Biography of Pol Pot, Cambodian Dictator

Pol Pot (born Saloth Sar; May 19, 1925–April 15, 1998) was a Cambodian dictator. As the head of the Khmer Rouge, he oversaw an unprecedented and extremely brutal attempt to remove Cambodia from the modern world and establish an agrarian utopia. While attempting to create this utopia, Pol Pot initiated the Cambodian genocide, which lasted from 1975 to 1979 and caused the deaths of at least 1.5 million Cambodians. Fast Facts: Pol Pot Known For: As the leader of the revolutionary Khmer Rouge, Pol Pot oversaw the Cambodian genocide.Also Known As: Saloth SarBorn: May 19, 1925 in Prek Sbauv, CambodiaParents: Loth Sar and Sok NemDied: April 15, 1998 in Anlong Veng, CambodiaSpouse(s): Khieu Ponnary (m. 1956–1979), Mea Son (m. 1986–1998)Children: Sar Patchata Early Life Pol Pot was born Saloth Sar on May 19, 1928, in the fishing village of Prek Sbauk, Kampong Thom province, in what was then French Indochina (now Cambodia). His family, of Chinese-Khmer descent, was moderately well-to-do. They had connections to the royal family: a sister was a concubine of the king, Sisovath Monivong, and a brother was a court official. In 1934, Pol Pot went to live with the brother in Phnom Penh, where he spent a year in a royal Buddhist monastery and then attended a Catholic school. At age 14, he began high school in Kompong Cham. Pol Pot was, however, not a very successful student, and he eventually switched to a technical school to study carpentry. In 1949, Pol Pot obtained a scholarship to study radio electronics in Paris. He enjoyed himself in Paris, gaining a reputation as something of a bon vivant, fond of dancing and drinking red wine. However, by his second year in Paris, Pol Pot had become friends with other students who were impassioned by politics. From these friends, Pol Pot encountered Marxism, joining the Cercle Marxiste (Marxist Circle of Khmer Students in Paris) and the French Communist Party. (Many of the other students whom he befriended during this period later became central figures in the Khmer Rouge.) After Pol Pot failed his examinations for the third year in a row, however, he had to return in January 1953 to what would shortly become Cambodia. Joining the Viet Minh As the first of the Cercle Marxiste to return to Cambodia, Pol Pot helped assess the different groups rebelling against the Cambodian government and recommended that returning members of the Cercle join the Khmer Viet Minh (or Moutakeaha). Although Pol Pot and other members of the Cercle disliked that the Khmer Viet Minh had heavy ties with Vietnam, the group felt this Communist revolutionary organization was the one most likely to take action. In August 1953, Pol Pot left his home secretly and, without even telling his friends, headed to the Viet Minh’s Eastern Zone Headquarters, located near the village of Krabao. The camp was located in the forest and consisted of canvas tents that could be easily moved in case of an attack. Pol Pot (and eventually more of his Cercle friends) were dismayed to find the camp completely segregated, with Vietnamese as the high-ranking members and Cambodians (Khmers) given only menial tasks. Pol Pot himself was assigned tasks such as farming and working in the mess hall. Still, he watched and learned how the Viet Minh used propaganda and force to take control of peasant villages in the region. The Khmer Viet Minh was forced to disband after the 1954 Geneva Accords; Pol Pot and several of his friends headed back to Phnom Penh. 1955 Election The 1954 Geneva Accords had temporarily quashed much of the revolutionary fervor within Cambodia and proclaimed a mandatory election in 1955. Pol Pot, who was now back in Phnom Penh, was determined to do what he could to influence the election. He infiltrated the Democratic Party with the hope of being able to reshape its policies. When it turned out that Prince Norodom Sihanouk had rigged the election, Pol Pot and others became convinced that the only way to change Cambodia was through revolution. Khmer Rouge In the years following the 1955 elections, Pol Pot led a dual life. By day, Pol Pot worked as a teacher and surprisingly was well-liked by his students. By night, Pol Pot was heavily involved in a Communist revolutionary organization, the Kampuchean Peoples Revolutionary Party (KPRP). (â€Å"Kampuchean† is another term for â€Å"Cambodian.†) During this time, Pol Pot also married Khieu Ponnary, the sister of one of his Paris student friends. The couple never had children together. By 1959, Prince Sihanouk had begun to seriously repress leftist political movements, especially by targeting the older generation of experienced dissidents. With many of the older leaders in exile or on the run, Pol Pot and other young members of the KPRP emerged as leaders in party affairs. After a power struggle within the KPRP in the early 1960s, Pol Pot took control of the party. This party, which was officially renamed the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK) in 1966, became more commonly known as the Khmer Rouge (meaning â€Å"Red Khmer† in French). The term â€Å"Khmer Rouge† was used by Prince Sihanouk to describe the CPK, since many in the CPK were both Communists (often called â€Å"reds†) and of Khmer descent. The Battle to Topple Prince Sihanouk In March 1962 when his name appeared on a list of people wanted for questioning, Pol Pot went into hiding. He took to the jungle and began preparing a guerrilla-based revolutionary movement that intended to topple Prince Sihanouk’s government. In 1964 with help from North Vietnam, the Khmer Rouge established a base camp in the border region and issued a declaration calling for armed struggle against the Cambodian monarchy, which they viewed as corrupt and repressive. The ideology of the Khmer Rouge gradually developed in this period. It featured a Maoist orientation with an emphasis on the peasant farmer as the foundation for a revolution. This contrasted with the orthodox Marxist idea that the proletariat (working class) was the basis for revolution. Courting