Middle East and globalization
Encyclopedia
Globalization
has been internalized in Arabic as “awlaama” and refers to the spread throughout the globe of ideas, customs, institutions, and attitudes originated in one part of the world which are usually Western
in origin. For this reason it has often been perceived as largely equivalent to Westernization
and is still widely regarded as an external threat rather than as an opportunity. In the Middle East
the decade of globalization was marked by endless wars, intrusive US hegemony
, renewed economic dependency and continuing insecurity. Globalization was ushered into the Middle East
by a war which gave the Western
victors excessive power over the region and created a violent anti-globalization
struggle. As some authors argue, it has strengthened Islamic fundamentalism
and, due to its ambiguity created a contradictory and tension filled situation. Globalization thus often acted as an obstacle rather than an impetus to democratization
.
Against most expectations, the processes of globalization hence proved highly turbulent and have generated new conflicts, hostilities and exclusions throughout the world.Oppositional individuals and groups are now able to participate in global culture and politics through gaining access to global communication and media networks and to circulate local struggles and oppositional ideas through these media.
Initially globalization was expected to spread the zone of peace by delivering economic prosperity which people would not want to sacrifice in conflicts. Instead the imposition of structural adjustment
, of unpopular and inequitable peace treaties together with the US campaign against terrorism
, led to more unrest and instability. This helped to create a chain reaction as the victims of economic liberalization
appear to be among the main constituents of Islamic opposition movements.
The Arab
Cultural identity
is at great value in the Middle East. For this reason, Arab and Muslim intellectuals have been deeply concerned about maintaining their cultural identity and independence in the face of globalization, especially as it is seen by most as equivalent to Americanization
. Muslims have always been proud and sensitive about their religion because Islam
is not only a faith but also a law, a “sharia
” that regulates all aspects of their life, including economic transactions, marriage and divorce, and matters of state.
According to Fauzi Najjar, the Arab intelligentsia is divided into three different attitudes toward globalization:
There is also a minority who strongly advocates globalization. In their opinion, globalisation has become the “discourse of the age” and Dr. Fuad Zakariya, an Egyptian professor of philosophy, is amongst them. He argues that those who oppose globalization in fact do not understand its meaning and implications fully and reminds his compatriots that there are certain problems that can only be tackled at a global level.
(call) for the elimination of the boundaries between Dar al-Islam
(domain of Islam) and Dar al-Kufr (domain of infidelity). Globalization is thought to lead to unrestricted freedom in the name of human rights
, as understood in the West, and to libertinism, the distinguishing characteristics of the decadence of Western
civilization. The inability to separate religious and mundane matters or religion and state has therefore created resistance and rigidity which at times has culminated in a defensive call for a fight against the enemy. Globalized organizations inspired by globalization are now fighting against it. In their view, the use of violence or terrorism
will supposedly allow Muslims to see through the West’s lies and to force the seemingly powerful but cowardly West to retreat from the Islamic world and await its final defeat. The imperialistic domination of the Muslim world, the support for Israel
and the current invasions of Iraq
and Afghanistan
have intensified Muslim fears and increased hatred towards the West, making them “view globalization with terror.” Globalization threatens to undermine Islam and to remove it from the everyday “thought and actions” of Muslims. Human rights
, freedom and democracy
are perceived as hidden instruments of power which serve the interests of Western
nations, and of America
, in particular.
, institutions and ideas. In this context globalization was seen as a form of surrender to a dominant, non-indigenous standpoint. Islam, a religion governed by its own set of laws, developed an alternate world view with many of the elements of globalization contradicting it. It has a powerful and cohesive community which at times acts like a cultural defence wall against the Western
influence and, as a result, limits the use of European languages in the Middle East
.
The rejection of globalization also appeared due to the political systems that governed the Middle East. Mostly autocratic, the Middle Eastern regimes have learned how to survive and mobilize mass support against globalization. Repression
and demagoguery were some of the tools used to convince the masses that anti-globalization was the only way of defending the Arab nation and Islam. People were thus discouraged from supporting elements of globalization like democracy, free enterprise, civil and human rights.
In his book ‘The West and the Rest: Globalisation and the Terrorist Threat’, Roger Scruton
contests that by imposing itself and its values on the entire world through the globalization process, the West is creating the conditions for conflict to occur between other cultures. It has made itself impossible to ignore and was at the very cause of an anti-Western
movement and an international Jihad
. Globalization brought face to face two very confident and incompatible ideas and the battle for dominance has been transformed into what is known as terrorism or “the dark side of globalization”.
