Arab nationalism essay PDF

Preview

Summary

To what extent has Arab nationalism failed?...

Description

TURNITIN COVER SHEET FOR ASSESSMENT

Student Number: 40154463

Essay Deadline Date: 11/12/2017

Essay Title: To what extent has Arab nationalism failed?

Module Code: PAI3011

Tutor's Name: Dr Drew Mikhael / Mazen Iwaisi

Word Count: 1968

Arab nationalism refers to the movement which occurred during the twentieth century in the Arab region founded on the notion that states constituted an Arab nation, founded on newfound unity in shared characteristics of ethnicity, language, culture, history, identity and geo-political status. This movement was birthed by scholars of the Arab world, and relied on the literature and expression of local elites to survive its initial years. In this paper I aim to answer the extent to which Arab nationalism has failed a political project through examining the emergence of this ideology, the attempts at implementing the project and its demise. In the Middle East, nationalism is understood in two prominent explanations which are that the nation (watan) may be explained via the western doctrine of nation identified through the nation-state, perpetuating individualistic nationalism, whereas another explanation offers a more pertinent insight to the traditions of the Arab world, explaining the nation as being indigenous in origin while using Muslim notions of community (umma) and sense of belonging through tribe, clan, religious and ethnic affiliation to describe the makeup of such nation [CITATION Bev11 \p 53 \l 2057 ]. As aforementioned, the early stages of Arab nationalism were born out of debate and discussion amongst Arab elites and scholars, relying on the power and popularity of the book and pamphlet [CITATION Fou78 \p 365 \l 2057 ]. Arab nationalism in the nineteenth century was a mere fluid concept, far from a concrete ideology, it was ‘a romantic notion whose full implications had not been worked out’ [CITATION Kam88 \p 38 \l 2057 ]. Leading scholars during the early phases of Arab nationalism’s included Sati‘ al-Husri, a Syrian writer and theorist, Michel Aflaq, founder of the Ba’ath Party both of whom were catalysts raising awareness of the plague that was colonialism. Aflaq, with al-Din al-Bitar contested that Arab states were fabricated units. Further explained by Ayoob, these states have arbitrary boundaries imposed by the colonial powers to fragment the region and perpetuate its dominance (1995, p. 33). Colonialism is core to understanding the birth and development of Arab nationalism. The aims of colonial powers in the region were to divide, conquer, discredit and suppress – however this instead encouraged opposition and Arab states unified in defiance against further gains from colonial powers. It was the rejection of this very phenomenon which is at the core of the emergence of the nationalist movement. Colonialism helped produce varying views of nationalism, firstly was territorial nationalism, portrayed by states’ struggle for full independence from Britain and France and the need for a national identity. Secondly, there was a new discourse regarding Arab unity, which was more focused on the need for unity to achieve Arab self-protection and renaissance, all while understanding and combating the situation which they proscribed to western powers dividing the region [CITATION Man13 \p 258 \l 2057 ]. From these newly formed nationalist persuasions we learn that the wider debate regarding nationalism as an ideology requires a certain degree of constructivism – it is argued

