Effects on Saudi Arabia due to the events of the winter of 2010-2011 Research Paper

Effects on Saudi Arabia due to the events of the winter of 2010-2011 - Research Paper Example Saudi allies have fallen out of power in recent months, including former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia responded quickly by distributing about $36 billion in state funds to youth throughout the country, hoping that money would satisfy any lurking desire to follow the examples of other Arab populations. The result, however, of the Arab uprisings has affected the population of Saudi Arabia, as demands for reform are being offered to the government while protests are emerging for different causes but with small turnouts. The list of demands includes lower taxes, better support for those unable to work, a solution to unemployment rates, higher minimum wages, and a cancellation of some restrictions on women (Bar’el). However, this is hardly radical, as this list calls for only a brief number of economic changes and very little social reform, even concerning women. What it lacks is any demand for governmental reform, regime change, civil liberties, or religious freedom. When compared to the revolutions of other Arab states, the issues in Saudi Arabia are of an entirely different nature. These demonstrations, however, have already been met with a violent response, urging them into the same categories of neighboring movements. Human Rights Watch claims that over 160 dissidents have been locked up since February. Protests were not limited to the usual Sunni Muslim citizens of Saudi Arabia, but also consisted of separate movements by Shia members of society who were speaking out against religious intolerance and the imprisonment of peaceful activists. As if reaffirming what the Shia Muslims were protesting, Saudi police made arrests in April that included a prominent intellectual leader of the Shia sect, Al-Saeed al-Majid. (HRW) The Saudi government has been forced into a position of vigilance, as it intends to swift put down any attempt to destabilize the country. Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah al-Sheikh, a top Muslim authority with close ties to the Saudi royal family, decried the uprisings as â€Å"chaotic acts† that â€Å"have come from the enemies of Islam and those who serve them†. (Saudi) This statement may refer to Western powers, although Saudi Arabia usually depends on the American military for security on its borders and throughout the region—especially in the Gulf. The Gulf itself is in many ways entirely separate from the greater Arab world in that it tends to look inward rather than out. While Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt all have been concerned with their own neighbors as well as what is happening within their borders, Saudi Arabia looks across the Gulf to Iran, a rising Persian Shia power that is the antithesis of the Arab Sunni monarchy in the Arabian Peninsula. The Grand Mufti’s quote may indeed be referring to Iran and the Shia sect as the enemies of Islam, thus supporting Saudi crackdown on Shia protests. Saudi Arabia has taken specific action outside its borders, and has arguably put more focus into its foreign policy over its domestic policy in reaction to the regional uprisings. Saudi Arabia’s neighbor, Bahrain, is a Sunni monarchy as well, but rules over a Shia Muslim majority. In Bahrain, the government faced a grave threat as its citizens sought to uproot the monarchy, and the Saudi

Management 100 assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Management 100 assessment - Essay Example To expedite training, several professional chefs and executive leadership will perform a series of training programs to familiarise the staff with Italian cooking procedures, ingredients lists and how to conform to Volare administrative guidelines. This report highlights the current political, legal, socio-cultural and technological environments in India as part of the business’ comprehensive SWOT analysis to determine whether India is actually a viable business opportunity. The report aims to identify the current business environment in India as well as offer recommendations as to how to proceed in this potential business expansion. India is a developing democracy led by the United Progressive Alliance, a regime in control by electoral process (accessdemocracy.org, 2007). This emerging democracy is similar to that of Australia in which the people are given significant freedoms and are not ruled by a governmental authority which demands subservience. Because there is no research evidence which suggests that there are on-going feuds between parties attempting to gain control over the country, Volare Restaurant will experience no business interruption due to violence or other negative consequences as a result of aggression. The government appears to be relatively stable overall. A great deal of India’s current economic success comes from foreign direct investment, suggesting a country which has very liberal policies regarding the expansion of foreign businesses into the country. India is a booming economy which has many sectors that are funded directly by different venture capitalists (Rangaswami, 2008), with no research evidence suggesting that government entities attempt to regulate the flow of international business into India. The lack of governmental regulation regarding new, international businesses represents a