Rather than reflecting a specific ideology
, terrorism
represents nostalgia (for pre-modern civilisation) and has been the result of a clash between modernization
and tradition
. Though violent, it can also be seen as an unacceptable response to destructive imperial national policies which themselves must be transformed if a world without terror is possible.
Bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network represents bad globalization and the perverted use of technology but in a sense the Al Qaeda Jihad
is the reverse image of McWorld
, which imposes its Jihad on local culture and tradition, wanting to create the world in its own image. Just as Al Qaeda dreams of imposing a radical Islam on the world, taking over and destroying Western
infidel culture, McDonald’s wants to destroy local and traditional eating habits and cuisine and replace them with a globalized and universalized menu.
A more balanced view on the Arab response is that rather than creating a unified anti-Western
block, globalization is feeding a great debate within the Islamic civilization about how Muslims should adjust to modernity. Much more than being against the West, Muslims are interested in re-establishing an Islamic unity and incorporating Western
technology and science into Islam.
by facilitating extensive networks of formerly dissociated Muslims. In this view the Middle East can even be considered as one of its driving forces. The increase in the flow of information, communication and mobility has served Muslim fundamentalism
but in a different way from the West. Whereas the latter is more profit –driven, the Islamists ideal of a globalized society is a network-connection of all Muslims in order to promote their definition of the world.
One example showing how Muslims use globalization to strengthen and promote their community can be found in Abu Basir’s book of rulings, where he uses the Islamic principle of "the necessities allow the prohibited". Here he claims that, just as Muslims can drink wine or eat pork in order to save themselves from starving, they can also migrate to the Western
‘infidel countries’ to save themselves from the oppressive governments of their homelands. He goes even further stating that immigration is allowed also ‘in order to enforce the Muslims and weaken the infidels. One of the goals of immigration is the revival of the duty of Jihad and enforcement of their power over the infidels. Immigration and Jihad go together: one is the consequence of the other and dependent upon it. The continuance of the one is dependent upon the continuation of the other.’
From this point of view globalization
and Westernization
are no longer counterparts. Islamist movements are themselves the driving forces behind globalization influencing its direction and final outcome. Probably one of the most important outcomes of this process has been the creation of a standard understanding for what the words “Islam” and “Islamic” mean. Prior to the changes that accompanied globalization each community had the opportunity to determine its own interpretation of the Islamic message, whereas now the norms are increasingly imposed by conservative Islamic groups. Given the circumstances, it seems that rather than opposing globalization, the Islamic world has found its own way of leading the process in a totally different direction. Therefore globalization means ‘many things to many people.’
as ‘the first war of the twenty-first century’ and the first major war in the age of globalization brought into focus the contradictions generated by this phenomenon. We are now experiencing an extremely complex phenomenon which both divides and unifies the world we live in. While connecting parts of the world that were previously cut off it also ignores and bypasses other regions, and along with this produces enemies whilst it incorporates participants. The circulation of commodities, technology, money and ideas facilitate networks of terror as well as trade and travel.Although it was supposed to promote democracy it was often the case that globalization forces inhibited it leading to an intensification of local and global political conflicts as was the case of the Middle East.
Technological achievements, capital mobility and free movement of people that resulted from the process thus allowed terrorism to express its local grievances and attack key symbols of American power in a way that had never been done before.
In the case of 9/11 Al Qaeda presented an example of the unpredictable nature of a globally connected and networked society where a hidden network dedicated its whole activity to attacking the US. According to Hinnebusch it is no accident that the Middle East has witnessed by far the highest number of international terrorist incidents, or that the US is increasingly becoming the target for these attacks. Osama Bin Laden and his following of ‘Arab Afghans’ were partly a US creation and it was not the religious or cultural differences that turned them against the US but its continuous presence in Saudi Arabia
, its perceived control over the Arab oil, the siege of Iraq
and the support for Israeli oppression of the Palestinians. In her book, Laura Guazzone points out the paradox of US hegemony in the region: while at the military level it stabilizes the Middle East against revisionist states, its biased and inequitable application continually stimulates the nationalist and Islamic reaction at the societal level that keeps the regional pot boiling.
