Which are the Best Countries in the Middle East?
By Vexen Crabtree 2013
#cyprus #human_development #islam #israel #middle_east #morality #religious_intolerance
| Social & Moral Development Index1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Higher is better Points1 | |
| 1 | Israel | 67.3 |
| 2 | Cyprus | 62.6 |
| 3 | Qatar | 55.2 |
| 4 | Turkey | 54.8 |
| 5 | UAE | 54.1 |
| 6 | Kuwait | 53.8 |
| 7 | Bahrain | 53.0 |
| 8 | Oman | 52.0 |
| 9 | Jordan | 50.1 |
| 10 | Lebanon | 50.0 |
| Middle East Avg | 49.5 | |
| World Avg | 53.8 | |
| q=17. | ||
Almost exclusively dominated by Muslim countries, the Middle East in general has severe problems with human rights, gender equality and cultural misogyny, religious tolerance2 and LGBT equality. It is the Arabian and Islamic countries in this region where human rights is poor3. Acceptance of democratic and human-rights principles is largely impossible given the prominence of Islamic theocracy, and religion-based persecution is at its most severe in this area2. The two countries that do not fit in this pattern bear these criticisms out: Cyprus and Israel are both non-Islamic states and they come 1st and 2nd on the Social and Moral Index for this region.
There are 17 locations that fall within this category. By adding up all the known populations that fall within these locations, and summing their physical land areas, we can calculate population densities. Some islands and territories can end up being counted twice depending on how they are classified and divided up politically, but, mostly such errors involve only small populations. So, some data on this collection of countries in total:
- Total Population: 384.2m
- Total Land Area: 7 242 420km2
- Independent States: 16
- Other Territories: 1
- Social and Moral Development Index and Basic Demographics
- Human Rights and Moral Development
- Religion and Beliefs
- Links
1. Social and Moral Development Index and Basic Demographics
The Social and Moral Development Index concentrates on moral issues and human rights, violence, public health, equality, tolerance, freedom and effectiveness in climate change mitigation and environmentalism, and on some technological issues. A country scores higher for achieving well in those areas, and for sustaining that achievement in the long term. Those countries towards the top of this index can truly said to be setting good examples and leading humankind onwards into a bright, humane, and free future. See: What is the Best Country in the World? An Index of Morality, Conscience and Good Life.
| Pos. | Social & Moral Higher is better Points1 | Life Expectancy (2015) Higher is better Years4 | Gross National Income (2011) Higher is better PPP $4 | UN HDI (2016) Lower is better Rank5 | Population (2012)6 | Land Area (2011) km27 | People Per km2 Lower is better | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Israel | 67.3 | 82.56 | $31 215 | 19 | 7.7m | 21 640 | 356 |
| 2 | Cyprus | 62.6 | 80.33 | $29 459 | 33 | 1.1m | 9 240 | 122 |
| 3 | Qatar | 55.2 | 78.32 | $129 916 | 33 | 1.9m | 11 610 | 167 |
| 4 | Turkey | 54.8 | 75.53 | $18 705 | 71 | 74.5m | 769 630 | 97 |
| 5 | UAE | 54.1 | 77.12 | $66 203 | 42 | 8.1m | 83 600 | 97 |
| 6 | Kuwait | 53.8 | 74.55 | $76 075 | 51 | 2.9m | 17 820 | 162 |
| 7 | Bahrain | 53.0 | 76.72 | $37 236 | 47 | 1.4m | 760 | 1 789 |
| 8 | Oman | 52.0 | 76.97 | $34 402 | 52 | 2.9m | 309 500 | 9 |
| 9 | Jordan | 50.1 | 74.18 | $10 111 | 86 | 6.5m | 88 780 | 73 |
| 10 | Lebanon | 50.0 | 79.54 | $13 312 | 76 | 4.3m | 10 230 | 420 |
| 11 | Iran | 47.8 | 75.58 | $16 395 | 69 | 75.6m | 1 628 550 | 46 |
| 12 | Saudi Arabia | 46.5 | 74.44 | $51 320 | 38 | 28.7m | 2 149 690 | 13 |
| 13 | Egypt | 45.5 | 71.33 | $10 064 | 111 | 84.0m | 995 450 | 84 |
| 14 | Syria | 41.0 | 69.65 | $2 441 | 149 | 21.1m | 183 630 | 115 |
| 15 | Palestine | 38.9 | 73.07 | $5 256 | 114 | 4.3m | ||
| 16 | Iraq | 36.1 | 69.63 | $11 608 | 121 | 33.7m | 434 320 | 78 |
| 17 | Yemen | 33.3 | 64.05 | $2 300 | 168 | 25.6m | 527 970 | 48 |
| Middle East Avg | 49.5 | 74.92 | $32 119 | 75.3 | 22.6m | 452 651 | 50 | |
| World Avg | 53.8 | 71.27 | $17 240 | 94.3 | 36.0m | 620 450 | 58 | |
| q=17. | ||||||||
2. Human Rights and Moral Development
