Colonial Power and State Formation in the Middle East - Case Study Example

Colonial Power and State Formation in the Middle East I. Introduction Colonialism or imperialism almost always does not benefit the colonized people more than the colonizers. The primary reason for colonization is to gain control of more wealth and power. Colonies provide resources and locations which are strategic to the increase of both economic wealth and political power of the colonizers. In order to take full advantage of the available resources and trade passageways, policies had to be enforced and colonies had to be controlled and restricted. These restrictions limited the activities of the local people and it greatly changed their ways of living. The rule of the colonizers modified social interactions, livelihood activities, and recreational events. The colonizers even restricted and forcibly changed the belief systems including the personal and spiritual views of the local people in order to establish only one set of principles - that of the colonizers. The local people became inferiors in their own land. They had to abide by the rules set by their superiors. Those who refused to follow or obey were punished. Colonialism created a great disparity between the colonizers and the local people. Injustices against the local settlers were very rampant and these unfair treatments and punishments led to feelings of resentment and anger towards the colonizers. Local people who publicly show their opposition against the inequality of treatment or discrimination against them suffer the consequences of their actions. The increasing number of injustices directed towards local people and the punishments incurred by those who oppose the prejudices resulted to major resistance groups among the local people. As time progresses and actions against local people got worse, resistance became stronger and plans for revolts were devised. Colonization brought about a destruction of the social, cultural, economic, and political foundations of local people, but it also created unity among the people and a sense of identity. This identity formed the core of the aspirations of the local people to be independent once again and establish a land with systems they can call their own. These aspirations resulted to revolutions and wars, and eventually led to freedom and the establishment of independent nations. Lives were lost during wars, but the desire to be free and in control of their own lives remained, and this desire kept the fire burning for most local peoples to fight for their independence. This persistent desire for independence gave birth to nationalism. During the 18th to the 19th century, European powers gained colonies after colonies. They aimed to extend their political power and amass greater wealth by taking advantage of the resources and locations of other countries. The Middle East was not an exception. Britain and France were the leading European colonizers of the Middle East. Middle Eastern countries such as Egypt, Sudan, Algeria, and Morocco were colonized by these powers. Aside from the strategic location of the Middle East for trade, it attracted European imperialism because of its vast oil fields. This made colonization or imperialism very competitive among the European countries. To cater to their own national interests, Britain, France and Italy struggled with each other to gain economic and political domination, by justifying that the Middle East was being aided or assisted by Europe in alleviating their conditions from centuries of underdevelopment (Milton-Edwards 2006) II. The Colonial Experience of the Middle East Let us first establish the countries or the political units included in the Middle East region which is mainly located in Northern Africa and Southwest Asia. Countries include Greece and Turkey in Europe, Cyprus, Syria, Israel, Jordan, and Lebanon in Southwest Asia, Saudi Arabia, Aden, Yemen, Muscat and Oman, Trucial Oman, Qatar, Kuwait in the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, Iran, Western Pakistan and Afghanistan in the Bahrain Islands, and Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Sudan, Tunisia and Egypt in Africa (Jackh 1952). The Middle East’s colonial experience started as informal colonies or what was called as the informal empire. Colonial rule in the Middle East was initially regarded as informal because no conventional colonial systems were put in place. The informality of the colonial regime made it possible for the colonizers to repress the local population due to the absence of formal rules or policies encompassing colonies. An informal empire consisted of a dual elite, a band of foreign investors including workers, diplomats, and merchants, and a capitalist class. An informal empire is created when a more powerful state with significant economic leverage forms an alliance with a group to achieve informal control or domination over a weaker state (Cole 1993). The informal set-up gave rise to exploitations in terms of the access to land and resources of the indigenous population. There are no guidelines or policies enforced by the imperial state due to the absence of formalization procedures. The height of the Middle East colonial predicament was in the late 19th to the early 20th century when Britain had control over Egypt and Sudan, and France ruled over Algiers. In 1856, Britain was engaged in war with Iran over rights of way via Iran going to India and China. The year 1860 saw France heavily involving itself on Lebanese affairs, and Spain invading Morocco. Britain and France developed and operated the Suez Canal which was opened in 1869, and Tunisia was occupied by France in 1881 (Thornton 2006). Although European countries such as Britain, France and Spain have taken control of Middle Eastern countries like Egypt, Sudan, Algiers, and Morocco, The Ottoman Empire still had a strong hold on the other Middle East territories up until the beginning of the 20th century. The territories controlled by the Ottoman Empire included Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Northern Yemen, Jordan and Israel (Owen 2000). European imperialism in the early 19th century Middle East was manifested in three ways. These included France’s direct colonization and occupation of Algeria in 1830, diplomatic force on the Sultans of the Ottoman Empire to give legal and economic privileges to Europeans and the non-Muslim minorities, and treaties with chiefs and leaders involving control of the Persian Gulf and Southern Arabian seaports to guarantee Britain’s military control of the sea passageway to India in exchange for preserving the powers of the chiefs or leaders. III. The Effects of Colonial Rule on the People of the Middle East Colonial Rule in the Middle