Abstract
The anti-globalization movement became famous due to violent demonstrations, such as the ones during the WTO Summit in Seattle in 1999 or the G8 meeting in 2001. The movement supports the idea that, even if globalization may have positive effects regarding economy, it is a disaster regarding the social sphere. 'Globalization' corresponds to a greater openness of the national society and economy. Cultural globalization, human migrations and tourism are fostered by the fact that it becomes easier and cheaper to travel and to communicate at a global scale. Economic globalization can be characterized by free trade in goods and services and free capital flows. This economic globalization is supposed to encourage economic growth, as proved by Ricardo's theorem of comparative advantage, which justifies free trade. Here, the anti-globalization movement emphasizes that this mechanism reinforces growth, as shown by the 'economic miracles' enjoyed by South East Asian Countries thanks to economic openness, without taking the welfare state into account. A welfare state is 'a country that has a state system to ensure a decent living standard for its citizens', which implies a fight against poverty and, therefore, a regulation of the labour market, social policies regarding the weak, the elderly and the unemployed, and a strong defence of the principles of health care and schooling.