| Pos. | Social & Moral Higher is better Points1 | Gender Inequality (2015) Lower is better8 | Nominal Commitment to HR (2009) Higher is better Treaties9 | Press Freedom (2013) Lower is better10 | LGBT Equality (2017) Higher is better Score11 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Israel | 67.3 | 0.10 | 12 | 3297 | 48 |
| 2 | Cyprus | 62.6 | 0.12 | 20 | 1383 | 40 |
| 3 | Qatar | 55.2 | 0.54 | 10 | 3286 | -54 |
| 4 | Turkey | 54.8 | 0.33 | 17 | 4656 | 25 |
| 5 | UAE | 54.1 | 0.23 | 7 | 3349 | -34 |
| 6 | Kuwait | 53.8 | 0.33 | 12 | 2828 | -37 |
| 7 | Bahrain | 53.0 | 0.23 | 12 | 6275 | -2 |
| 8 | Oman | 52.0 | 0.28 | 9 | 4151 | -22 |
| 9 | Jordan | 50.1 | 0.48 | 14 | 3847 | 12 |
| 10 | Lebanon | 50.0 | 0.38 | 12 | 3015 | -24 |
| 11 | Iran | 47.8 | 0.51 | 9 | 7340 | -19 |
| 12 | Saudi Arabia | 46.5 | 0.26 | 10 | 5688 | -72 |
| 13 | Egypt | 45.5 | 0.57 | 16 | 4866 | -27 |
| 14 | Syria | 41.0 | 0.55 | 14 | 7853 | -84 |
| 15 | Palestine | 38.9 | 4309 | |||
| 16 | Iraq | 36.1 | 0.53 | 9 | 4467 | -29 |
| 17 | Yemen | 33.3 | 0.77 | 16 | 6922 | -22 |
| Middle East Avg | 49.5 | 0.39 | 12.4 | 4561 | -18.8 | |
| World Avg | 53.8 | 0.36 | 15.1 | 3249 | 12.6 | |
| q=17. | ||||||
3. Religion and Beliefs
| Pos. | Religiosity (2009) Lower is better %12 | Disbelief In God (2007) Higher is better13 | Jews (2010) %14 | Christians (2010) %14 | Muslims (2010) %14 | Hindus (2010) %14 | Buddhists (2010) %14 | Folk Religion (2010) %14 | Unaffiliated (2010) %14 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bahrain | 94 | 0.6 | 14.5 | 70.3 | 9.8 | 2.5 | 0.1 | 1.9 | |
| 2 | Cyprus | 75 | 0.1 | 73.2 | 25.3 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 1.2 | |
| 3 | Egypt | 97 | 0 | 0.1 | 5.1 | 94.9 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| 4 | Iran | 4 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 99.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | |
| 5 | Iraq | 84 | 0 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 99.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| 6 | Israel | 51 | 15 | 75.6 | 2.0 | 18.6 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 3.1 |
| 7 | Jordan | 0 | 0.1 | 2.2 | 97.2 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.1 | |
| 8 | Kuwait | 91 | 0 | 0.1 | 14.3 | 74.1 | 8.5 | 2.8 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| 9 | Lebanon | 87 | 3 | 0.1 | 38.3 | 61.3 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.3 |
| 10 | Oman | 0 | 0.1 | 6.5 | 85.9 | 5.5 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.2 | |
| 11 | Qatar | 95 | 0.1 | 13.8 | 67.7 | 13.8 | 3.1 | 0.1 | 0.9 | |
| 12 | Saudi Arabia | 93 | 0 | 0.1 | 4.4 | 93.0 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 |
| 13 | Syria | 89 | 0 | 0.1 | 5.2 | 92.8 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 2.0 |
| 14 | Turkey | 82 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 98.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.2 | |
| 15 | UAE | 91 | 0 | 0.1 | 12.6 | 76.9 | 6.6 | 2.0 | 0.1 | 1.1 |
| 16 | Yemen | 99 | 0 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 99.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| 17 | Palestine | 93 | 0.1 | 2.4 | 97.6 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | |
| Middle East Avg | 87.2 | 1.8 | 4.6 | 11.5 | 79.4 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.8 | |
| World Avg | 75.1 | 9.9 | 0.5 | 60.6 | 22.4 | 2.0 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 7.9 | |
| q=17. | ||||||||||
Links:
Current edition: 2013 Nov 06
Last Modified: 2017 Jul 18
http://www.humantruth.info/middle_east.html
Parent page: Compare International Statistics by Region and Continent
Links
- "What is the Best Country in the World? An Index of Morality, Conscience and Good Life" by Vexen Crabtree (2017)
- "Islam: A Critical Look at Contemporary Issues" by Vexen Crabtree (2006)
- "Problems With Islam: Theological, Philosophical and Societal" by Vexen Crabtree (2017)
All #tags used on this page - click for more:
#cyprus #human_development #islam #israel #middle_east #morality #religious_intolerance
Social Media
Crabtree, Vexen
(2017) "What is the Best Country in the World? An Index of Morality, Conscience and Good Life" (2017). Accessed 2017 Dec 30.