by Milton-Edwards that Arab identity was formed in direct opposition to the colonial west [CITATION Bev11 \p 65 \n \t \l 2057 ]. The movement for Arab nationalism gained prominence in the early twentieth century during the plans to unite the peoples of Arabia, Syria and Transjordan under one united Arab state, succeeding from Ottoman rule. This project set the precedent for later attempts at unifying through identifying and rallying around shared characteristics which are, as Hudson [CITATION Hud77 \p 38 \n \t \l 2057 ] describes as being the hallmarks of modern Arab identity – Arabic language and culture and Islam. Noteworthy is the acknowledgment of Islam as an element within Arab nationalism since it has long been regarded as an erratic element of Arab nationalism - demonstrated in the Muslim Brotherhood’s denouncement that nationalism and Islam are not compatible with one another since all Muslims from all races are members of the same, great Islamic umma. This perspective is more so rejecting the ideals of secularism within modern nationalism, although opposing this argument were Arab nationalist educationalists who claim the principals of Islam are the same as those of Arab nationalism [CITATION Man13 \p 259 \l 2057 ]. Further, this discussion highlights the impetus for recognising the role of religion and nationalism. Kohn argues that the cause which men will defend with their lives is no longer exclusively religious, but in increasingly measure national [CITATION Koh32 \p 38 \n \t \l 2057 ]. Regardless, there remains a dynamic relationship between Islam and Arab nationalism, one which benefits of Islam’s ability to transcend all societal and even physical boundaries. The perceived betrayal from the mandates paved the way for further resentment of colonial powers, and in turn, a rise in nationalist rhetoric. Nationalism developed rapidly, yet unsteadily in the early decades of the twentieth century. Nationalist movements in states such as Iraq, Syria and Palestine were all undermined by internal grievances and disruptions. Fractured societies were the main obstacle to the success of Arab nationalism. Arguably, the inability of Arab leaders to tap in such distribution and either manipulate it against the colonial presence in the region to aid the nationalist cause or help address the root causes of such anger which would result in a greater buy-in from all sections of society and help strengthen the nationalist movement. Arab nationalism lacked strong, adaptable and charismatic leadership – this impeded its evolution. Despite such turbulent beginnings, Arab nationalism overcame, doing so by garnering Arab unity in banishing colonial powers from the region. These events came to a head in the establishment of the Arab League, an experimental regional co-operation organisation. An improvement on the Fertile Crescent Plan, (an Iraqi Hashemite proposal which the two principal features were the accommodation of the expansionist ambitions of the Hashemite while also paving the way for Iraqi leaders to assert their dominance in the race with Egypt to become the regional hegemon [CITATION Daw03 \p 119 \l 2057 ]) the Arab League was a nationalist strategy inspired by building unity

amongst independent Arab states. However it was doomed to fail due to its weak structures, such as its inability to bound members to decisions and internal rivalries between leaders. Albeit, the strength of nationalism is present in this organisation as it exhibited Arab unity around the common cause (or what was perceived to be) of securing and maintaining independence and sovereignty for Arab states (Pact of the League of Arab States, 1945, Article 2). Khalidi argues that the Arab state system postulates the existence of a single Arab nation behind the façade of a multiplicity of sovereign states [CITATION Kah97 \p 181 \n \t \l 2057 ], whereby it is possible for Arab leaders to transcend any state boundaries which may be an impediment to achieving Arab nationalism. Nasser’s dynamic leadership qualities saw him quickly assume leadership of Arab nationalism. Arab nationalism peaked under Egyptian hegemony and it became the principal upon which proposed state mergers were founded, Hinnebusch argues that Nasser’s use of nationalism was deployed to weaken Western dominance in the region [CITATION Hin09 \p 165 \l 2057 ]. Egypt’s unification with Syria is testament to the strength of Arab nationalism at the time, although by ending rather dramatically, this project highlights the weaknesses of the doctrine. The short lived United Arab Republic (UAR, 1958191) perpetuated unity amongst two key actors in the region, encouraging other states to get involved, such as the North Yemen who joined the union to obtain security from their neighbouring state Saudi Arabia [CITATION Isa81 \p 8 \l 2057 ]. The conditions were not right for this project to flourish – it was failure in the sense that as an ideology, nationalism was not fit to relieve the difficulties that came with political, economic and societal demands. Overall, the UAR project failed for three reasons, first was the greed of Nasser and his unwillingness to share power with the new confederation states, subsequently and secondly demanding the weakening of the Syrian state for the cause of strengthening Egyptian institutional power and finally, the failure of Nasser to find and implement a suitable political arrangement to support the ongoing social and economic change [CITATION Bev11 \p 70 \l 2057 ] – these failures serve as key indicators of the shortcomings of Arab nationalism. While this experiment dealt a blow to the cause of Arab nationalism, the final nail in the coffin for the movement came in the Arab defeat in the 1967 War. The 1967 War was a watershed for the Arab leaders, militaries, peoples and most importantly, spirit. With the Arab world united against Israel they still managed to fail, which prompted concerns regarding the leadership of the movement, while underlining the vulnerability of the Arab system and the loss of confidence in the Arab order and its guardians [CITATION Fou78 \p 357 \l 2057 ]. Of particular importance is the impact this defeat had on Nasser, once the saviour of Arab nationalism, he singlehandedly led the movement into its last stand which was an embarrassment in the sense that the combined Arab forces were defeated by an opponent half its size, causing Nasser to concede that his leadership failed to bring about the longsought after Arab state. Nasser’s death soon after also marked the death of Arab nationalism.

