953. In response to the mounting flood of add itional demands the State Reorganization commission was established on December 1953.The report of SRC given in 1955 created 14 new states from the existing 27. In 1956 the act was enacted. This was the first phase of linguistic reorganization, other phases followed during the period from 1960 to 1980 when these 14 states were further subdivided into new states. As the introduction suggests setting up states on linguistic lines was not the aim of the leaders rather they were forced to. They wanted the states to be economically and administratively viable also they wanted to avoid further communalism which might be caused due to the states being reorganized on linguistic basis.Integration and democratic participation were the important aims of the leaders then. There was an attempt for inclusive agglomeration of diverse identities and groups through inter-segmental and inter fractional adjustments and changes. After Independence â€Å"the task of putting the new nation in to working order, dealing with the lions of refugees, of coping with the conflict in Kashmir, of integrating and consolidating into governable units the myriad of princely states and framing constitutions became the most urgent items on the Government’s agenda. â€Å"Unity† and â€Å"security† were the slogans of the day. (J. E. Schwartzberg) However this policy â€Å"proved inadequate when it encountered the large currents of era of mass politics†¦.. The issue of Linguistic states in particular became the focus of popular agitation† (A. S. Narang). Also minorities complained of discrimination by the local government. It was also stated that the political parties repeatedly exploited ethnic minorities anxieties and desires. The Dar Commission discarded the linguistic reorganization on the basis that a state cannot be created having only 70-80% of the population speaking the same language.The commission said that it could not be called a â€Å"linguistic group † but rather a â€Å"big majority†. It was however along this big majority lines that the 14 states were carved out in 1956, thus eliminating the categories of states as class A, B and C. But it gave rise to new problems, for example the SRC did not, at that time, divide the provinces of Bombay and Punjab because they found no neat linguistic lines for division. A separate state of the Punjabi Suba was demanded based on the religious differences between the Hindus and Sikhs.Nehru did not agree with this idea but instead said that additional areas should be incorporated into the present state of Punjab to dilute the Sikh presence and marginalize the separatists within the province. This was mainly because Punjab was a border state and any tampering with the people’s interests might jeopardise the security of the country. But ultimately the new state of Punjab was formed in 1966 when the Sikh leadership abandoned the religious criteria and demanded the formation of Punjab on ethno linguistic lines.Along with the new state of Punjab other 2 new states formed Haryana- which consisted mainly of the Hindi speaking belt of erstwhile Punjab and Himachal Pradesh- which were mainly the hill districts. The province of Bombay was also bifurcated between the Gujarati and Marathi speakers in 1960. â€Å"The first federal revolution thus discarded the design of administrative divisions that Nehru had favoured for independent India, a design which did not recognize the need for congruence between ethnic identity and territorial homelands.The first reorganization did precisely the opposite: it legally acknowledged India as a federation of ethnic subunits. In a sense, Nehru and India had returned to the ethnic fault line conceded by the Congress movement during the struggle for national independence. † (Maya Chadda). This was not the end of all problems. The new issue arose in the north-eastern states. The North-eastern states were the most neglected of all the states in India.The British followed a policy of seclusion that had left the region resentful and suspicious of all governments that had sought to control the Northeast from New Delhi. Along with that the overlapping of the Naga and Mizo tribes across Burma and the Indo-Chinese border, closely linked the issue of ethnic autonomy to national security and territorial control. If India was to keep these areas under her control it was necessary to appease the people living in those areas. And the appropriate answer was found in separating the state of Assam into separate tribal provinces.The Nehru government created the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution which divided the Northeast into three broad areas with special arrangements of power sharing for each. This schedule created district councils which had power over local economy, culture, religion and customs. Eventually with the North-Eastern Area (reorganization) Act 1971, there came in to existence several states from the undivided state of Assam. Tripura and Manipur