Assignments Semester 2 NIBM

INTERNATIONAL LAW What are your perceptions on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights? Would you like to amend any of the articles or add a new article to the declaration? Answer Human rights are international norms that help to protect all people every where from severe political, legal and social abuse. Example of human rights are the right to freedom of religion, the right to a fair trail when charged with a crime, the right not to ne tortured, and the right to engage in political activity. These rights exist in morality and in law at the national and international levels. They are addressed primarily to governments, requiring compliance and enforcement. The main sources of the contemporary conception of human rights are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (United Nations, 1948b) and the many human rights documents and treaties that followed in international organizations such as the United Nation, the Council of Europe, the Organization of America States, and the African Union. 1. The General Idea of Human Rights: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) sets out a list of over two dozen specific human rights that countries should respect and protect. These specific rights can be divided into six or more families: security rights that protect people against crimes such as murder, massacre, torture, and rape; due process rights that protect against abuses of the legal system such as imprisonment without trial, secret trial, and excessive punishment; liberty that protect freedoms in area such as belief, expression, association, assembly, and movement; political rights that protect the liberty to participate in politics through action such as communicating, assembling, protesting, voting, and serving in public office; equality rights that guarantee equal citizenship, equality before the law, and nondiscrimination; and social rights that require provision of education to all children and protections against

severe

poverty

and

starvation.

a) Human Rights are political norms dealing mainly with how people should be treated by their government and institutions. b) Human rights exist as moral and /or legal rights c) Human rights are numerous (several dozen) rather then few. They

presuppose

criminal trials, governments funded by income taxes, and formal systems of education

d) Human rights are minimal standard. They are concern with avoiding the terrible rather than with achieving the best. e) Human rights are international norms covering all countries and all people living today f) Human rights are high-priority norms g) Human rights require robust justification that apply everywhere and support their

high

priority

h) Human rights are rights, but not necessarily in strict sense. As rights they have several features. One is that they have right holders and another feature of rights is that they focus on a freedom, protection, status, or benefit for the right holders (Brandt 1983, 44). 2. The Existence of Human Rights: The most obvious way in which human right exist is the as norms of national and international law created by enactment and judicial decision. At the international level, human rights norms exist because of treaties that have turned them into international law. At the national level, human rights norms exist because they have through legislative enactment, judicial decision, or custom become part of a country’s law. When rights are embedded in international law we speak of them as human rights; but when they are enacted in national law we more frequently describe them as civil or constitutional rights. As this illustrates, it is possible for a right to exist within more than one normative system at the same time.Enactment in national and international law is one of the ways in which human rights exist. But many have suggested that this is not the only way. If human rights exist only because

of

enactment,

their

availability

is

contingent

on

domestic

and

international political development. Many people have sought to find a way to support the idea that human rights have roots that are deeper and less subject to human decision than legal enactment. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is half a century old, but critics are still asking whether anything in our multicultural, diverse world can be truly universal. Some ask, aren’t human rights an essentially Western concept, ignoring the very different cultural, economic and political realities of the South? Can the values of the consumer society be applied to societies that have nothing to consume? Isn't talking about universal rights rather like saying that the rich and the poor both have the same right to fly first-class and to sleep under bridges? At the risk of sounding frivolous: when you stop a man in traditional dress beating his wife, are

you upholding her human rights or violating his? The fact is that there are serious objections to the concept of universal human rights which its defenders need to acknowledge honestly, the better to refute them. The first is philosophical. All rights and values are defined and limited by cultural perceptions. There is no universal

culture;

therefore

there

are

no

universal

human

rights.

Some

philosophers have objected that the concept is founded on an individualistic view of people, whose greatest need is to be free from interference by the state. NonWestern societies often have a communitarian ethic which sees society as more than the sum of its individual members and considers duties to be more important than rights. In Africa it is usually the community that protects and nurtures the individual: 'I am because we are, and because we are therefore I am.' In most African societies, group rights had precedence over individual rights and conflict resolution would not necessarily be based on the assertion and defense of legal rights. Then there is the usual North/South argument. The Universal Declaration was adopted at a time when most Third World countries were still under colonial rule. 'Human rights' are only a cover for Western intervention in the affairs of the developing world. Developing countries, some also argue, cannot afford human rights since the tasks of nation-building and economic development are still unfinished. Suspending or limiting human rights is thus the sacrifice of the few for the benefit of the many. The human-rights concept is understood and upheld only by a small Westernized minority in developing countries; it does not extend to the lowest rungs of the ladder. Universality in these circumstances would be a universality of the privileged. Many also object to specific rights which they say reflect Western cultural bias: the right, for instance, to political pluralism, the right to paid vacations (always good for a laugh in the sweatshops of the developing world) and, most troublesome of all, the rights of women. How can women's rights be universal in the face of widespread divergences of cultural practice, when in some societies marriage is seen not as a contract between two individuals but as an alliance between lineages, and when the permissible behavior of womenfolk is central to the society's perception of its honor? In addition, some religious leaders argue that human rights can only be acceptable if they are founded on transcendent values of their faith, sanctioned by God. The Universal Declaration claims no such heritage - a draft reference to the Creator

was consciously left out of the final text. There is a built-in conflict between the universality of human rights and the particularity of religious perspectives. How can one respond to these objections? Concepts of justice and law, the legitimacy of government, the dignity of the individual, protection from oppressive or arbitrary rule and participation in the affairs of the community are found in every society on the face of this earth. The challenge of human rights is to identify the common denominators rather than to throw up one's hands at the impossibility of universalism. The objections also reflect a false opposition between the primacy of the individual and society. Culture is too often cited as a defense against human rights by authoritarians who crush culture domestically when it suits them. In any case, which country can truly claim to be following its 'traditional culture' in a pure form? None have remained in a pristine state; all have been subject to change and distortion by external influence, both as a result of colonialism and through participation in modern inter-state relations. You cannot follow the model of a 'modern' nation-state cutting across tribal boundaries and conventions, and then argue that tribal traditions should be applied to judge the human-rights conduct of that modern state. There is nothing sacrosanct about culture anyway. Culture is constantly evolving in any living society, responding to both internal and external stimuli, and there is much in every culture that societies quite naturally outgrow and reject. Are we, as Indians, obliged to defend, in the name of our culture, the practices of sati or of untouchability? The fact that slavery was acceptable across the world for at least two thousand years does not make it acceptable to us now. The basic problem with cultural relativism is that it subsumes all members of a society under a framework they may prefer to disavow. If dissenters within each culture are free to opt out and to assert their individual rights - for example, Muslim women in my country, India, have the right not to marry under Muslim Personal Law - then it is a different story. The case that women's rights emerge from a Western ethos is often vociferously made by men. Let us concede that child marriage, female circumcision and the like are not found reprehensible by many societies; but let us also ask victims of these practices how they feel about them. How many teenage girls who have had their genitalia mutilated would have agreed if they had had the human right to refuse? For me, the standard is simple: where coercion exists, rights are violated and these

