Problems of Studying Minorities in the Middle East

Abstract

The Middle East like many other regions of the world, is heterogeneous and comprises of numerous ethnic, national, religious and linguistic societies, groups and sects. Much of the troubles facing this region revolve around the treatment or mistreatment of its minority population. Most of the post-Ottoman states are yet to evolve a national identity that would encompass and reflect their multi-ethnic social composition. At the same time, discussions on minorities have often been controversial and politically loaded. States by their very nature are sensitive towards any outside criticisms over their treatment of their minority population and consider it to be a sovereign and inviolable subject. Simultaneously, they do not hesitate to use the treatment of minorities by their adversaries as a useful foreign policy instrument. Great powers and regional players have used the plights of Tibetans in China, Muslims in India or Christians in Indonesia to promote their narrow national agenda. The Middle East is no exception to this prevailing trend and discussions on the treatment of Middle Eastern minorities such as Egyptian Copts, Israeli Arabs, Turkish Kurds or Iranian Bahais have been highly politicized. It is undeniable that substantial gaps exist between the official positions vis-avis minorities and the perceptions of the latter concerning their status. Whenever a society is threatened by an external enemy or an internal crisis over its identity,