Worldwide terrorism was thus partly born out of the conflict that globalization promoted by dividing the world and also from the new interactions it brought along. As Hinnebusch notes Bin Laden’s multi-national Al Qaeda was a function of the acceleration of global transportation, communications, and immigration which together led to a ‘post-modern’ terrorist network. September 11 was a clear statement of the effectiveness of the newly globalized jihad. It used the Internet, as it used globalization, to transmit its messages and move its money, people, propaganda
and terror. In a similar vein, Scruton argues that the techniques and infrastructure
on which al-Qa’eda depends are the gifts of the new global institutions. Just as globalization came to affect many countries throughout the world, Al Qaeda’s followers and cells are now established in more than 60 countries. Moreover, the new form of globalized Islam is undeniably threatening since it satisfies a hunger for membership that globalization itself has created.
Global terrorism and terror events were made possible due to the availability of new powerful and sometimes lethal
technology to groups and individuals that previously had no or restricted access to. Conventional instruments of mass transport or communication have been, and can be at any time converted into weapons of mass destruction
, or at least of mass terror producing a situation of asymmetrical war where weaker individuals and groups can attack superpower
s. This led to a general increase in fear and anxiety and September 11 was probably the most powerful alarm towards the danger that globalization carries within: new technologies empower angry disempowered people with technologies of mass destruction.
, where attempts to block foreign influences have often not succeeded. Still, given the incompatibility that characterizes the two views, neither Islamic terrorists nor the West can come to an intellectual compromise. Moreover, the Anglo-American invasion and occupation of Iraq have inhibited the chance for gradual change to occur in the region. The war polarised regimes and Islamist oppositions not only in Saudi Arabia but also in Algeria
, Egypt
and Tunisia
, countries where the freedom scores diminished the most in the last couple of years. It is thus probable that the American “War on Terrorism
” following the attacks of 11 September 2001 will lead to further polarization
.
The terrorists who believe that the very existence of the West is a threat will continue to use violence to fight a foe which cannot be ignored. Their understanding of the concept of globalization will continue to be affected by negative factors like high illiteracy rates, marginalization
of women, disparities between rich and poor, corrupt authoritarian regimes and the absence of democracy and human rights It may be the case that the next generation will be even more closed after experiencing much more intense and systematic indoctrination
on both the Islamist and nationalist fronts. The idea is sustained by the fact that students who have studied in the West often return home to reinforce even further a rejection of the society they have experienced. They may focus on the shortcomings of the Western
system and fear the effects of such ideas or institutions in their own countries.
In conclusion, the same place which once fuelled the world’s first truly global industry with its vast reserves of oil may also become the centre of forces that reverse the globalizing tendencies of the states. The more open society has become a Pandora's Box
which unlocked the possibilities of destruction and violence as well as democracy, free trade, and cultural and social exchange. In effect, decisions of the states to open up to international traffic and capital flows are reversible and may occur given the threats that globalization carries.
Globalization
Globalization refers to the increasingly global relationships of culture, people and economic activity. Most often, it refers to economics: the global distribution of the production of goods and services, through reduction of barriers to international trade such as tariffs, export fees, and import...
has been internalized in Arabic as “awlaama” and refers to the spread throughout the globe of ideas, customs, institutions, and attitudes originated in one part of the world which are usually Western
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
in origin. For this reason it has often been perceived as largely equivalent to Westernization
Westernization
Westernization or Westernisation , also occidentalization or occidentalisation , is a process whereby societies come under or adopt Western culture in such matters as industry, technology, law, politics, economics, lifestyle, diet, language, alphabet,...
and is still widely regarded as an external threat rather than as an opportunity. In the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
the decade of globalization was marked by endless wars, intrusive US hegemony
Hegemony
Hegemony is an indirect form of imperial dominance in which the hegemon rules sub-ordinate states by the implied means of power rather than direct military force. In Ancient Greece , hegemony denoted the politico–military dominance of a city-state over other city-states...
, renewed economic dependency and continuing insecurity. Globalization was ushered into the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
by a war which gave the Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
victors excessive power over the region and created a violent anti-globalization
Anti-globalization
Criticism of globalization is skepticism of the claimed benefits of the globalization of capitalism. Many of these views are held by the anti-globalization movement however other groups also are critical of the policies of globalization....
struggle. As some authors argue, it has strengthened Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism is a term used to describe religious ideologies seen as advocating a return to the "fundamentals" of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Definitions of the term vary. According to Christine L...
and, due to its ambiguity created a contradictory and tension filled situation. Globalization thus often acted as an obstacle rather than an impetus to democratization
Democratization
Democratization is the transition to a more democratic political regime. It may be the transition from an authoritarian regime to a full democracy, a transition from an authoritarian political system to a semi-democracy or transition from a semi-authoritarian political system to a democratic...
