World Affairs

World Affairs

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July 20, 2011

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World Affairs

Introduction

Global dissensions have been noted between the Arab nations and the West as concerned with the latter’s influence on the Islamic countries. America and the United Kingdom are noted as the most notable influencers within the Arab states (El-Najjar, 2001). The West often validates its actions as aimed concerning the institution of democratic organizations towards the creation of equity and representation within the various regions. Despite this supreme objective, the Arabian nations have opposed such interventions by arguing that the goals act only as a plot towards the infiltration of Western philosophies and control within the Islamist countries especially concerning the resource aspects. This discussion will seek to appraise the present Arab unification that has enhanced the issue towards the West as a reaction to the fallacious practices.

Background

            Foreign interferences within Arab nations have been largely present since the initial resistances stemming from the colonial periods. These influences have been noted within various foreign nations, with the most prevalent being America, France and the United Kingdom. A majority of the Arabic nations being Islamists tend to bear policies and ideologies that the West deem as improper and thereby acting as the validation for coercive interventions despite the ethical and moral element hinged on the unjust practices (Hussain, 2005). The injustice stems from the fact that most Arab nationals view the interferences as ploys implemented by the West towards the progression of the colonialist practices as the antecedent to resource controls. This is in a bid to maintain the power over the regions as a means of infusing the required West policies.

Antagonism towards the West influences emanate from the fact that the Arabic nations view the actions as strategies towards the attainment of the oil reserves evident within the regions, especially within the Middle East (Hussain, 2005). Various analysts have noted that the schemes are implemented as autonomy, democracy and individual rights’ initiatives yet as later noted, they act as infiltration points for the colonialist practices. The Arab nations believe that the West seeks both labor and non-labor resources as a means for wealth generation towards their selfish gains. Note that, America has been very notable in its tyrannical practices especially within the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In addition to the neo-colonialism views, Islamic scholars attest that antagonism to the given influences is also shaped by their religious perspectives with regard to the same issues.

America and other Western nations are viewed as secular states and therefore within direct contravention to the Islamic standards termed as the Aqeedah. The Aqeedah generally refers to commands documented within the Qur’an to act as a guiding point towards the Muslims. With the knowledge that the West is secular in nature, it has been determined that its principles align to secularism practices that contradict the Islamic beliefs. In America notably, the secular perspective attributes evaluative power to humans and therefore the liability of determining what constitutes to good and wicked practices. Contrast this to the Aqeedah that attributes all actions to the Qur’an and the teachings thereby sourced from the same (Hussain, 2005). The West’s secular viewpoints upon appraisal are largely borne from egotistic practices and subsequently, the self-centered strategies towards own benefits.

Common sense actually dictates that it is implausible for the West to offer its assistance in matters such as peace sustenance. This is because the initiatives employ the utilization of own financial and workforce (military) resources, with the constant hazard of life losses, a far much expensive arrangement to uphold unless the expected benefits act as the inducements for the actions. President Bush’s declaration in the period 1998 as a reaction to the publication termed as A Word Transformed offered political and human outlays as the main incentives towards America’s refrain from Saddam Hussein’s riddance within the 1990s’ period in the event of the Gulf War (Mikkelson, & Mikkelson, 2007). Of inference within the given justification is that America rarely offers any assistance devoid to the cost element.

Submission to the Western requirements acts as one condition that the foreigners mandate from the Arabic nations as a recompense for the assistances. This requirement disagrees with Islamic culture that is defined by the Qur’an in Surah 4:141, which prohibit domination over Muslims, as believers, by any secular individuals that are termed as the kuffar (Hussain, 2005). This includes any form of leadership even by sultans since they lack the moral and spiritual knowledge required to offer guidance to the populace. Additionally, the kuffar sultan always tends to act as an inhibitor towards the implementation of Islamic principles within the nation and thus transforming the same to secularism and eventually non-Islamic.

America over the years has been yearning to govern the Asian nations, especially the centrally located regions due to the oil locations. Afghanistan serves as part of this targeted region and with its strategic placement has acted as the chief mark in the institution of an American stronghold with the view of acquiring the other locations. Validation to this view can be noted to a publication presented within the period 1997, authored by Zbigniew Brzezinski as he urged the American government towards the acquisition of the oil sources, natural gas assets and gold mining regions within the Asian regions as the ultimate economic reward from the region (Hussain, 2005). Note that, the remarks bore a large prospective with regard to state influence by the fact that Brzezinski was a notable individual within the American nation; he was the defense advisor within the Carter regime. The unrelenting conflict towards the region was finally validated upon the success of the September 11 aggression, offering a leeway for America and the United Kingdom in the raid of the nation with the claims of eradicating the Taliban dominion.