which were originally parts of Assam became Union Territories in 1956 and then separate states in 1972.Meghalaya became an autonomous state within Assam and then a full-fledged state in 1972. Mizoram was declared a Union Territory. While there were agitations in Tripura and Manipur for separate statehood like the Nagas, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh never demanded a separate statehood. These states were simply created to stop China from claiming these border territories. The state of Mizoram was created in 1987 after signing of accord between the Mizo National Front and the Govt of India after 20 years of insurgency by the dominant Mizo tribe.But this did not end the problem as many linguistic minorities felt that in the states with a dominant language they were outcasts, they were being neglected by the dominant groups and this was leading to the deterioration of not only their culture but also their languages. This identity crisis a mong the various minority groups is still leading to upheaval in different parts of the country. Many linguistic minorities are asking for separate states citing the example of the north-eastern states. LINGO-ETHNIC UPHEAVALS IN DIFFERENT STATES:Even though the states of India have been from time to time reorganized on the basis of linguistics, some problem always seems to crop up regarding one area or another. At present upheavals are more regarding ethnic reorganization rather than linguistics alone. Here is an account of 2 such strifes. THE NAGALIM PROBLEM- One of India’s oldest continuing armed conflict is between the Govt of India and the Nagas. The armed conflict has persisted with two interruptions one in 1960 and another when an accord was signed in 1975. The pact of 1975 was signed between the Govt of India and some willing leaders of Nagaland.This was interpreted as a sellout and thus gave fire to the already heated up issue. The conflict was that of the creation of Nagalim, an integrated land for the Nagas which not only included the present state of Nagaland but also those districts of Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam containing Nagas as majority. According to J. P. Hutton (1922), â€Å"Nagaland (Nagalim) has always been a sovereign nation occupying a compact area of 120,000 sq. km of the Patkai Range in between the longitude 93 °E and 97 °E and the latitude 23. 5 °N and 28. 3 °N.It lies at the tri-junction of China, India and Burma. Nagalim, without the knowledge and consent of the Naga people, was apportioned between India and Burma after their respective declaration of independence. The part, which India illegally claims, is subdivided and placed under four different administrative units, viz. , Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland states. The eastern part, which Burma unlawfully claims, is placed under two administrative units, viz. , Kachin State and Sagaing Division (formerly known as the Naga Hills).Nagalim, how ever, transcends all these arbitrary demarcations of boundary†. The integration of the Naga areas of Burma with the areas in India was not the Naga political agenda, but bringing the Nagas of India together has been an issue that unites most Nagas. Even the Nagaland Assembly has passed a number of resolutions expressing support for that cause. The policy of non-interference by the British â€Å"was followed by area expeditions that were resorted to in order to quell opposition of the hill communities to the colonial extension of commercial activities in and through their land.Eventually the hill communities were brought under different territorial administrative authorities and hence the concept of territorial politics was thus introduced, hitherto unknown to the hill communities. The so-called ‘administrative convenience', made some of the ethnic groups fall under one or another political unit. In the process the Naga areas were brought under four administrative units; Assam, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. The contiguous Zeliangrong Nagas were divided among the states of Assam (North Cachar Hill district), Nagaland and Manipur.Such whimsical administrative divisions and introduction of territorial politics shattered all ethnic aspirations† (U. A. Shimray) and gave rise to ethnic stirrings The problem with the Nagas are that they are not a linguistic community, they speak as many as 30 different languages which belong to several distinct forms of Tibeto-Burmese language group. The languages spoken by some tribes are incomprehensible by the other Naga tribes. Thus, whether or not some of these groups should be included in to the Nagas is a very big concern. The other major problem is with that of Manipur.The goal of creating a single political unit out of all Naga-inhabited areas puts the Naga project of nationhood in collision course with a parallel Manipuri project. â€Å"Indeed, the issue is so sensitive that until June 2001 the Indian government left the territorial scope of the 1997 ceasefire