Urban and a Culture Clash: Understanding Anti-Arab Tourist Sentiment in CAP Paper 216, January 2019

Sahib Jafarov is a policy researcher focusing on Islam, prices, increasing inequality and decreasing inclusiveness in Ba- ethnic and religious conflicts, social movements, ku’s downtown and districts. So- bifurcated ethnicities, and urbanization in . cial concerns also include rising Sahib has been a leading research fellow at the Center levels of prostitution; the grow- for Strategic Studies (CSS) in Baku since 2011, managing ing prominence of and demand for the Arabic language in service projects on marginalized groups. He is also the lead sectors as well as in public an- researcher and author of policy reports on religious nouncements; and the encroach- radicalism in Azerbaijan, divided ethnicities, and other ment of religious sectarianism, which threatens the religious bal- compelling topics. He holds an MA in Public Policy ance in the country. A question from King’s College, London (2015); an MA in National examining Baku residents’ pref- Security from Baku State University, Azerbaijan (2010); erences for tourists from differ- and a BA in Political Science from the Academy of Public ent regions found that the most favored tourists were Europeans Administration, Azerbaijan (2003). (65 percent in favor), Turks (45.8 ollowing the fall in the global and has done its best to cater to percent), and Russians (44.6 per- oil price and the economic them, launching five-star hotels, cent), while the view of Arab tour- Fcrisis in Azerbaijan in 2015, shopping malls, leisure centers, ists was the most negative (91.5 the government turned to tourism restaurants, entertainment, and percent against) (see below). to fill the economic gap, loos- therapy centers across the city. ening visa restrictions for some However, it has expended less This paper explores the cultural Arab countries and welcoming effort on mitigating the cultural and ideological similarities that wealthy Arab investors into its impact of the phenomenon, might unify Arabs and Azerbai- tourism, business, and real estate namely the culture clash between janis, as well as the differences markets. The capital city, Baku, Baku residents and Arab tourists. that produce rifts between them. and its leisure attractions have To do so, it examines Baku resi- become popular among tourists Residents of Baku have large- dents’ attitudes toward Arab tour- from Arab countries. Although ly responded negatively to this ists and businesses, as well as ex- Arabs make up only 10 percent new tourist wave, expressing ploring their causal mechanisms of all tourists visiting Azerbaijan, their dissatisfaction on social net- and outcomes. In the final sec- their numbers have increased works and in public spaces. The tion, it makes policy suggestions dramatically in recent years, economic impact of this tour- for curbing tensions between from around 9,000 in 2015 to ism is indeed marked by a lack the groups while fostering en- nearly 260,000 in 2017.1 The of transparency in property and gagement that will allow Baku to government well understands land sales to Arab buyers, which succeed in its tourism branding. what appeals to these visitors significantly drives up property Failing to integrate essential el-

CAP Fellows Paper 216 1 ements of local identity into the In order to understand how in- married, and nearly half of them plans for developing Baku as a teractions between tourists and had undertaken post-secondary tourist destination limits long- locals affect the perceptions and education. The inferential statis- term development, social cohe- attitudes of Baku’s population, tical analysis tested how gender, sion, equality, and the city’s inclu- I employ a three-fold method: age, and educational level influ- sive and sustainable development content analysis of news media, ence people’s perceptions of Arab of services and infrastructure. a systematic random sampling tourists. I employed an indepen- survey, and in-depth interviews dent samples T-test, Pearson’s Methods with Baku residents. I use Con- Chi-squared tests, and Pearson tent Analysis (CA) to examine the Correlation analyses in the test- Pizam and Milman describe tour- discourse of online local and na- ing hypothesis. ism as a social, cultural, and eco- tional news media in August and nomic phenomenon that has a September 2018. In particular, I Last but not least, I conducted significant impact on public and focus on discourse among public 20 pre-survey and post-survey individual behaviors, moral sys- institutional and non-institution- in-depth interviews to help elu- tems, collective routines, tradi- al actors regarding ethnic and cidate the reasons for social op- tions, ceremony habits, and in- religious values, mores, and per- position to Arab tourists. These 2 stitutional forms. This process, ceptions. This allows me to draw semi-structured in-depth inter- however, does not just happen inferences about Arab social and views were conducted with resi- when tourists appear in a desti- cultural influence (see Appendix dents of Baku in May and October nation; it depends to some degree 1). The advantage of the CA meth- 2018. The interviews consisted of on the development of the tour- od is that it is less subjective than 18 questions (see Appendix 2). A ism industry and “tourist–host direct interviews and allows for convenience sample of 6 women 3 interactions.” That is, the influ- the analysis of various aspects of and 14 men was selected. This ence of tourism is not one-sided: narratives, facts, and texts asso- sampling method focused on peo- both locals and tourists experi- ciated with a given phenomenon. ple who regularly visit the down- ence diverse influences through town area, whether for work or interaction. In the case of Baku, Along with three other field re- because they own property there: it can therefore be expected that searchers, I conducted a survey Arab tourists tend to cluster both Arab tourists and locals will of 200 respondents in Septem- downtown, meaning that people significantly change their culture ber 2018 in the Binagadi, Khatai, who spend a lot of time there feel and public behavior as this pro- Nasimi, Khazar, Sabail, Nizami, the effects of Arab tourism most cess continues. Surakhani, Sabunchu, Yasamal, strongly. A drawback of this sam- and Narimanov districts of Baku pling method is that the results Butler’s Tourist Area Life Cycle (see Appendix 4). The sampling are non-generalizable and the de- model (TALC) also helps to ex- method of the survey was sys- mographics of people represent- plain the effects of Arab tourism tematic random sampling, where ed in the downtown area create a 4 in Baku. This model predicts the sampling interval was every sampling bias (see Appendix 3). that a rise in the number of Arab 10,000th respondent as listed on tourists will fundamentally alter the last election list (before the The Tourism Sector in Num- the local community, forcing it to 2018 presidential election), with bers change development trajectories the selected starting point being in order to accommodate an in- the 20th person on the list. This Since 2012, the number of tour- flux of tourism. The local commu- method significantly diminishes ists visiting Azerbaijan has been nity, economy, and infrastructure the risk of sampling bias. The re- on a slow upward trajectory. Ac- will become primary suppliers of fusal rate was 30 percent. I used cording to the State Statistical accommodation, transportation, SPSS software to aggregate all Committee of the Republic of and other services to support the variables by gender. The mean Azerbaijan, the overall number tourism industry rather than de- age was 35, with the oldest 83 and of tourists increased slightly from veloping in accordance with the the youngest 18. Slightly more 2012 to 2017 (see Figure 1). needs of residents. than half of the respondents were

