All of us are somewhat familiar with ethnic issues, the concept of ethnicity and ethnic rights. The 1990s saw the sudden emergence of ethnic-racial conflicts With the decline in the ideological trappings of the Cold War, new forms of intergroup competition emerged.
According to Moi Nihan, it seems that nation-states do not go to war with each other anymore, but ethnic groups are always at war. Many of these ethnic and racial conflicts inevitably reach the realm of international politics they find . Today, the term racial cleansing has entered our political literature. Now, ethnicity is an independent framework in which music, Food, art, literature and clothing become meaningful and ethnic identity is considered an independent variable in politics (domestic, regional and international). Ethnic identity, whether accepted today or not, is a phenomenon that It was formed during historical experiences and has an eternal nature.
According to Barrett (1996), ethnic identity is a combination of objective historical characteristics, such as language, religion, territory, social organization, culture and race, as well as mental characteristics that a group He uses them to prove his identity. Ethnicity, ethnic rights and ethnic claims are the consequences of modernity and the new global order, an order that has been unable to resolve thousands of ethnic or minority conflicts and rivalries around the world.Horowitz , 1985).
The ethnic group has fought to pave its way in the society, resulting in bloodshed and destruction ( Horowitz, p. xi , 1985).) One of the major concerns of policymakers and public opinion designers in the Middle East region is ethnic conflicts. Only the existence of ethnic groups does not cause problems, but their struggles for the right to self-determination and independence cause instability. The word ethnicity in the Middle East evokes a special meaning. This word is considered a new word in the Middle East It is connected with the internal conflicts and tensions of the countries. Some people believe that the ethnic conflicts in the 1990s were the result of the policies of the colonial powers. Colonialism determined the borders of the new countries of the region without considering the factor of ethnicity and forcibly gathered different and conflicting groups under one flag. The issue of ethnicity and minority rights is linked with the issues of nation-state, nationalism, mass rule and nationality. The rights of many ethnic groups and minorities, in countries like Saudi Arabia and Iraq, regardless of the ruling ideology of these countries, have always been violently violated. In other words, in the discussion of ethnicity and minority rights, more is said about the nature of the government and its legitimacy than the right of self-determination or independence of these groups.
State and identity in the Middle East
The nature of the government in the Middle East has strongly influenced the discussion of ethnicity and ethnic politics in the region. All governments in the region, whether royal, single-party, imam-centered or post-colonial, have sought to solve the identity problems created in territorial units as the main consequence of the influence of foreign powers. It is natural that in such a situation, the efforts of the ruling elites in the matter of state building have been to create new identity institutions in order to overcome ethnic, religious, linguistic, tribal or tribal loyalties. The process of integration was carried out by the government in various ways, including aggressive strategy, assimilation and transformation, and even racial cleansing and mass killing. The ruling elites in the region are all facing the same problem, which is to create new identities in territorial units that can expand the spectrum. He brought some ethnic groups together.
With the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire and the emergence of independent national governments on the political geography of the Middle East, the foundations of the nation-state system were laid in this region. With the establishment of independent national governments, nationalism was strengthened in order to defend the territorial integrity of the countries and stabilize the national borders, and became the basis of the policies of the governments of this region.
Definition of ethnicity
The discussion about ethnicity, ethnic rights and ethnic politics in the Middle East itself reflects changes in the region. Although the unity and unity of ethnic groups has also existed in the region, but this unity has never influenced the politics of the region. Politics is generally analyzed based on the validity of class criteria, and generally the analyzes of the schools of Orientalism and Post-Orientalism have such a tendency. The discussion about ethnic groups has largely been limited to the realm of anthropological studies and clan and tribe discussions and has been far from the realm of state and nation studies. Therefore, here it is useful to outline some key points of view about the importance, meaning and concept of ethnicity. arrive Asman and Rabinovitch to define the concept of inter-ethnicity Two groups of old-schoolers and instrumentalists are distinguished. According to veterans, the basic identities of society are the main indicators of ethnicity and politics in the region. For example, Islam is one of the fundamental indicators that plays an important role in shaping regional politics. Instrumentalists offer a more rational understanding of the relationship between ethnicity and nationalism. According to Esman and Rabinovitch, according to extreme instrumentalists, ethnic integration continues until it is productive. It means that it has more security, dignity and financial benefit than ethnic divisions.1988, p. 13 ).