deliberately vague. Eventually, things came to a head when the NSCN–IM insisted on a clarification, and in June 2001 a joint statement confirmed that the ceasefire was ‘between the Government of India and the NSCN–IM as two entities without territorial limits’.The announcement led to a veritable political explosion in Manipur and significant expression of anger in the other affected states. Seeking guarantees from the Indian government that Manipur’s territorial integrity would not be sacrificed on the altar of Naga peace has now become a major theme in Manipuri politics† (Sanjib Baruah). The United Naga Council (UNC) has issued a statement that calls for a â€Å"peaceful parting† between the Nagas and the Meiteis. But theUNC statement will only aggravate the tense situation in Manipur because it threatens a break-up of the tiny state, a prospect no Meitei will be prepa red to accept. The Centre on the other hand has made it absolutely clear that Manipur’s territorial integrity or Assam’s and Arunachal Pradesh’s cannot be undermined to solve the Naga problem. It is therefor time for the NSCN and other responsible Naga civil society groups to state if they are willing to accept a solution without a â€Å"Greater Nagalim† that will mean slicing up of existing states like Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.If they accept then an extensive autonomy plan that give Nagas a chance for socio-cultural integration without changing of state boundaries, should be prepared by the state govts to give something like â€Å"supra-state body† a chance. That may mean that the Nagas will control the areas of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh that they inhabit in a majority — but that is a price the three states may have to pay for finally solving the Naga problem that threatens to engulf the whole region.THE GHORKHALAND P ROBLEM- Another big problem for India is that of the Gorkhaland issue. The word Gorkha is historically associated with the Kashas of North India. But it was after the establishment of the Gorkha Dynasty in1559 by Drabya Shah, the word began to be referred to the inhabitants of the Gorkha ruled region. Daniel Wright (1877) says, â€Å"The Gorkhas or the Gorkhalis so named from the former capital of their country are the dominant race. They formerly occupied the district around the town of Gorkha, which is about 40 miles from the city of Katmandu.They are said to be of Rajput descent and to have been driven out of Rajputana on the occasion of an invasion by Musulmans. They first settled near Palpa, having passed through the Kumaon hills, and gradually extending their dominion to Gorkha. † The Gorkhas were originally Indo-Aryan in character but after the Anglo-Nepalese war the British distinguished them as distinctly mongoloid in character. With time the term Gorkhas have been u sed interchangeably with the Nepalis. The struggle for Gorkhaland, it seems, started since 1907 by the leaders of the hill people for a separate administrative setup.In 1917 there was a similar demand to create a separate territory from West Bengal. Similar uprising followed in 1919, 1920, 1930. In 1943 the All India Gorkha League was formed which wanted the govt to recognize the gorkhas as a separate minority. Then in 1949 they demanded a separate state for themselves. But these were all disregarded by the authorities. The main agitation for the Gorkhaland started in the 1980’s under the leadership of Subhas Ghising belonging to the Gorkha National Liberation Front. The GNLF-led agitation for the creation of a separate state of â€Å"Gorkhaland† happened at a time when the Communist Party of India, Marxist [CPI(M)] was firmly in power in the state of West Bengal. Given the CPI(M)’s pro-poor ideology, stellar achievements in land reforms, rural development, and community empowerment in West Bengal, and prior public commitments to grant autonomy to the Gorkhas, it was surprising that sentiments for a separate Gorkhaland grew steadily in the Darjeeling district† (Rajat Ganguly).Once the agitation started it left many people dead, many hundreds homeless, there was loss to the local economy due to strikes etc. More importantly it drove a deep chasm between the majority Bengalis and the minority Gorkhas in West Bengal. All this led to an agreement between the GNLF and Govt of West Bengal & Govt of India in August 1988 that aa autonomous Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council will be established, but in return the GNLF would have to drop the demand of separate state. However this hardly changed the situation of the hill district.There were hardly any development project carried out by the DGHC and the people felt cheated. The DGHC blamed the West Bengal Government for not providing the necessary funds and for trying to undermine the DGHC’s image and authority in Darjeeling. At times, Subhas Ghising, the GNLF President and Chairperson of the DGHC, even talked of resurrecting the Gorkhaland agitation, which were dismissed by his