Introduction
The history of immigration to Australia is not a recent affair as may seem to anyone without a proper grasp of the history of that country. The recent years have seen a myriad people migrate to Australia for various reasons. Historically speaking, that migration actually began more than 50,000 years ago.
Throughout the years, Australia has been a favorite destination to many migrants across the world who are seeking somewhere to start a living. As a result, the population of Australia has continued to grow tremendously over the years.
Currently, one out of four people in Australia is an immigrant. That figure clearly illustrates the manner in which the country has totally been infiltrated with foreigners. These people have had an influence in entirely all aspects of life in Australia.
Background to the study
Interestingly, the issue of people from the Middle East migrating to Australia has continued to elicit hot debates across the world and particularly in Australia. Most Australians totally feel that such immigration should effectively be regulated by the government.
Such opinions are necessitated by various issues, in most cases, regarding the manner of life of these migrants. As a result, this area has been an interesting field for various scholars in Australia and beyond. This study is part of that brewing debate.
It seeks to delve into issues regarding nationalism and identity among Middle East immigrants to Australia.
The study is based on the premise that the conduct of live of the immigrants from the Middle East is far much different from the rest of the Australian population.
The source of this difference and the very elements that create the difference are the main subjects of study in the whole research.
Statement of the problem
The concept of nationalism is among the very critical areas of study as one seeks grounds to such opinions. Indeed, the nationalism of people across the world is coming under great onslaught these days courtesy of agents of globalization and liberalization that are totally transforming the way of life in the world.
Second on track is the very topic of identity and how it is regarded among the inhabitants of Australia. The areas of nationalism and identity have been greatly studied in the recent past and much literature churned out.
This study is specifically intended to look deep into the concepts of nationalism and identity among Middle East immigrants to Australia and to be part of the answers that are increasingly sought after. Nationalism is a subject that should be understood with a lot of clarity especially in the current ideological set up in the world.
In common parlance, nationalism is vaguely used to describe the general attitudes and perceptions that members of a given political entity subscribe to in relation to their national identity (Campell, 2009).
Identity on the other hand refers to a commonalty that connotes recognition among the members of a particular political unit.
Research Questions
In view of the above statement, this study seeks to answer the general question as to how the issues of nationalism and identity are perceived among the immigrants from the Middle East who reside in Australia.
Considering the ambiguity of this question, the researcher will specifically conduct the study with a view of answering the following questions.
- What are the national traits of the Middle East immigrants to Australia in relation to the traits of the original inhabitants?
- Is there a clash of interests and perceptions between the immigrants from the Middle East and other residents of Australia?
- What commonalities make immigrants from the Middle East able to be easily recognized among the variety of population in the Middle East?
- What is the fate of these immigrants in the diverse population in Australia?
Literature review
The recent past has seen volumes and volumes of literature about immigration to Australia being written. Generally speaking, opposition to immigration is not a subject unique to Australia alone.
It has been seen in many countries across the world that residents normally feel insecure when lots of immigrants arrive at their shores (Clark, 2008). In most cases, the immigrants are normally willing to work for very low wages in the country they have immigrated to.
Business people o the other hand will prefer engaging such people to maximize on their returns. Such trends have seen widespread opposition to immigrants in the world.
On several instances, that dislike and distrust has painfully turned into jingoism and xenophobia as recently seen in South Africa. It is in light of such actions that the subject of immigration is treated with much caution all over the world.
The Middle East is a wide geographical region where most of the Arabs reside. This region has been a turbulent zone owing to the various ideological orientations that have been adopted by the people coupled with their religion-Islam.
The Arab world is united upon the common grounds of culture, language, religion and a rich historical heritage that has continued to inspire the people to fight for what they call a cessation of Western dominance on the Arab world (Miller, 2008).
Consequently, the Arab world has never in recent history, been peaceful. It has been a zone of political and ideological upheavals that have had their toll on the region.
While it must be stressed that not all people who migrate to Australia from the Middle East are always in the pursuit of peace, it is also true that majority of the immigrants to Australia have always been political refugees (Kabir, 2010).
The original inhabitants of Australia the “Aussie” speak English as their original language. However some of the immigrants continue to use other languages other than English. The immigrants from the Middle East mainly use Arab as the language of communication.
Several studies have demonstrated a clash of cultures and ideologies between the Arabs and the Aussie. The Middle Eastern people are known world wide for a series of organized crimes that are normally executed smartly (Bowen, 2004).
It was in 1995 when the first cases of such organized crime were first reported in Australia. One of the characteristics that describe the Middle Easterners is their persistence.
This saw them continue intimidating the police in Australia as they went on with wrecking havoc amongst the masses in Australia. Literally speaking, it is evident that there was a clash of nationalism between these people and the Aussie.
Terrorism is a term that has gained much relevance in the present century. Every nation across the world is always in a constant watch against elements that may cause terror among its people (Uren, 2006). It is in the Middle East where it is believed that the roots of terrorism actually lie.
