We have discussed several times that international environmental law is not such a complicated matter. The laws are all pretty much the same, it is the application that is different. So it is more a matter of your corporate conscious on whether your company will abide by or go around these laws. Small business has a tough time in navigating through the laws, business or environmental, of any 3rd world country because they simply do not have the horsepower to break through the consultants, in-country agents, and others who talk about helping but only see a easy meal ticket. The more you do not understand, and admit that truth, the more they take advantage of you.
Here is a little write up I did on another blog. Sorry, it is a bit of a civics lesson, but one that is important in refreshing what we already know.
Life is a game, and we all play for keeps in this game. The Constitution is the guiding document for the that outlines the rules of the game for the people of the country. It is the rulebook of game. The only job of the government is to administer and enforce that document (rulebook). The government acts as the referee. It is the job of the people (players) to ensure that their government does their job. When a government fails to do the job they were elected to do then it is the right and obligations of the people to change those who are in paid to be in charge of the rulebook. In a democracy that involves voting out the government elected officials, which is the same as being fired. This requires the players to be motivated, and educated in order to have a clear understanding that when the referees are doing their best to enforce the rules or are arbitrarily applying the rules based on personal preferences.
Imagine what would happen if fans found
out that the referees at the final game of the World Cup ignored violations of
rules by one side, and enforced the rules against the other side. Most likely the referees would have to be
flown out of the stadium to an undisclosed location in fear of reprisals from
those fans. Those people are passionate,
motivated, and educated about their game.
Passion is the emotional fire required to
motivate (move) people to do something.
Education is what is needed to know the difference between right and
wrong, to understand that the rules and whether the referees are being honest. Remove any one of the points of the triangle
and results in whining and complaining, but no change.
Passion can be removed through the use of
many different distractions; outside threats, intoxicants, mass entertainment,
to name a few. In Djibouti there is no
mass entertainment, outside threats are not ever mentioned, and the Islamic
populace generally frowns upon intoxicants such as alcohol. So the Djiboutia use khat to calm and control
the masses. Khat is a narcotic that
calms the user, and gives a sense of euphoria.
The use of khat by the general population is encouraged by the
government, and according to a document secured from the US military, the XXXXXX manages the khat trade. Khat dulls
the passion, dulls the senses to the point that educated people lack the
motivation to do anything about the wrongs of a government that they talk about
everyday.
Djibouti is a small country of less than
800,000 citizens, with an unemployment rate of over 50%. There is nill manufacturing, or any real
economic drivers other than having a deep sea port, and leasing of land for
foreign military bases. Service industry
is the primary driver for the masses. Education
of the people is not a real priority. Without
a strong education program the people did not know the difference between
democracy, dictatorship, communism, or any other method of governance.
Little
passion, little education, and even less motivation results in a government with
no oversight by the people, in a government that can do as it pleases. Results in a government that arbitrarily
administers the procedures and laws of the country. The referees can rule on the game that meets
their own personal needs.