political opponents as merely pressure tactics to procure more funds from Kolkata. Ghising’s political opponents in turn accused him and the DGHC of being corrupt and wasteful and operating in an undemocratic manner.The struggle for Gorkhaland received a new boost 2008 when a new party called the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha under the leadership of Bimal Gurung. Once a trusted aide of Subhas Ghising, Bimal Gurung decided to break away from the GNLF and started a new agitation for Ghorkhaland. A new party was formed called the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha and on April 2011 they signed a pact with the central and state govts forming the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, a semi- autonomous body that would replace the DGHC.The reasons why there is a demand for Gorkhaland are: 1. â€Å"Although st ates in post-independent India were reorganized on the basis of ethno-linguistic criteria, the policy failed to eradicate the problem of â€Å"entrapped minorities† as many states within the Indian federation continued to include peripheral minority ethnic groups that were linguistically and culturally different from and politically and economically subordinate to the majority ethnolinguistic communities that wielded power in the states.Many of these entrapped minority groups had a long history of demands for political autonomy or separate political identity and had come to believe that the States Reorganization Commission would consider their case with sympathy. When that did not happen, many of these minority ethnic groups felt frustrated and aggrieved. In the years following the states reorganization, these isolated and peripheral minority ethnic groups came to resent their endemic poverty and underdeveloped status and became convinced that they were being deprived (delibe rately or otherwise) by the majority communities that controlled the state governments.The only way out of this poverty and underdevelopment, these groups felt, was by creating their own state and entering into a direct relationship with the Indian central government for assistance and guidance; for instance, Gorkha leaders in Darjeeling cited the example of Sikkim, which had one-third of Darjeeling’s population but received almost ten times more central grant than Darjeeling†. (Rajat Ganguly) 2.The isolation and under development has been aggravated by the fact that that their homeland has been infiltrated by members of the dominant community and other ethnic groups thereby creating an exploitative cultural division of labour in which valued roles and resources are allocated mostly to the outsiders. The ethnic communities have also failed to successfully compete with the dominant outsiders for valued resources, such as access to education, health care and employment. 3 . The agitators argued that the West Bengal state government have deliberately kept Darjeeling isolated and neglected.They also claimed that much money was spend on the development of Siliguri but very little of these funds went to the hills for the development of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and other hill towns. For eg- there is still acute shortage of water and the supply is not enough to cater to the demands of the growing population as well as the tourists. The conditions of the roads are appalling and there is a huge dearth of electricityor problems of voltage. 4. The area had no facilities for higher education, the North Bengal University being the only University in that region.But it was situated in Siliguri and not in the hills. 5. This neglect of the region has led to the decline in the tourism industry, which has further led to the decline in employment among the local people. 6. It was also claimed that the Govt offices set up in the area did not benefit the locals as most of the posts went to the outsiders from the plains. Along with that the lack in education facilities did not facilitate the locals in getting the jobs. 7. West Bengal government based in faraway Kolkata appeared to be remote, opaque and unaccountable to the local people of Darjeeling.The CPI(M)’s casual response to the various grievances and problems of the people in Darjeeling also strengthened the local perception that the party neglected the hills in favor of the plains. BODOLAND ISSUE, ASSAM: The Bodos belong to the Tibeto-Burman speaking Indo-Mongoloid ethnic group and are the most commonly found in the Brahmaputra plains of Assam. â€Å"The term Bodo is also used to denote a large number of tribes-the Garos of Meghalaya, Tippera of Tripura, and Boro Kachari, Koch, Rabha, Lalung, Dimasa, Hajong, Chutia, Deuri, and Moran of Assam and other parts of the Northeast†. M. N. Brahma, â€Å"The Bodo Kacharis of Assam-A Brief Introduction,† Bulletin of the Tribal Rese arch Institute [Gauhati], 1:1 [1983], p. 52. ). These tribes ruled over Assam until about 1825 but at present they are found in the northern areas of the Brahmaputra Valley, mainly