The freedom ruse was employed with the West arguing that as opposed to the tyrannical rule, it would implement a democratic nation that is presently manned by at least thirty thousand military personnel. Additionally, in its pursuit for control within the nation, America instituted Hamid Karzai as the nation’s head evidently within the foreigner’s manipulative acts. In the year 2003, Iraq was accorded an analogous treatment with the validation that Saddam Hussein was promoting an autocratic form of governance, thereby preventing the citizens from offering their views in terms of leadership (El-Najjar, 2001). Additionally, the Iraq government was accused of contravening the insurgency guidelines by the production of nuclear weapons for terrorist practices. Iraq was similarly assailed by America and the United Kingdom subsequently leading to colossal tortures and demises noted on the Arab populace notably within the Abu Ghraib region. The approximated number of Arabic demises within the regions was noted as at least one million, four hundred thousand individuals spread across the duration that America was established within the region.

In the year 2004, Jay Garner an American General, likened Iraq’s acquisition to the Philippine acquisition accorded within the initial half of the twentieth century as America besieged the Pacific region, with Iraq now acting as the stronghold for the Middle East nations (Hussain, 2005). In 2010, America announced its dispossession of Iraq towards according sovereignty to the region yet American military personnel are still working within the nation and presently occupy regions that the superpower had acquired for its initiatives. Both Iraq and Afghanistan bear mutual consequences attributed to the American dominance in that the economic well-being of the nation has drastically lessened upon the interferences.

Most recently, Libya has been targeted by the West once more as initially noted through the infusion of the United Nations’ commission towards the institution of the nation as a no-fly location in a bid to accord aid to the citizens (Atwan, 2011). America, the United Kingdom and France have hit the Libyan nation with alleges that it was directed as a form of aid to individuals resisting Muammar Gaddafi’s regime. From the preceding occurrences noted within the other dominated nations, most individuals, notably from the Arabic establishments, have accorded a cynical perspective towards the validation of the given premise. This is because Muslims are prohibited from requesting military aid from the kuffar. This is evidenced in Surah 5:51 and 5:57 of the Qur’an in the instance that RasulAllah refused Jewish aid offered during the Uhud combat by the fact that the Jews were kuffar.

Islamic scholars believe that the response was fundamentally because the Jews could not conform to Islamic directives during the combat and therefore blend in for the creation of a single force and thereby opposing the Islamic identity. Influences infused on the Arabic nations therefore cannot be validated in view of the preceding standpoint and therefore it would follow the premise that all forms of assistance are enforced upon the nations by the foreign states. In actuality, Arab nations are necessitated by mores in such instances to first seek aid from Allah in accordance to Surah 3:160 and secondly within fellow Islamists. The Libyan instance reflects this coercion as various dissents have been directed to the Western intervention by various individuals and factions (Zayed, & Marwa, 2011).

A good instance was noted within the Tamale procession with various posters forthrightly criticizing the US by stating that President Obama should focus on resolving issues within the American nation and leave Africans to resolve their own issues. Other posters directed President Obama from stripping the nation of its oil and directing it to the ailing American economy and the fact that the West was an alliance of adversary states by the fact that it was anti-Islamic. The procession was directed by the Coalition against Violence and Western Domination (CAVWED) faction, a good model of the various pressure groups present in the Arab nations in resistance to foreign interferences (The Statesman, 2011). Within the past, Taliban and the al-Qaeda factions have accorded various projects directed to the West as a ground for the oppressive influences. The factions have expanded over the past in an increasing manner that saw up to one hundred and fifty-seven training establishments within the Pakistan region by the year 2008 (Roggio, 2008). Allocation of the establishments was well achieved with supplementary allocations in at least four hundred locations. The nature of the encampments is combat specialties including military tactics and suicide bombing, with the al-Qaeda centering on the need to counter the West.

Methods

            The qualitative technique is employed within the given research investigation. Six articles have been employed with the initial premise towards their application being the fact that they confer contemporary viewpoints on the issue because they were documented within the recent periods marked as between 2005 and 2011. This makes the articles appropriate to the given discussion. Credibility was also a paramount aspect within information sourcing. Credibility either attributable to the author’s reputation or the sites validity, or both. The Statesman is an official newspaper within the Ghanaian nation having been founded within the periods 1949 (Statesman, 2011). Atwan is a private writer whose articles enjoy a wider printing scope in periodicals like the Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN.com, USA Today, Al-Ahram, Independent.co.ke, Khaleej Times, The Mirror and BBC.

Snopes.com offers excerpts from printed sources and various reflections towards the same. The links to the main sources are provided for reader’s ascertainment. Other related sources with regard to source credibility are Zayed and Marwa’s article featured in Reuters and Roggio’s publication within a peer-reviewed category as the Long War Journal. Hussain M. A. is a renowned writer within the Australia continent while El-Najjar’s views are given within a book and therefore acting as peer-reviewed (El-Najjar, 2001). The assorted nature of the sources enhances the scope of the research. Primary sources were excluded from the study as they tend to be time-intensive and it would be very challenging to track Arab officials or citizens for views towards the given issue.