violations must be condemned, whatever the traditional justification. Coercion, not culture, is the test.On religion, it is my belief that people allow God to be blamed for their own sins, and that human rights as we understand them are fully compatible with the secular understanding of all faiths. Every religion seeks to embody certain verities that are applicable to all humanity-justice, truth, mercy, compassion - though the details of their interpretation vary. As for the suspension of human rights in the interests of paternalistic development: authoritarianism promotes repression not development. Amartya Sen has pointed out that it is the availability of political and civil rights which give people the opportunity to draw attention to their needs and to demand action from the government. In fact, Sen's work has established that no substantial famine has ever occurred in any independent and democratic country with a relatively free press. Though there may be cases where authoritarian societies have had success in achieving economic growth, Botswana, an exemplar of democracy in Africa, has grown faster than most authoritarian states. A number of developing countries - notably India, China, Chile, Cuba, Lebanon and Panama - played an active and highly influential part in the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The principles of human rights have been widely adopted, imitated and ratified by developing countries, so it is hardly fair to suggest they have been imposed on them. When one hears of the unsuitability or ethnocentrisms of human rights, what are the unstated assumptions? What exactly are these human rights that someone in a developing country can easily do without? Not the right to life, I hope. Freedom from torture? The right not to be enslaved, not to be physically assaulted, not to be arbitrarily arrested, imprisoned or executed? No-one actually advocates in so many words the abridgement of any of these rights. Tolerance and mercy have always and in all cultures been ideals of government rule and human behavior. Objections to the applicability of international human-rights standards have all-too-frequently been voiced by authoritarian rulers and power elites to rationalize their violations of human rights - violations which serve primarily, if not solely, to sustain them in power. Just as the Devil can quote scripture for his purpose, Third World communitarianism can be the slogan of a deracinated tyrant trained, as in the case of Pol Pot, at the Sorbonne. The authentic voices of the Third World know how to cry

out

in

pain.

Let

us

heed

them.

At the same time, the idea that human rights could be ensured merely by the state

not interfering with individual freedom cannot survive confrontation with a billion hungry, deprived, illiterate and jobless human beings around the globe. Human rights, in one memorable phrase, start with breakfast. For the sake of the deprived, the notion of human rights has to embrace not just protection from the state but also protection of the state, to permit human beings to fulfill the basic aspirations which are frustrated by poverty and scarce resources. We have to accept that social deprivation and economic exploitation are just as evil as political oppression or racial persecution. This calls for a more profound approach to both human rights and to development. We cannot exclude the poorest of the poor from the universality of the rich. Of course universality does not presuppose uniformity. In asserting the universality of human rights, I do not suggest that our views of human rights transcend all possible philosophical, cultural or religious differences or represent a magical aggregation of the world's ethical and philosophical thought systems. Rather, it is enough that they do not fundamentally contradict the ideals and aspirations of any society, and that they reflect our common humanity. Human rights, in other words, derive from the mere fact of being human; they are not the gift of a particular government or legal code. For the standards being proclaimed internationally to become reality we have to work towards their 'indigenization' - their assertion within each country's traditions and history. If different approaches are welcomed within the human-rights consensus,

this

can

guarantee

universality,

enrich

the

intellectual

and

philosophical debate and so complement, rather than undermine, the concept of worldwide human rights. Human rights can keep the world safe for diversity. Universal Declaration of Human Rights Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world, Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law, Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations, Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom, Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms, Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge, Now, Therefore The General Assembly proclaims This Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction. Article 1 All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Article 2 Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3 Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person Article 4 No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms. Article 5 No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Article 6 Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law. Article 7 All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination. Article 8 Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law. Article 9 No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile. Article 10 Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him. Article 11 (1)Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees

necessary

for

his

defense.

(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed. Article 12

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks. Article 13 (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state. (2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country. Article 14 (1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution. (2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations. Article 15 (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality. (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality. Article 16 (1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution. (2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses. (3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State. Article 17 (1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property. Article 18 Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in

community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance. Article 19 Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. Article 20 (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association. (2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association. Article 21 (1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives. (2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country. (3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures. Article 22 Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization,

through

national

effort

and

international

co-operation

and

in

accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality. Article 23 (1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favorable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment. (2)Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work. (3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his

family an existence worthy of human dignity,

and

supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection (4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests. Article 24

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay. Article 25 (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and wellbeing of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, and housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control. (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection. Article 26 (1)Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit. (2)Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace. (3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children. Article 27 (1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits. (2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author. Article 28 Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized. Article 29 (1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.

(2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society. (3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations. Article 30 Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is generally agreed to be the foundation of international human rights law. Adopted in 1948, the UDHR has inspired a rich body of legally binding international human rights treaties. It continues to be an inspiration to us all whether in addressing injustices, in times of conflicts, in societies suffering repression, and in our efforts towards achieving universal enjoyment of human rights. It represents the universal recognition that basic rights and fundamental freedoms are inherent to all human beings, inalienable and equally applicable to everyone, and that every one of us is born free and equal in dignity and rights. Whatever our nationality, place of residence, gender, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status, the international community on December 10 1948 made a commitment to upholding dignity and justice for all of us. Over the years, the commitment has been translated into law, whether in the forms of treaties, customary international law, general principles, regional agreements and domestic law, through which human rights are expressed and guaranteed. Indeed, the UDHR has inspired more than 80 international human rights treaties and declarations, a great number of regional human rights conventions, domestic human rights bills, and constitutional provisions, which together constitute a comprehensive legally binding system for the promotion and protection of human rights.