Vietnam and China In 1965, Pol Pot was hoping to get support from either Vietnam or China for his revolution. Since the Communist North Vietnamese regime was the most likely source of support for the Khmer Rouge at the time, Pol Pot went to Hanoi to ask for aid. In response to his request, the North Vietnamese criticized Pol Pot for having a nationalist agenda. Since, at this time, Prince Sihanouk was letting the North Vietnamese use Cambodian territory in their struggle against South Vietnam and the United States, the Vietnamese believed the time was not right for an armed struggle in Cambodia. It did not matter to the Vietnamese that the time might have felt right for the Cambodian people. Pol Pot next visited the Communist People’s Republic of China (PRC) and fell under the influence of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, which emphasized revolutionary enthusiasm and sacrifice. It accomplished this in part by encouraging people to destroy any vestiges of traditional Chinese civilization. China would not openly support the Khmer Rouge, but it gave Pol Pot some ideas for his own revolution. In 1967, Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, though isolated and lacking widespread support, made the decision to start a revolt against the Cambodian government. The initial action began on January 18, 1968. By that summer, Pol Pot had moved away from collective leadership to become the sole decision maker. He even set up a separate compound and lived apart from the other leaders. Cambodia and the Vietnam War The Khmer Rouge’s revolution progressed very slowly until two major events occurred in 1970. The first was a successful coup led by General Lon Nol, which deposed the increasingly unpopular Prince Sihanouk and aligned Cambodia with the United States. The second involved a massive bombardment campaign and invasion of Cambodia by the United States. During the Vietnam War, Cambodia had officially remained neutral; however, the Viet Cong (Vietnamese communist guerrilla fighters) used that position to their advantage by creating bases within Cambodian territory in order to regroup and store supplies. American strategists believed that a massive bombing campaign within Cambodia would deprive the Viet Cong of this sanctuary and thus bring the Vietnam War to a quicker end. The result for Cambodia was political destabilization. These political changes set the stage for the rise of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. With an incursion by Americans within Cambodia, Pol Pot was able to claim that the Khmer Rouge was fighting for Cambodian independence and against imperialism. Although he might have been refused aid from North Vietnam and China before, Cambodian involvement in the Vietnam War led to their support of the Khmer Rouge. With this new backing, Pol Pot was able to concentrate on recruiting and training while the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong did most of the initial fighting. Disturbing trends emerged early. Students and so-called â€Å"middle† or better-off peasants were no longer allowed to join the Khmer Rouge. Former government workers and officials, teachers, and people with an education were also purged from the party. Chams—an important ethnic group in Cambodia—and other minorities were forced to adopt Cambodian styles of dress and appearance. Decrees were issued establishing cooperative agricultural enterprises. The practice of emptying urban areas began. By 1973, the Khmer Rouge controlled two-thirds of the country and half the population. Genocide in Democratic Kampuchea After five years of civil war, the Khmer Rouge was finally able to capture Cambodia’s capital of Phnom Penh on April 17, 1975. This ended Lon Nol’s rule and began the five-year reign of the Khmer Rouge. It was at this time that Saloth Sar began calling himself â€Å"brother number one† and took Pol Pot as his nom de guerre. (According to one source, â€Å"Pol Pot† comes from the French words â€Å"politique potentielle.†) After taking control of Cambodia, Pol Pot declared the Year Zero. This meant much more than restarting the calendar; it was a means of emphasizing that all that was familiar in the lives of Cambodians were to be destroyed. This was a far more comprehensive cultural revolution than the one Pol Pot had observed in Communist China. Religion was abolished, ethnic groups were  forbidden to speak their language or follow their customs, and political dissent was ruthlessly suppressed. As dictator of Cambodia, which the Khmer Rouge renamed Democratic Kampuchea, Pol Pot began a ruthless, bloody campaign against a variety of groups: members of the former government, Buddhist monks, Muslims, Western-educated intellectuals, university students and teachers, people in contact with Westerners or Vietnamese, people who were crippled or lame, and ethnic Chinese, Laotians, and Vietnamese. These massive changes within Cambodia and the specific targeting of large sections of the population led to the Cambodian genocide. By its end in 1979, at least 1.5 million people had been murdered in the â€Å"Killing Fields.† Many were beaten to death with iron bars or hoes after digging their own graves. Some were buried alive. One directive read: â€Å"Bullets not to be wasted.† Most died from starvation and disease, but probably 200,000 were executed, often after interrogation and brutal torture. The most infamous interrogation center was Tuol Sleng, S-21 (Security Prison 21), a former high school. It was there that prisoners were photographed, interrogated, and tortured. It was known as â€Å"the place where people go in but never come out.