in Kokrajhar, Darrang, Goalpara, and Kamrup districts. Theirs is a patriarchal society and they mostly follow Bathauism, which is a form of animism, as religion. They mainly practiced Jhooming agriculture but off late have ventured into settled agriculture.Industrial activities are lacking but there may be some silkworm culture done by the Bodos. The demand for a separate Bodoland started during the British rule. It took a major turn after independence and mostly after the formation of Nagaland and other north-eastern states. The bodos formed Plains Tribal Council of Assam (PTCA) in 1967 and demanded the formation of a separate state for the Bodos and all other plain tribes of Assam. The All Bodo Students Union also formed in the same year as a part of PTCA. But with time they all lost hopes upon the part y and started working separately.In the 1980’s Assam saw another movement by the All Assam Student Union (AASU) and Assam Gana Parishad (AGP) about the eviction of foreign nationals from the state. The ABSU worked alongside the AASU with the hope that their cause would receive a boost. The movement ended with the formation of the new AGP Govt. But the ABSU soon realized that the attitude of the new Govt about towards the Bodos is no less different from the preceding Govts. Thus, in 1987 they renewed their struggle for Bodoland, a creation of full-fledged state for the Bodos.The two districts of Kokrajhar and Darrang became the nerve centres of the struggle. Initially the ABSU had a list of 92 demands but later it mainly centred around 3 main agendas: (1) formation of a separate state named Bodoland on the north bank of the Brahmaputra; (2) establishment of autonomous district councils in the tribal dominant areas on the south bank of the Brahmaputra; (3) incorporation of the Bodo Kacharis of Karbi Anglong in the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution The main reasons for this agitation were: 1.The Bodos constituted 49% of Assam's population in 1947; but by the 1971 census they had dropped to 29% due to internal and external migration. The migrant labours from Bangladesh affected the population of the Bodos. They got most of the jobs while the Bodos were left jobless. 2. Another major problem was that the Bodos mostly depended on agriculture for sustenance. The land that belonged to them have been mostly taken away form them by the migrants or for the establishment of tea plantations pushing them away into the forests and thus reducing to poverty and indebtness.The new regulation by the Assam Govt imposed a rule forbidding any settlements inside the forest. All of these led to the entrapment of the tribals and was a major cause for the agitation. 3. In 1950s the Govt of Assam had made a rule forbidding the encroachment of the migrant population in to the special area demarcated for the Scheduled Tribes and Castes. But this was not strictly maintained leading to the loss of land among the tribal and a severe competition for the scarce resources. 4. In 1960s the Assam Govt. declared the Assamese language to be the official language of the state.The effort to impose the language drove a wedge between the two communities. 5. The effort by the Assam Govt to assimilate the different identities and not integrate them led to the fear among the tribals about loosing their identity. This to a large extent led to the agitations. 6. Only 10% of jobs are reserved for plains tribals, including the Bodos. On top of that the requirement of knowledge of the Assamese language to obtain a government job in the state was a further barrier to employment opportunities for Bodo youth. . The progress achieved by hill tribes in neighboring Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Nagaland and the relative advances made by the two hill districts of Assam-Karbi Anglong an d North-Cachar Hills with their autonomous district councils made the Bodos and other plains tribes feel that, despite their larger population, they have been ignored. 8. The creation of separate tribal states for populations smaller than the Bodo in the 1960s and 70s made the demand of the plains tribals seem legitimate. 9.The crafty drawing of the constituencies merging the tribal and non-tribal majorities makes it impossible for the tribals to gain a seat in the state legislators. 