Building on the achievements of the UDHR, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights entered into force in 1976. The two Covenants have developed most of the rights already enshrined in the UDHR, making them effectively binding on States that have ratified them. They set forth everyday rights such as the right to life, equality before the law, freedom of expression, the rights to work, social security and education. Together with the UDHR, the Covenants comprise the International Bill of Human Rights. Over time, international human rights treaties have become more focused and specialized regarding both the issue addressed and the social groups identified as requiring protection. The body of international human rights law continues to grow, evolve, and further elaborate the fundamental rights and freedoms contained in the International Bill of Human Rights, addressing concerns such as racial discrimination, torture, enforced disappearances, disabilities, and the rights of women, children, migrants, minorities, and indigenous peoples. Universal Values The core principles of human rights first set out in the UDHR, such as universality, interdependence and indivisibility, equality and non-discrimination, and that human rights simultaneously entail both rights and obligations from duty bearers and rights owners, have been reiterated in numerous international human rights conventions, declarations, and resolutions. Today, all United Nations member States have ratified at least one of the nine core international human rights treaties, and 80 percent have ratified four or more, giving concrete expression to the universality of the UDHR and international human rights. In my view this

Protect Human Rights International human rights law lays down

obligations which States are bound to respect. By becoming parties to international treaties, States assume obligations and duties under international law to respect, to protect and to fulfil human rights. The obligation to respect means that States must refrain from interfering with or curtailing the enjoyment of human rights. The obligation to protect requires States to protect individuals and groups against human rights abuses. The obligation to fulfil means that States must take positive action to facilitate the enjoyment of basic human rights.

Through ratification of international human rights treaties, Governments undertake to put into place domestic measures and legislation compatible with their treaty obligations and duties. The domestic legal system, therefore, provides the principal legal protection of human rights guaranteed under international law. Where domestic legal proceedings fail to address human rights abuses, mechanisms and procedures for individual and group complaints are available at the regional and international levels to help ensure that international human rights standards are indeed respected, implemented, and enforced at the local level. Criticism Most Islamic countries have signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. However, in 1948, Saudi Arabia abstained from the ratification vote on the Declaration, claiming that it violated Sharia law.[28] Pakistan—which had signed the declaration—disagreed and critiqued the Saudi position.[29] In 1982, the Iranian representative to the United Nations, Said Rajaie-Khorassani, said that the Declaration was "a secular understanding of the Judeo-Christian tradition" which could not be implemented by Muslims without conflict with Sharia.[30] On 30 June 2000, members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (now the Organization of Islamic Cooperation) officially resolved to support the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam,[31] an alternative document that says people have "freedom and right to a dignified life in accordance with the Islamic Shari'ah", without any discrimination on grounds of "race, colour, language, sex, religious belief, political affiliation, social status or other considerations". Turkey—a secular state—signed the Declaration in 1948. A number of scholars in different fields have expressed concerns with the Declaration's alleged Western bias. These include Irene Oh, Abdul-Aziz Sachedina, Riffat Hassan, and Faisal Kutty. Hassan has argued: What needs to be pointed out to those who uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to be the highest, or sole, model, of a charter of equality and liberty for all human beings, is that given the Western origin and orientation of this Declaration, the "universality" of the assumptions on which it is based is – at the very least – problematic and subject to questioning. Furthermore, the alleged incompatibility between the concept of human rights and religion in general, or particular religions such as Islam, needs to be examined in an unbiased way.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT Select an appropriate generic strategy to position your printing business unit in its competitive environment (mapthe environment primarily as a pattern of competitive pressures from rivals, suppliers, buyers, entrants and substitutes).

Steps need to be followed to strategize printing business. 1 Planning for a brighter future starts with analysing inner strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Internal evaluation coupled with an environmental scan of the competitive landscape. 2 Differentiate your firm - It’s all about creating a unique value proposition. Start with your swot analysis. 3 Invest in technology - Examples would include web software that would allow customers to place and track orders. 4 Identify new markets - Typically the more avenues of distribution you have, the better off you are. 5 Enhance your website - Your website should be optimized so that it becomes a powerful internet marketing platform for generating sales leads contributing to both short and long-term growth of sales. 6 Invest in training - Great companies realize the value of their employees and staff development. Don’t wait for the upturn to focus on training. Trained employees are more confident, productive and resilient. 7 Forge strategic alliances - Understand your core competencies, know what customers are looking for, and forge strategic partnerships to shore up your product and service portfolios. 8 Trim costs surgically - Across the board cost cutting is risky at best. Analyse expenses with your key staff, one line item at a time. This way you can make strategic cuts, one cut at a time. And most importantly should be the last resort. 9 Optimize your advertising effort - Go beyond traditional print advertising in trade journals and other publications. Be creative and don’t discount using webbased technology And be sure to track the roe for each activity to make your money count!

10 Build a strong sales force - Develop a unified sales team focused on customer needs and expectations For positioning of printing business, we should go by the trends of market which are mentioned below Transition to digital technology Digital presses have become the norm in commercial printing; industry growth is coming almost entirely from digital printing. The commercial printing industry is shifting to faster production of smaller order quantities with more colour, the major benefit of digital printing over offset and other printing methods. While digital inkjet printers began at the small end of printers, technology is increasingly able to make digital printers with greater capacity. Operations & technology - a typical commercial printer has different presses and binding equipment available to work on various types of jobs. The main printing process used is offset lithography, using either individual sheets (sheet fed presses) or continuous rolls of paper (web presses). Sheet fed presses print up to 16 pages of letter-sized product (a 16 page "signature") at a time, at speeds up to 15,000 impressions per hour. Web presses print 32 pages at a time at speeds over 40,000 impressions per hour, and are usually used for production runs of more than 50,000 copies. Presses usually print in one, two, four, or six colours; some presses can print eight. Digital presses are still used primarily in specialty applications. Paper is the biggest individual manufacturing cost, often amounting to 25 percent of revenues. Printing papers are often coated, and are bought in sheets or rolls from distributors. Some customers provide their own paper, but most is bought for customers, with a modest price mark-up. Paper prices can vary significantly from year to year. Digital technology is changing the competitive landscape of the commercial printing market. Prices for digital colour pages are falling below offset printing prices and companies who fall behind in the shift to digital printing are at risk. Sales& marketing The largest single market for printing services is advertising, for newspaper inserts, magazines, and direct mail materials. Although some work may be done regularly for large customers under long-term contracts (magazines, product catalos, and phone books), most is on a project basis, often after a bidding process. Work may be episodic

