World Politics News   Articles for World Politics Course

Haiti held its first election in four years.  The election was marred by violence, but that is not unusual for the country.  Haiti, living in the shadow of the United States and its several military interventions, has never developed a stable civic society.  It has endured brutal dictatorships, extreme poverty, and natural disasters throughout the 20th century.  Since 2011 its legislature has tried to hold two elections which were both cancelled, and it has not met since last January.  There are several candidates for President, all of whom are associated with previous governments.  One can only hope that these elections can resolve the long-standing dysfunction of the government.

China is the world’s second largest economy and it is showing signs of an economic slowdown.  The Chinese government has long tried to manage an economic transition from an export-led economy to a domestic consumption-based economy.  That transition is not complete, and Chinese exports fell 8.3% from last year.  The fall in exports was caused by an appreciation of the Chinese currency, the yuan, and a fall in demand for Chinese exports from Europe.  More troubling was the drop-off in demand for imports by Chinese consumers, indicating that the move to a consumption-based economy is also falling short.  A slowdown in Chinese economic growth has led to a steep fall in the price of industrial commodities such as copper and oil, and that decline is hurting the economies of many emerging economies that rely heavily on the revenues from commodity exports.  If the Chinese economy slows down considerably it will have a major effect on the global economy.

Four years ago the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors suffered major damage from and earthquake and tsunami resulting in the closure of all 48 nuclear reactors in the country and ther evacuation of 160,000 people from the affected area.  Japan is now preparing to restart many of the closed reactors, a move that has triggered off a sharp debate within the country.  The Japanese economy has suffered from having to switch to more expensive fossil fuels for energy, but the safety risks associated with reactor restarts are quite substantial.  The government, however, seems intent on moving back to nuclear energy.