GLOBAL INTERSTATE
Weber (1997) describes the state as a compulsory political
organization with a centralized government that maintains the legitimate use
of force within a certain territory. On the other hand, the concept of nation
emphasizes the organic ties that hold groups of people together and inspire
a sense of loyalty and belonging—i.e., ethnicity, language, religion, and
others (Schattle, 2014). Combining these two, a nation-state can then be
defined as a political community that emanates from civic society to
legitimately execute peace. Thus, the civic society is the basis of the
people's oneness. Though some scholars like Appadurai and Ohmae claim
that globalization has superseded the individual function and jurisdiction of
nation-states, this is still arguable. In fact, they still play vital roles in the way
globalization establishes a borderless world. Nation-states can manipulate
competitive advantages with international and political issues, transnational
civil society organizations, and multinational companies. On the other hand,
they are also accountable for a host of international norms and standards,
find themselves in subordinate positions to protect their economy, and face
new kinds of pressures of supranational integration and focus of local
fragmentation (Schattle, 2014). However, if nation-states no longer have
power in today’s globalized world, then why does the United
Nations (UN), with its increasing number of states, remain relevant in global
decision making? The 194 member States of UN prove that globalization has
affected the dynamics of nation-states in the context of their agency as
legitimate holders of force in their Jurisdiction. Globalization has, in a Way,
reshaped the role and functions of nationstates as governing bodies in their
particular territories.
First, globalization is seen to impose a forced choice upon nation-
states. Either they conform to the neo-liberal ideas and free-market
principles of deregulation, privatization, and free trade or run the risk of
being left behind in terms of development. Of course, the nation-states, in
this contemporary age, are forced to submit themselves to the demands of
globally accepted free-market principles. Friedman in Steger (2005) claims
that nationstates are in danger of losing important elements of economic
sovereignty because of the notion that neo-liberalism is beyond contestation
as an aspect of globalization. In other words, nation-states still exist
but lose a part integral to their economic development and let
global corporations control their economic movement. Though
government policies can be put in place, nation-states are forced to
realign their policies to be congruent with the principles of free
trade because of the pressures from global corporations.
To illustrate, the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), including the Philippines, established the ASEAN Free Trade
Area (AFTA) in 1999. Its goal is to encourage the member-states to deepen
their commitments in investment, trade, and industrial collaboration to brace
them for the increase in the region’s economic activity.
The second effect of globalization on nation-states is the establishment
of economic and political integrations. One good example is the European
Union (EU) and the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). EU has
become a supranational body with 28 members. It has a single currency and
monetary system among 17 states, parliament with legislative powers, with
common citizens’ rights to live, work, vote, and run for office, with developed
collective mechanism to resolve crises and assist those in need, and with
intercontinental jurisprudence in the case of the European Court of Justice
and the European Court of Human Rights. The statehood of the members is
not dissolved, what has changed is only how the nation-states function, in
terms of economy and politics, as part of a whole (Schattle, 2014).
]The third effect of globalization is the establishment of international
laws and principles. This is observable in the establishment of the UN that
operates as a forum for nation-states to air their differences and try to
resolve them. The UN Security Council has powers that include the creation
of peacekeeping operations and international sanctions and the authorization
of military action. Also, UN's International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutes
individuals accused of crimes against humanity such as genocide.
The founding of ICC is based on the adoption of the Rome Statute of
International Criminal Court in 1998, with the vote of 120 to 7, with
21 abstentions. It began functioning in 2002 when the statute
officially came into force. However, the United States, China, and India
are not signatories. Thus, the treaty is not binding to these economic powers.
Moreover, there are also universal principles that are adopted by
nationstates in relation to the dynamism of globalization. Two of them are the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights that affirms an individual's rights and
the other is the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea that defines
the rights of nation-states on the use of the world’s oceans. These three
mentioned effects are vertical effects. Aside from this, globalization also has
a horizontal effect which can be observed in the formation of
transgovernmental Networks (Slaughter, 2004). National government offices
connect with their counterparts in other nation-states in order to establish
linkages that would benefit all parties. These linkages are informal
institutions that connect legislators, finance ministers, and other valuable
individuals who are significant in carrying out various aspects of global
governance. As institutions, policies are agreed upon and individual state-
participants are conscious that their home country policies should not be
violated.
The fourth effect of globalization is the rise of transnational
activism (TNA). Such happens when activist groups of nation-states
connect with their counterparts in other states. For example, an advocacy-
based organization in the Philippines may connect itself with and get support
from other human rights groups in Europe to pressure the Philippine
government to realign its stance and actions in upholding human rights.
When a nation-state recognizes international interventions and changes its
behavior in response to international pressure, it reconstitutes the
relationship among the nationstate, its citizens, and international actors.
(Keck & Sikkink, 1998).
