Protesters at Pearl Roundabout, Bahrain, demanding the release of political prisoners and political reform. Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Al Jazeera English
This interview is part of the series 'Development in the Face of Global Inequalities'. You can find out more about the series, read its articles and explore the interactive roundtables by clicking here.
When Europe looks beyond the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean, it sees a region that is ‘lagging behind’. The Middle East stands in stark contrast to Europe in so many ways, despite their shared heritage, and the legacy of European imperialism that wove threads of interdependence between the two regions. Still today, economic, religious and racial differences are perceived to draw sharply defined boundaries between them and it is under these circumstances that the Middle East if often labeled a ‘basket case’: relentless military conflicts, weak economies and low levels of human development.