† Vietnam Defeats the Khmer Rouge As the years passed, Pol Pot became increasingly paranoid about the possibility of an invasion by Vietnam. To preempt an attack, Pol Pot’s regime began carrying out raids and massacres in Vietnamese territory. Rather than dissuade the Vietnamese from attacking, these raids ultimately provided Vietnam with an excuse to invade Cambodia in 1978. By the following year, the Vietnamese had routed the Khmer Rouge, ending both the Khmer Rouge’s rule in Cambodia and the genocidal policies of Pol Pot. Ousted from power, Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge retreated to a remote area of Cambodia along the border with Thailand. For several years, the North Vietnamese tolerated the existence of the Khmer Rouge in this border area. However, in 1984, the North Vietnamese made a concerted effort to deal with them. After that, the Khmer Rouge survived only with the support of Communist China and the toleration of the Thai government. In 1985, Pol Pot resigned as head of the Khmer Rouge and handed over day-to-day administrative tasks to his longtime associate, Son Sen. Pol Pot nonetheless continued as the de facto leader of the party. Aftermath In 1995, Pol Pot, still living in isolation on the Thai border, suffered a stroke that left the left side of his body paralyzed. Two years later, he had Son Sen and members of Sen’s family executed because he believed that Sen had attempted to negotiate with the Cambodian government. The deaths of Son Sen and his family shocked many of the remaining Khmer leadership. Feeling that Pol Pot’s paranoia was out of control and worried about their own lives, Khmer Rouge leaders arrested Pol Pot and put him on trial for the murder of Sen and other Khmer Rouge members. Pol Pot was sentenced to house arrest for the remainder of his life. He was not punished more severely because he had been so prominent in Khmer Rouge affairs. Some of the remaining members of the party, however, questioned this lenient treatment. Death On April 15, 1998, Pol Pot heard a broadcast on Voice of America (of which he was a faithful listener) announce that the Khmer Rouge had agreed to turn him over to an international tribunal. He died that same night. Rumors persist that he either committed suicide or was murdered. His body was cremated without an autopsy to establish the cause of death. Legacy Pol Pot is remembered for his long, oppressive reign and for his attempt to exterminate all religious and ethnic minorities in Cambodia. The Cambodian genocide—responsible for the deaths of at least 1.5 million people—resulted in several Khmer Rouge leaders being convicted of crimes against humanity. Sources Bergin, Sean.  The Khmer Rouge and the Cambodian Genocide. Rosen Pub. Group, 2009.Short, Philip.  Pol Pot: Anatomy of a Nightmare. Henry Holt, 2005.

Nevada Essay - 1688 Words

In population Nevada is one of the smallest states of the fifty states in the Union, but it invites and receives more intense national publicity than many others. â€Å"It is a testing ground for unorthodox social theories and an outpost of solid American conservatism† (313). Because the state is so large and its centers of population is so widely scattered, no single generalization about it will suffice for a historical summary. Nevada, with its 110,000 square miles, would cover more than half of Spain. Nevada is not the largest state in the Union, but it is big enough to inspire awe in its visitors† (2). About 86 percent of the land in Nevada was still under the control of the federal government as the year 2000 opened (3). It was†¦show more content†¦The Helldorado Parade was established in Las Vegas in 1935, and defined Las Vegas as a Western town. Participants dressed up as cowboys and marched up downtown streets to large crowds. After the El Rancho was est ablished, three more Western Casinos opened for business. In 1941, El Cortez opened as the first large hotel downtown. The hotel Last Frontier opened on the strip in 1942, and in 1946, the Golden Nugget opened downtown. The one big casino to the Western motif was Benjamin Siegel’s The Flamingo which opened in 1946. Siegel was a mobster with ties to the Chicago and California networks, envisioned a â€Å"jewel in the desert.† The Flamingo was not a success and was temporarily closed. It then re-opened and had a diverse theme-oriented style in the hotel casino industry in Las Vegas. 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Effects of Poverty on College Education in the USA Free Essays

string(64) " privilege accompanying the prestige of the competitive course\." Thesis: Poverty not only affects the living standards and lifestyle of people but also affects college education in the United States of America. Introduction An overview of the effect of poverty on college education. Thesis statement. We will write a custom essay sample on Effects of Poverty on College Education in the USA or any similar topic only for you Order Now Effects of poverty on college education. Poor quality of primary education in poverty-stricken areas leads to poor performance in college. People from poverty-stricken areas have less access to good college education as they lack financial resources to meet the college education cost. Poverty affecting college students makes the students juggle between full time jobs and class schedules. Poor professionalism resulting from poverty affects the economic development of the United States. Conclusion Introduction Poverty entails a collection of several factors befalling an individual, family or a group of people that lead to impossibility for such a person, family or group of people to afford the basic human needs. Prolongation of such a state for at least three generations leads to a cycle of poverty, and according to this condition, it is not possible for such people to break out of this situation without external interventions. In this case, the affected people or families have limited or no resources for livelihood and, therefore, end up not being able to afford the basic human needs such as food, clothing, shelter, health care and education. Continued lack of financial resources and education make the poor grow poorer. This problem affects both the developed and developing countries in the world. In the United States, poverty rates range from 10% to 21% depending on one’s political alienation. This implies that even in the developed countries poverty still exists. Low