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Al-Ahram Weekly 24 Feb. - 1 March 2000 Issue No. 470 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 24 Feb. - 1 March 2000 Issue No. 470
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Focus Heritage Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Kebab culture
By Abdel-Moneim Said*
De Gaulle once wittily explained that it was difficult to rule the French because they had some 84 different varieties of cheese. Food has also been used to describe international economic and political relations. A German political scientist once alleged that the Middle East was rife with conflict because its civilisation and culture were fragmented. I drew on the theory of food and drink to dispute his allegation, and told him that the entire region, from Tehran to Cairo and Istanbul to Aswan, eats kebab. North Africa, on the other hand, is a couscous culture. Since kebab is also very popular in the US, I suggested, it could be the key to globalisation.
On Al-Ahram's recent regional tour, we ate kebab in Amman, Beirut, Ankara and Istanbul. To my amazement, my theory disintegrated! Kebab was not kebab everywhere. The differences suggested that the region cannot agree on the definition of kebab. The Big Mac, in contrast, is made the same way, with the same ingredients, everywhere.
Shared standards are the basis of international relations. I was not surprised when a high-ranking official in the Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that, to join the European Community, Turkey must introduce major changes in its political, social and economic systems. Turkey has known of these requirements since the Rome Agreement of March 1957. This is the quintessential difference between the developed and the undeveloped worlds, between a Big Mac and kebab. One is built on unchanging, objective standards; the other depends on personal endeavour and an individual sense of spice.
* This week's Soapbox speaker is director of the Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies.