and many printers keep extra presses to meet anticipated peak demands. Marketing is usually done by a traditional sales force calling on potential customers. Commercial printing is a local business. Small printers can compete effectively with large ones because the small size and high variability of most printing jobs means that few economies are achieved by having larger presses. The high degree of personal attention that most print jobs require, such as client approvals of proofs and "press checks" during actual printing, means that customers prefer to use a local printer. Price is often a secondary consideration to quality and timeliness. Some types of printing, such as magazines and catalogues with large print runs, are more effectively handled by large printers. Innovation Coming up with innovative marketing strategies to market your business, does not have to be difficult. There are a number of paths that one can follow, which can be highly successful, to help you create marketing approach that fits one’s needs and budget. Rather than slide into the busy fourth quarter with the same old marketing bag of tricks, you can get a jump on your competitors by embracing new tactics for increasing leads and sales. Always be alert to new opportunities, ideas, to market your business. An example is you can give direct access to your regular customers through internet by remote printing software giving them a unique id account so that they can directly send the files to the work station. Finance Commercial printers generally keep low material inventories and don't require inventory financing. Receivables are generally collected within 60 days, and are sometimes financed. Equipment is often financed, or is leased. Presses have become more expensive, though more versatile, because of computerised controls and enhancements. Some printers have difficulty maintaining adequate workplace air quality standards, and emit pollutants into the air, mainly because of solvents in ink and the solvents used to clean ink from printing plates. Some printers also generate toxic wastes because of inks and solvents. Workplace safety may also be a problem, although the illness and injury rate has decreased rapidly in the past decade. Human resources

Production personnel in commercial printing plants include employees with special skills in operating complicated machines, computer operators, graphic designers, creative designers, and lower-paid, relatively unskilled workers. The number of people employed in commercial printing has been declining in the last five years, as more of the work has become automated. The industry’s annual injury rate is comparable to the national average for all industries. Above mentioned things will definitely help to position/strengthen printing business unit. Business-level strategies The strategies that are formed by individual business units within a company. There are four characteristics that differentiate business-level strategy from corporate strategy. Managers should understand these characteristics and how they apply to their own strategic decision making. 1 Specificity Business-level strategies are specific, rather than broad. This means that they deal with specific issues that affect the particular business unit. Examples of specific issues are deciding a pricing strategy and creating a product mix. These strategies deal only with the specific business unit and do not extend to the rest of the firm. 2 Short-Term Orientation Corporate strategy tends to be oriented toward long-term goals. Business-level strategy, in contrast, is focused on short-term goals. Examples of short-term goals include quarterly and annual revenues, return on investments, sales and production levels. Business units tend to focus on these short-term goals while allowing corporate strategists to make decisions regarding the long-term focus of the company. 3 Simplicity Business-level strategies tend to be fairly simple in nature. Corporate strategies tend to focus on abstract goals such as building core competences or creating firm flexibility. Business-level strategies however, tend to be much simpler. Goals tend to be tangible objectives such as increasing market share or developing brand recognition. 4 Independence An important characteristic of business-level strategies is the concept of businessunit independence. The individual business unit is given the independence from the company as a whole in order to decide certain strategic issues on its own. This

allows business-level strategies to deal primarily with the concerns of the business unit without interference from other units. The Five Forces model of Porter is an Outside-in business unit strategy tool that is used to make An analysis of the attractiveness (value) of an industry structure. The Competitive Forces analysis is made by the identification of 5 fundamental competitive forces: 1. Entry of competitors. How easy or difficult is it for new entrants to start competing, which barriers do exist. 2. Threat of substitutes. How easy can a product or service be substituted, especially made cheaper. 3. Bargaining power of buyers. How strong is the position of buyers? Can they work together in ordering large volumes? 4. Bargaining power of suppliers. How strong is the position of sellers? Do many potential suppliers exist or only few potential suppliers, monopoly? 5. Rivalry among the existing players. Does a strong competition between the existing players exist? Is one player very dominant or are all equal in strength and size. Sometimes a sixth competitive force is added: 6. Government. Porter's Competitive Forces model is probably one of the most often used business strategy tools. It has proven its usefulness on numerous occasions. Porter's model is particularly strong in thinking Outside-in. 1 Threat of New Entrants depends on: 1 Economies of scale. 2 Customer switching costs. 3 Access to industry distribution channels. 4 Access technology 5 Brand loyalty 6 The likelihood of retaliation from existing industry players 7 Government regulations. 2 Threat of substitutes depends on: 1 Quality. 2 Buyers' willingness to substitute. 3 The relative price and performance of substitutes. 4 The costs of switching to substitutes. 3 Bargaining power of suppliers depends on: 1 Concentration of suppliers. 2 Branding

3 Profitability of suppliers. 4 Suppliers threaten to integrate forward into the industry 5 Buyers do not threaten to integrate backwards into supply. 6 Role of quality and service. 7 Switching costs. 4 Bargaining power of buyers depends on: 1 Concentration of buyers. 2 Differentiation 3 Profitability of buyers. 4 Role of quality and service. 5 threat of backward and forward integration into the industry 6 Switching costs 5 Intensity of rivalry depends on: 1 The structure of competition. 2 The structure of industry costs. 3 Degree of product differentiation. 4 Strategic objectives. 5 Exit barriers. Strengths of the five competitive forces model. Benefits 1 The model is a strong tool for competitive analysis at industry level 2 It provides useful input for performing a swat analysis. Limitation of porter's five forces model 1 Care should be taken when using this model for the following: do not underestimate or underemphasize the importance of the (existing) strengths of the organization 2 The model was designed for analyzing individual business strategies. It does not cope with synergies and interdependencies within the portfolio of large corporations. : parenting advantage 3 From a more theoretical perspective, the model does not address the possibility that an industry could be attractive because certain companies are in it. 4 Some people claim that environments which are characterized by rapid, systemic and radical change require more flexible, dynamic or emergent approaches to strategy formulation. Differentiation strategies: 1 Goal

is

to

provide

value

to

characteristics of a firm’s products

customers

through

unique

features

and

2 Differentiators focus or concentrate on product innovation and developing product features that customer’s value. Products generally cost more (offset cost of differentiation). 3 Can’t completely ignore costs. Differentiation strategies can differentiate based on 1 Superior quality (john Deere, Mercedes) 2 Customer service (Ibom or caterpillar) 3 Engineering design (Hewlett-Packard) 4 Unique features 5 Image of prestige or exclusivity (L’Oréal cosmetics, Mercedes) 6 Package design (Arizona iced tea) 7 Requirements for usage 8 Use may require a high market share initially. 9 Implies a trade-off with low-cost (i.e., costs to differentiate). 10 Generally leads to a lower market share than in the low-cost approach. Differentiation strategies: Defense against 5 competitive forces: 1 Competitors - decreases rivalry due to brand loyalty and resulting lower 2 3 4 5

sensitivity to price. Suppliers - allows an increase in price Buyers - removes buyer power due to a lack of comparative alternatives. New-entrants & substitutes - requires others to overcome customer Loyalty and product uniqueness.