Considering the cost of terrorist activities in the world and the implications thereof, many governments are instituting measures to curb and counter the activities if terrorists in the world.
The fearless nature coupled with a strong nationalism seen in people from the Middle East is a thing to watch especially in the fight against terrorism. The influx of Arab immigrants in Australia has created many tensions especially among the Anti-Arab population.
The different ideological stands between the Arab immigrants and the rest of the Australian population have been a constant source of tensions that have continued to breed a lot of disunity and distrust among the various populations.
Several studies have indicated that more than half of Australians are in strong opposition to the immigration of people from the Middle East into the country (Bennert, 2010). This raises many questions.
Further studies have proven that this antipathy is mainly rooted on the nature in which these immigrants conduct their lives, their nationalism and the very essence of identity that characterize their lives.
It is widely felt that a preponderance of the Arabs population anywhere in the world is not welcome at all by the residents of the particular region. The United Kingdom was for a long time the major source of immigrants into Australia.
These immigrants basically went to that country to put into use the expansive tracks of land that were lying fallow (Ketelaar, 2005).
However in the years after the 1980s immigrants from the wider Asian region have surpassed those from Europe. The immigrants from Asia were mainly fleeing their homelands that were ravaged by wars. As a result the Middle East population in Australia has grown by the leaps and bounds.
It has been seen that the immigrants from the Middle East mostly prefer to establish settlements in the urban centers in Australia (Campell, 2009). Like anywhere else in the world where immigrants stay, the issue of proper documentation features prominently among the immigrants in Australia.
Very strict rules and guidelines have been instituted to deal with illegal immigrants into the country. Further, the government of Australia has been seen to be particularly stricter with illegal immigrants from the Middle East. At this point one is really left mesmerized at the manner in which these people are regarded in Australia.
Today, the Australian population is totally cosmopolitan. This influx of masses into the country has created a population that is totally blended with various cultures and identities.
It therefore raises many questions as to why the Middle East immigrants particularly stand out in this wide array of people. The answer to this question automatically boils down to the issue of nationalism and identity
Assimilation
Many people all over the world stay many miles away from where they were born and in some cases bred. Many people stay in totally different cultural and national backgrounds from where they originally were.
However despite the differing cultural and ideological backgrounds, many people become assimilated and become members of the regions they have stayed in. They subscribe to the very tenets and aspects of nationalism that define the people from where they have sought residence.
While this is a trend that has been seen worldwide, immigrants from the Middle East tend to go contrary to that proposition. Wherever they stay, they totally lead different lives that are defined by the ideologies they subscribe to.
While the rest of the immigrants have assimilated and blended well into the rest of the population, immigrants from the Middle East have continued to lead solitary lives that is defined by a different nationality and a totally peculiar identity.
This is the reason why they are increasingly being shunned by the rest of the Australian population. On the contrary, the opposition towards these immigrants has never failed to have its counter effects.
The world today is inundated with a variety of religions of which Christianity and Islam basically stand out among the rest. Christianity is practiced widely in Australia. Islam on the other hand is practiced by a majority of the Asian immigrants including those from the Middle East.
Studies have indicated that the followers of Islam religion tend to be strongly engrossed in the tenets and practices that characterize Islam than in all other religions in the world (Evans, 2008).
As such the Muslim populations in Australia, of which the Middle East immigrants comprise, are strict adherents to the Islam religion. Their lives are totally defined by their religion and they can easily be identified amongst the rest of the population.
One of the issues that have continued to spur tensions and a series of hot debates in Australia is the fact that many immigrants from the Middle East most of whom are Muslim earn less than the national wage rates in Australia.
It is reported that these immigrants are paid, in most cases, 5% less than what the other residents in Australia earn in wages (Bowen, 2004). Reports have shown that unemployment rates among the immigrants from the Middle East are normally higher than those of the Muslims born in Australia (Bennert, 2010).
As a result, many immigrants from the Middle East feel alienated from the general Australian society. In 2004, a report was released which showed that 50% of Muslim immigrants from the middle east felt that the Australian media was unfairly biased and critical on them owing to generalizations about terrorist activities (Chen, 2010).
Research methodology
This explains the manner in which the whole research process will be undertaken. This research study will involve the analysis of the manner in which nationalism and identity among the immigrants from the Middle East are regarded.
The study therefore requires a broader and critical research methodology so as to come up with very relevant findings and to enable the researcher to draw out appropriate findings from the data obtained.
It must be remembered that nationalism and identity are not superficial issues that can easily be recognized and identified within a given people.
It demands that a careful study and analysis be undertaken. It is on that premise that the researcher will adopt a careful approach in the whole research process.
Research design
The researcher proposes to use the exploratory research design since the purpose here is to obtain much information about the issue at hand.
Such a research design will further enable the researcher to methodically establish the research priorities and develop a background perspective of the whole situation of the immigrants in Australia.
