Colonialism and MulticulturalismColonialismColonialism has taken a lot of blame for the problems of several Asian and African countries. But these places were "behind" that is why they fell to colonial powers. They face serious problems even after the colonialists left. Why? Because the old "bad" institutions were revived. See Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, etc. (Corruption, female mutilation.) Also Out of America by Keith B. Richburg. It is true that the colonialists exploited the resources of these countries but that does not seem to be the major source of their misery. Goa is the most prosperous state in India (that became independent in 1947) maybe because it stayed under Portuguese rule till 1961. (Goa is India's richest state with a GDP per capita two and a half times that of the country as a whole. It was ranked the best placed state by the Eleventh Finance Commission for its infrastructure and ranked on top for the best quality of life in India by the National Commission on Population based on the 12 Indicators - Wikipedia) Moving a society from the pre-industrial age to the modern age it is a haunting task. In the most successful case (Japan) this was done under authoritarian rule. Japan did not become a democracy until after 1945. The other relatively successful case (Turkey) also made the transition under authoritarian rule (Kemal). Fareed Zakaria (in The Future of Freedom) argues that economic development must come before democracy can take root. Multiculturalism as Means of OppressionMulticulturalism is a favorite of the progressives but it has its dark side. Ayaan Hirsi Ali has pointed the severe effects on its members (esp. women) by allowing an immigrant group to "self-govern" itself. I will add to that the following. "Cultural Autonomy" discourages assimilation and keeps the immigrant group distinct. It limits their access to the professions and, at some time in the future, makes easier their expulsion. In an underdeveloped country respect for the "local culture" is often used by the ruling elite to keep people under control. I was amused to hear the same arguments used by the "right" in Greece in favor of local traditions also used by the "left" in the U.S. as part of a progressive agenda. Under multiculturalism we may classify various course of "ethnic" studies (mainly African-American) offered at various Universities. The best opinion on this topic that I have read is by the Sir Arthur Lewis. He is an African-British who was born in the British Caribbean island of Saint Lucia. He has had a distinguished career as an economist, knighted in 1963 for his contributions to economics and winning the Nobel prize in 1979. He was on the faculty of Princeton University during 1963-1991 and he wrote the following in 1973:
Photocopy of original statement by Prof. Lewis Who killed the Arab Golden Age? (source: Ferguson, p. 68-)The Ottomans put the clergy in charge of the state. Already by the end of the 11th century Islamic clerics repeated the Christian clerics' argument that Greek philosophy was incompatible withe the holy books. A Syrian polymath, Taqi al-Din [Takiyuddin al-Rasid] (1521/6-1585) built an observatory in Istanbul. He was the author of more than ninety books on a wide variety of subjects, including astronomy, clocks, engineering, mathematics, mechanics, optics and natural philosophy. Taqi al-Din's method of finding coordinates of stars was reportedly more precise than those of his contemporaries, Tycho Brahe and Nicolas Copernicus. Brahe is thought to have been aware of Taqi al-Din's work. (Wikipedia) A comet was sighted over Istabbul on 9/11/1577 and Takiyuddin predicted an Ottoman military victory. The clergy claimed it was blasphemous to pry into the secrets of heaven. In 1580 the observatory was demolished. He was lucky not to be killed as had the Samarkand astronomer Ulugh Beg (1394-1449). According to Wikipedia that death may have been political. |