TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES- VISAYAS

Capt. Sabi Street, Talisay City

Name : Lijayan, Christian John Paul L. Year and Section : BSME 2E

Subject : GEC 3 Date Submitted : 12/11/20
Professor : Melinda A. Sisles Score :

STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS WEEK 3

I. STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS

What remains of the Westphalian system can still be felt at this day and age? In what
sense has the world gone beyond it?

In this 21st century, the remnants of the Westphalia system are still clearly visible
to the world. This system has been continuously integrated into each nation’s
government. For example, the nations around the world have a full practice of
sovereignty and equality with any other states. This sovereignty over the country makes
the government independent in solving internal issues without any interference from any
other nations (which consequently decreases the probability of international conflicts
preventing us from experiencing another war). Furthermore, the concepts of secularism
and diplomacy are also some of the relics of the system that we are still utilizing
nowadays (Christenson, 2018). Despite this, some of the countries, like China, has gone
beyond this system and has tried to claim ownership of the sovereignty of other nations
like the Hongkong and the West Philippine Sea. Even though these international
conflicts were addressed on the international stage, China has still not abided to it which
is a strong opposition to the concept of the Westphalia system (the concept of
sovereignty and equality in states).

Christenson, G. (2018). Peace Palace Library. Retrieved December 11, 2020, from
https://www.peacepalace library.nl/2014/0 1/beyond-the-westphalian-paradigm/
II. Prelim Exam/Assignment # 1 (Application of Topics 1 to 3):
Essay. Read the scenario and decide whether the impact of the scenario is negative or
positive. Justify your answer using the concepts you have learned in Topics 1 to 3.
Scenario: Your father is a poultry raiser. Poultry raising is your family’s very source of
income. However, he came home crying recently for in June 2020 (in the middle of the
pandemic crisis), the Philippine government, through the Bureau of Animal Industry
(BAI) (BAI), has requested the local poultry raisers to limit their production and “give
way” to imports.

Based on the scenario and as an advocate of global integration of economic

markets, I believe that importation should not be prioritized over to the country’s local
producers since its negative effects might outweigh its positive effects. Yes, global
integration is essential for globalization and free trade. However, if such products and
services are available in the country, what is the point of importing them anyway?

As discussed in week 2, one of the indicators of economic globalization is an

increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This increase in GDP can only be linked to
the rate of exportation and not to importation (Riley, 2020). So why did the Bureau of
Animal Industry (BAI) has requested the local poultry raisers to limit their production and
“give way” to imports? According to Mackinson (2020), goods and services are likely to
be imported when they are nonexistent, scarce, has a high cost and low quality in a
country. But since our country has a sufficient amount of poultry raisers, then, the
reasons why the BAI has requested the poultry industry to limit its operations is might be
due to the cost and quality of the goods produced. However, with this decision, many
workers in the poultry industry might lose their jobs and many poultries will close given
that we are under a tremendous pandemic crisis. Thus, this method by the BAI might put
not only the government but the small businesses and their affected families in a
problematic situation in the long run.

In conclusion, global integration and importation are indeed essential only when it
is necessary for a country. We should not forget the value of the goods and services that
our countrymen are cultivating. As a closing note, instead of “Buy Global” we should also
consider “Buying Local and Make it Global.”
Mackinson, C. (2020, November 03). Why_do_countries_trade. Retrieved December 11,
2020, from https://www.economicsonline.co.uk/Global_economics/Why_do_
countries_ trade.html
Rilley, G. (2020, December 10). Export-led growth: Economics. Retrieved December 11,
2020, from https://www.tutor2u.net/economics/reference/export-led-growth