Donnelly, Jack
(2013) Universal Human Rights in Theory and Practice. 3rd edition. Published by Cornell University Press.
Gallup
(2009) Religiosity. gallup.com/poll/142727/.... The survey question was "Is religion an important part of your daily life?" and results are charted for those who said "yes". 1000 adults were polled in each of 114 countries.
Grim & Finke. Dr Grim is senior researcher in religion and world affairs at the Pew Research Center, Washington, D.C, USA. Finke is Professor of Sociology and Religious Studies at the Pennsylvania State University.
(2011) The Price of Freedom Denied. E-book. Subtitled: "Religious Persecution and Conflict in the Twenty-First Century". Amazon Kindle digital edition. Published by Cambridge University Press, UK.
Lynn, Harvey & Nyborg
(2009) Average intelligence predicts atheism rates across 137 nations. Richard Lynn, John Harvey and Helmuth Nyborg article "Average intelligence predicts atheism rates across 137 nations" in Intelligence (2009 Jan/Feb) vol. 37 issue 1 pages 11-15. Online at www.sciencedirect.com, accessed 2009 Sep 15.
Pew Forum. Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
(2012) The Global Religious Landscape: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Major Religious Groups as of 2010. Published 2012 Dec 18, accessed online 2013 May 01.
United Nations
(2013) Human Development Report. Published by the UN Development Programme. This edition had the theme of The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World. Available on hdr.undp.org/... UN Development Program: About the Human Development Index.
(2017) Human Development Report. Published by the UN Development Programme. Data for 2015. Available on hdr.undp.org/..
Footnotes
- "What is the Best Country in the World? An Index of Morality, Conscience and Good Life" by Vexen Crabtree (2017)^^^
- Grim (2011) chapter 1 "Religious Persecution: Pervasive and Pernicious" digital location 573.^
- Donnelly (2013) p178.^
- UN (2017) Table 1. Higher is better.^
- UN (2017) Table 1. Lower is better.^
- UN (2013) Table 14.^
- World Bank data on data.worldbank.org accessed 2013 Nov 04.^
- UN (2017) Table 5. Lower is better.^
- Max possible=24. Total amount of treaties ratified. Nominal Commitment to Human Rights report published by UCL School of Public Policy, London, UK, at ucl.ac.uk/spp/research/research-projects/nchr accessed 2011 Apr 30.^
- Reporters Without Borders Report "2013 World Press Freedom Index: Dashed hopes after spring" at fr.rsf.org/.../classement_2013_gb-bd.pdf accessed 2013 Feb.^
- Sources:
- International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association annual report for 2017, on ilga.org accessed 2017 Sep 24.
- PF: Pew Forum on pewforum.org/Gay-Marriage-and-Homosexuality/ (page updated 2017 Aug 08). (Source of the quotes on religious opposition to LGBT).
- Wikipedia on en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_at_the_United_Nations accessed 2013 Apr 18. (Source of data on who signed the UN 2008 document and its opposing document).
- Wikipedia on en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights accessed 2013 Apr 18 (source of the civil union & legality of homosexuality legality by country).
- Gallup (2009) .^
- Zuckerman, P. (2007). Atheism: contemporary numbers and patterns. In M.Martin (Ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Atheism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. In "Average intelligence predicts atheism rates across 137 nations" by Lynn et al. (2009).^
- Pew Forum (2011) - data for 2010.^
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