economic status experienced by many people across the world leads to poor education as many cannot afford high cost of education in colleges and universities, hence a lot of people acquire the basic education and avoid the tertiary education (Brandy-Smith, Fauth, and Brooks-Gunn 1). Low education level, on the other hand, propagates the continuation of poverty over the generations as low education level means poor employment and low income. In addition, learning institutions also experience the impact of poverty as the high cost of education would cause low annual registration of students as the cost increasingly becomes higher. It is, therefore, clear that poverty affects not only the living standards and lifestyle of people but also the college education in the United States of America. Effects of poverty on college education â€Å"Simple comparisons between children in poor families and children in non-poor families using national datasets indicate that poor children are more likely to do worse on indices of school achievement than non-poor children are† (Brandy-Smith, Fauth, and Brooks-Gunn 1). Besides, elementary schools in poverty-stricken areas of the United States do not have qualified school tutors, and therefore, the students who graduate from these schools are not qualified enough to join colleges. Due to poverty, â€Å"teachers in city schools are less likely to be certified or to have studied in the areas that they teach, and more likely to leave before the end of the school year. In some years and for some subjects, it is hard to find any teachers at all to fill slots in urban schools† (Hochschild 1). Students with poor elementary background are not satisfactorily qualified to meet the professional challenges even after the college graduation. Low annual registration of new students in colleges leads to a gradual collapse of college education and, therefore, denies citizens an important resource of breaking out of poverty. Because of poverty, even the few who are qualified to join colleges do not fully concentrate on studies due to lack of sustenance. With little or no food in their stomachs, students have little or no focus on studies, and it negatively affects the learning process in colleges. A large number of students in the United States lack financial resources to cover high tuition fees, and therefore, most of them rely on education loans and scholarships. Education loans like any other loans require repayment with some interest after completion of one’s education. The annual increment of tuition fees is between 5% and 8%, and this becomes increasingly difficult for parents and students to afford. The education cost varies from one institution to another, especially from public to private colleges. Private colleges have a relatively higher education cost as compared to public colleges which depend on the government funding. The high education cost levied by the private colleges discourages students with poor background from enrolling in private colleges, and therefore, they opt to enrol in public colleges, thus causing overcrowding there. Actually, MItchel, Fowler and Towle lament that learning conditions in inner-city schools have so poor facilities that â€Å"students share used textbooks and practice typing on handmade, fake keyboards† (Para1). This over stretching of the public college facilities reduces the quality of education offered as the increase of the number of students in class makes it difficult for the tutors to attend to each student’s needs. Poverty affecting college students makes them juggle between full time jobs and class schedules in order to make ends meet. Research shows that juggling between work and education greatly lowers one’s performance, either in academics, at the place of work or both. In addition, juggling between education and work causes severe health problems, especially when such students do not get enough sleep as both tasks are time-consuming. Moreover, poor parents cannot provide an appropriate diet necessary for their children’s learning (Bainbridge and Lasley 1). Poor health status, on the other hand, leads to low concentration in class affecting academic performance, hence students may graduate without the required qualifications. Poverty contributes greatly to graduation of unqualified students as the rate of skipping lessons grows with increase in poverty. Poverty in the US kills college competitiveness of the academic programs; consequently the enrolment levels drastically reduce because of poor performance from secondary schools. The reduction in program competitiveness deprives colleges of the privilege accompanying the prestige of the competitive course. You read "Effects of Poverty on College Education in the USA" in category "Papers" This, therefore, kills the spirit of competition between the students in a particular course, which outrightly leads to poor performance in college. Colleges from a particular region, especially those stricken by poverty, may decide to lower the admission grades for a particular course program in order to accommodate the students of that region. Lowering admission grades of one college can affect other colleges’ enrolment as many students with relatively lower grades may decide to transfer to such colleges. This transfer indeed affects the enrolment in the colleges from which the students are transferring. Moreover, poverty related transfer of students might affect the student’s academic performance as a person needs to take time to acclimatize to the new environment. In the United States, different regions register different number of graduates depending on the poverty level of the regions. People from these areas have relatively less access to good college education as they lack financial resources to meet the college education cost. Statistics show that these areas registered the lowest number of college graduates in 2004 as compared to other states. The statistics below illustrate this fact (Crissey 8): States percentages Mississippi 18,90% Alabama 21,40% Louisiana 