...Introduction Ever since I was born on April 15, 1980, I have been raised in a Greek environment, and being Greek-American has played a significant role in my life. In addition, I happen to have a friend named Mehmet, who is from Turkey. But I never knew any information about Turkey until I found this country on a world map. That’s when I learned the following facts: Turkey is located in both Europe and Asia, and it shares a border with Greece. So when I started taking the course Geography of the Middle East at Old Dominion University, I decided to select Turkey for my research paper. Perry Library and Larchmont Library were excellent places for literary materials. I also consulted Internet sources and my class textbook as additional resources. Turkistan, a region in central Asia, is a Persian term which means “Turks’ land” or “land of the Turks”. The Young Ottoman Turks considered this name for their country before they decided on “Turkiye, an adaptation of the European name” Turkey (Lewis 333). Although “[t]he name Turkey has been given to…Anatolia…since its first conquest by the Turks in the eleventh century,” the Turks officially referred to their country as Turkey when it won its independence in 1923. (Lewis 1). Turkey’s relative geographical position distinguished it from most of the other countries of the world. It is situated on two continents: (southeastern) Europe and (southwestern) Asia. European Turkey, or Eastern Thrace, constitutes only...
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...Analyse the reasons for separatism within and/or across national boundaries and discuss its consequences (40 marks) Separatism is an attempt by a regional group within a country or across the borders of one or more countries, to gain more political control from central governments over the areas in which they live. There are many different reasons for why separatism occurs around the world, these can include: the feeling of being economically depressed compared to other areas within the same country; the fact that some people feel that they are in a peripheral location to economic and political care; the desire to protect and build upon a minority language or religion and the feeling or being mistreated due to being an ethnic minority (e.g. the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka). Separatism can lead to a wide range of consequences that range from the collapse of governments and civil wars to, more political disputes and peaceful protests. Separatism does not have to be aggressive. The Sri Lankan civil war is a prime example of where Separatism has led to aggressive consequences, in this case the acts of the Tamil Tiger (a separatist group) led to a civil war that spanned over three decades. The Sri Lankan civil war was fundamentally caused by ethnic discrimination between the ethnic majority Sinhalese and the Tamil minority that populated the north and northeast of the island. When the British owned Sri Lanka they turned the country into the tea making capital of the world and brought...
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...Requirements Activity 1: The Rise of Nationalism and the Fall of Yugoslavia Readings 60-90 minutes Fill in the blanks 75-90 minutes Activity 2: Iraqaphobia Readings 60-90 minutes Fill in the blanks 75-90 minutes The fill-in-the-blanks activity works very well as an in-class group project. It helps for students to be able to discuss the questions and readings with other students. If so, it is absolutely essential that students read the assigned articles in advance of the discussion. They will need to consult the readings to find pertinent passages, but if they are reading it for the first time during group work, they will either not finish or not contribute. I remind my students of this fact several times in the days leading up to the project. If students don’t finish during class, they can finish at home. If done in groups in class, you may wish to suggest that a different student act as recorder for each block of questions. Also, assign a different student to be the discussion leader/gatekeeper to keep the discussion on track and prevent any single individual from dominating the discussion. A third student could function as timekeeper. See Chapter 11 and 14 role-playing activities for further discussion of these tasks. Remind students that Balkan and Middle East politics are always changing and can get quickly out of date. We have done our best to bring things up to date as of late Spring, 2006. If something major occurs...
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...Educating the states youth is crucial to the success of the future state. Uneducated children will grow up and have no knowledge on how to change their states for the better. Health issues are yet another contributor to the demise of a state. Without proper healthcare citizens have lower age expectancies and are forced to live a much lower quality life. Lack of Civil Rights The lack of civil rights in Syria has been detrimental to the success of the state. Succesfull countries protect certain rights and privileges to its citizens. There are freedoms that are associated with these rights. In the U.S. people have these rights guatanteed to them by the Constition. In Syria this is not the case. Syrian authorities were ranked the worst violators of human rights in 2010. (Dobbie) The government would arrest lawyers and anyone who opposed them. They would also torture...
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...Day 1 Day 1 There is a tiny flame flickering in the west of Russia, near Ukraine. Only 50 Adyghe believers hold the light for 120,000 of their Muslim countrymen. Their forbearers once embraced Christianity, but they became converts to Islam through the intermingling with the people of neighboring countries where they fled for their lives in the 1860s. More recently Islam was completely accepted when they instituted sharia law. They are rich in outreach, having been adopted by several churches. They have a New Testament and Children’s Bible translated into their language, the JESUS Film, and literature in their language. But still, there has been no church planted. The few Adyghe believers attend a Russian Baptist Church and are being assimilated into the ranks and culture of the Russians rather than flowering in their own setting. This limits the outreach to their own people. * Pray that the veil will be lifted from the eyes of the Adyghe people. * Pray also that they will see the truth and put their faith in Christ alone. * Pray that the Lord will send long-term missionaries to form relationships with the Adyghe, and that key leaders will be raised up among the Adyghe people who will boldly proclaim the gospel. * Pray that God will use Christians in Ukraine to reach out to the West Circassians. Day 2 Day 2 Isolated! That is how the Aghul people are described in the Joshua Project website. They live in a very mountainous region. Where there are mountains...