10. Lastly, the unrestrained suppression by the law enforcement agencies against Bodo agitators in 1987 fuelled the movement further. The ABSU resorted mostly to bandhs and closures, disrupting the rail and road links of Assam and the rest of the northeastern region. The agitation also saw extortion and harassment of nontribals, non-Bodo school teachers, clerks, foresters posted in tribal areas, and tea plantation managers and employees.But the most serious development of the movement was the formation of the rebel insurgent Bodo Security Force (Bd. SF), comprising a hard core of the Bodo youth wedded to violent tactics to achieve the goal of Bodoland. â€Å"The prolonged movement seriously affected the economy of Assam and the entire northeastern region. The chief ministers of the six northeastern states that were affected by the frequent bandhs urged the movement leaders, the Assam government, and the center to move quickly toward a settlement.Political parties of all hues unequivocally condemned the violence perpetrated by some of the protestors and the consequent police reprisals. The AGP government came down heavily on the agitators, ruling out any need to form a separate Bodoland state to ameliorate the grievances of the plains tribes. It also sought to drive a wedge between the Bodos and other tribes by avowing the need to protect the interests of all tribals in the state, the Bodo- dominant movement notwithstanding. † (Sudhir JacobGeorge) The agitations continued we ll into 1993 with the Bodo Security Force gaining more power and at places marginalising the ABSU and other parties. There were also a number of failed attempts to talk by the Assam Govt and the central Govt. Efforts to solve the Bodo issue continued involving a great deal of ground work and behind-the-scenes effort on the part of Home Affairs Minister Rajesh Pilot, the Bodo Congress (I) legislator, Jaman Singh Brahma, and an emissary of the prime minister. These efforts ultimately resulted in the Bodo Accord, signed at Guwahati on February 20, 1993, formally ending the prolonged Bodoland agitation.The main aspects of the Bodo accord was: 1. Creation of a Bodoland Autonomous Council (BAC). This is only an autonomous hill council and not a separate state. 2. The legislative power of the BAC is to be vested in a 40-member council, out of which 35 members are to be elected on the basis of adult franchise and the remaining five are to be nominated by the governor of Assam. 3. Executive powers are to reside in a smaller Bodoland Executive Council (BEC), similar to a state-level cabinet. 4. There would also be elections for the BAC. 5.The territory of the BAC included the areas between the Sankosh River and Mazbat Pasnoi River, which roughly mark the western and eastern boundaries on the north bank respectively. The more complex southern border of the BAC, often impinging on nontribal areas, appears to have been left unspecified. Comprising 2,750 villages and several small towns, the BAC includes 25 tea plantations. 6. A benchmark for the inclusion of areas in the BAC was that Bodos should constitute 50% or more of a village's population. However, villages with lesser Bodo populations have also been included to ensure territorial continuity. . The BAC is to be organized with 38 departments, mostly corresponding to the subjects earmarked for autonomous district councils, such as education, forests, health, land, and revenue. But law and order was retained by the stat e, along with the right to dismiss the elected council under exceptional circumstances. (Legislative Branch, Assam Act No. 11, 1993) 8. The Accord also provided for the leaders of the movement to ensure the surrender of all arms, explosives, and ammunition by their followers, and bring those who had gone underground back into the national ainstream. All the rights of nontribals living in the BAC area were to be protected, and their language, culture, and land kept intact. [Memorandum of Settlement (Bodo Accord)]. So was the agitation really worth it? The 7 or 8 year long agitation, did it end in the fulfilment of the demands? An analysis of the Bodo accord reveals that the Bodos did not get all that it wanted. Firstly, they did not get the state separated as they would have wanted. Secondly, it was not a tripartite deal rather a bipartite deal with the state and the BAC.Thirdly, it was not a political accord as it was only an administrative institution. The law and order was to be m aintained by the state government. Fourthly, the leaders had to accept only half the area of they actually demanded. It includes 2750 villages only rather than the 4635 initially demanded. Also the area of the BAC is still not defined. All these shortcomings have led to discontent among the Bodo people. The situation is very vulnerable and an outburst again is not far away. Infact a strife did take place in mid 2012 in Assam again.So we see that the there was unnecessary killing of people. The people of different religions and communities were rendered homeless. They had to live in refugee camps. The strife led to the destruction of the valuable forest and wildlife resources because the Bodo security force took shelter in the Manas wildlife reserve. The area was exploited indiscriminately by the security forces. But it seems that the lines of agreement did not do justice to the struggle. All the loss of lives seemed to be in vain the destruction of forests were in vain because they did not receive even half of their want.CONCLUSION We see that even if the state had earlier yielded to the linguistic reorganization of states in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s they are opposing now. The increasing opposition by the Central and State governments in the recent times has shown that the country is not ready for further divisions. Where they have initially supported the tribal groups in the border areas for the formation of states they are not supporting it now for further division. Thus, the Bodoland, Gorkhaland and Nagalim movement did not hold good. All these movements failed and statehood was not granted.

