The New Rulers Of The World

The New Rulers of the World presents John Pilger’s analysis of globalisation and its impact on developing nations, with a particular focus on Indonesia. The film argues that multinational corporations, supported by Western governments and international financial institutions, have created a new form of economic imperialism that perpetuates poverty and inequality worldwide.

Pilger highlights the stark imbalance between extreme corporate wealth and widespread global poverty, noting that just 200 corporations control a quarter of the world’s economic activity, with some companies wielding economic power greater than that of entire nations.

Using Indonesia as a case study, the documentary shows how Western powers, particularly the United States, supported the rise of dictator Suharto in the 1960s, enabling Western interests to exploit the country’s natural resources. Pilger exposes sweatshop labour conditions in which workers — mainly young women — earn as little as 72 pence a day producing goods for Western brands sold at vastly inflated prices. The film also criticises institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the World Trade Organization, arguing that their policies frequently favour corporations over local populations.