Intercultural Conflict Analysis about ISMS - Essay Example

Introduction Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a radical Islamic insurgent faction with presence mainly in Iraq and Syria as well as other countries where militant groups have pledged allegiance to ISIS such as Boko Haram in Nigeria, Ansar Beit al-Maqdis in Egypt and ISIS loyalists in Libya. The group’s terror network continues to expand in the Middle East, West and Northern Africa and South and South Eastern Asia. There was a major proclamation of ISIS as an international caliphate on 29th June 2014 with the assumption of a new name ‘Islamic State’. Apart from international condemnation by governments globally and the UN, Mainstream Muslim groupings denounced the philosophy of a caliphate. The group assumes global control of all Muslims religiously, politically and militarily and that all Muslim states, groupings and Emirates submit to its first Caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Majority of Muslim as well as non-Muslim communities globally have censured the representation of Islam by the group. It is well-known for the well-financed propaganda in the web and social media. Beheading of the group’s victims and the annihilation of cultural heritage sites are usually posted on social media. This paper presents an intercultural conflict analysis about ISIS, highlighting national and religious issues. Intercultural Conflict Analysis about ISIS Turner (2008, 86) defined intercultural conflict as a situation resulting from variations in cultural ideals and beliefs, which causes people to disagree with one another. Violence and crime have been associated with intercultural conflict whereby people have lost lives. Different people have varied cultural backgrounds with diverse expectations. Conflicts arise when such expectations are not met. Politics and religiosity intensify cultural conflict especially when they are manifest at a global level. The different beliefs on culturally or religiously held values such as matters regarding abortion, Christianity, Islam or Judaism make it difficult for cultural conflicts to be resolved as members of different communities adhere to their beliefs and are ready to fight back any efforts to bend their value system. ISIS is just one among the many groups of people that have such hard held beliefs that disregard the existence of other value systems. The Islamic State has generated terror among global communities wherever they develop loyalist networks. The group ready to brutally murder anyone believed to be against their ideologies including fellow Muslims (El-Naggar, 2015). ISIS, being an Islamic allied group that wants all Muslims under one caliphate disregards other cultures that do not hold Islamic values such as the Western cultures as well as other religious groups globally. Religious fanaticism is a major attribute of ISIS that makes every member of the group eager to kill anyone that does not agree with the Islamic tradition as expressed in Sunni Muslim teachings. The religious divide between the Sunni and Shia Muslims is evident in the recent wave of attacks by ISIS on non-Sunni cultural heritage and religious sites. Shrines and graves that Shia Muslims attach significant value are undergoing annihilation, which continues to enlarge the rift between the two Muslim adherent groups. ISIS views Shia Muslims as a threat to the establishment of an international caliphate. The decision by ISIS to eliminate Shia culture from the proposed Islamic caliphate is intended to intensify the existing cultural conflict, which will result in the Sunni Muslims declaring their support for the caliphate. Christians’ and Yezidis’ holy sites are also not spared. It is the worst form of cultural and religious intolerance (Hartman, 2015). The long held position among many Arab nations such as Syria, Iran, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon regarding the existence of the State of Israel is also a cultural conflict that ISIS is using to mobilize the Arab world in joining the caliphate, declaring war on Jews and Israel. Palestine, being a major loser from the creation of Israel in 1948 may experience a significant impact from the international expansion of ISIS as the group seems to share the cultural sentiments of Palestinians. Activities of ISIS have raised tensions globally as the civilized nations find the level of intolerance unbearable. More so, the group has affected national values beyond political boundaries as it intends to topple governments and destabilize prevailing peace. The United States recognizes the rights of Muslims globally while many Muslim states such as Saudi Arabia, UAE and Turkey share diplomatic relations. Nevertheless, the US is the greatest enemy of ISIS and any captured US soldier or journalist has been executed in the recent months. Despite prophesying the same faith, ISIS views Muslim States supporting the US and Israel as enemies, yet it is the culture and radical inclination that Isolates the Islamic State from the universal adherents of Islam (Midlarsky, 2014, 459). ISIS proposition to have its caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to religiously and politically rule over all Muslims and their states globally is a far too etched ambition that interferes with the national values of the states involved as well as the culture of self-governance entrenched in contemporary democracies. The tendency to apply Salafism to guide the actions and value system of ISIS conflicts the culture of majority of Islamic societies. It is a form of Islamic fundamentalism that is absolutely intransigent and in opposition to the society’s interests, particularly those who are exploited for whom ISIS claims to speak for. The common culture among global democracies acknowledges the freedom of worship and association. On the contrary, ISIS seeks to compulsorily enforce religion, specifically a fundamentalist or unconditional, factualist version of the Koran and Sharia law on the social order as its principal law and philosophy. ISIS is bent on the establishment of an Islamic theocracy and wipe out the existence of a division between the state and religion. Such tendencies indicate viciously imposing patriarchal, different and disproportionate laws for women, such as compulsory veiling, obligatory power by men in the family, and rejection of the same legal rights. ISIS actions involve society-wide propaganda in spiritual obscurantism and intolerance and frequent assaults on other faiths or unbelievers (El-Naggar, 2015).  