Economic Impact of Tourism

Select a small to medium size town and explain the economic impact the tourists have had on this place. Introduction The potential of tourism as a development strategy for small towns is a very important issue for local economic development. Many small towns have benefited from tourist development all over the world . I have decided to choose the town of Jurmala in Latvia as the focus of this assessment. Background information about Jurmala Jurmala – the medium size resort town in Latvia and is well known for its natural treasures- the mild climate, sea, healthy air, curative mud and mineral water. Its strcture consists of three former villages that were united in 1959. The attraction of Jurmala hides in its almost 33 km of long white sand beach, large pine forests and the natual border of the city – the river Lielupe. In Jurmala you can discover the combination of harming wooden houses built in the beginning of the last century and modern resort buildings. The unique combination of these components makes Jurmala very attractive to the tourists and makes the town an attractive relaxation and cure place for many tourists. Since 1871 the main means of transportation is train, remaining the station buildings of the late 19th century and early 20th century. The territory of Jurmala is proposed for inclusion in the World Heritage Tentative list is the Eastern part of the town -from the mouth of the river Lielupe till the territory of former fishermen village in Dubulti that for the first time was mentioned in historical sources in 16th century. This place is very interesting because here the distance between the river Lielupe and the sea is only 500 metres. Modern town of Jurmala Jurmala has grown as a tourist destination over the past decade with its main walking street Jomas and different shops which include gift shops, art galleries, quaint buildings, modern spa hotels, coffee shops, etc. The unique features of the area and the geographical location of Jurmala make the area boating, fishing, bird-watching, sunbathing, camping, etc. The entrepreneurs of Jurmala offers new possibilities for tourists every year – hotels and guesthouses and various entertainments. They cantaste delicious and healthy food in Jurmala's restaurants and cafes, walk along the central promenade of Jomas ideal for a variety of recreational activities such as river rafting, biking, hiking, street, explore the eco-trails in Kemeri National park  and Ragakapa Nature Park, enjoy the water attractions in the biggest aquapark in Northern Europe â€Å"Livu Akvaparks† and â€Å"Nemo†, visit the famous concert hall Dzintari or simply watch the sunset on Jurmala beach! | | | | | | ‘’According to data provided by the Central Bureau of Statistics, the number of tourists in the first quarter of 2009 has decreased, and adds up to 15 530 persons, that is by 28% less than in the according period in 2008. The highest load in this period was in resort rehabilitation centres and sanatorium – 31%, but the average load of hotels and resort hotels was 13%† www. jurmala. lvâ€Å"Division of guests by the country: Latvia (51%) – 6145 Russia (12%) – 1841 Byelorussia (8%) – 1191 ( + 7%) Estonia (7%) – 1100 Lithuania (5%) – 846 Norway (4%) – 689 Sweden (2%) – 376 Finland (2%) – 266 Germany (2%) – 164 Denmark (1%) – 111 ( + 50%)United Kingdom-1311(+10%)† www. jurmala. lv  Looking at the statistics by the division of guests by countries, we can see that the greatest increase is for tourists from Denmark – increase by 50%. During winter and spring months guests chose to stay in Jurmala city resort rehabilitation centres and sanatorium as they provide wide choice of rehabilitation, health and medical treatments of high quality, but for lower prices than in other EU countries. The average length of stay in Jurmala is 5 days, and that is by 2 days more than it was in the corresponding periods in 2008. Byelorussian guests have stayed in Jurmala longer than other guests – in average 18 days, then comes the guests from Germany. To show the economic impact the tourism has on Jurmala more precisely, I would like to stop at the economic impact analysis of Dzintari concert hall which is situated in the very centre of Jurmala and has an international significance. This place attracts more and more tourists and visitors every year because of different events such as like pop and rock band concerts and various entertainment events which are being held there every season from May till September. The concert hall also supports youth festivals, chamber music concerts and always