Turkey Religious Life, Term Paper Example

Discuss the origins of the Arab-Israeli dispute.  Why is the dispute so complex ? Can you offer any solutions for the future.

The land of Israel and Palestine is about 10,000 square miles.   Israel holds all of the land mass from  Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea bordered by Egypt in the south.  The Israelis occupy some 78% of the disputed land area.  The remainder falls to the areas  in the West Bank and Gaza Strip under the control of the  Palestinian authorities.  Palestine has been disputed territory for some 10,000 years; the Palestinians claim that they have been evicted from what is essentially ancestral Arabic territory.  The Israelis  can claim a presence from  1500 BC, evolving from the Canaanite people.  These were made up of a number of tribal people, which led to the ultimate formation of Judea and the Jewish people.  This has been a troubled area for many centuries with ownership passing to and from different invading forces.  The issues have been made even more complex owing to the capital of Israel.  i.e. Jerusalem, being a holy site in both  Israel and the Islamic world.  “It was on May 14, 1948 that the Jews proclaimed the state of Israel”,  (Isseroff, 2009) with a British withdrawal from Palestine.  The Arab community have refused to sign a permanent peace treaty with Israel and there has been a continued state of conflict ever since.  The only real hope for the future is the recognition of a separate Palestinian state and for Israel and Palestine to settle their differences by am agreed  dialogue.  This must be by education of the young people to determine a better future for the region.  At this point in time, the outlook is not filled with optimism the future.

Figure 1 Disputed Lands

Discuss the origins and main motives for US involvement in the region. Specifically, what are American interests in the region? Was the US correct for getting involved ? have we made any basic mistakes? 

One of the main goals of the US government, regarding his policy in the Middle East, has been to secure petroleuem  supplies to North America and its allies.  In addition, to securing the position of the state of Israel in its isolated position within its Arabic neighbours.  The US has  always held Israel in high esteem as a democratic ally.  The additional strategic objective was to build a strong military in Israel to block any Soviet incursion into the area.  This escalated during the period of the Cold War.  With the changes in the USSR towards democratizing the US this has  somewhat moved  towards finding a more holistic peaceful solution.  Considering both Israel and Palestinian, viewpoints.  This was somewhat of a setback by continued conflicts in the area and acts of terrorism in the region, particularly with Lebanon, Syria, Iraqi and Iran.

There are 5 million Jewish citizens of the USA, and they form a strong focus on political lobby for the needs of Israel and support same.  Israel receives approximately $3 billion a year in financial aid from the USA and is supported by other US financial special aid funds of which is it is estimated $1.8 billion is defence-related.” only Israel of all Middle Eastern countries is allowed to purchase the most advanced weapons systems. There is a clear understanding that the U.S. will help Israel maintain an absolute superiority in weapons technology.”  (Owensby, 2010).  The USA did not have a lot of choice in getting involved with the Middle East crisis.  However, it is questionable  whether  a more broader and inclusive strategy might have resulted in a peaceful situation with the Israeli and Arab nations.  Israel  has proved itself to be a more consistent and loyal ally to the USA as opposed to the other Arabic nations.  The US alone cannot bring about a final solution to the Middle East problems.  And this has to be an international effort.  Both sides are intransigent and lack the basis of real trust in one another so progress is extremely slow going.

Perhaps the biggest single decision of the USA was the invasion of Iraq and the subsequent regime change made in that country.  Only time will tell if this was a correct historic decision but changing the balance of power in the region may have serious destabilising effects in the future.

Why has Turkey been a model for developing nations ? Access its effectiveness in dealing with such issues as secularization, modernization and Westernization.

The organizational for economic cooperation and development [OECD] has predicted that Turkey will grow by 6.8% in 2010; providing the highest growth rate of 31 nations represented.  Turkey has worked hard on a program of democratization and a concerted appeal towards her European neighbours in order to become a full member of the European Union.  [EEC].  Turkey would be an important bridge between the Islamic countries of the Middle East and that of a primarily Christian communities of  Europe.  Despite the progress the EEC remains somewhat sceptical and concerned over the human rights record of both Turkey and Tunisia.  There is also the nagging issue over the annexation of Cyprus, given Greece as a full member of the EU.  European countries are fearful  that admission of Turkey into the EU will create a wave of migration from Turkey into the other countries of the EU and further contribute towards  the existing unemployment problems there. ” The country faces significant inequalities in income distribution. Income differentials across regions and gaps between social groups are wide and persistent.”  (Gurses, 2006).