East, unlike other colonial experiences in some parts of the world, did not result to the disintegration or demise of culture and belief systems. Although migration of Europeans to the Middle East created a fusion of social and cultural systems, most of the local people maintained and enriched their indigenous traditions and ways of life. Colonial rule resulted to massive and strong resistance to the colonial or imperial power. Resistance led to dissent and eventually to revolts. Revolts turned to full blown wars which were almost always bloody and end up in loss of lives. The colonial predicament in the Middle East created the need to establish a distinct identity for the people of the Middle East. This identity encompassing settlers of a certain nation became the national identity which gave rise to the concept of nationalism. It was Napoleon’s assault of Egypt in 1798 during the height of the French revolution which started Europe’s conquest of the Middle East. Colonization of several Middle East countries, resistance of the people, and war came thereafter. European conquest prompted resistance and dissension which ended up in bloody violence. The main goal of European countries such as Britain and France in their imperialist efforts was to be ahead of the competition among the European powers. Each wanted to be ahead of the other in terms of gaining political and economic world leadership. In some major instances, European countries engaged in war over a target colony. These countries either made efforts to overthrow the existing colonial power, or preempts plans of other countries to colonize certain areas by doing it ahead. France’s rule over Egypt under Napoleon did not go unchallenged. The Egyptians staged a fight with the French troops but were defeated. This resulted to a grim realization in the Middle East that their power was no match to the might of the Western troops or armies and fleets. Britain later defeated France in taking control of Egypt. Egypt was not the only one to stage a resistance to European power, but the colonial struggles in the French rule of Algeria, and British rule in Sudan paved the way for a stronger advocacy for nationalism in the Middle East (Shuster 2004). The early 20th century still saw major parts of the Middle East which were previously controlled by the Ottoman Empire, under the hegemony of European powers. The growing imperialism of Europe resulted to the increasing anti-imperialist sentiments. Examples of the manifestations of these sentiments were the 1891 Tobacco Revolt in Iran, and the political action mobilization revolving around religious leaders and symbols. The Tobacco rebellion showed resistance to further control of colonists. As a sign of opposition to the pending concession agreement where Britain was allowed to create the Imperial Tobacco Corporation in exchange for rental payment and percentage of the profits, bazaars were closed down by merchants in protest, riots were initiated, and a holy war was encouraged against the tobacco company (Daniel 2001). The concession was greatly opposed by the people because tobacco was vastly used in the different areas of Iran, and this concession will have a major effect in all classes across the country. Political movements were also triggered by anti-imperialism such as the Wafd in Egypt. Tunisian and Algerian movements also emerged and demanded reforms and increase in the rights afforded to the local people. The Kurds and the Armenians depended on the peace negotiators to help them achieve independence, even if they know that will still be subjected to some kind of European protection if this path was followed. After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire, a League of Nations mandate established in 1920 further expanded the European imperial rule by affording control of Iraq and Palestine by Britain, and Lebanon and Syria of France (Bulliet n.d.). This mandate originally required the two countries to aid these territories toward full independence, but national interest often prevented the two countries from abiding by the requirement. IV. National Identity and State Formation in the Middle East The term state may refer to two meanings or concepts. On one hand, it refers to sovereign political units such as those with specific boundaries, with international recognition, with their own flag, and with their own place in the United Nations, while the other usage of the word state refers to the set of practices and institutions that joins judicial, legislative, administrative, and coercive powers (Owen 2000). State formation can be generally defined as the processes which possess the monopoly of the instruments and channels of coercion, and lead to political power centralization over a continuous territory that is well-defined. There have been numerous discourses regarding the interrelationship between war and state formation. It has been argued that wars are necessary for the shaping or development of states. The institutional mechanism that associated the pursuing of external wars and state expansion were administrative, political, and fiscal (Tilly 1990). The political mechanism involved affording government representations to those people who are capable of paying taxes, and stretching of political rights to significant groups. The taxes were necessary so states may have funds to engage in wars. An effective administrative mechanism was needed to maintan and develop the growing and the technologically advanced navies and armies in order to win wars. The waging of wars usually had two purposes: protecting existing territories against invasion of external forces, and expanding power and control over previously autonomous areas. To attain either of the two goals, superior armies and navies are needed. Thus, generating money to finance the armies and the navies was vital. State formation was often accompanied by conflicts between and among the classes due to the segregation created by imperialism. Imperialism had encouraged dominant classes to control and dominate the means of wealth production at the expense of the peasants. The control of the dominant class over the means of wealth production such as land and natural resources resulted to political mobilization and revolts among the disadvantaged locals (Hinnebusch 2003). The newly built fragile structures of the state usually succumbed to these dissensions. The standard state usually had guidance, pacification, and adjudication functions. The goal of the state was not the instant fulfillment of the needs and wants of the people, but the lawful manifestation of a balance of the established values through wisdom, authority, and arbitration (Ben-Dor 1983). State formation follows a process of the establishment of boundaries, specific