20,40% Arkansas 19,30% District of Columbia 47,50% According to Bishaw and Semega, high poverty levels characterize these regions (excluding the District of Columbia) (20). Thus, education is difficult to acquire, hence less college graduates. This results in increase in number of uneducated young people hence perpetuates the growth of poverty across the states. Poverty affects education negatively and poses stress to both students and parents. In the United States, the economic background of citizens determines the college students attend. Families with poor economic background have their children attending local tertiary colleges while those with good economic background have their children attending national and international colleges where they graduate with relatively better qualifications. In this sense, students from poor economic background have a higher chance to transform into poor adults than children from well up families. Mitchell and Houston attribute this to the fact that in the United States, rich families have the capacity to provide good college education to their children, which would mean good qualifications and hence descent employment (Para. 4). On the other hand, poor education due to poverty would lead to employment with meagre salaries. Moreover, high poverty level affects the economic development of the United States as unqualified professionals graduating from colleges would have little knowledge in their fields that in turn results in poor performance in industries. Given that by 1993, there were roughly 13.4 million U.S. children living in poverty (Litcher 988); such a situation translates into economic downfall. In essence, economic progress depends largely on the professionalism of people working in different fields of the economy. Poor professionalism resulting from poverty can compel companies to invest into education of their staff, hence incurring more expenses. Poverty among college students in the United States causes reduction of exposure of these students to the outside world. Attending educational tours, educational excursions and making educational trips help enlighten and open up the minds of college students. Unfortunately, because of poverty, most students in the aforementioned states cannot afford these programs. Given that â€Å"poverty is the single largest factor determining a child’s failure in school† (Zeitlin Para. 14), these students lag behind for they cannot afford such informative exposures. While the rich continue to enjoy the privileges of wealth, the poor remain suffering in the impoverished conditions with little or no external exposure. The benefits of these exposures help the students acclimatize to the job market after college education. Conclusion Although poverty is a state that many people would not want to find themselves in, it is still rampant in both developed and developing countries. Poverty poses a threat not only to the economic, social and political aspects of life, but also to education as a major requirement for sustenance. In the United States, poverty negatively affects college education as it causes a great reduction of the students’ enrolment. Moreover, poverty-stricken students miss numerous classes because of lack of fees. As a result, it influences their grades greatly leading to unqualified graduates. On the other hand, because of lack of finances, some elementary schools cannot sustain enough qualified teachers. This may also lead to poor grades as the available tutors might fail to meet students’ needs, and in the end, the students fail to secure admission to various colleges. To overcome this problem, people decide to juggle between work and study to cater for both their basic and educational needs. People living below the poverty level in the United States can offer a lower college education to their children as compared to those living above the poverty level. Poverty impairs good education in the US, and this also affects other aspects of life. Works Cited Bainbridge, William, and Thomas Lasley. â€Å"Poverty not Race Holds Back Urban Students.† Schoolmatch.com. School Match. 28 July 2002. Web. 14 June 2011.http://schoolmatch.com/articles/poverty.htm; Bishaw,  Alemayehu  and  Jessica  Semega.  Income, Earnings, and Poverty Data From the 2007 American Community Survey, Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2008 Web. 14 June 2011 ;http://www.census.gov/prod/2008pubs/acs-09.pdf; Brandy-Smith, Christy, Rebecca Fauth, and Jeanne Brooks-Gunn. Poverty and Education – Overview, Children, and Adolescents, Education Encyclopedia – StateUniversity.com 2011. Web. 14 June 2011. ;http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2330/Poverty-Education.html; Crissey, Sarah R. Educational Attainment in the United States: 2007. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2009. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 2008 Web. 14 June 2011 ;http://www.census.gov/prod/2009pubs/p20-560.pdf;. Hochschild, L. Janifer. â€Å"Social Class in Public Schools†. Journal of Social Issues. 59.4 (2003) :821-840. Web. 14 June 2011. ;http://scholar.harvard.edu/jlhochschild/publications/social-class-public-schools; Litcher, Daniel. â€Å"Reviewed work(s): Children in Poverty: Child Development and Public Policy by Aletha C. Huston.† American Journal of Sociology 98.4 (1993): 988. Web. 14 June 2011. ;http://www.jstor.org/pss/2781277; Mitchell, Emily, Deborah Fowler, and Lisa H. Towle. â€Å"Do the Poor Deserve Bad Schools?† Time, 14 October 1991. Web. 14 June 2011. ;http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974025-1,00.html;. Zeitlin, Janine. â€Å"Poverty hinders education†. News-press.com. A Gannet company. 14 Sep. 2010. Web. 14 June 2011. ;http://www.newspress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/201009140110/NEWS0104/9140345;. How to cite Effects of Poverty on College Education in the USA, Papers

Principal of Financial Markets Global Market Dynamic Trends