The fifth and last effect of globalization is the creation of new
communications network. Globalization binds communities through digital
media. With new technologies in communication, political interaction can
happen in a virtual sphere. People can exchange political perspectives
through the internet, therefore stirring political discourse on an online
platform. Because of the so-called network society (Castells, 2009), nation-
states must reshape themselves to become part of global networks in the
arena of finance, education, science, technology, arts, and sports. This can
be seen in the proliferation of online education from universities outside the
Philippines. Conversely, Philippine universities offer online courses to non-
Filipinos. Thus, digital media has become the platform for strategic
communications at home and abroad wherein the nation-states can utilize
the internet to gather feedback from the citizens. Social media gives people
the power to air their sentiments, and also, serves as an avenue to discuss
issues. Government websites can also be avenues to formally forward
concerns to particular government offices. Many nation-states also establish
their own state-funded television networks for information dissemination as
alternative to the well-established privately-funded news networks. In the
case of authoritarian and repressive states like China, Russia, and North
Korea, the governments make use of media technologies to filter content
that can be viewed by their citizens. On the other hand, digital media can
also be used by governments to gain public support in their campaigns.
Thus, social media, in particular, can become an alternative to mainstream
media that advances its biased perspective. In order to facilitate connections
among nation-states, intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) were
established.
Their aim is to foster strong economic, political, cultural, educational,
and technical intergovernmental relationships. The Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN), European Union (EU), and World Trade Organization
(WTO) are examples. Established in 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) now has 10 member states. Its aims are: 1) To accelerate
economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region. 2)
Promote regional progression. 3) Advance peace and sustainability. 4)
Promote active and beneficial cooperation and mutual assistance on matters
of common interest in the economic, technical, cultural, administrative, and
scientific fields. 5) Provide assistance to each other in the framework of
training and research installations in the educational, professional, technical,
and administrative spheres. 6) Work hand in hand for more effective and
greater use of agriculture and industries. 7) Advance southeast Asian
research. 8) Preserve close and beneficial collaboration with current
international and regional institutions with similar aims and purposes
([Link]). Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam,
Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia are the members of ASEAN. The European
Union (EU), an IGO with 28-state members, was established in November
1993. Its goals are 1) to promote peace, its values, and the well-being of its
citizens; 2) offer freedom, security, and justice without internal borders; 3)
uphold sustainable development based on balanced economic growth and
price stability; 4) combat social exclusion and discrimination; 5) promote
scientific and technological progress;6) enhance economic, social, and
territorial cohesion and solidarity among member countries; 7) respect A
cultural and linguistic diversity; and 8) establish an economic and monetary
union ([Link]). The World Trade Organization (WTO) has 164 member-
states. It is the sole IGO that caters to rules of trade on a global scale. Its
objective is to ensure that trade runs as smoothly, predictably, and freely as
possible. It also encourages trade by lowering trade barriers that may hinder
how products and services flow from nation to nation. Some other examples
of IGOs are the International Criminal Court (ICC), North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO); and Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC). All IGOs serve purposes based on the common interest of their
member-states that is deemed beneficial to all parties involved. The
intensification of relations among nation-states gave birth to the idea of
internationalism and globalism. The former is the theory and practice of
interdependent collaboration while the latter is an attitude. Internationalism
is basically anchored on the opinion that nationalism should be outrun
because links that bind people of different countries are more powerful than
those that disconnect them (Anora, 2014). Moreover, in order to avert wars,
Immanuel Kant (1795) stated that agreements among nations must be
reached. He conceptualized the idea of liberal internationalism which
proposes that nations must give up their freedom and submit to a larger
system of laws that is embodied by common international principles. He
believed that a form of global government is needed to create and enforce
these laws. On the other hand, Giuseppe Mazzini (1805-1872) assumed that
nationalism and international cooperation complemented each other. He
believed that cooperation among nation-states is essential. Equally, US
President Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924) thought that nations were subject to
the universal laws of God that could be discovered through reason. He
adopted the principles of self-determination, democratic government,
collective security, international law, and a league of nations in his concept
of internationalism. Socialist internationalism, on the other hand, contradicts
liberal internationalism. This form of internationalism is based on the view
that capitalism is a global system and that the working class must unite as a
global class to forward the struggle against capitalism. The notion of socialist
internationalism is linked to the goal of a world revolution—to end class
struggle globally.
The Second International (1889-1916), the original socialist
international, was an organization of labor and social parties established in
Paris in 1889. It is best known for declaring the International Worker's Day
(May 1) and International Women’s Day (March 8) and for initiating the
campaign for the eight-hour work day. On the other hand, globalism emerged
as an attitude that seeks to understand all the interconnections of the
modern world and to highlight patterns that underlie them. It pursues to
describe and explain a world that is characterized by a network of
connections that span multi-continental distances. Overall, the global
interstate system is a facet of contemporary political globalization that seeks
to form collaboration among nation-states through the establishment of
intergovernmental organizations. It is rooted on the idea of internationalism.
Experts on interstate relations cannot discount the numerous effects of
neoliberalism on the rise of new communication networks utilized by
governments.