Globalization in the Middle East - Essay Example

Globalization in the Middle East Globalization has been regarded both as the damnation and savior of the world. In particular, the attitude of the Islamic countries with regard to globalization brings up an intense debate on the issue. It is argued that unlike regions that are in East Asia or Latin America, the Islamic nations have negatively responded to globalization. The main reason as to why the Middle East has vehemently opposed globalization is the lack of previous cultural penetration in the Islamic world by the Western institutions, ideas and culture. In recent times, participation in globalization has been a great contributing factor in obtaining stable economic growth in the Middle East. Globalization and its importance in economic development have had a great effect both on the stability of the region and the global financial system. The Middle East region should find a way to use globalization to their benefit. In order for the region to gain integration into the global economy, it is imperative to understand globalization and its impact on Middle East (Schaeffer 67). Thus, it is important to determine the impact of globalization and the perception from the Middle East region. Globalization refers to the spread of customs, attitudes, ideas that started off in a definite part of the world. The issue of globalization is seen to have originated from the Western countries. The Middle East has sound reasons as to why they did not embrace globalization. It is easy to equate globalization with westernization. Regions such as Africa, Europe and South America were to a lesser extent more open to westernization and globalization. They had the notion that they were already western components. The Middle East countries did not want any association to the West so this led to a delay in them embracing globalization. Globalization was related to what was previously termed as modernization. This was a set of beliefs that challenged the traditional norms. Therefore, globalization was perceived as a major threat to tradition and this was valued most by the Middle East region. Globalization is regarded as an inevitable force that changes the face of the world. The world is seen to be a small village where everybody learns to live and interact with each other. Since the conception of globalization, distance and time concepts have changed. Globalization is a trend; this can be perceived as an opportunity and also a threat. Most regimes in Middle East region did not welcome globalization very well. A major contributor was the lack of fundamental change and stability in the region (Schaeffer 109). There has been a long list of problems that been encountered by the Middle East religion, they face political, economical, social and military problems. Almost all the states in the Middle East started to rebuild in the last century. The region has been faced with years of disputes as nobody seems to accept their boundaries. There is a low intensity conflict that seems to be constant in this region. The state system in the Middle East region was based on the ground of the low intensity conflict so they had no hegemonic power. This led to an intervention of outside powers to come and resolve this conflict In order to safeguard the region’s stability. With reference to globalization, the United States in the leading in globalization whereas the Middle East is regarded one of the least globalized regions. The challenge to facilitate globalization is evident at the state level in the Middle East. This seems to be a critical issue with regard to the rest of the world. Probably there is no area in the world that has embraced globalization less than the Middle East. This is due to the fact that the opposition movements, majority of regimes and the intellectuals in the region have all been anti –globalization. It is a well known fact that the Middle East have always resorted to violence in their anti–globalization struggle. Most countries in this region have readily accepted the principle of economic liberation and the necessity for the realization of the World Trade organization standards. The real fear of globalization was due to the fact of the negative connotation as a pro west. The fear that Middle East region has about globalization is in relation with the Western countries (Schaeffer 59). Globalization can be regarded as a result of enormous progress in the technology in the world in the recent decades. This is an economic term that signifies the free movement of services, labor and goods across continental boarders. However, this concept is different in the Middle East. It is essential for the west to comprehend the perception in order to reestablish a good relationship in the aspect of economy and politics in the Middle East region. However, with the new world order that is inevitable due to the fact that this is an age of modern information, technology and communication, it is imperative that the Middle East countries open their doors to global integration. The end of cold war and the 9/11 catastrophe have been regarded as the two profound turning points towards the modernization history of the Middle East region. However, this cannot be regarded as the initial tectonic geopolitical shift in this region. The history of the modern period started like two centuries ago. In 1798, the Ottoman rule started to become weak. The post World War 1 came under the rule of France and Britain which was closely followed by the Cold war era (Scupin 211). This war drained the European region declined and eventually led to the rise of the Arab nationalism. The politics in the Middle East and North Africa region had great significance for the Muslim nations and it expanded into a larger region including Pakistan and Afghanistan. Europe, North America and Australia are Western societies and usually have local differences but this has not hindered them from embracing globalization. Even the former Soviet bloc countries of Central and Eastern Europe had an easier time adapting to the western culture after decades behind the “iron curtain”. For example, South America is essentially a sub section of Europe with more inclination to cultural, religious and linguistic influence. On the contrary, Sub Saharan Africa has a lesser experience than South America due to the different extent of colonialism and the disintegration of the traditional society. The situation of Asia is more complex, though it has proven to be to be quite adaptable in the aspect of cultural borrowing. Linguistic expansion was not only experienced amongst British colonies but also in south Asia. Despite the fact that Asian religion seems to be tolerant against globalization, in recent time they have embraced cultural synthesis and have been successful in developing it. Throughout history, the Middle East has been exposed to the intrusion of outsiders. The powerful states have vested interests as regards the emerging states and their power, with the inclusion of their border in