In fact, the range of topics or concepts raised affects one’s analysis of ethnic policies or internal interactions of the society. For example, Brown considers ethnic heritage from ethnic politics, which is reflected in the prejudiced loyalty of groups, including religious, ethnic, linguistic, and tribal, as an important factor in shaping the political culture of the region.1984, p. 143) . Brown talks about the continuation of the political culture of the Middle East in the new era . The construction of this political culture is based on a combination of the norms of racial, ethnic and religious groups, which when faced with the new forces of the nation, nationalism and government institutions, tends towards traditional loyalties and related behavior. According to Brown, this pattern of political culture shows sectarian resistances against the changes and attractions of traditional religious and political forces.
In the past, the concept of ethnicity included a wider field. The region of the Middle East, which included Arabs and Persians, was considered to be the Arab region. However, the Arab world includes many ethnicities and sects. Anthony Smith reminds us that ethnic groups are cultural collections based on legend, race, descent, and historical past that are distinguished from each other by one or more cultural differences such as religion, customs, and language.1991, p.2According to this definition, various groups throughout the Middle East such as Jews, Arabs, Berbers, Persians, Alevis, Maronites, Armenians, and Marsh Arabs are given the term ethnic. . In addition, most of the countries in the region have witnessed clashes or ethnic tensions within their borders. Ethnicity is an important element in the politics and identity of the region. With the fading of some identities and ideologies related to them, new identities have emerged to fill the void and ideological crisis in the region.
Ethnic identity may also be formed in the form of individual beliefs and ideas, which can be described as “imaginary ideas”. Israel is the best example in this field. Jews were considered a religious minority until the establishment of the Zionist movement in the late 1890s. Herzl’s thought of reviving the Jewish nation turned this scattered population into an ethnic group that eventually became the basis for the formation of the Israeli state. Israel is considered an ethnic state based on the idea of the revival of the Jewish people and as a national and ethnic group, not a religious one. Therefore, the Hebrew language is the main characteristic of this country. Therefore, the Jews formed the state of Israel through an imaginary society with the aim of creating, preserving and surviving the Hebrew nation in the Holy Land. Therefore, the nation of Israel currently exists, because the Jews believed in their differences, respected them and created a nation-state through them. Ethnic clashes occurred due to ignoring the ethnic rights of the Arabs and not recognizing the Palestinian society as a specific and distinct society. The ethnic gap between Palestinians and Israelis is so great that it cannot be repaired. Therefore, the formed ethnic identities have created fundamental and lasting issues for the countries of the entire region.
There are many ethnic conflicts in the region, so that this issue has become an undeniable fact in the life of the people of the region. Although most of the political systems in the region have strictly followed the policy of suppressing and hiding their ethnic problems, the problems are revealed in different ways. As a result, obviously There is a danger that the conflicts will become ethnic in nature. The tragedy of sectarian conflict and civil war is not visible only in Lebanon. Although ethnic identity is one of the popular identities that people want to preserve and revive, however, it is very important in the framework of regional policies. The long ethnic and sectarian wars in the Middle East occurred mainly between 1945 and 1989, and more than any other kind of local, regional and international conflict caused people suffering and forced the highest percentage of the world’s immigrants from their homes. He moved away.
Historical experience and global processes show that the existence of nations and national governments is always challenged from two sides . One is from the external threats of other countries and nations, and the other is from the awakening of small identities and the conflict of these identities with the identity of the national police, as Smith says: Most of the national governments throughout the last two centuries of the 19th and 20th have faced ethnic, religious and regional challenges, albeit in a limited way.