However, while the 1967 defeat was indeed the decisive event which marked the decline of Arab nationalism, those who put their heads above the parapet, including Gaddafi and Bourguiba, attempted to revive the movement. Despite such attempts having limited success, they were undermined by the increasing individual nationalistic tendencies amongst states opposed to regional nationalism. Important to note is also the increasingly central role that Saudi Arabia played after the 1967 defeat which spelled a shift from nationalism (a doctrine which they were long opposed to) to a Muslim universalism, a doctrine which they believed they had more legitimacy over and greater ability to direct. Interestingly, Saudi Arabia is omitted from this discourse, although on the surface it may appear obvious due to their commitment to Islam, however one should also be aware of their own domestic arrangements - Saudi Arabia was an absolute monarchy, which is crucial in understanding why it did not partake in the movement for a unified state. Further, the aforementioned individualistic nationalism undermined any future suggestions of a renewed nationalist movement, as well as the fragmentation of the Arab region via a renewed western direct and proxy presence made it difficult to sustain a mass-movement like what was headed by Nasser. Arab nationalism was undoubtedly a promising movement, however as I have outlined above it was fraught with internal difficulties of which it was not equipped with the experience or capabilities to deal with. Seeberg [CITATION See07 \p 23-24 \n \t \l 2057 ] further explains how Arab states began with low levels of political legitimacy, a theme which characterized the regimes since there was no such ideology of unity in the Arab world which would constitute the basis of a nationalist movement, the absence of complimentary policies between Arab states and the general weakness, both internally and externally, as being key factors in understanding how Arab nationalism failed. To conclude, Arab nationalism as a political project had high, yet relatively modest aspirations. The journey for the unification of the region was fraught with ill-planned and short sighted political decisions, primarily to do with the leadership’s crisis of identity. This eternal pursuit to find an ‘other’ to which Arabs can identify themselves to [CITATION Hin09 \p 148 \l 2057 ] put the movement at a disadvantage as the dated colonial identity was removed, and the search for a new ‘other’ was found by Nasser in the Arab states which he regarded as counterrevolutionary, such as Yemen, however this simply served to further divide the region. In today’s age, nationalism gives us a great measure of how the region has developed since the Arab Spring through analysing state participation in regional organisations - the extent to which Arab nationalism failed is exhibited in the fact that there has been no more pan-Arab exercises, which this information we can declare Arab nationalism as a failed political movement.

Bibliography Ajami, F., 1978. The End of Pan-Arabism. Foreign Affairs, Volume 57, pp. 355-373. Ayoob, M., 1995. The Third World Security Predicament: State Making, Regional Conflict, and the International System. Boulder: Lynne Rienner Publishers. Dawisha, A., 2003. Requiem for Arab Nationalism. Middle East Quarterly, 10(1), pp. 25-41. Ghanem, I., 1981. Yemen : political history, social structure and legal system. London: Arthur Probsthain. Hinnebusch, R., 2009. The politics of identity in Middle Eastern International Relations. In: L. Fawcett, ed. International relations of the Middle East. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hudson, M., 1977. Arab Politics: The Search for Legitimacy. New Haven: Yale University Press. Kahlidi, R., 1997. Palestinian Identity: The Construction of Modern National Consciousness. New York: Colombia University Press. Kohn, H., 1932. Nationalism and Imperialism in the Hither East. London: Routledge. Mansfield, P., 2013. The Second World War and its aftermath. In: A history of the Middle East. London: Penguin, pp. 247-268. Milton-Edwards, B., 2011. Contemporary Politics in the Middle East. Cambridge: Polity. Salibi, K., 1988. A House of Many Mansions: The History of Lebanon Reconsidered. Berkeley: University of California Press. Seeberg, P., 2007. The weakening of the Arab States. Pan-Arabism re-revisited after the invasion of Iraq, s.l.: Centre For Contemporary Middle East Studies University Of Southern Denmark. States, A., 1945. Pact of the League of Arab States, s.l.: s.n....