Differentiation strategies: Competitive risks: 1 If selling price is too high buyers may become price sensitive despite customer loyalty or uniqueness 2 Buyers may decide they don’t need the special features 3 Rival firms may imitate the product thereby decreasing product uniqueness. When to use: 1 When ways exist to differentiate the product which buyers perceive to have value. 2 When uses of the item are diverse. 3 When not many rivals are using the same strategy. Approaches to positioning strategy: 1 using product characteristics or customer benefits, 2 Using service characteristics or customer benefits probably the most-used positioning strategy is to associate an object with a product characteristic or customer benefit. How should you go about formulating your positioning plan?

There are essentially 2 ways 1 Market positioning. 2 Psychological positioning Market positioning it is a three-step process: 1 2 3

Identify market opportunities. Segment the market and select the right segment. Devise a competitive strategy.

The whole idea is to meet market requirements better than the competitors can. 1 Explore the market ask which are the areas where the company has distinctive advantage over the competition. Study the sales potential of the new market and its growth rate. Do financial calculations like to produce, profits, pricing etc. understand market dynamics and channels of distribution? Put the key factors that may contribute to success on paper. 2 Segmentation and targeting markets can be segmented on different bases, e.g., users, products. Further segmentation is on the basis of end-use. The marketer targets his product to a particular segment. 3 Competitive strategy identifies the competitor's

weaknesses

and

your

company's strengths. Emphasize your strengths to differentiate your offer. The company identifies the most important differences to develop strategy. Factors to be considered 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Market share Profitability Product range Corporate profile Financial strength Cost position Product differentiation Quality of management, technology, distribution Reputation.

Psychological positioning Basically, psychological positioning is a communication exercise that follows aide: attention, interest, and desire and action model. It is derived from market positioning and tells who the company is, what the product does, and what to expect from the purchase. The brand name, the look and the packaging must complement the psychological positioning. Consumer behavior is driven more by feelings than rationale,

and even the most aptly positioned brand might fail if it does not strike the right chord. Brand ultimately has to build a relationship with the customer. Benefits and benefit gaps are easy to identify through research. Feelings are more difficult to get to. Coffee, for instance, is about intimacy, romance and togetherness. Titan is a gift of appreciation. Lakme and vareli touch a streak of narcissism in a woman. Brand positioning is thus not just occupying a slot in the mind of the consumers. It is about ruling the heart also. __________________________________________________________________________________________

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

How will you plan a Management Information System in marketing information system taking into account the actions of antecedents or consequences of consumers, competitors, employers, institutions, suppliers, wholesalers, retailers, govt. bodies and NGO’s (Note you must also take into account the physical, technological, economic factors, beside legal and social taboos) (Take an example of your choice). Answer: Market information system may be defined as factual knowledge about the action, antecedents or consequences of social actors outside or inside the firm and the environment in which they operate. Social actors are as consumers, completions, employee, institutions, suppliers, wholesalers, retailers, govt. bodies and NGO’s. The environment actors are physical, technological, economic, legal and social taboos. An MIS may be defined as a set of procedures and methods for the regular, planned collection, analysis, and presentation of information for use in making marketing decisions. This of course is a step beyond logistics systems, which handle inventory control, orders, and so forth.It Is desirable first to differentiate Between the two major components of such systems - support systems and operating systems. Support systems include those activities required to generate and manipulate data - i.e., market research and other data gathering, programming, and data processing. Operating systems are those that use the data as an aid to planning and controlling marketing activities.

Marketing Information System Marketing Information System can be defined as equipment, people and programs in the organization whose functions are to monitor, gather, analyze, evaluate, store and to disseminate the knowledge. The company market linkage is shown below. ( Company) Input

( Market) 

Thorough put



Output

^___________________^__________________^ Feed Back Further details are provided below: Input :-

Internal environment. Top management. Formal department.

Marketing decision support system (MKDSS) is an information system that helps with decision making in the formation of a marketing plan. The reason for using a MKDSS is because it helps to support the software vendors’ planning strategy for marketing products; it can help to identify advantageous level of pricing, advertising spending, and advertising copy for the firm’s products. This helps determines the firm marketing mix for product software. Various Constitute Are Consumer behaviour, Aggregate demand, the competition, Political/ Legal/ Social environment, Product consideration, Distribution questions, Pricing consideration, Communication issues and Organizational behaviour. The initial steps of this approach typically involve the following 1. Look at what systems the company already has in place, 2. Determine what useful marketing information can be gleaned from those systems,

3. Identify the information marketers need that they are not getting from existing systems, 4. Create, or find, additional systems to provide the needed marketing information, 5. Integrate these systems with company wide enterprise systems (if possible and not too costly). Management Information System in IBM Data Processing 1. Start with the accounting system A good place to start is the business system that every business has – the Accounting system. What information do businesses get from their accounting system that is useful to marketers? 1. Sales 2. Costs/Expenses 3. Profits If the accounting software is well designed and flexible, this information can be sorted in a variety of ways including by (1) Sales person, (2) Product, (3) SKU (stock-keeping-unit), (4) Division or Region, (5) Distribution channel, (6) Reseller, and (7) Season. The information obtained from the accounting system is typically enterprise-wide and at a macro level. It usually does not give marketers, or their bosses, the information necessary to (1) determine the effectiveness of the organization’s marketing efforts; (2) enable it to react quickly to real-time crises and opportunities; or (3) respond rapidly to competitive threats. Some of the information that marketers need from an effective marketing information system includes the following: 1. Marketing strategy feedback (or how well marketing strategies are working) 2. Complaints 3. Compliments (testimonials) 4. New Product ideas 5. Competition information 6. Marketplace changes To capture and properly respond to this information, most marketers need to create a Marketing Information System that augments the macro information provided by their accounting systems. 2. Market Information Form To minimize paperwork, marketers can collect a lot of the information from the above list on a Market Information Form (or its electronic equivalent). The information collected and how this information is used is summarized below. 1. Complaints. Once collected, complaints are distributed to those that can solve the problem quickly. The objective is to turn the negative into a positive and build a