The whole process will entail an intensive study of the situation on the ground in Australia and to come up with specific instances hat really bring out the issues of nationalism and identity among the immigrants in Australia.
Population
The immigrants from the Middle East stay in entirely all the regions of Australia. It is therefore proposed that the study will target the entire Australian geographical region. However, it has been seen that most of the immigrants have established settlements in the urban areas like Sidney and Canberra. The population targeted will be heavily drawn from the urban centers where most of the immigrants stay.
Further, the population will comprise a variety of people including the immigrants from the Middle East who, it is expected, will provide very relevant information to the researcher regarding their nationalities and identity.
The rest of the population from Australia both the original inhabitants and the immigrants will also form part of the population from whom the data will be obtained. The researcher also intends to locate some officials from the Australian government who may be a valuable source of information.
Sampling and sampling techniques
From the targeted population enumerated above, it is clear that the researcher cannot possibly obtain data from all of them given time and cost implications.
The researcher therefore opts to adopt a survey kind approach in which case a sample will be obtained from the whole population from whom the information will be obtained. The researcher will use the stratified sampling technique to obtain a sample of 130 people whom the study will target.
It is believed that such a sample will give a true reflection of the whole situation on the ground. Out of the total sample, half of them will comprise of Middle East immigrants in Australia while the other half will be comprise the rest of the population.
Data collection
Since the study basically seeks to obtain ground information about the aspects of nationalism and identity, the essence of primary data will not be over-emphasized. The researcher will adopt a primary method of data collection to obtain first hand information from the ground.
Moreover, the researcher will not shun secondary sources of data. It is recognized that this field of study has been well written on and researched upon.Very relevant literature therefore exists regarding the topic in question.
Much of that information will be obtained from books, journals daily papers and other audio-visual sources. These sources will no doubt provide enough information from which to make findings and draw conclusions.
Data collection tools
The researcher will administer questionnaires to the respondents. The questionnaires given will be structured in nature and will be divided into two sections.
The first section will be close ended where the respondents will be given questions and a variety of responses.
The second section of the questionnaires will comprise of open-ended questions where the respondents will be free to give their opinions concerning the questions asked.
The researcher will also use interviews and observation methods to obtain data from the ground. It hoped that. The researcher will keenly employ all ethical considerations in the data collection process. All information will be obtained with consent from the relevant individuals or authorities concerned.
The interview sessions will also be organized very ethically and no personal, leading ill-intentioned questions will be asked. The researcher will therefore operate within all the limits set in professional research studies.
Data analysis
The researcher will employ statistical methods in the analysis of the data obtained. These will involve both the univariate and correlation analyses to obtain percentages and fractions that will clearly illustrate the findings in a lucid manner.
The researcher will also use the computer software SPSS in much of the analysis of the data that will be obtained.
Summary
It is hoped that the data collection process will indeed yield very relevant information regarding the whole subject of nationalism and identity among Middle East immigrants in Australia. The fact that these immigrants hold a peculiar position in the Australian society will seemingly be illustrated.
Furthermore, nationalism in true context of these immigrants will be a very interesting topic to hear from them. Australia has seen a successive change in governments in the last few decades. The manner in which these different governments have treated the subject of immigration has actually been different.
These differences in perceptions and conducts of the governments will largely feature in the findings. It is indeed true that most of the immigrants from the Middle East have always been looked down upon in the population of Australia. It is hoped that the roots of this dislike will naturally show up in the research process.
Limitations and delimitations of the study
The concept of nationalism and identity is very wide topic especially in a so diverse a population as in Australia. Any study on this topic will therefore require sufficient time and financial allocations to enable a true reflection of the situation be obtained.
Inasmuch as this study will attempt to limit much of these concerns, it is impossible to totally eliminate all limitations of time and money. The findings may not therefore truly reveal the true situation on the ground as may be seen under no limitations.
It is also believed that some of the responses that will re obtained from the respondents may be biased in one way or another considering the populations dealt with in the study.
The researcher will make general conclusions about Islam basing the arguments on the data obtained from the muslins in Australia. This may not be very appropriate considering that the Islam community practices differently across the world.
References
Bennert, J. (2010). The Evolution of Australian Multicultural Policy. London: Oxford University Press.
Bowen, J. (2004). The Great Barrier reef Science and Heritage. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Campell, C. (2009). Immigratio to Australia. New York: Bantam Books.
Chen, W. (2010). Immigration to Australia: Concepts and Challanges. New York: Wesley & Sons.
Clark, A. (2008). Australia’s Muslim Masses. Kent Town: Wakefield Press.
Evans, T. (2008). About Australia:World Heritage. Prentice Hall: Toronto.
Kabir, N. (2010). A History of Muslims in Australia. Dhaka: Daily Books.
Ketelaar, G. (2005). The Middle Easteners in the South. London: Routeledge.
Miller, J. (2008). Australian Immigrants: Pioneers of the Island. Washington DC: Petersons.
Uren, D. (2006). The Australian Agenda. New York: Prentice Hall.