The vast majority of public opinion in Europe is against former admission of Turkey to the European Union.  3 cups in particular strong opposition in terms of Turkey’s future mission.  I.e. Germany, France and Austria have all stated that they did not see Turkey as a future mission to the EEC.  This seems somewhat at odds with the overall trading position between the EU and Turkey, for example ” The key dynamics of the economic relationship between Turkey and the EU are clear. The EU is the market for 56% of Turkish exports, ten times that of any other export destination, while Turkey is the EU’s fifth largest export market. European firms annually invest over €3bn in Turkey. ”  (Turkey, Europe’s future, 2008).

Turkey has been one of the few Islamic countries that have been tolerant of other religious observations ” Although Turkey was secularized at the official level, religion remained a strong force at the popular level. After 1950 some political leaders tried to benefit from popular attachment to religion by espousing support for programs and policies that appealed to the religiously inclined.”  (Cline, 2010).  This remains one of it’s strongest barriers to EU membership that comprise countries that essentially constitute a Christian Club of nations.

The world acknowledges the tremendous progress of modernization  in  Turkey since the end of World War II.  Turkey had benefited from many exiled scientists after the end of the war.  These came from Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia, together with those displaced Jewish scientists.  They all helped the modernization of  Turkey and development of the country.  It is interesting given Turkey’s somewhat dubious response to human rights issues that has a young republic provided a safe haven for Jewish scholars facing persecution in a Nazi for a Europe.

Discuss the difference between that of Arab Nationalism and Islamism (political Islam). Provide specific examples of and reasons for the growth of each. What force seems most likely to prevail in the future and why ?

Arab nationalism is based upon a concept that nations from Morocco to the Arabian peninsula are linked by a common bond of culture, language and religion / historical heritage. Root connections with the religion of Islam and the Arabic language. The concept of pan arabianism is bound up in the formation of the Arab league of nations. The political movements of Islam introduce a doctrine that is produced and based upon on faith. Political Islam is more in tune with that of a liberation theology, essentially a collective identity for the Muslim faith. ” Political Islam retains only the shared habits of contemporary Muslim life – notably rituals for which it demands absolute respect. At the same time, it demands a complete cultural return to public and private rules which were practiced two centuries ago in the Ottoman Empire, in Iran and in Central Asia, by the powers of that time”.  (Amin, 2001).

Many believe that Arab Nationalism dates back to the rule of the Ottoman Empire but it became more galvanised in the early 20th Century and after the First World War. Arabic nations became greatly influenced by the rise of nationalism amongst the Turks. It was an expression of differentiation between the Arab speaking world and that of European domination. ” Arab Nationalism, from the outset, carried a socialist ideology. Experiences under colonialism had convinced Arab intellectuals and nationalists that democracy, as imported from the west, was “nothing more than a way to facilitate corruption and preserve a ruling class that would advance western interests over the interests of the local populations” (Houri, Walid). Arab Nationalism developed, in part, as a response to the social and economic changes that came from the colonial and early post-colonial period.”   (Kent, 2008).

There are 1.4 billion Muslims in the world and they face a trial in terms of how they will exercise their faith. Will this be by confrontation or by peaceful co-existance with other nations and cultures in the world.  Egypt has been the historical barometer and it appears that the rise of the more radical elements is on the decline.  ” the rejection of global jihad has led to a more individualistic, pacifist fundamentalism that emphasises “Islamic” behaviour in everyday life. But personal piety has been growing for a generation, and some are jaded by it; they are looking for new ideas.”  (Spurgeon, 2009).

What impact has the Muslim resurgence had on world history since 1945? What caused this resurgence and why is the west having difficulty coping with this movement ?  What is the relationship with this movement and the increase in terrorist activities?

The resurgence of the Muslims and Islam from 1945 has had a profound impact on the West.  The West sees Islam as both a religious and a political system shared between Muslim nations.  There is a great deal of alienation between Islamic countries and the Western democracies.  This is mainly because how they view one another.  The Islamic world sees the West is decadent, corrupt and an immoral Society.  Whereas the Western democracies  view  the Islamic nations as a civilized nation in decline, incapable of making the transition to a more globalized society.  The resurgence of Islam largely took place at the end of the first world war and the need to reverse the dominating European powers.  The Palestinian crisis and confrontation with the nation of Israel has heightened tensions in the Middle East, allowing the more radical elements to say the West is trying to destroy Islam.  They  have been able to peddle this message to the less educated and poorer segments of the Arabic world.  The extreme elements have pointed out that the Western democracies are only  interested  in protecting the western countries rights to oil in the Middle East. The invasion of Kuwait and Iraqi was seen as an opportunity to consolidate their cause in the expansion of terrorism and the war on the Western democracies.