Question: Describe about the Principal of Financial Markets for Global Market Dynamic Trends. Answer: Introduction Airlines sector is one of the fastest growing industries in the Australian continent, in this paper the various analysis will present the detailed outlook of the opportunities in this sector. The global market is very dynamic, the trends in the market are always changing, and it requires the companies to keep their policies to match to the trends of the market. Top-down analysis is widely used to formulate strategies that can counter the challenges in the market. Investors prefer to analyse the global trends in the market along with the economic trends to predict the performance of the company in the market. The challenges in the market require developing new strategies to make the company stable to face the new trends in the market. In the present analysis, the researcher has tried to provide remedial measures to the economical trends of the global airlines market (Afonso and Sousa, 2012). To provide a detailed analysis a comparison is made between the Virgin Airlines one of the top competitors that is looking to set itself up the trends in the Australian airlines market. The bottom-up approach presents a comparative analysis of the two giants that has been trying to exploit the opportunities in the market. Financial data has been used to make the analysis more detailed and authentic suggesting the need for the changes in the policies that can help in establishing a better market position. Justifications are provided based on the analysis that will guide the investors to choose the company that has shown the chances of improvement and profitability in the Australian airlines market (Altman et al. 2012). Top- down analysis The airlines industry has faced various challenges in the recent time due to the rising costs that can make the businesses can run at loss. The various challenges in the airlines industry is explained by the SWOT analysis and other analysis can help in the proper analysis of the airlines business in Australia. The rising fuel costs and other costs have made the business to run and face the challenges in the economy. The micro economic factors influence the various business trends to improve the business to settle in the market. In recent time, the Qantas Airlines has seen growth in the recent time as the fuel prices have seen decline (Armstrong et al. 2016). This has led to the growth in the business of these airlines in the global market. Economic factors have made the airlines businesses like the Qantas and Virgin Blue to try to regain the market. It is the strengths of the basic policies that has made the businesses to face the challenges in the market and function smoothly. The e conomic and the environmental factors has influenced the functioning of the businesses in the global airlines market. The various macro economic factors influence the growth of the business in the global market and influence better economic growth of the business (Biddle, 2015). Economic Environment of Airlines industry The political issues influenced the business operations of the airlines business in the continent of Australia. The excessive interference from the government and the political unrest did hamper the working of these firms in the global airlines sector. The environmental factors largely affect the functioning of the airlines in the aviation industry. In the declining economic conditions in the aviation sector suffered loss of faith of the customers. The customers were faced with the problems of rise in the prices of the air tickets and other services of the airlines. However, the declining business of the aviation made the government to jump into action to prevent this issue from causing impact to the economy. The later interventions of the government and the authorities have resulted in the control of the high rising prices (Bilotkach and Lakew, 2014). Every airline has to follow strict set of rules and regulations in the country of its operations to make their business flourish in the challenging environment. Various other trade barriers like stiff competition and other environmental factors had influenced the business of the airlines in the country. Trade barriers breakdown has made the aviation businesses like the Qantas and the Virgin Blue to get relief from the restrictions and provide better services to the customers at comparative rates. To attain the major share of the market these airlines had to lower down their ticket pricing and follow a policy of cost cutting to prevent the customers from shifting away from the brands (Blankespoor et al. 2013). In addition to this, they have social responsibility tom follow that can make the airlines to have a better business in the competitive market. In addition to this, international regulations and policies have made the industry to rethink the policies that can help them achieve the business growth and help min strengthening the economy. The conditions prevailing in the continent of Australia seems favourable for the growth of the industry as the international market seems to be positive and there is no such present threats of any disturbance globally. The air travellers in the country of Autralia have seen a rise in the recent time leading to the growth of business among the business class. International trips have also seen a high trend more to Europe and Asia that has made the airlines business am blooming sector in the recent years (Bonner et al. 2013). The positive environment for the growth and success of the business has made the companies to experience in the growth of business and profitability with support of the local authorities and government. Not only Australia but all over the world there has been a major downfall of the economies that has affected the business of the airlines largely on global scale. These falling economies have affected the spending power of the individuals and thus the air travellers have been declining. To make the situation worse there has been many issue related to the safety of air travels and environmental issues that the companies