.
Against most expectations, the processes of globalization hence proved highly turbulent and have generated new conflicts, hostilities and exclusions throughout the world.Oppositional individuals and groups are now able to participate in global culture and politics through gaining access to global communication and media networks and to circulate local struggles and oppositional ideas through these media.
Initially globalization was expected to spread the zone of peace by delivering economic prosperity which people would not want to sacrifice in conflicts. Instead the imposition of structural adjustment
Structural adjustment
Structural adjustments are the policies implemented by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in developing countries. These policy changes are conditions for getting new loans from the International Monetary Fund or World Bank, or for obtaining lower interest rates on existing loans...
, of unpopular and inequitable peace treaties together with the US campaign against terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
, led to more unrest and instability. This helped to create a chain reaction as the victims of economic liberalization
Economic liberalization
Economic liberalization is a very broad term that usually refers to fewer government regulations and restrictions in the economy in exchange for greater participation of private entities; the doctrine is associated with classical liberalism...
appear to be among the main constituents of Islamic opposition movements.
The ArabArabArab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
and Muslim intellectuals
Cultural identityCultural identity
Cultural identity is the identity of a group or culture, or of an individual as far as one is influenced by one's belonging to a group or culture. Cultural identity is similar to and has overlaps with, but is not synonymous with, identity politics....
is at great value in the Middle East. For this reason, Arab and Muslim intellectuals have been deeply concerned about maintaining their cultural identity and independence in the face of globalization, especially as it is seen by most as equivalent to Americanization
Americanization
Americanization is the influence of the United States on the popular culture, technology, business practices, or political techniques of other countries. The term has been used since at least 1907. Inside the U.S...
. Muslims have always been proud and sensitive about their religion because Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
is not only a faith but also a law, a “sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
” that regulates all aspects of their life, including economic transactions, marriage and divorce, and matters of state.
According to Fauzi Najjar, the Arab intelligentsia is divided into three different attitudes toward globalization:
- The first group consists of those who reject it as “the highest stage of imperialismImperialismImperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
” and a “cultural invasion” threatening to dominate people and destroy their cultural heritage and national identity. - The second group of Arab thinkers welcomes globalization as the age of modern science, advanced technology and global communications. It calls for interaction with globalization in order to benefit from its “positive opportunities” without necessarily losing the Arab-Islamic cultural individuality.
- The third group he says “naively” calls for finding a middle ground, an appropriate form of globalization that is compatible with the national and cultural interests of people.
There is also a minority who strongly advocates globalization. In their opinion, globalisation has become the “discourse of the age” and Dr. Fuad Zakariya, an Egyptian professor of philosophy, is amongst them. He argues that those who oppose globalization in fact do not understand its meaning and implications fully and reminds his compatriots that there are certain problems that can only be tackled at a global level.
The Jihadists
Radical Islamists view globalization as a new dawahDawah
Da‘wah or Dawah usually denotes the preaching of Islam. Da‘wah literally means "issuing a summons" or "making an invitation", being the active participle of a verb meaning variously "to summon" or "to invite"...
(call) for the elimination of the boundaries between Dar al-Islam
Dar al-Islam
The idea of geographical divisions along religious lines i.e. the dur is neither mentioned in the Qur'an nor in the sayings of the Prophet , which are considered the primary sources in Islamic jurisprudence...
(domain of Islam) and Dar al-Kufr (domain of infidelity). Globalization is thought to lead to unrestricted freedom in the name of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
, as understood in the West, and to libertinism, the distinguishing characteristics of the decadence of Western
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
civilization. The inability to separate religious and mundane matters or religion and state has therefore created resistance and rigidity which at times has culminated in a defensive call for a fight against the enemy. Globalized organizations inspired by globalization are now fighting against it. In their view, the use of violence or terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
will supposedly allow Muslims to see through the West’s lies and to force the seemingly powerful but cowardly West to retreat from the Islamic world and await its final defeat. The imperialistic domination of the Muslim world, the support for Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and the current invasions of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
have intensified Muslim fears and increased hatred towards the West, making them “view globalization with terror.” Globalization threatens to undermine Islam and to remove it from the everyday “thought and actions” of Muslims. Human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
, freedom and democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
are perceived as hidden instruments of power which serve the interests of Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
nations, and of America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, in particular.
