'Al Manakh' is the first ever comprehensive analysis of the development of The Gulf. It offers a detailed analysis of the history, culture and architecture of The Gulf region including Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah and discusses the implications of the rapid development of these territories for the rest of the world. Voices of architects, intellectuals and developers making The Gulf happen are represented in the numerous essays and interviews that accompany this richly illustrated study.
The collapse of Souq Al-Manakh in Kuwait in August 1982 was the most spectacular financial crash of recent years. The market had developed as a parallel stock exchange dealing in the shares of Gulf companies not resident in Kuwait. Fuelled by manic speculation, the market grew at a phenomenal rate throughout 1981 and early 1982. Inexperienced investors gambled huge sums on the shares of shell companies promoted largely for share speculation. At the height of the market US$92 billion was outstanding on nearly 30,000 postdated cheques, the usual form of payment used in the market. The financial crisis created by the collapse of the Souq Al-Manakh threatened the stability of Kuwait. The government was forced to intervene and absorb the major part of the loss. This book, first published in 1986, traces the growth of the stock market and analyses its collapse. It also discusses in detail the wider impact of this debacle on the economic life of the Gulf.
This book is a vital exploration of the harrowing stories of mass displacement that took place in the first half of the 20th century from the perspective of forced migrants themselves. The volume brings together 15 interrelated case studies which show how the deportation, evacuation and flight of millions of people as a result of the First World War intensified rather than alleviated ethnic conflicts which culminated in population transfers on an even larger scale during and immediately after the Second World War. While each chapter focuses on a different group of refugees and displaced persons, the text as a whole looks at the experience of forced migration as a complex set of evolving relationships with the receiving society, the homeland, the broader diaspora and other migrant communities living within the same host country. This innovative, four-dimensional model provides an overarching conceptual framework that binds the chapters together within the longer arc of European history. By going beyond the conventional narratives of national victimhood and (un)successful assimilation of refugees, A Transnational History of Forced Migrants in Europe reveals that identities of forced migrants in the first half of the 20th century were individualised, hybrid and constantly reconstructed in response to socioeconomic forces and political pressures. The case studies collected in this volume further suggest that age, gender, social class, educational level and the personal experiences of 'unwilling nomads' are more important to the understanding of forced migration history than ethnoreligious identities of victims and perpetrators.
Anna Geifman examines the explosion of terrorist activity that took place in the Russian empire from the years just prior to the turn of the century through 1917, a period when over 17,000 people were killed or wounded by revolutionary extremists. On the basis of new research, she argues that a multitude of assassination attempts, bombings, ideologically motivated robberies, and incidents of armed assault, kidnapping, extortion, and blackmail for party purposes played a primary role in the revolution of 1905 and early twentieth-century Russian political history in general.
Although the Russian novelist and playwright Leonid Leonov had published extensively before 1917 he considered that his literary career began only in 1922 with the short story Buryga. His talent developed rapidly in the comparatively free cultural climate of the first decade of the Revolution and by 1927 his characteristic style and themes were already formed. It was in this year, however, that the Communist Party began to impose its demands on the artists and intellectuals. Leonov's beliefs and values were incompatible with the Soviet version of Marxism but he tried to affirm them indirectly in his work through structure, imagery and allusion, while outwardly conforming to official demands. This manoeuvring inevitably led him into some questionable compromises which in turn damaged his reputation, both at home and abroad. Leonov himself was painfully conscious of the moral dilemmas involved and his later works return again and again to the question: is it possible to compromise without being compromised? There are fourteen chapters in the volume, each devoted to one or more of Leonov's works, setting the successive stages of his evolution against a background of changing cultural and political policies.
The Gulf States are the focus of great international interest – yet their fabulous evolution from pearl-fishing to oil-drilling, their individuality and variety, are screened by a thick cloud of petro-dollars. This book, first published in 1989, tells the story of their formation, their evolution from colonial dependency to statehood, and their transformation by oil. The result is an informed and balanced picture of the political, economic, religious and cultural character of the area. It is also a story of the powerful families and their sheikhs that have had to hurry these states into the modern world; of the interchanging role of political and economic dependence, the influence of the oil industry, the influx of workers from abroad, and the varying forces acting on the Gulf States.
First published in 1985, this study, focusing on Kuwait, looks at the underlying reasons why certain political, economic and social events have taken place in the country’s history. It provides vital analysis of the political and economic issues of the country, and those that have affected it, as well as providing statistical material on all the key data of the political economy. The book was originally published as part of the Middle East Research Institute (MERI) Reports on the Middle East which quickly established themselves as the most authoritative and up-to-date information on the state of affairs in the region.
A thriving capital market, one that not only brings investment funds into a country but also distributes profits in a transparent manner, is essential for any economy, especially a rapidly developing one such as Saudi Arabia. Already a key player on the world stage, the Kingdom is going through a major planned economic transformation and diversification. In particular, a robust and transparent capital market, with a high level of integrity and sound enforcement, is well on the way to fruition. This book is the first in English to analyse and evaluate the roles of economic planning and a capital market in Saudi Arabia’s economic modernization. In the process of examining the level of transparency and fairness in Saudi Arabia’s capital market, the author provides detailed information and analysis of such issues and topics as the following: – market disclosure rules; – insider trading laws; – gaps in enforcement; – dispute resolution; – role of securities agencies; – Saudi Arabia’s position in international organizations; and – repercussions of the 2006 Saudi stock market collapse. The author draws on a wide range of sources in both English and Arabic, and concludes with well-grounded proposals for appropriate judicial, administrative, and enforcement policies. Investors, their management and attorneys, and other advisors with an eye on trade development in the Middle East will derive great benefit from the current and detailed information in this book. Lawyers and policymakers will discover all they need to know about the Saudi capital market, its developing trends, and applicable laws.