had to face hindering the growth of this sector in the country. The rising fuel prices in late 19th and early 20th had affected the airline business drastically (Borenstein and Rose, 2014). However, this issue has been tackled in the present time, although the rising fuel prices have been an issue for concern. Operational cost has been another area that affected the airlines sector, as the cost of operations had gone high making the businesses to loose profit or impose higher fares that can affect the customer number. These factors together made the aviation industry s uffer to establish itself in the market. Skilled workers are a necessity of the airlines sector and it had affected the businesses largely. The shortage of the skilled workers in the country forced the companies to look for alternatives to get skilled workers from other countries. This made the companies to invest huge money on the skilled workers and the employment condition had an adverse affect in the country. The overall decline of the economy had a huge impact making it hard for the companies to survive the negative conditions in the market (Bown and Crowley, 2014). Service quality is the major area that is to be kept in mind by every airlines business to make the customers return to the company. Providing the better services has been the main motive of the aviation industry in the present times as the customer now have access to the information readily and they can easily com pare prices before selecting an airlines (Chen and Chen, 2012). Being the top airlines in Australia, it is then duty of these companies to provide the customers the best possible service at prices that can be competitive to the others in the industry. This forced the airlines to adapt to a strategy of customer centric approach that can help the airlines to achieve operational advantage in the business environment. The spreading of the businesses and the falling trade barriers has made the business to step outside the boundaries of the country and make the profit out of the rising opportunities in the market (Brueckner and Picard, 2013). International business growth has ma de the people of Australia to travel to other places making the airlines to use this opportunity to make the customers choose the flights providing attractive discounts and facilities to the business people. The competition in the aviation industry is rising steeply and it requires for the airline giants to develop policies that can help them carter to more customers and gain the trust of the customers. Technological advancement calls for improvement in the policies and processes of the companies so that it can cut down its costs and provide cost effective services to the customers (Fenna, 2013). Many new airlines are trying top get the customers to choose them by providing huge discounts and attractive packages that can make the customers to choose them, over the airlines giants like the Qantas and the Virgin Blue. As the competition is fierce it requires for these companies to try and adapt to new policies apart from trying to use their brand name, as customers today are looking for better value for their money apart from only brand name (Corsetti et al. 2013). The previous year that is 2015 had seen some major shift in the businesses in the aviation sector as being the year that saw huge rise in the demand for air tickets (Brueckner et al. 2015). This rise was largely due to the falling ticket prices due to the competition in the market. The fall in prices of the services made, the people top choose the airlines above the other available options. The fall in the prices also made the middle class of the country to have the opportunity to use these services and help in the promotion of the companies in the aviation industry. This has been evident from the rise in the performance of the aviation sector in the recent analysis of the economic growth in the country (Gregory and Smith, 2016). The positive economic growth has made the companies to have the chance to makes the use of the opportunities and make the business profitable for the business. Bottom- up analysis The micro economic factor analysis has largely helped the companies to provide the best services to the customers. The strengths of the industry have made them to face the challenges in the market and come out as successful in the end through the difficult economic conditions in the country. The major issue was the falling economies and the rising competition in the market (Herndon, Ash and Pollin, 2014). The rise in the competition has made the firm to rethink its policies to prevent the customers from shifting to the other alternatives. The opportunities in the market are to be explored by the firm and used to get the benefits of the market to increase their business. Aviation is comparatively large industry that requires proper analysis and planning over the business operations. SWOT analysis help sin analysing the strengths of the company and plan for the future threats in the market that the companies will need to overcome to survive in the market (Lawton, Rajwani and Doh, 2013) . The two airlines in the context are the Qantas and the Virgin Blue, financial analysis of these companies makes the different contexts that are helpful in determining the operational efficiency of these businesses. Financial Ratios and Growth Profitability of Qantas Airways Ltd Key Ratios - Profitability Years 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Margins % of Sales Gross Margin 73.77 56.83 55.77 55.24 55.62 51.72 54.6 49.83 54.01 Operating Margin 6.9 5.83 1.39 -1.55 -0.63 -6.6 1.28 -26.19 4.92 Profitability Asset Turnover (Average) 0.78 0.8 0.73 0.67 0.7 0.71 0.77 0.81 0.89 Return on Assets % 3.71 4.93 0.59 0.56 1.23 -1.17 0.02 -15.16 3.2 Liquidity/Financial Health Current Ratio 0.87 0.74 0.89 0.93 0.9 0.77 0.82 0.66 0.68 Quick Ratio 0.82 0.67 0.78 0.81 0.78 0.65 0.7 0.58 0.6 Financial Leverage 3.17 3.44 3.5 3.35 3.39 3.6 3.4 6.05 5.09 Debt/Equity 0.68 0.62 0.86 0.86 0.89 0.92 0.88 1.84 1.39 