The West is experiencing difficulty in coping with the resurgence of the more extremist Islamic viewpoints.  Part of the problem relates to its resurfacing in many different areas of the world.  The Internet has enabled global communications between the more radical elements of Islam in different parts of the world.  This has caused troubles to surface in places like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Middle East, Indonesia, and other Muslim countries.  For more radical elements of the Muslim countries, i.e. those that support more aggressive policies and acts of terrorism by and large in the minority grouping.  Nevertheless, considering that there are some 1.4 billion Muslims in the world, the actions of a small minority have a disturbing effect on the remaining group.  As Islamic terrorism, mainly perpetrated by Al Qaeda, has been widely distributed between the West countries, it has produced a negative outlook on Muslims and Islamic countries.  This has been particularly disturbing, where Muslim communities established  in the West are found to be harbouring sleeper cells that encourage and support potential terrorism acts.  This was particularly found to be a main concern in London, England; when a spate of terrorist bombings took place in the country.

The situation in Afghanistan is primarily concerned with arresting the halt of black market drug supplies to the west, which in turn provides money in order to on an Islamic insurgency that is conducting a religious war.  [Jihad], against the Western democracies.  These tribal elements of the Taliban are also preventing the people of Afghanistan from having the freedom and rights in order to determine their own political destiny.  Intervention by Western military forces is put forward as a global response, in order to assist the Afghanistan  government achieve political freedom.  This has become far more complex as the issues have spread into neighbouring Pakistan, which is a nuclear power.  The concept of nuclear weapons falling into terrorist hands has become a nightmare scenario for the West.

The Western democracies, i.e., Europe, USA, Canada and Australia have developed a very hard line in terms of dealing with the more radical elements of Islam. i.e. Al Qaeda.  The Israel and the Palestinian problem has created additional terrorist type groups.  For example, Hezbollah, Hamas, PLO etc and these have equally placed Islamic rights at the center of their particular arguments.  This has become extremely complicated when trying to deal with a comprehensive Middle Eastern  peace policy.  This at a time when a nation like that of a Iran is acquiring nuclear weapons capability and the president of that country making a statement in a public address that neighbouring Israel should be wiped off the face of the earth.  Such provocation and immaturity from a nations leader only further complicates the ability to obtain a lasting peaceful solution.

The more extreme and radical terrorist groups like Al Qaeda leader have played upon the interventionist policies carried out by the West.  They have likened this to an invasion policy based upon the destruction of the culture and religious values held by the Middle East countries.  This has exported itself to other nations like Pakistan, where the religion in Islamic values is being converted to more extremist jihadist policies.  The more educated, Middle Eastern countries are however not accepting the views of the more radical elements.  Many of the younger people want a place in the globalized society and in particular, want the same standard of living and commodities that people in the West enjoy.  Many of the women are also now attending university and gaining a much better education than was historically the case.  As such they are standing up for their human rights and freedom of speech.  They don’t wish any longer to  be subjugated by the rulings of the more fundamentalist attributes of the Islamic faith.  In this regard, it is anticipated that the Islamic faith will be moderated to a more conservative set of values that support the development and freedom of rights for the citizens of the Middle Eastern nations.  Good examples of this exist in places like Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Dubai.  More recently we have been witnessing demonstrations by the younger people in Iran wishing for more transparency in their political system.

Works Cited

Amin, S. (2001). Samir Amin shines much needed light on a dimly understood phenomenon. Retrieved 5 29, 2010, from Political Islam: http://www.loompanics.com/Articles/PoliticalIslam.html

Cline, A. (2010). Turkey Religious Life. Retrieved 5 27, 2010, from About.com: http://atheism.about.com/library/FAQs/islam/countries/bl_TurkeyReligiousLife.htm

Gurses, D. (2006, 9). “Capability Approach” and Human Development in Turkey, The. Retrieved 5 27, 2010, from Journal of Third World Studies: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3821/is_200610/ai_n17195890/?tag=content;col1

Isseroff, A. (2009, 6 10). Israel and Palestine: A Brief History – Part I. Retrieved 5 28, 2010, from Mid East Web: http://www.mideastweb.org/briefhistory.htm

Kent, M. D. (2008). Nasser’s Arab Nationalism. Retrieved 5 29, 2010, from What happened before that: http://whathappenedbeforethat.net/arab-nationalism/nasser

Owensby, W. (2010). U.S. Policy and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict:. Retrieved 5 28, 2010, from Churches for Middle East Peace: http://www.cmep.org/documents/uspolicy.htm

Spurgeon, C. (2009, 8 6). The battle for a religion’s heart. Retrieved 5 29, 2010, from EChurch: http://blog.echurchwebsites.org.uk/2009/08/06/trend-prevail-worlds-14-billion-muslimsviolent-confrontation-peaceful-coexistence-islam-aspire-political-power-mystical-pietistic-versions-religion-win/

Turkey, Europe’s future. (2008, 11 10). Retrieved 5 28, 2010, from Guardian UK: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/nov/10/turkey-eu-accession