Title (english) Arab nationalism : rise, fall, and consequences of an ideology Title (croatian) Arapski nacionalizam: uspon, slom i posljedice jedne ideologije Author Davorka Matić Author's institution University of Zagreb Scientific / art field, SOCIAL SCIENCES Abstract (english) The Arab Spring is one of the main triggers of the contemporary Middle East crisis. Indirectly, it strengthened the radical wing of the Islamist movement, led to the wars in Syria and Yemen, intensified regional competition, and destabilised the region. However, this regional instability is not a recent phenomenon. It has its roots in the aftermath of the First World War when the combination of internal and external factors transformed this previously tranquil region into a high-risk zone. The main ideological force in the Middle East in the 1950s, Arab nationalism, ceased to play an important role in the contemporary inter-Arab relations. Still, it would be a mistake not to consider it at least partially responsible for the present-day situation in the region. The article focusses on the developmental dynamics of Arab nationalism. That entails the analysis of the circumstances under which its liberal, pro-European discourse has been gradually transformed into the authoritarian Pan-Arabism, of its impact on the political arrangement and relations in the region, as well as the analysis of the reasons that caused the idea of Arab political unification to cease functioning as a significant framework of individual and collective action. Lastly, the article discusses the political legacy of Arab nationalism. It withdrew from the political scene of the Middle East but has left behind the autocratic regimes determined to stay in power at all cost. These repressive regimes, permanently at “war” with their own citizens and with hegemonic aspirations towards neighbouring countries, are Arab nationalism’s political legacy that bears a significant responsibility for the violence that engulfed the region after the collapse of the Arab Spring and for the resulting Middle East nightmare.
Abstract (croatian) Arapsko proljeće jedan je od ključnih čimbenika postojeće krize na Bliskom istoku. Posredno, ono je ojačalo radikalno krilo islamističkog pokreta, dovelo do ratova u Siriji i Jemenu, intenziviralo regionalno natjecanje i destabiliziralo cijelu regiju. Nestabilnost bliskoistočne regije nije, međutim, recentni fenomen, nego ima korijene u razdoblju neposredno nakon Prvoga svjetskog rata, kad je kombinacija unutrašnjih i vanjskih čimbenika transformirala tu nekoć mirnu regiju u zonu visokog rizika. Iako arapski nacionalizam, koji se sredinom 20. stoljeća konstituirao kao vodeća ideološka sila na Bliskom istoku, već dulje vrijeme nije relevantan čimbenik međuarapskih odnosa, bilo bi pogrešno zaključiti da on ne snosi nikakvu odgovornost za aktualno stanje u regiji. Rad je posvećen analizi razvojne dinamike arapskog nacionalizma. To podrazumijeva analizu okolnosti pod kojima se njegov liberalni, eurofilni diskurs postupno transformirao u autoritarni diskurs panarabizma, analizu njegova utjecaja na politički ustroj i odnose u regiji, kao i analizu razloga zbog kojih je ideja arapskog ujedinjenja prestala funkcionirati kao iole značajniji orijentir individualnog i kolektivnog djelovanja. Na kraju se razmatra njegova politička ostavština. Arapski nacionalizam nestao je s bliskoistočne političke scene, ali je iza sebe ostavio autokratske režime odlučne da se po svaku cijenu održe na vlasti. Ti represivni režimi, u stalnom »ratu« sa svojim građanima i s hegemonijskim pretenzijama prema susjednim državama, politička su ostavština arapskog nacionalizma na kojoj počiva veliki dio odgovornosti za nasilje koje je pratilo slom Arapskog proljeća i posljedičnu moru bliskoistočne stvarnosti.
Keywords (english)
Arab nationalism
First Arab-Israeli War
Pan-Arab movement
Suez crisis
Nasser
Ba’ath party
Third Arab-Israeli War
authoritarian political legacy
Keywords (croatian)
arapski nacionalizam
Prvi arapsko-izraelski rat
panarapski pokret
Sueska kriza
Naser
stranka BAAS
Treći arapsko-izraelski rat
autoritarno političko naslijeđe
Language croatian Publication type Scientific paper - Review paper Publication status Published Peer review Peer review Publication version Published version Journal title Revija za sociologiju Numbering vol. 48, no. 2, pp. 177-207 p-ISSN 0350-154X e-ISSN 1846-7954 DOI https://doi.org/10.5613/rzs.48.2.3 URN:NBN urn:nbn:hr:131:138938 Publication 2018 Document URL https://hrcak.srce.hr/206935 Type of resource Text Access conditions Open access Terms of use Created on 2022-05-11 15:54:25