The desire to instill fear in order to rule over people signifies promotion of feudalism and capitalism while oppressing the less advantaged.  ISIS strategies habitually echo the leaders’ reactionary creed and agenda, comprising targeting and executing innocent non-soldiers, petrifying entire populace, and authorizing brutal physical retribution such as the atrocious amputation of limbs or death penalty. Intercultural conflict is evident in these actions as they express segregation of the society in to social classes based on individual interests of radical and obsolete capitalistic and complaisant social pressures in Islamic nations previously dominated by imperialism, with a culture that has been weakened by capitalism. Nevertheless, the objective is not the fundamental detachment from imperialism but to press on the ideology and selfish interests inside a capitalist-expansionist global economy (Fox, 2014, 296). Western imperialism has over the years caused untold torment and oppression to the third world populations leading to the gaining foothold of contemporary Islamic radical political trend since the early 20th century. There has been significant socio-cultural and demographic displacement as a result of imperialism in third world nations leading to anti-US sentiments that are associated with Islamic fundamentalism that began in the late 1970s marked by the Iranian revolution and the 11 year war in Afghanistan that ended in 1988. ISIS follows a similar trend whereby non-nationalist militant groups operating under the cover of religion rise up to entrench imperialism in their own fashion, borrowing from Western imperialism and capitalism. However, Islamic fundamentalism and Middle Eastern culture as practiced by mainstream Muslim populations are two parallel aspects in the region. Islam can not be described as innately violent as portrayed by ISIS. Nevertheless, Islamic fundamentalism can be viewed as the progressive principal pin of opposition to Western culture especially the US and is the present state of affairs in an arc traversing political boundaries from Northern Africa across the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan which are predominantly Muslim nations (Midlarsky, 2014, 460). Despite ISIS alignment with Islam, the Muslim world has been devastated by the massacres committed by the group. Alan Henning was beheaded amid calls for compassion by Muslims globally. It becomes difficult therefore to clearly locate the position of ISIS within Islam. However, religion is just a minor aspect of the group’s activities. Virtually all forms of religious extremism and terrorism are related to politics. The motive of most terrorist attacks in the public domain is mainly to assert political space whereby individuals are focused on accumulating power that they exert over the general population. Inquiries have established that most adherents and sympathizers of ISIS are not devout Muslims. They are mainly disillusioned Sunni Muslims in Syria and Iraq who feel marginalized in the political functions within their respective states. The fact that they are Muslims could possibly be considered as happenstance. The support of ISIS in Iraq and Syria mainly from the Sunni Muslims is associated with the growing optimism that the group will restore power among the Sunnis. Entrenchment of Islamic values in the group’s activities is meant to attract the Muslim populace to support its political objectives (Fox, 2014, 298). ISIS emphasizes on discipline and obedience, which are typical aspects of fundamentalist factions. Detachment from popular culture influences the character of the group’s members to take the bait and follow an idealistic path. There are evidently fragile connections to family, society and the greater and more nonrepresentational cultural body that gives a sense of shared characteristics strengthening more subjective bonds. This creates a void that allows alienation of individuals with a low self-esteem. Islamic fundamentalism comes to fill the void prompting individuals to give up their objectives in life to pursue unrealistic goals such as suicide bombing for superior after life. The success of ISIS’s magnetic appeal for Muslims living in the remote places from the center of power is based on the creation of a vision that is not watered-down by hard truths. The perceptible grievances that remain unaddressed energize the need to restore the perceived supremacy, which enhances the development of a culture of intolerance (Flibbert, 2013, 70). Islamic fundamentalism at the present time appears to have a twofold attraction. It offers an unusual high for individuals frantically pursuing to feel something more intense than the normal daily lives that are by and large unproductive while on the other hand forming a blanket of inviolability over their quest. That sanctified excellence, additionally, bequeaths such individuals with an absent account regarding a society that has agonized from the sensation of loss on the basis of present standards as well as demeaned in numerous ways by other people who have confirmed greater by those standards. Islamic fundamentalism provides substitute criteria while clarifying that they performed below par in the pronounced