As far as these issues are related to factors such as international processes and competing ideologies of national nationalism, such as globalization and nationalist ideologies, the process of national solidarity has faced serious challenges. Nationalist ideologies emphasize concepts such as discrimination and national oppression on the one hand, and exaggerate the danger of the destruction of micro-cultures in the national clan culture, on the other hand, in an attempt to create gaps in national solidarity and elements that create unity. it has been . Alienation between ethnic groups and emphasis on differences are the characteristics of this It is ideologies.
The process of globalization in the economic, information and even political dimensions of national borders has faced threats and has caused the release of forces from the bottom to the top.. These forces have faced many problems with the new political, social and cultural demands of the national governments.. The result of both of these has been damage to the acceptance of culture, identity and national affiliation (Qaysari, p. 398, 2012). And this place in the traditional functions and duties National governments are expected to maintain the interdependence and integrity of the land of a changing country. Getting more serious and how to manage cultural differences and distinctions in the national community is one of its consequences.. This issue has been so important that it has caused the spread of ethnic conflicts from one country to another, causing international mediation efforts to reduce these conflicts between the involved parties at the international level.
Theories of ethnic conflicts
Ethnography and ethnic typology are of special importance in order to understand their dimensions and consequences for the establishment of social order and society management in political units.. Understanding and knowing how and based on what principles a government can manage a multi-ethnic society in the midst of unrest caused by violence and ethnic conflicts is considered one of the most necessary and important issues in crisis management.. Since ethnic conflicts may be caused by the dissatisfaction of ethnic groups in a multi-ethnic society, it is always considered as a challenge to the power of the government and government, and the government is indispensable for the purpose of controlling ethnic conflicts and maintaining social order and political power.. Therefore, knowing and correctly understanding the causes and motivations of ethnic and religious violence and their typology based on the type, nature, dimensions and motivations, as well as finding the right solutions to control and manage ethnic conflicts and crises is considered as one of the goals of ethnic management.. A matter that, in the unnatural and diverse society of the 60s and beyond, concepts such as solidarity, nationalism and ethnic crises were examined and explained by experts and writers in different perspectives and different approaches in the field of science.. Sociology, social psychology, political science, and political geography are among the scientific fields that have discussed and investigated in connection with interdependence, identity crisis, and nationalism.. Each of the mentioned fields have considered an aspect of these concepts and explained them from their own point of view..
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Sociological theories of ethnic crises
Arabs live in a large part of the region. Arab ethnicity and the Arabic language in the Arab countries of the region are important factors that bind them together and at the same time separate them from the non-Arab people of the region. After the Arabs, there are two other ethnic and linguistic groups in the region There are Persians and Turks who live in Iran and Turkey. Another country that has an ethnic group with a specific language in the region is Israel. By emphasizing the Jewish ethnicity and religion and the revival of the Hebrew language, this country has been able to attract Jews from all over the world to shape the nation of Israel. In addition, there are some ethnic and linguistic groups in the region that are not specific to one country, but in different countries.Minority groups are present. The largest minority group is the Kurds, who live mainly in northern Iraq, western and northern Turkey, and northern Syria.
At the national level, the presence of ethnic and religious minorities, since it can be considered a threat to national unity, attracts the attention of governments. In countries that are vulnerable and fragile due to the lack of national cohesion, governments emphasize national unity more than anything else.
Internal conflicts, especially ethnic and religious conflicts, are increasingly becoming international issues. Since the end of the Cold War, internal conflicts have accounted for a greater share of global conflicts. Many of these internal conflicts have taken an international form. Below is the distribution of ethnicities in various maps. According to the map 5 and 6As we can see, the term “Mosaic of the Middle East” is correctly manifested. Therefore, there is a very wide potential for conflict in this region, and the lack of attention of countries to this category can be a challenge, and the past of the Middle East also speaks for itself. Countries and great powers also play a significant role in fueling ethnic issues in order to score points from the countries of the region. It is consistent with the theory of conspiracy illusion, but the evidence shows other facts. In the following, we will discuss some of the actions of foreign countries and foundations in this direction.