stronger relationship with the offended party. The way companies handle complaints can mean the difference between success and failure in an increasingly competitive marketplace. 2. Compliments. After obtaining permission, marketers use compliments in their marketing communications. Nothing is more effective than bona fide testimonials from customers. Copies are also given to sales people so they can put them in their sales notebooks and use them to impress prospects and close business. 3. New Product ideas. These are fed into the company’s new product development system. 4. Competition Information. This is given to sales people to put in their sales notebooks so they can use the data to answer objections and close business (with the caveat of not disparaging competitors) and is fed into the company’s new product development system so that new products can be designed to beat competitors. 5. Strategy feedback. This information is organized by the marketing building blocks (1) corporate image, (2) positioning, (3) product, (4) pricing, (5) distribution, (6) promotion, and (6) marketing information system (yes we need to collect information as to how well our MIS strategies are working). Based on feedback, strategies are adjusted as necessary. A pad of these forms (or an electronic version) is provided to all the contact points including (1) Receptionists and secretaries that answer the phone, (2) Sales people, (3) Customer service people, (4) Repair people, (5) Personnel that respond to inquiries and complaints online and on social media, and (6) accounts receivable (since they often hear about complaints when they try to collect on late invoices). 3. Lead Card Leads are captured on a lead card or its electronic equivalent. Sales people use the lead card to follow up on a prospect’s interest with the objective of closing the sale. In addition to notes of all contacts, there are four main pieces of information that should be captured on the lead card. 1. Identification of the prospect. If the leads are selling to a business, most of the information the lead need is on the contact’s business card. For additional information the lead need the card should be designed so the lead can add it with minimal effort. 2. Product interest. The products the lead typically sell should be pre-listed on the lead card so sales people can quickly check them off. 3. Degree of interest. This is the lead sales person's estimate of how likely the prospect is to buy the product in the current period, which is usually this month. Because the degree of interest is also called “buying temperature” the metaphor for degree of interest that is often is used is Hot for the most interested leads, Warm for the next most interested leads, and Cool for the least interested. The “Hot” leads should automatically update another MIS report called the Hot List. 4. Lead source. All promotion that the lead do should have a unique code so that when the lead is captured, the lead know what marketing activity generated the

hike. This lead source should automatically update another MIS report called the Promotion Effectiveness report. In addition to helping sales people follow up on leads and close business, smart marketers use lead card information for other Marketing Information System purposes, such as the Hot List and Promotion Effectiveness Report described below. 4. Hot List An MIS report called the Hot List contains the following information on “Hot” leads: 1. Prospect name. This could be a business or individual. 2. Decision makers. This is so the sales person does not waste time talking with the wrong person. 3. Product or project proposed. This is what the prospect wants. 4. Proposal date. This is the date the product proposal and estimate of the cost is given to the prospect. 5. Dollar-amount proposed. This is the price of the product proposed. 6. Percent chance of closing in the current period. To qualify for the Hot List, a Hot lead should have at least a 25% chance of closing in the current period (each company should decide their own minimum threshold for Hot). 7. Expected Value (5 multiplied by 6). If the dollar amount proposed is $10,000 and the % chance of closing is “estimated” to be 50%, the expected value would be $5,000. 8. Objections. This lists the objections that are keeping the prospect from buying. Sales managers use the Hot List in two ways. 1. Help close sales. The sales manager helps sales people to close Hot leads by coaching them on how best to answer the Objections in column 8 of the Hot List. 2. Dynamic sales forecast. The sales manager helps to insure that the sum of Expected Values equals, or exceeds, each sales person’s quota for the month. If the expected values are lower than a sales person’s quota, the sales manager can encourage the sales person do whatever is necessary to get more Hot leads on the Hot List so that the sum of Expected Values equals or exceeds the quota. The sales quotas of all the sales people should sum to the “measurable goal” of the Marketing Plan. 5. Promotion Effectiveness Effort As each sales person captures the promotion source for each lead on the Lead Card, the information automatically flows onto his or her Promotion Effectiveness Report. Every time a sales person gives a presentation or makes a sale from a lead, that information is recorded on the Promotion Effectiveness Report. The MIS system automatically adds up the total number of the leads, presentations, and sales company-wide for each promotion source.

When compared to the costs of that promotion source, the marketing department can calculate the promotion effectiveness, or ROI, of each promotion. Since totals for leads, presentations, and sales are available in the MIS by sales person, the sales manager can automatically compute the batting average of each sales person and determine the number of leads and presentations each one needs to make his or her sales quota. In this way, the sales manager and the company marketers systematically work together to insure that (1) plan goals are met and (2) the money invested in promotion is not wasted (the ads and promotions that are effective will be repeated and the ones that don’t will be discontinued). 6. Market Research The systems above (Market Information Form, Lead Card, Hot List and Promotion Effectiveness Report) typically capture information in real time and provide a lot of great information that help the marketing function do a more effective job and prove it to the CEO. Even so, this is not enough. There are still holes in the information marketers need. In an effort to plug these holes, there is one big missing piece – Market Research. There are two big categories of Market Research – Secondary and Primary. 7. Secondary Research Secondary research is simply research done by others. Perhaps the greatest invention for secondary research is the search engine. Marketers can simply type in search terms in a search window and browse the Internet for any data related to those search terms. Furthermore, marketers can set up “alerts.” That is, search terms can be entered into a search engine so that the search engine’s crawlers will continually search for anything that contains those search terms and send the lead an email when it finds them. There are so many other sites, which marketers frequent, that provide a wealth of information. Just a few examples include: Media Post, Marketing Sherpa, Brand Channel, Hoovers, the CIA World Fact book, and Clickz. 8. Primary Research When some big holes remain that still need to be plugged, marketers will often do primary research, which is their own research. Common forms of primary research include surveys, focus groups, experiments, and various forms of crowd sourcing. The following are examples of marketing systems we have observed, with some of the advantages the companies claim for them. 1. Control System These provide continuous monitoring (sometimes through exception reporting) and rapid spotting of trends, problems, and marketing opportunities. They allow better anticipation of problems, more detailed and comprehensive review of performance against plans, and greater speed of respon se. For instance: IBM's Data Processing Division has developed an MIS which district sales managers can interrogate through a time-sharing computer terminal located in an executive's office. A manager punches a typewriter-like keyboard and receives an immediate printout of information such as: · Sales (or rentals) to date - broken down by product code, type of customer, and branch making the sale.