the Middle East (Scupin 230). Europeans helped to establish neighboring countries so that they may live in peace. The Middle East states evolved later with the political and economic process making their fundamental connation. The resources such as oil and the location of this region played an important role for attracting outsiders that help to further development in this region. Various states in the Middle East region interfered with the existence of oil and Israel. The international trade routes, the Suez Canal and the Holy places trigger the interest of outsiders. Nonetheless, the Middle East region is projected to be an inevitable force on the global system. Since the Middle East is not a hegemonic state, it cannot be protected by an outsider. Domestic issues in the Middle East have led to international reactions thereby rendering them international. For example, the Kuwait invasion of Iraq in 1990 was a move that was not welcomed very well by America. This is a classical example of local issues that had international resonance. Whereas, the issue of the Mexican border and migration is still a problem in America up to date, it is not regarded as an international concern. A similar border issue that occurs in the Middle East will generate an international concern. The Middle East’s concern regarding globalization and the negative associations to globalization has badly influenced the relation between the U.S and Middle East. This aspect was even worsened after the 9/11 tragedy. With regards to religion, the Middle East put a picture that was dramatically different. Generally, Christianity has remained for a long time a marginalized religion. Event where it exists, there is little or no national influence like in Egypt. On the contrary, Islam is a religion that was greatly influenced by Judaism in its origins and it is well documented (Scupin 260). It is regarded as an aspect that that has global consensus that seems to hold much of its own claim to hegemony. The size and cohesion of the Islamic community build a religious concept that forms a culture that seems to refrain from all the aspects of globalization. It is also imperative to remember that Islam is a religion that has its own rules that help to provide the proper order for society. Thus, many aspects of globalization seem to contradict or are believed to contradict the rules that are stipulated in the Islamic laws. However, this is a case far less with other religions like Hinduism, Taoism or Buddhism. It is clear that Islam is going through a tough time by trying to reinforce and regulate their laws in order to accept the use of modern technology. The Middle East reform provided initiatives from a stage theory perceptive which was proposed by the European Union and the United States. These reforms were meant to offer a series of changes that would have led the Middle Eastern region to be more prosperous and democratic. However, the region stayed unresponsive to these proposals. The region’s reasoning was that the goals seemed ambiguous. They saw that implementing democracy and market economy was far-fetched goals that could not be accepted. From a methodological approach, some reforms are much more effective than others as they are meant to create growth and stability. This is an indication that many Middle Eastern countries seem to be skeptical about the U.S approach to the change in this region making the implementation highly problematic. In the Middle East, numerous elements of contemporary, financial and political elite with cosmopolitan issues regarding divergent ideas, habits and behaviors have not been accepted. This is due to the fact that the factors mentioned above are highly condemned and can the Middle East region put a lot of pressure in maintaining national or tradition authenticity by shunning external influences. Globalization can be used as an indicator to determine whether a country is performing well in terms of economic development. This is quite clear with a huge gap between the Middle East region and other regions. Most of the states in this region agreed with the principle of economic liberation by adopting the World Trade Organization standards which is a positive step. However, many experts believe that this region is not strong enough to be able to challenge the globalization forces (Scupin 291). There is an urgent need for the local institution to bridge the gap by taking the advantage of opportunities through the integration process correlated to the world system. The introduction of vital reforms has resulted in many countries being exposed to the competition on an international phase and at the same time enabling these counties to take advantage of opportunities thereby increasing their integration into the world system. The rejection of the Western culture by the Middle East region can also be viewed through the limited use of the European languages. English, which is regarded as a major language as regards global interchange seems to be very restricted amongst the Middle East Region. The fundamental language of this region is Arabic which is also the language of Islam. The dominance of a large and culturally powerful Arabic language in the Middle East stands as an impassable wall against the penetration of the European language which is an imperative aspect towards globalization. As a result of this, the basic elements that foster globalization seem to be alienated in the Middle East, more than anywhere else (Schaeffer 80). Another predicament that inhibited Middle East countries with regard to globalization is the nature of political systems in the Muslim states in addition to the social and intellectual structures that are in place. The autocratic regimes that were evident in Europe were washed away by modernization while in the Middle East, dictatorship has been a major feature and regimes have been changed with mass support. Since repression is one way to go about it, there are other tools such as demagoguery, for the creation of public support for the government. This employed trump cards that advocated for anti globalization as a means of defending the Arab nation against the western influence. It would be a blunder to regard the expansion of the Islam word as a counter-globalization move. As opposed to rejecting globalization, the Middle East is finding its way to its own kind of globalization. The two use the same means. For example, Muslim fundamentalists also encourage the use of internet among its followers. The lack of exchange that currently exists between these global networks, the West and Muslim world, will only be overcome by a much greater and more open communication and exchange. Work cited Scupin, Raymond, and Christopher R. DeCorse.Anthropology: A Global Perspective. Boston: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2011. Print. Schaeffer, Robert K. Understanding Globalization: The Social Consequences of Political, Economic, and Environmental Change. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2009. Print. Read More