Efficiency Receivables Turnover 11.64 11.2 11.69 12.43 13.59 13.95 12.49 11.52 14.41 Inventory Turnover 15.45 34.34 27.64 20.94 18.45 19.25 19.51 22.33 22.36 Fixed Assets Turnover 1.23 1.28 1.19 1.08 1.1 1.07 1.14 1.25 1.46 Asset Turnover 0.78 0.8 0.73 0.67 0.7 0.71 0.77 0.81 0.89 The financial data of Qantas Airlines over the years shows a trend of improvement in the business as propelled by the growth of the economy in the present times. The gross margin of the company has seen a rise in the present times compared to the past years. The gross margin of a company is derived by deducting the revenue generated in the present year from the total cost of goods sold in the present year (Merkert and Cowie, 2012). By the calculations, it is seen that the gross margin has seen improvement that is positive for the business and inturn affect the economy. This shows that the company is stable has signs of growth in the business that has affected the overall growth of the aviation industry (Misopoulos et al. 2014). In addition to this, the operating margin has also seen an improvement in the recent years compared to the past years based on the financial data of the company. The operating margin is the indicator of the growth of the economy that is directly affected by th e rise and fall of the economy. Operating margin is derived from the operating expenses and the revenue that is earned by the company in the given period. Current ratio derived from the above tables shows the major changes that are seen in the liability repayable power of the company. The current ratio strengths show that the firm has better chances to pay off its current liabilities. The more value of the current assets that is present with the company makes the strength of the company in handling the current payments of the business (Zou et al. 2014). The asset turnover ratio of the company has been positive indicating that the firm has enough capacity to generate income based on the assets hold by the company. In addition to this the credit collection of the company is healthy indicating that the company gets its dues cleared as early as possible making the debt collection a strength of the organisation. However, the asset turnover ratio also indicates that the company has been slow to increase the sales in the years of its operations (Pearson, Pitfield and Ryley, 2015). Financial Ratio and Growth Profitability of Virgin Blue Ltd Key Ratios - Profitability Year 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Margins % of Sales Gross Margin _ _ 71.2 _ 72.28 73.33 71.77 71.91 74.68 Operating Margin 14.76 6.09 -7.58 2.87 -1.5 1.56 -3.43 -8.86 -2.41 Profitability Asset Turnover (Average) 0.94 0.82 0.78 0.82 0.85 1 0.95 0.95 0.9 Return on Assets % 9.36 3.46 -4.77 0.59 -1.76 0.58 -2.33 -7.81 -2.12 Liquidity/Financial Health Current Ratio 1.1 0.88 0.53 0.76 0.65 0.65 0.54 0.64 0.69 Quick Ratio Financial Leverage 3.1 3.61 5.83 4.15 4.15 4.3 4.26 4.46 5.37 Debt/Equity 1.02 1.28 2.68 1.65 1.52 1.53 1.46 1.52 2.16 Efficiency Receivables Turnover 39.09 34.45 28.91 26.41 22.52 24.24 23.14 20.83 20.51 Inventory Turnover _ _ _ _ 177.65 104.38 50.38 36.68 30.87 Fixed Assets Turnover 1.52 1.23 1.04 1.1 1.19 1.42 1.38 1.51 1.63 Asset Turnover 0.94 0.82 0.78 0.82 0.85 1 0.95 0.95 0.9 The table of the financial data shows that the company has experienced a huge correction in the gross margin. In addition to the gross margin improvement over the years showing the positive trends, the current ratio of Virgin Blue has improved a lot since the pervious years as evident from the above table. The strength in the current ratios provide evidences that the company has been successful largely in paying off the liabilities owing to the strengths of the assets of the company (Wang, Bonilla and Banister, 2016). The current ratio has been efficient for the company in the recent years rising above the falls in the past years. This proves that the company is more stable in handling the challenges and perform better in the challenging environment of the aviation market (Zhang et al. 2013). The creditability of the company has been an area that requires correction and that is evident from the present ratios in the market. The credit generation has been low owing to the low receivables turnover ratio. However, the sales of the company based on the assets of the company are positive as the asset turnover ratio been subsequently marginal in the recent years. The debt equity ratio presents the debts that the companies have gained in the process of purchasing assets on credit (Zhang et al. 2014). The high rate of debt equity possesses negative impact on the investors being the issue of risks associated with the companys business. This indicates that the company may not be able to pay off dividends to the investors efficiently as the debt equity is higher. Recommendation After analysing the financial data of Qantas Airlines and Virgin Blue it is evident that Qantas Airlines will be the preferable choice for investment for the investors. This is justified by lower debt equity ratio of Qantas as compared to Virgin Blue. The investors will look for the option that has lesser risk associated with the investment and in that case, Virgin Blue seems to lag behind as the debt equity ratio of the firm is higher and it means that the company is not stable and return on investment of the investors can be at risk. However, the sales of the company have seen a positive trend but it may not be enough for the company to make the investors invest in the organisation. In order to have better investment, Virgin Blue needs to correct its debts equity ratio as the competition is high, Qantas Airlines being the market leader can take away the investors being more stable in providing return to the investors. Conclusion In the above paper, the two airlines are compared based on the Top-down and Bottom-up analysis to present a better understanding of the opportunities that lie in the aviation market for the investors. 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