social, political and economic systems, and a set of laws or policies to guide the citizens. This process is simultaneous to the development of a national identity. The people of the Middle East had previously been united by culture or religion, but with state formation, the people are now bound by nationality. They now share a common identity specific to their location or territory and their rights to the land, resources and privileges afforded to the citizens of that territory. V. The Dynamics between Colonial Power and State Formation State formation is an inevitable consequence of a colonial power dissolution or disintegration. During a colonial rule or regime, local people are oftentimes placed in subordinate positions to the colonial power. They are more often than not disadvantaged because restrictions and limitations are imposed on them. Material possessions including land and other personal properties are seized, confiscated or bought at unreasonably low prices. Basic human rights, civil, and political rights are restricted. The local people would join hands and form groups to air grievances against the injustices they are experiencing. This collective resistance to unfair policies and practices will give rise to nationalism. Resistance and insurgency are inevitable results of colonialism or imperialism. Whatever the kind of colonial government is established, there will always be dissension because of the concept of intervention. The dissension usually differed in terms of the magnitude, resources utilized, the duration, and the time of onset. The means of revolt may have been different but the goal was the same. The primary goal was to regain freedom and independence from external powers. This goal of the local people or resisting group stemmed from the aspiration to gain full control of all their activities without any unwarranted interventions from external groups. This now leads to the formation of a state to fulfill their ultimate goal. By looking at history, colonialism or imperialism had to be experienced by different local peoples in order to understand the importance of a state, nation, sovereignty or identity as a people. Battles or wars had to be fought in order to realize the significance of a structured system in terms of protecting the rights of the people, their territories, and their freedom. VI. Conclusion Colonialism or imperialism causes resistance among the local people. Colonialism even if disguised as a mission to help in the development of an indigenous people would always involve national interest. The choice of which territory to colonize is in itself self-serving as countries will never spend money for conquest if there will be no returns or profits. The aims of colonization or imperialism revolve around the increase of political control and economic advantage or gain. Colonies provide strategic waterways for passage of trade ships, or they provide abundant resources that will boost the economies of the colonizing countries. Colonization is a form of intervention. It is actually the ultimate encroachment of a people’s way of life. It may introduce or bring new ideas or things which would benefit the local people, but the consequences or negative effects are far greater than the benefits. Segregation of the local or indigenous people from the colonizers oftentimes occurs immediately. Restrictions and limitations as to the activities of the people follow, and then subjugation of rights eventually ensues. These restrictions lead to injustices and punishments. Resentment toward the new settlers soon grows and resistance increases. Resistance is then transformed into group actions or mobilizations, and mobilizations at times turn to violent revolts. The eventual out throw of the colonial government leads to the formation of an independent state and a formulation of a distinct set of rules, standards, and policies. In the case of the Middle East, the departure of the European colonial powers was not absolute and did not happen instantaneously. Some form of rule or conditions still remained and it was until later years did the Middle Eastern states achieve full independence. The success of the newly formed states or governments however depends on the system imposed by the colonial rule. There are times when the new state is unable to mediate their own innate systems based on traditions and customs, with the systems they have been accustomed to while under colonial rule. Those new states without a firm foundation usually encounter tons of difficulty and even collapse, but with a newfound sense of pride for the revival of their independence and identity, the people exercise their resilience. The effects of imperialism or colonialism on the social, economic, and political systems of a people are not immediately wiped out upon departure of the colonial power from the territory. The influence does not end when independence starts. The effects are usually felt and are manifested in various ways, which may or may not be blatant. Colonies until the present day carry different forms of colonial influences which have been ingrained into their own belief and value systems, as well as in their principles or worldview. Bibliography Ben-Dor, Gabriel. State and Conflict in the Middle East: Emergence of the Postcolonial State. New York: Praeger, 1983. Bulliet, Richard W. "Imperialism in the Middle East and North Africa." Answers.com. http://www.answers.com/topic/imperialism-in-the-middle-east-and-north-africa (accessed Oct 30, 2007). Cole, Juan R. I. Colonialism and Revolution in the Middle East: Social and Cultural Origins of Egypt's 'Urabi Movement. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1993. Daniel, Elton L. The History of Iran. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2001. Hinnebusch, Raymond. The International Politics of the Middle East. Manchester, England: Manchester University Press, 2003. Jackh, Ernest. Background of the Middle East. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University, 1952. Milton-Edwards, Beverly. Contemporary Politics in the Middle East. Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2006. Owen, Roger. State, Power and Politics in the Making of the Modern Middle East. London: Routledge, 2000. Shuster, Mike. "The Middle East and the West: Carving Up the Region." National Public Radio. Aug 19, 2004. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3859631 (accessed Oct 30, 2007). Thornton, Ted. "Colonialism in Africa and the Middle East." Northfield Mount Hermon School. Nov 30, 2006. http://nmhschool.org/tthornton/mehistorydatabase/colonialism_in_africa_and_the_mi.php (accessed Oct 30, 2007). Tilly, Charles. Coercion, Capital and European States, AD 990-1990. Cambridge, MA: Basil Blackwell, 1990. Read More