·

Sales in relation to goals.

· Combinations of information which relate to sales, customer classifications, product codes, and so forth. The data are current to within three or four days, allowing the manager to keep up to date on marketing problems and opportunities and on progress in relation to goals. 2. Planning Systems These furnish, in convenient form, information the marketing executive requires for planning marketing and sales programs. At least three major consumer goods producers, for example, are developing "data books" for product managers. The books bring together the basic information a product manager needs to formulate annual marketing plans and to "replan" during the course of the year. Putting the information into one book, rather than in a welter of reports, not only saves time, but it also enables all product managers in a group or division to base their plans on the same data. Consequently, their superiors are able to review comparable information quickly when considering the plans for approval. At a more sophisticated level, planning systems allow simulation of the effects of alternate plans so that the manager can make a better decision. For instance: 3. Pillsbury's system Enables marketing managers to obtain sales forecasts for each of 39 sales branches, supported by varying levels of trade promotion. The marketing manager asks the question, "What will sales be in each branch if we spend x dollars on trade promotions in comparison with .75 x dollars and with 1.2 x dollars?" Pillsbury does not claim that the system is perfect - it is obviously no better than the assumptions on which the simulation is based - but it has had a surprisingly good "batting average" in accuracy. It has great value to marketing managers because it allows them to look at alternate plans in each of the 39 sales branches; this was never feasible before.

BUSINESS ENGLISH Write a letter to the Chief Election Commissioner, expressing your views on the disqualification of party candidate’s empted from fighting elections. Express your views on the moral code of the candidates. How criminals or other offenders can be kept out of the pulling fray. What should be done to amend the laws on this by the parliament? (Your letter will belong to which category of communication). Date:05.05.2016

To, The Chief Election Commissioner, New Delhi. Sub: Disqualification of a Party Candidate’s Sir, After 60 years of India’s independence the lives of commoners is far worse than under British rule. The benefits of independence have reached only few, thus creating islands of few ultra rich people surrounded by vast sea of utterly poor. The rich people in nexus with those in power are getting favorable laws enacted to suit their ends. Those in power are shamelessly enjoying 5-star luxuries all at tax payer’s expense, while more than 50 million are starving to death. The criminalization of politics, executive & judiciary is almost complete. The corruption has spread its tentacles far & wide, there is corruption from womb to tomb, from maternity hospital to grave yard. The injustices mated out, the atrocities perpetrated by public servants are worse than British rule. The biggest confounding factor in the political environment of business is criminalization of politics: people with criminal backgrounds becoming politicians and elected representatives. Around 20% of the members of the current Lok Sabha have criminal cases pending against them. The charges in several of these cases are of heinous crimes such as murder, robbery, kidnapping, and not just violation of Section 144, or something similar. It is well known that all parties take the help of criminal elements to dominate the election scene in India. But this process is influencing the mind and the will of the people both to gain the majority to rule the country according to their will. The system of democracy is now changing into the dictatorship of some. Because the democracy of India are now in hands of the criminal who are not capable any way to hold the post if legislature. The politicians are thriving today on the basis of muscle power provided by criminals. The common people who constitute the voters are in most cases too reluctant to take measures that would curtail the criminal activities. Once the political aspect joins the criminal elements the nexus becomes extremely dangerous. Many of politicians chose muscle power to gain vote bank in the country, and they apply the assumption that, if we are unable to bring faith in the community then we can generate fear or threat to get the power in the form of election. The elections to Parliament and State Legislatures are very expensive and it is a widely accepted fact that huge election expenditure is the root cause for corruption in India. A

candidate has to spend lakhs of rupees to get elected and even if he gets elected, the total salary he gets during his tenure as an MP/MLA will be meagre compared to his election expenses. How can he bridge the gap between the income and expenses? Publicly through donations and secretly through illegal means. The expenditure estimation for an election is 50000 crore. Where is this money to come from? Only criminal activity can generate such large sums of untaxed funds. That is why we have criminals in politics. They have money and muscle, so they win and help others in their party win as well. The political parties and independent candidates have astronomical expenditure for vote buying and other illegitimate purposes through these criminals. A politician’s link with them in their constituency provides a congenial climate to political crime. Those who do not know why they ought to vote comprise the majority of voters of this country. We have long witnessed criminals being wooed by political parties and given cabinet posts because their muscle and money power fetches crucial votes. Elections are won and lost on swings of just 1% of the vote, so parties cynically woo every possible vote bank, including those headed by accused robbers and murderers. Legal delays ensure that the accused will die of old age before being convicted, so parties virtuously insist that these chaps must be regarded as innocent till proved guilty. In every election all parties without exception put up candidates with a criminal background. Even though some of us whine about the decision taken by the parties, the general trend is that these candidates are elected to office. By acting in such a manner we fail to realize that the greatest power that democracy arms the people is to vote incompetent people out of power. Independence has taken place through a two-stage process. The first stage was the corrupting of the institutions and the second stage was the institutionalization of corruption. As we look at the corruption scene today, we find that we have reached this stage because the corrupting of the institutions in turn has finally led to the institutionalization of corruption. The failure to deal with corruption has bred contempt for the law. When there is contempt for the law and this is combined with the criminalization of politics, corruption flourishes. The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) Report The Election Commission’s views have been forcefully reiterated by the Asian Human Rights Commission. In its report published in April 2007, the AHRC noted that “Criminalization of politics in India is a growing problem, despite legal attempts to address it.