Reactions to globalization
Some authors claim that the general reaction to globalization among the Arab states has been a negative or a defensive one. The key reason for the rejection may be the lack of previous cultural penetration of the Islamic Middle East by Western cultureWestern culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
, institutions and ideas. In this context globalization was seen as a form of surrender to a dominant, non-indigenous standpoint. Islam, a religion governed by its own set of laws, developed an alternate world view with many of the elements of globalization contradicting it. It has a powerful and cohesive community which at times acts like a cultural defence wall against the Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
influence and, as a result, limits the use of European languages in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
.
The rejection of globalization also appeared due to the political systems that governed the Middle East. Mostly autocratic, the Middle Eastern regimes have learned how to survive and mobilize mass support against globalization. Repression
Political repression
Political repression is the persecution of an individual or group for political reasons, particularly for the purpose of restricting or preventing their ability to take political life of society....
and demagoguery were some of the tools used to convince the masses that anti-globalization was the only way of defending the Arab nation and Islam. People were thus discouraged from supporting elements of globalization like democracy, free enterprise, civil and human rights.
In his book ‘The West and the Rest: Globalisation and the Terrorist Threat’, Roger Scruton
Roger Scruton
Roger Vernon Scruton is a conservative English philosopher and writer. He is the author of over 30 books, including Art and Imagination , Sexual Desire , The Aesthetics of Music , and A Political Philosophy: Arguments For Conservatism...
contests that by imposing itself and its values on the entire world through the globalization process, the West is creating the conditions for conflict to occur between other cultures. It has made itself impossible to ignore and was at the very cause of an anti-Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
movement and an international Jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
. Globalization brought face to face two very confident and incompatible ideas and the battle for dominance has been transformed into what is known as terrorism or “the dark side of globalization”.
Rather than reflecting a specific ideology
Ideology
An ideology is a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things , as in common sense and several philosophical tendencies , or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to...
, terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
represents nostalgia (for pre-modern civilisation) and has been the result of a clash between modernization
Modernization
In the social sciences, modernization or modernisation refers to a model of an evolutionary transition from a 'pre-modern' or 'traditional' to a 'modern' society. The teleology of modernization is described in social evolutionism theories, existing as a template that has been generally followed by...
and tradition
Tradition
A tradition is a ritual, belief or object passed down within a society, still maintained in the present, with origins in the past. Common examples include holidays or impractical but socially meaningful clothes , but the idea has also been applied to social norms such as greetings...
. Though violent, it can also be seen as an unacceptable response to destructive imperial national policies which themselves must be transformed if a world without terror is possible.
Bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network represents bad globalization and the perverted use of technology but in a sense the Al Qaeda Jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
is the reverse image of McWorld
McWorld
McWorld is a term used to describe the spreading of McDonald's restaurants throughout the world as the result of globalization, and more generally to describe the effects of international McDonaldization of services and commercialization of goods as an element of globalization as a whole...
, which imposes its Jihad on local culture and tradition, wanting to create the world in its own image. Just as Al Qaeda dreams of imposing a radical Islam on the world, taking over and destroying Western
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
infidel culture, McDonald’s wants to destroy local and traditional eating habits and cuisine and replace them with a globalized and universalized menu.
A more balanced view on the Arab response is that rather than creating a unified anti-Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
block, globalization is feeding a great debate within the Islamic civilization about how Muslims should adjust to modernity. Much more than being against the West, Muslims are interested in re-establishing an Islamic unity and incorporating Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
technology and science into Islam.
Who is influencing whom?
There is considerable debate about Middle Eastern participation in globalization and about who is influencing whom along the way. While some critics argue that the Arab world is opposing globalization some others feel that it has strengthened Islamic fundamentalismIslamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism is a term used to describe religious ideologies seen as advocating a return to the "fundamentals" of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Definitions of the term vary. According to Christine L...
by facilitating extensive networks of formerly dissociated Muslims. In this view the Middle East can even be considered as one of its driving forces. The increase in the flow of information, communication and mobility has served Muslim fundamentalism
Fundamentalism
Fundamentalism is strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology. The term "fundamentalism" was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the...
but in a different way from the West. Whereas the latter is more profit –driven, the Islamists ideal of a globalized society is a network-connection of all Muslims in order to promote their definition of the world.