Arabs Map 1
Persians Map 2
Turks map 3
Kurds map 4
Other tribes map 5
Religious groups map 6
New Middle East plan
The term New Middle East was proposed by the US Secretary of State in Tel Aviv in June 2006 instead of the older term Greater Middle East. This change in the wording of foreign policy coincided with the opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, the eastern Mediterranean oil terminal. Olmert and Rice informed the international media that the “New Middle East” project has started from Lebanon. These positions were a seal of approval on the “military road map”.Military RoadwayAnglo-American-Israeli in the Middle East. This plan, which was being planned for several years, depended on the creation of an arc of unrest, disorder and violence from Lebanon, Palestine and Syria to Iraq, the Persian Gulf, Iran and NATO’s borders were expanding in Afghanistan. This structural chaos created the conditions of war and conflict in the entire region and will be exploited by Israel, America and England at the right time so that they can redraw the map of the Middle East based on their geopolitical needs and goals. Rice called Israel’s war and the resulting destruction in Lebanon the “birth pain” of the Middle East New” knew.
Ralph Peters article on the new Middle East plan entitled Bloody Borders
Peters, who is a retired lieutenant-colonel of the National War Academy, is one of the famous military strategists associated with the neocons. During this article with a map design He has drawn new borders for the Middle East and considers the implementation of this plan to be the solution to peace and tranquility in this region. In this article, he considers ethnic and religious groups such as Kurds, Baluch, Shia Arabs, etc., and states that the propositions he faces are naturally rigid laws.draconian) but he insists that the implementation of these plans are necessary and necessary pains for the people of the region. This view of necessary pain and suffering is terribly in line with the opinion of Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State at the time, that the destruction of Lebanon by the Israeli army is childbirth pain. Birth PangHe knew the new Middle East. The map designed by Peters Armed Forces JournalIt was published in 2006. This map in NATO Defense College and National War Academy training programs are used for high-ranking military officers.
Map of the new Middle East according to the Peters plan
Plans and plans of great powers and foreign organizations in fueling ethnic conflicts in the Middle East
The Greater Middle East Plan was established by people such as Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Dick Cheney, and Richard Pearl, all of whom are students of the school of Bruce Jackson – the American capitalist and politician. industrialized countries and Russia) officially presented this plan to the member countries and demanded that it be reviewed by the governments and their alignment with the US government. With this plan, instead of having to supply its energy from outside, America is trying to expand its borders to the point where the borders of the Middle East (the world’s energy store) are within its influence borders.
“American Enterprise” Political Research Foundation
Dick Cheney is one of the most well-known figures associated with it. It is one of the major research institutions that has so far conducted many studies on the countries of the Middle East and especially the Caucasus. The results of these studies are mainly based on the strengthening of ethnic policies and Ethnic tensions have been created in the Caucasus, Iran, etc. The American Enterprise Institute was established in Washington, DC in 1943, and under the banner of expanding democracy and freedom, it presented ideas and agendas. During the administration of George W. Bush, half of the high-ranking personnel of the Bush administration cooperated with this foundation. People such as Paul Wolofovits (then deputy of the Pentagon), Michael Ladin (theorist and foreign adviser in the American governments with strong anti-Iranian tendencies) Richard Pearl, James Woolsey (former head of the CIA) and many other American politicians work in this foundation and plan the Middle East policies of conservative American governments. The same team prepared the “Plan for a New American Century” project for the Bush administration, and in the media dimension, networks and magazines such as Fox News, National Review, New Public, Weekly Standard, and several other weekly and periodicals and research institutes. are included in its intellectual circuit.
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