The International Movement for a Just World (Just) will organise a 'workcamp' to study the impact of globalisation on youths, especially how it affects their moral and spiritual values.

The movement's president Dr Chandra Muzaffar said today it was important to listen to the youth on how they view the challenges of globalisation since people in this age group will be the ones mostly affected by the process.

"Globalisation will have a tremendous impact on the youth compared to people from other age groups and this will be felt in decades to come," he told a press conference at the Just headquarters in Petaling Jaya.

He said economic and cultural globalisation will affect youths in their late teens and early 20s, as consumer product manufactures and the media perceive them as targets.

He added that youths will also benefit the most from the process as they are well-versed in information and communication technology — one of the most important tool for the globalisation process.

"Youngsters in Malaysia are hardly different from those in other parts of the world because they do share similar hopes, dreams and fears.

"For instance, youngsters all over the world want freedom to express themselves and that is something universal," said Chandra who is a political scientist.

Family and religious values

In view of this, he said an assessment will be done — based on the 30, mostly students, selected for the camp — on whether globalisation will have an impact on their values.

The youths will represent various ethnic groups and religions. The theme for the four-day camp, which starts on July 11, is 'Building Together a New Just World &38212 Youth and the Challenge of Globalisation'

"We have to look at the question of faith in relation to globalisation because the process affects values, and values are related to faith and religion," said Chandra.

The academician said it would also be interesting to see if youths are becoming more or less religious as a result of the globalisation process.

Chandra added that Just also hopes to learn from the youth whether the globalisation process affects family values, such as their attitude towards the elderly.

"It is hoped that through the workcamp, Malaysian youths will not only understand the relationship between globalisation and the values embodied in their traditions, but also forge deeper ties with Malaysians who come from religious and cultural backgrounds that are different from theirs," he said.