One example showing how Muslims use globalization to strengthen and promote their community can be found in Abu Basir’s book of rulings, where he uses the Islamic principle of "the necessities allow the prohibited". Here he claims that, just as Muslims can drink wine or eat pork in order to save themselves from starving, they can also migrate to the Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
‘infidel countries’ to save themselves from the oppressive governments of their homelands. He goes even further stating that immigration is allowed also ‘in order to enforce the Muslims and weaken the infidels. One of the goals of immigration is the revival of the duty of Jihad and enforcement of their power over the infidels. Immigration and Jihad go together: one is the consequence of the other and dependent upon it. The continuance of the one is dependent upon the continuation of the other.’
From this point of view globalization
Globalization
Globalization refers to the increasingly global relationships of culture, people and economic activity. Most often, it refers to economics: the global distribution of the production of goods and services, through reduction of barriers to international trade such as tariffs, export fees, and import...
and Westernization
Westernization
Westernization or Westernisation , also occidentalization or occidentalisation , is a process whereby societies come under or adopt Western culture in such matters as industry, technology, law, politics, economics, lifestyle, diet, language, alphabet,...
are no longer counterparts. Islamist movements are themselves the driving forces behind globalization influencing its direction and final outcome. Probably one of the most important outcomes of this process has been the creation of a standard understanding for what the words “Islam” and “Islamic” mean. Prior to the changes that accompanied globalization each community had the opportunity to determine its own interpretation of the Islamic message, whereas now the norms are increasingly imposed by conservative Islamic groups. Given the circumstances, it seems that rather than opposing globalization, the Islamic world has found its own way of leading the process in a totally different direction. Therefore globalization means ‘many things to many people.’
Terrorism made easy: 9/11
The experiences of September 11th categorized by President George W. BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
as ‘the first war of the twenty-first century’ and the first major war in the age of globalization brought into focus the contradictions generated by this phenomenon. We are now experiencing an extremely complex phenomenon which both divides and unifies the world we live in. While connecting parts of the world that were previously cut off it also ignores and bypasses other regions, and along with this produces enemies whilst it incorporates participants. The circulation of commodities, technology, money and ideas facilitate networks of terror as well as trade and travel.Although it was supposed to promote democracy it was often the case that globalization forces inhibited it leading to an intensification of local and global political conflicts as was the case of the Middle East.
Technological achievements, capital mobility and free movement of people that resulted from the process thus allowed terrorism to express its local grievances and attack key symbols of American power in a way that had never been done before.
In the case of 9/11 Al Qaeda presented an example of the unpredictable nature of a globally connected and networked society where a hidden network dedicated its whole activity to attacking the US. According to Hinnebusch it is no accident that the Middle East has witnessed by far the highest number of international terrorist incidents, or that the US is increasingly becoming the target for these attacks. Osama Bin Laden and his following of ‘Arab Afghans’ were partly a US creation and it was not the religious or cultural differences that turned them against the US but its continuous presence in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, its perceived control over the Arab oil, the siege of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and the support for Israeli oppression of the Palestinians. In her book, Laura Guazzone points out the paradox of US hegemony in the region: while at the military level it stabilizes the Middle East against revisionist states, its biased and inequitable application continually stimulates the nationalist and Islamic reaction at the societal level that keeps the regional pot boiling.
Worldwide terrorism was thus partly born out of the conflict that globalization promoted by dividing the world and also from the new interactions it brought along. As Hinnebusch notes Bin Laden’s multi-national Al Qaeda was a function of the acceleration of global transportation, communications, and immigration which together led to a ‘post-modern’ terrorist network. September 11 was a clear statement of the effectiveness of the newly globalized jihad. It used the Internet, as it used globalization, to transmit its messages and move its money, people, propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
and terror. In a similar vein, Scruton argues that the techniques and infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
on which al-Qa’eda depends are the gifts of the new global institutions. Just as globalization came to affect many countries throughout the world, Al Qaeda’s followers and cells are now established in more than 60 countries. Moreover, the new form of globalized Islam is undeniably threatening since it satisfies a hunger for membership that globalization itself has created.