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...integration is not as simple as inviting another member to the EU structures and its situation is difficult for many various reasons. First of all – there is Turkey's insufficient progress towards meeting all the required Copenhagen criteria: “- stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities, the existence of a functioning market economy as well as the capacity to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the Union, the ability to take on the obligations of membership including adherence to the aims of political, economic and monetary union [1]”. Country is still struggling with maintaining stable democracy – military is too involved in the political life, ethnic and religious minorities are not respected enough, broadcast media is not entirely independent and some key issues between Turkey, Greece and Cyprus are still unresolved. There are also many additional factors that are taken into consideration in the public debate. Formally, the European Union cannot deny membership to the state because of religion as long as it is secular and respecting religious and cultural diversity is among its basic values, but many European Union's citizens see Turkey as country belonging to the radical Islam world, with moral system conflicted with these in 27 member states. Turkey was interested in integration with...
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...Running head: MEDIA PORTRAYAL OF ATTACKS ON IRAQ Mainstream Media Portrayal of Ongoing Attacks on Iraq Name Institution Instructor Class The American mission in Iraq, launched in 2003 as the cornerstone of President Bush’s War on Terror and the beginning of America’s exercise in ‘nation building,’ has captivated and polarized national attention for the entirety of its thus far 2820 day existence. In 2003, much of the Western world unquestioningly accepted Saddam Hussein to be a tyrant in possession of nuclear weapons—and the Iraqi people one of the few in the world still forced to live in fear of a ubiquitous secret police.1 As days of American rule have grown to years, however, this narrative has largely unraveled and found itself reshaped as a web of power structures. As Iraq has emerged from a bona fide civil war, violence between sectarian tribes and the U.S.-Iraqi Government has continued. In the same timeframe in America, we have witnessed two Presidential elections and an increasing tendency of major media outlets to offer commentary and analysis—from a partisan viewpoint. The effect has been toxic: today the mainstream media has fractionated itself into insular cliques which often sacrifice big-picture reporting for attention grabbing headlines. Prior to the Wikileaks release this month, which placed the death toll among Iraqi civilians in the past six years at 66,000, the number killed was unclear and largely outside...
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...ANALYSIS OF GULF WAR II-LESSONS FOR THE INDIAN ARMED FORCES INTRODUCTION 1. From time immemorial the land known today as Iraq has been the scene of conflict. Iraq has been, not only a strategic highway linking the Eastern Mediterranean lands with those of the Orient, but also the scene of frequent clashes between empires and great powers. It has seldom been the master of its own destiny, and in the numerous conflicts that stud its history, it has more often than not, been a pawn or the prize of other powers seeking regional hegemony. Until the beginning of twentieth century, most conflicts in the region were imperialistic in nature and involved Iraq because of its strategic important position. However, the discovery of vast oil deposits in the region in 1907 added another element to the equation, and conflicts, since have sprung from imperialistic motives as well as from a desire to protect or control sources of much of the world’s most important strategic resource. 2. Iran-Iraq war and the misadventure in Kuwait bear testimony to the misuse of power by Saddam Hussein. Saddam had always been labeled by the West as a producer of weapons of mass destruction. Ultimately a stage had reached where US and UK convinced themselves that Saddam was stockpiling these weapons. They demanded a change of regime and when threats were not taken seriously by Saddam, they launched Operation Iraqi Freedom or Gulf War II, despite all the opposition the world over, to attack and liberate...
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...DPI/NGO conference on 'Reaffirming Human Rights for all: The Universal Declaration at 60' was held at the headquarters of the Unites Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The conference this year commemorated the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in Paris in December 1948. During the war on terror, however, the United States has not been fully as inclusive as it was in its war against communism. Aside from those in the "coalition of the willing," even most European countries have distanced themselves from Washington. When it came to fight the war on terror in Iraq, The United States never realize, moreover, the depth of the fault lines in Iraqi society between Kurds and Arabs, Sunnis and Shiites, and the...
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...“Hate and intolerance are the catalysts for the destruction of a family, of a culture, and a nation”, by Werner Gellert, chair of The New Mexico Holocaust and Intolerance Museum and Study Center. (history:www.nmholocaustmuseum.com) It is vital to remember and pass to a new generation the history and lessons of the Holocaust since over 5.7 million Jewish people had their lives taken away by a man who was intolerant of their religion. The largest numbers of victims of the Holocaust were Polish citizens. Adolf Hitler tried to destroy a nation by destroying families who were targeted because of their religion and culture. George Santayana said, “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” (history: quoteland.com) This quote explains why the lessons and history of the Holocaust need to be passed on to student’s today and future generations of students. Students need to clearly understand why Hitler wanted to rid Europe of the Jewish people, what was done to them in the concentration camps, how the families were split apart, and how he tried to destroy the Jewish religion and culture. The Holocaust plays an important role in world history. The word genocide was developed after events in Europe, between 1933 and 1945, called for a legal concept to be used to describe the “deliberate destruction of a larger group.” Genocide became a crime punishable under international law. (Genocide:britannica.com) The United Nations had difficulty defining the term “war...