gives priority to orchestra concerts. Tourists all over the Europe and especially from Russia come here each year to see the international contest of young singers, called â€Å"New Wave†. During the hot season the concert hall generates more than LVL 8. million turnover. It can easily show the economic usefulness and an important contribution to Jurmala economic development as well as to the development of state economics. Dzintari concert hall became a limited company in 2004 and started to attract more tourists. The audience of the concert hall per season since year 2003 till 2004 increased from 100  000 till 200  000 customers and now the number is still growi ng till 250  000 tourists. Due to the fact that the number of customers is growing the concert hall can provide more employment to the local people. Customers not only watch the event, they spend money on transport and it allows the transportation system become more economical as well, they also spend money on food to dine in Jurmala’s cafes and restaurants that gives them an opportunity to stay open longer and earn more. The tourists have some extra expenses during the event too such as tea, coffees, juices, alcoholic drinks, ice-creams, flowers for artists, etc. â€Å"According to the statistics o Dzintari concert hall, 76% of Dzintari hall audience spend on related goods and services more than LVL 30 per event. Only 24% buy the cheapest tickets, go to the event by public transport(when you go to Jurmala by your own car you have to buy a pass which costs LVL 1 and the money also goes to the development of the town of Jurmala), during the event take only tea, coffee or beer and go home for dinner â€Å"(see the table below) www. su. lt/filemanagerThe expenses of Dzintari concert hall customers SUM PER EVENT| PERCENTAGE OF CUSTOMERS | TOTAL EXPENSES| LVL 10-16| 24%| LVL 5940. 00| LVL 30| 30%| LVL 24300. 00| LVL 40| 15%| LVL 12000. 00| LVL 60| 15%| LVL 18300. 0| Up to LVL 100| 6%| LVL 18600. 00| | 100%| LVL 74140. 00| There were 90 events in Dzintari concert hall in 2007. We can see from the table that despite short event season, customers spent more than 6. 5 million Lats(Latvian currency , 1Ls is about ? 0. 83 ). Jurmala in the past. Telling about the economic impact of tourism on Jurmala nowadays, it would be also essential to mention the Soviet Union times when Jurmala was one of the bigge st rehabilitation centres and health resorts for the working people from the whole entire Soviet Union. To understand the economic impact of tourism on Jurmala those times I would like to provide some data. J Jurmala in the past had about 70 health centres with about 12,000 tourists all year round. Today, there are about 30 recreation facilities in the recreation business, able to accommodate no more than 4,000 guests. Earlier as many as 232,000 people came to Jurmala for holidays every year, now this figure is down to 62,000, which is a very big difference and certainly it has a negative impact on Jurmala’s economy in comparison with the Soviet times. As for the number of foreign visitors, it shrank four times after the introduction of visa requirements for Russia, for example. T Let us have a look at some objective reasons for the decline. During the Soviet times, Jurmala was very popular resort for the people all over the Soviet Union. And the region of Jurmala experienced constant growth since 1969. The situation changed dramatically since the early 1990s when Latvia re-gained independence. Latvia hasn’t been able to attract local or Western tourists to compensate for the reduced number of holiday–makers at its rehabilitation centres. In the last two years some positive trends emerged, however. Firstly, the annual number of tourist visitors has grown up to 12-15%; it’s much higher than an average figure for Latvia in general (5-6%), or the global rate of 9 percent. In the given situation (the survival of the fittest) the strongest will survive, i. e. those, who managed to preserve rehabilitation facilities, keep skilled personnel, and do qualitative marketing. Secondly, a new trend emerged, i. e. he opening of small pensions, boarding houses (bread ; breakfast), and small hotels with 5 to 30 rooms† Dainis Urbanovich, www. baltic-course. com Conclusion Looking at the information provided in the essay, we can see that the tourism has a great impact on the development of Jurmala as a resort town and the more tourists(consumers) that can be attracted by Jurmala’s beautiful nature, climate, hotels and, of course, the events in the Dzintari concert hall and different other places of entertainment in Jurmala, the higher the economic impact. Words 1527 Bibliography Books Book 1- The understanding of the travel and tourism industry Websites www. jurmala. lv www. baltic-course. com www. su. lt www. riga-hotel-guide. com Learners Declaration: I certify that the work submitted in this assignment is my own. Full Name Viktorija Chesnovicka†¦Address 2 Pavasara gatve , flat 21, Riga, Latvia LV-1082.. |