Components of criminalization Muscle power The influence of muscle power in Indian politics was being decried even in the first general election of 1952. Allegations relating to the role played by outlaws in furthering the electoral prospects of certain candidates were heard even then; only the intensity and the frequency of such allegations have registered a quantum jump in recent times. In fact, we have today reached a stage where criminalization of politics is widely accepted as inevitable. Persons known to have a criminal past are not only getting party tickets, but on account of their clout, are also being appointed as ministers at the Union and State levels. Leaders of political parties stoutly defend any criticism of such choices. To add insult to injury, in the event of conviction and resulting disqualification, with the blessings of their party establishments, such elements are encouraged to pass on their mantle to their wives and progeny. It is a happy augury that many such proxy candidates were defeated in the recent Lok Sabha polls. But the fact remains that despite the best efforts of the Election Commission; the use of muscle power is a harsh reality and significantly influences the voting behaviour and the electoral outcome in many constituencies. The Election Commission must take adequate measures to break the nexus between the criminals and the politicians. The forms prescribed by the Election Commission for candidates disclosing their convictions, cases pending in courts and so on in their nomination papers is a step in the right direction if it applied properly. Too much should not be expected, however, from these disclosures. They would only inform people of the candidate’s history and qualifications, but not prohibit them from casting their votes, regardless, in favor of a criminal. For the past several general elections there has existed a gulf between the Election Commission and the voter. Common people hardly come to know the rules made by the commission. Bridging this gap is essential not only for rooting out undesirable elements from politics but also for the survival of our democratic polity. This is an incremental process, the rate of success of which is directly proportional to the increase in literacy rate in India. The electorate have made certain wrong choices in the past, but in the future national interest should guide them in making intelligent choices. Criminalization is a fact of Indian electoral politics today. The voters, political parties and the law and order machinery of the state are all equally responsible for this. There is very little faith in India in the efficacy of the democratic process in actually delivering good governance. This extends to accepting criminalization of politics as a fact of life. Toothless laws against convicted criminals standing for elections further encourage this process. Under current law, only people who have been convicted at least on two counts be debarred from becoming candidates. This leaves the field open for charge sheeted criminals, many of whom are habitual offenders or history-shelters. It is mystifying indeed why a person should be convicted on two counts to be disqualified from fighting

elections. The real problem lies in the definitions. Thus, unless a person has been convicted, he is not a criminal. Mere charge-sheets and pending cases do not suffice as bars to being nominated to fight an election. So the law has to be changed accordingly. The Supreme Court judgment of May 2, 2002 mandated that candidates disclose their criminal antecedents, if any, as also their financial and educational background. The Election Commission had proposed amendment of statutory rules and the format of nomination papers, to give effect to this judgment of the Supreme Court. The Apex Court judgement to check corruption among public servant is a welcome step. No law should provide protective shield to the corrupt public official and the court has rightly held that no prior sanction of competent authority would be required to prosecute them. It is ironical that the executive and legislatures who make and implement policies and guidelines for the development are themselves acting as stumbling block in the development of the nation. The role of Supreme Court becomes very important here. The Apex Court as custodian of constitution should take all necessary steps to strengthen democracy in the country. The legislature and executive have been complaining about the Supreme Court’s intervention on their domain, but it becomes imperative in such kind of unwanted situation. The Supreme Court of India upheld a PIL which made it mandatory for everyone seeking public office to disclose their criminal, financial and educational history. It was a way to ensure that the voters knew the important details about their “honorable” leaders, and steamed them were indeed. Some of the parties would be able to draw advantage from the Supreme Court order because they have had less opportunity to indulge in crime and corruption. They would have a greater chance of watching candidates of other parties squirm and suffer in agony. Some others might be happy because they already have efficient watchdog systems and batteries of lawyers in place that would permit them to file counteraffidavits and challenge nominations of opposing candidates within hours of their being filed. The Right to Information Act 2005 is a historical Act that makes Government officials liable for punishment if they fail to respond to people within a stipulated timeframe. Many public servants are leading luxurious lifestyles, beyond the legal sources of their income. Many public servants are filing false affidavits about their annual income, wealth details to Election Commission of India / Vigilance Commission / other authorities, as the case may be. These authorities are not properly verifying these affidavits.

Many scams, scandals are coming to light day in & day out, politicians are accusing each other of involvement in scams. Whereas, the said authorities are keeping mum, as if those affidavits filed by tainted public servants are true. The tainted public servants are not even providing full, right information to public as per RTI Act, lest the truth come out. This seen is very normal now a day that some public servants, caught red-handed during luxurious spending, they easily say that it is at their political party’s expense or their well wisher’s expense. Besides the actual utterances, the impassioned manner in which these are delivered would appear to incite a riotous behavior which is not conducive to an atmosphere of peace and harmony in which the Election Commission is committed to conduct free and fair elections in the conducive. Resignation anEscape Route? One thing lost sight of in the whole melodrama is the rationale and purpose of resignation. Is it an escape route to avoid disqualification and its consequences? Does resignation of the membership of the House and of the office stated to be one of profit absolve a member of the offence of acceptance and holding of an office of profit against the specific constitutional directive? More than anything else, just to avoid the consequences of disqualification; does not the MP concerned, when he resigns, act against the mandate given and betray the confidence reposed by the electorate as he deserts his assignment without serving the full term for which he was elected? A Member makes an oath/affirmation at the time of entering the House: "I will faithfully discharge the duty cast upon which I am about to enter." Does not the Member fail in his basic duty to the electorate if he resigns his post without any concern about the sovereign electors? Keeping criminal and other offenders out of polling fray 1. An elected candidate shall be never allowed to resign. 2. A disqualified candidate shall never be allowed to contest an election. 3. A disqualified candidate’s near family members or relatives shall not be allowed to contest elections. 4. Basic education and mandatory education qualification for the legislature to be elected. This will reduce the criminal’s entry as most of them are unqualified or underqualified. An elected member from a particular party expresses to change a party then he/she shall do so only after a gap of 5 years (nearest election) and remove special opportunities like by-elections. In such cases where the seat vacated shall be given to the second place contestant member Build Consensus

The stress should be on dissuading the political parties from giving tickets to candidates who are criminals and are involved in other offences, even if they are expected to win. Sustained campaigns of awareness building among voters and against crime in politics along with concerted efforts on the legislative front will be required to undo the damage done to the country’s electoral system by politics of expediency and pursuit of power at any cost. This effort must create a strong opinion and to get good people elected so that the laws can be amended or new ones signed-in. As criminals and other offenders are present in all parties, common sense shall prevail. In order to make further advancements on the above mentioned trends, and as proactive action in this direction, the like minded civil society organizations need to come together with a concrete and result oriented action plan. I shall be grateful if the Election Commission would urgently look into this and issue a show some measures. Thanking you, Yours truly, Ajay Kurude