Results

            It is noted that colonialism tendencies towards Arabic nations as represented by Islamists are traced to the Western nations with the most prevalent being the United Kingdom and France. Hussain (2005) actually notes that the United Kingdom in addition to the Islamist tyranny also accorded domination in nations that upheld Hindu and Buddhism. The main rationales accorded to the dissensions directed to the West emanate from the standpoint that the influences are based on subjugation accorded by the Western region. Hussain counters the position by noting that the discrepancies arise from ideological issues constituting to a minor element with the major one being power efforts within both locations and thereby being a mutual situation. However, the CAWVED contravenes this position by the viewpoint that the influences surpass the monetary and political aspects with the target being the annihilation of Islamic creed by the fact that individuals within the West conforming to Islamism have been victimized on account of their faith (The Statesman, 2011).

Illustrations afforded towards the given view were the razing of the Qur’an by a Christian minister, the objections given by Israel towards exclusion of Palestinian civil liberties within the Middle East expanse and the harassment of Islamic females in France due to their dressing modes. However, this should not be taken to mean that the economic factor is not an incentive for the West since the Libyan intervention is based primarily on the same. In fact, CAWVED believes that influences within the Arab nations are based on the economic element with the non-Arab nations being the religious issue. Reuters expressed the unification observation noted within the Arab nations with regard to Libya’s situation by the fact that they refrained from the Cairo assembly following that Western dignitaries were present for the dialogue of the situation. Later on, the Arab nations offered a collective declaration against the intervention especially when noted that the no-fly decree would be adopted (Zayed, & Marwa, 2011).

Support towards the exclusion of the no-fly aspect was strengthened by Atwan (2011) despite the observation that Jordan and the gulf regions offer consent to the no-fly initiative in conjunction with the Western regions namely the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany amongst others. This is attributed to the observance that within the Iraq instance that led to the demise of at least one million individuals with an additional four million young individuals standing as orphans within the nation. This is based on the past observances where Iraq was offered violence as the West centered on the political aspect. With the various instances that the West has been noted towards the post-colonial elements and therefore according a higher likelihood for the same happening. The Gulf War was concerned with many Islamists has acted as the initial reflection of the West’s identity in Arab nations during Saddam Hussein’s regime (El-Najjar, 2001).

America had the capability of stripping the ruler of his dominion but this was rejected as the West noted that it would have led to mass human losses and political dissensions that would have infused long-term adverse effects within the nation (Mikkelson, & Mikkelson, 2007). Additionally, this would have mandated the capture of Baghdad as an additional outlay. However, the West persisted in its directives towards the attainment of an Arab nation as the launching position towards the rest of the nations. This was later achieved through the Iraq and Afghanistan missions.

Although withdrawals were recently implemented within the Iraq nation, the American influence persists with as reflected by the military personnel within the regions. Afghanistan faces the same tyrannical influence with the most adverse impact within the aforementioned regions being economic stagflations. With the same sentiment being employed within Libya, the Arab nations have resorted to unified resistance towards the foreigners. Palestine has largely been modified to training locations by the Taliban and al-Qaeda factions as a few of the various groupings instituted towards the resistance (Roggio, 2008).

Conclusions

In conclusion, America as well as the other Western nations has attempted to disband the unification of the Arab regions initially with the Palestine regions to no avail and this has led to the strengthening of the program. It is therefore evident that the Islamists will continue resisting the West with regard to the financial, political and religious elements. Therefore, unless any form of concession is met, the unification and resistance will continue increasing.

 

 

 

References

Atwan, A. B. (2011). Why I oppose the no fly zone. Retrieved from http://www.bariatwan.com/index.asp?fname=2011\03\03-16\9%20march%202011-11-58-28.htm&storytitle=%20Why%20I%20oppose%20the%20no%20fly%20zone

El-Najjar, H. A. (2001). Gulf War, overreaction and excessiveness. San Francisco, CA: Amazone Press.

Hussain, M. A. (2005). Civilization Clash and the Myth of Injustice against Muslims. Islam Watch. Retrieved from http://www.islam-watch.org/M.Hussain/Civilization-Clash-Myth-of-Injustice-against-Muslims.htm

Mikkelson, B., & Mikkelson, D. P. (2007). A Word Transformed. Snopes.com. Retrieved from http://www.snopes.com/politics/quotes/gulfwar.asp

Roggio, Bill. (2008). Crossing-border strike targets one of the Taliban’s 157 training camps in Pakistan’s northwest. The Long War Journal. Retrieved from http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2008/08/crossborder_strike_t.php

The Statesman. (2011). Tamale Muslims Demonstrate against Military Intervention in Libya. Retrieved from http://www.modernghana.com/news/324838/1/tamale-muslims-demonstrate-against-military-interv.html

Zayed, D., & Marwa, A. (2011). Arabs reject “foreign intervention” in Libya: Iraq. Reuters. Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/02/us-libya-arabs-statement-idUSTRE72127R20110302