Global terrorism and terror events were made possible due to the availability of new powerful and sometimes lethal
Lethal
Lethal is an adjective meaning capable of causing death.Lethal may also refer to:* Lethal , an American heavy metal band* Leigh Matthews, Australian rules footballer nicknamed "Lethal" or "Lethal" Leigh...
technology to groups and individuals that previously had no or restricted access to. Conventional instruments of mass transport or communication have been, and can be at any time converted into weapons of mass destruction
Weapons of mass destruction
A weapon of mass destruction is a weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to a large number of humans and/or cause great damage to man-made structures , natural structures , or the biosphere in general...
, or at least of mass terror producing a situation of asymmetrical war where weaker individuals and groups can attack superpower
Superpower
A superpower is a state with a dominant position in the international system which has the ability to influence events and its own interests and project power on a worldwide scale to protect those interests...
s. This led to a general increase in fear and anxiety and September 11 was probably the most powerful alarm towards the danger that globalization carries within: new technologies empower angry disempowered people with technologies of mass destruction.
Globalization in the future
West’s ideals inevitably will circulate throughout the world and as Rubin argues even the most extreme rejection of globalization does not mean that it fails to infiltrate into society. A good example of this is IranIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, where attempts to block foreign influences have often not succeeded. Still, given the incompatibility that characterizes the two views, neither Islamic terrorists nor the West can come to an intellectual compromise. Moreover, the Anglo-American invasion and occupation of Iraq have inhibited the chance for gradual change to occur in the region. The war polarised regimes and Islamist oppositions not only in Saudi Arabia but also in Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
, countries where the freedom scores diminished the most in the last couple of years. It is thus probable that the American “War on Terrorism
War on Terrorism
The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
” following the attacks of 11 September 2001 will lead to further polarization
Polarization (politics)
In politics, polarization is the process by which the public opinion divides and goes to the extremes. It can also refer to when the extreme factions of a political party gain dominance in a party. In either case moderate voices often lose power and influence as a consequence.-Definitions of...
.
The terrorists who believe that the very existence of the West is a threat will continue to use violence to fight a foe which cannot be ignored. Their understanding of the concept of globalization will continue to be affected by negative factors like high illiteracy rates, marginalization
Marginalization
In sociology, marginalisation , or marginalization , is the social process of becoming or being made marginal or relegated to the fringe of society e.g.; "the marginalization of the underclass", "marginalisation of intellect", etc.-Individual:Marginalization at the individual level results in an...
of women, disparities between rich and poor, corrupt authoritarian regimes and the absence of democracy and human rights It may be the case that the next generation will be even more closed after experiencing much more intense and systematic indoctrination
Indoctrination
Indoctrination is the process of inculcating ideas, attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional methodology . It is often distinguished from education by the fact that the indoctrinated person is expected not to question or critically examine the doctrine they have learned...
on both the Islamist and nationalist fronts. The idea is sustained by the fact that students who have studied in the West often return home to reinforce even further a rejection of the society they have experienced. They may focus on the shortcomings of the Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
system and fear the effects of such ideas or institutions in their own countries.
In conclusion, the same place which once fuelled the world’s first truly global industry with its vast reserves of oil may also become the centre of forces that reverse the globalizing tendencies of the states. The more open society has become a Pandora's Box
Pandora's box
Pandora's box is an artifact in Greek mythology, taken from the myth of Pandora's creation around line 60 of Hesiod's Works and Days. The "box" was actually a large jar given to Pandora , which contained all the evils of the world. When Pandora opened the jar, all its contents except for one item...
which unlocked the possibilities of destruction and violence as well as democracy, free trade, and cultural and social exchange. In effect, decisions of the states to open up to international traffic and capital flows are reversible and may occur given the threats that globalization carries.
See also
- GlobalizationGlobalizationGlobalization refers to the increasingly global relationships of culture, people and economic activity. Most often, it refers to economics: the global distribution of the production of goods and services, through reduction of barriers to international trade such as tariffs, export fees, and import...
- Western cultureWestern cultureWestern culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
- Western worldWestern worldThe Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
- Middle East economic integrationMiddle East economic integrationMiddle East economic integration has been envisioned, proposed or implemented by various parties in recent history.The stated rationale is that peace, stability and prosperity in the Middle East can only be sustained over the long-run through intra-regional economic cooperation.Governance,...