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...Syria Syria’s Desalination Investment Syria is a country located in the Middle East between Lebanon and Turkey which boarders the Mediterranean Sea. It is a nation slightly larger than the size of North Dakota and has become the source of investment for Haddock and Siska Incorporated (H&S Inc.) H&S Inc. has obtained a contract from Capital Investor’s Group to invest $50 million in Syria. In view of the fact that the goal of the contract is to spread western ways to the Middle East, H&S has decided to invest in a $34.5 million water distillery plant. This plant will benefit the people of Syria and their economy by purifying and distill rating 5 million gallons of water a day . This purification process will continue to help boost Syria’s agricultural sector which has already contributed to the country’s economic growth. In addition, the World Factbook identifies Syria as having problems with water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes. The country also has inadequate potable water. Within the next 20 years, it is said that Syria will be in a crisis for water. In light of this information, there is a growing need to develop water desalination technology. The need for this technology has led Syria to form the Scientific National Commission for Water Desalination. H&S hopes that their investment will offset the water problems. In order for this investment to take place a throughout investigation of the country’s economic, political, and social...
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...Introduction Zoroastrianism, the ancient religion of Iran, was founded about 3500 years ago by the prophet Zarathushtra. He preached that Ahura Mazda, meaning “Wise Lord,” is the only omnipotent and omniscient God (Hay, 2007). Zarathushtra has been known in the West as Zoroaster, from the Greek transliteration of his name, thus the name Zoroastrianism. After the Arab’s invasion of Iran, the once popular religion was replaced by Islam and a handful follower of Zarathushtra fled from Iran to India to escape the persecution. They are known today in India as Parsis. Currently, there are approximately 250,000 people practicing Zoroastrianism, of which 80% live in India and the rest in various parts of the world including United States (Rivetna, 2002). Although Zoroastrianism lost its status as a popular world religion, its study and knowledge are very useful in our understanding of the development of religious thought in the ancient world and how some of its important beliefs and practices have parallels in other religions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism. Keywords: Zoroastrianisn, Ahura Mazda, sadre, kusti Basic tenets of Zoroastrianism Jayaram (2000) discussed the Zoroastrian religion in his article “Main Beliefs of Zoroastrianism.” While Zoroastrians believe that Ahuramazda is the supreme, omniscient and omnipotent God (monotheism); they also believe in the existence of a number of divinities (polytheism) who represent His good qualities and who...
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...THE ALEVI COMMUNITY IN TURKEY AFTER 1980: AN EVALUATION OF POLITICAL GROUP BOUNDARIES IN THE CONTEXT OF ETHNICITY THEORIES A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF THE MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY ALİ MURAT İRAT IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION APRIL 2006 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Sencer Ayata Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Feride Acar Head of Department This is to certify that we read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pınar Akçalı Supervisor Examining Committee Members Prof. Dr. Ayşe Ayata Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pınar Akçalı Assist. Prof. Dr. Aykan Erdemir (METU-ADM) (METU-ADM) (METU-SOC) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name: Ali Murat İrat Signature : iii ABSTRACT THE ALEVI COMMUNITY IN TURKEY AFTER 1980: AN EVALUATION OF POLITICAL GROUP BOUNDARIES IN THE CONTEXT OF ETHNICITY THEORIES ...
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...Cultural Awareness on Iraq In thesis I talk about why Iraq has one of the world's oldest cultural histories. Iraq is where the Ancient Mesopotamian Civilizations were, whose legacy went on to influence and shape the civilizations Of the Old World. Culturally, Iraq has a very rich heritage. Iraq is an Islamic nation and has one of the most colorful histories in the world. The country’s traditions remain evident in many aspects of everyday life, the most common tradition is afternoon cup of tea also know as shy, it is a welcoming invitation to sit with your friends and family enjoy a cup of tea specially if you are not from this country. In the past, arranged marriages were common. However, “this practice is becoming more rare, and a law was...
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...numbers will eventually carry the day. While this is most often the case, it is not always a foregone conclusion that numbers alone can or will guarantee a victory. There are certain factors that one must consider if they want to get as accurate a reading on the outcome of a battle as possible. One of the factors that must be considered in the context of a battle or even more so over a long period of fighting is the nature of the enemy that you are fighting. Numbers may help procure a victory if the enemy is willing to stand and be slaughtered, but what if they are not? What if the enemy refuses to fight unless it is when and where they deem it tactically advantageous? Moreover, what if the enemy refuses to fight outright at all, and instead favors materializing out of thin air, taking or destroying a target, then vanishing without a trace? The Arabians, under T.E. Lawrence, favored this latter tactic and it worked well for them. Utilizing guerilla warfare, Lawrence was able to defeat the Ottomans during WW1. While this helped secure Allied control of the Middle East, Lawrence unwittingly helped create a serious problem as the Europeans...
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