civilizational struggle since they have been steered off track from the correct route by the adulterated and those that gave in to the illusory capitalistic realm. ISIS therefore presents difficulties for anyone focused on exploring the group’s religious or cultural affiliation without considering the political ambitions of its leaders (El-Naggar, 2015). Ethnic conflicts in the Middle East are significantly influenced by religion than anywhere else in the world. Judaism, Islam and Christianity are major religions globally that originated in the Middle East, which makes the region prone to ethnic conflicts that are aligned to religious affiliations. The insurgency of ISIS is not unique having its roots in the region despite the political objectives of the group’s leaders. Most of the Middle Eastern states are characterized by autocratic governance that has helped to propagate a culture of insurgence as the oppressed make efforts to liberate themselves from subjugation. Islamic fundamentalism is a common foundation for such uprising as it helps to unite individuals based on radical interpretation of Islam. Democracy and liberal philosophies are viewed as ‘Western’ and unwarranted in the Middle East where religion and absolutism are typical. This culture has kept expectations in the region below average hence giving ISIS an opportunity to demonstrate its capacity to annihilate Western democratization that ignores the role of religion in politics and governance. However, religious discrimination has always dominated the political systems such that emerging radical factions are founded on the values and belief systems of the oppressed. For example, the fall of Saddam Hussein under the Shia insurgency that was supported by US incursion in Iraq ended the control of Sunni minority in the country. On the other hand, the powerful Shia minority in Syria supported the insurgency in Iraq under the leadership of Assad. ISIS’s support by Sunni minority in Iraq and majority in Syria is therefore founded on religious discrimination that is deep seated in Middle Eastern politics (Midlarsky, 2014, 459). There is widespread notion that Islam and violence are one and the same and hence the plain assumption that ISIS is just a typical Islamic militia like any other. This notion is wide of the mark as studies established similar trends of ethnic conflict between non-Muslim communities globally. Such conflicts have been triggered by disillusionment of part of the society that feels marginalized politically and economically rather than a culture of violent extremism or religious fundamentalism, which are only applied to attract and unite masses to participate in the quest for political freedom and economic inclusion. However, the existing purportedly egalitarian institutions must respond by firmly asserting the legitimacy of their hold on power rather than addressing the grievances causing unrest in the society. The consequences are bloody conflicts perpetrated by both sides (Flibbert, 2013, 72). The non-combatant citizens suffer from the cross-fire with ISIS causing grievous suffering to those deemed as pro-government and against the group’s ideologies. As most Middle East governments establish strong links between politics and religion, the same is instituted among the insurgent groups. Conflict resolution is hard to come by when ethnic conflicts propagated by ISIS take a religious dimension and hence are likely to last long, remain violent and challenging to settle. There are Islamic traditions that underscore reconciliation and cooperation to avert, resolve, and alleviate conflict. These may provide an important platform for conflict resolution founded on religious values. Nevertheless, these may not be applicable in the ISIS conflict as the root cause of violence is politically and ethnically motivated (Fox, 2014, 293). Conclusion Inter-cultural conflicts are evidently at the center of the insurgency by ISIS, which takes a religious dimension as is common culture for Middle Eastern socio-political activities to have a religious connotation. Despite ISIS asserting religious fundamentalism, Muslim societies remain on the receiving end and many are not likely to support ISIS which is mainly associated to Sunni Muslims. Discipline, obedience and punishment are the cornerstones of ISIS’s expansionist objectives. Political control is evidently a key objective of the group as it seeks to control all Muslims within its jurisdiction that it aspires to expand. Political and economic marginalization of Sunni Muslims coupled with autocratic governance in the Middle East is major reasons fueling the support of ISIS. Religious values are mainly being used to cement the unity required among Sunni Muslims to help ISIS achieve its political and imperialist goals. References El-Naggar, Mona. 2015. “From a Private School in Cairo to ISIS Killing Fields in Syria.” The New York Times Company. Accessed April 18, 2015. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/19/world/middleeast/from-a-private-school-in-cairo-to-isis-killing-fields-in-syria-video.html?smid=fb-share&_r=2 Fox, Jonathan. 2014. “The Influence of Religious Legitimacy on Grievance Formation by Ethno religious Minorities,” Journal of Peace Research, 36(5): 289-307. Flibbert, Andrew. 2013. “The Consequences of Forced State Failure in Iraq,” Political Science Quarterly, 67-95. Hartman, Margaret. 2015. “How ISIS Is Destroying Ancient Art in Iraq and Syria,” New York Media LLC. Accessed April 18, 2015. nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/03/isis-destroys-ancient-art.html Midlarsky, Manus. 2014. “Democracy and Islam: Implications for Civilizational Conflict and the Democratic Peace,” Journal of Conflict Resolution, 8(3): 458-511. Turner, Jonathan. 2008. On the Origin of Societies by Natural Selection: Studies in Comparative Social Science, Boulder, CO: Paradigm Publishers. Read More