CAP Fellows Paper 216 2 While this upward trend is mod- other many derogatory terms. Azerbaijan. Instead of using the est overall, the proportion of tour- Lately, the terms such as “ter- tropes of terrorism and funda- ists coming from Arabic countries rorist”, “fundamentalist” and mentalism, local media in Baku has risen significantly. Whereas in “blood-thirsty” are the terms prefer to emphasize the predato- 2015 tourists from Arabic-speak- that are over-ascribed to the ry sexual practices of Arab tour- Arabs. ing countries constituted 0.5 per- ists and characterize Arab men as cent of all visitors (9,020 total), “primeval” or “womanizers.” The However, content analysis of by 2017 their numbers had risen religious influence of Arab new- local media in Baku finds that 28-fold, to 259,299, or 10 percent comers and tourists has thus far different stereotypes and con- of the total number of visitors in gone largely unaddressed in local ceptions of Arabs prevail in that year.5 media. Very few media organiza-

As Figure 2 shows, the vast ma- Figure 1. Trends in international tourism: number of ar- jority of the increase in Arab rivals and Arab tourists as a share of the total tourism to Azerbaijan came from six countries: the (UAE), , Saudi Ara- bia, Oman, Qatar, and Kuwait. To take one example, 186 times more UAE citizens visited Azer- baijan in 2017 than in 2012. The share of tourists from other re- gions of the world did not change anywhere near as dramatically in that period.6

Understanding Media Trends and Perceptions of Arabs Source: Author’s compilation based on State Statistical Committee As Arab tourists have flocked to of the Republic of Azerbaijan data (2018) Azerbaijan over the past three years, Azerbaijani media outlets Figure 2. Number of tourists from select Arabic-speaking have significantly misrepresent- countries to visit Azerbaijan between 2012 and 2017 ed Arab identity, painting it as monolithic and failing to differen- tiate between linguistic dialects, religious doctrines, and other identity markers. Riduouani has argued that in international me- dia outlets, Arabs’ national iden- tities are lost; “Arab” has become synonymous with a religious Is- lamic identity.7 He goes on to ex- plain that:

In the past, Arabs were recog- nized mainly by the media in the West as “erotic,” “primi- tive,” and “ignorant,” among Source: Author’s compilation based on State Statistical Com- CAP Fellows Paper 216 mittee of the Republic of Azerbaijan data (2018) 3 tions have echoed the discourse do not present Arab people as a Baku’s Residents’ Percep- of a “terrorist threat” related to source of fundamentalism, ter- tions of Arabs: The Religious the increasing mobility of people rorism, or radicalization. Fur- and Ethnic Prism from Arab countries. On the con- thermore, despite a sudden in- trary, experts who speak to the crease in the number of Arabs in Although Arab tourists in Azer- local media almost uniformly de- Baku, local media have not pre- baijan are not directly associated cline to describe Arab tourists as sented Arabs as a threat to the with religious influence, religion a terrorist threat.8 Officials from city’s ethnic balance. Instead, is perceived as the only symbol- the Muslim Board and the prevailing trend is to describe ic factor that may potentially the State Committee on Religious Arabs as bringing with them a unite residents of Baku with Arab Associations of the Republic of public culture that differs signifi- tourists. In the survey, respon- Azerbaijan have, however, ex- cantly from local norms. Figure 3 dents were asked to find com- pressed some apprehensions:9 illustrates the leading discursive mon ground between Arabs and trends in local media. locals. The survey revealed that Some people who visit Azerbai- 55.7 percent of respondents per- jan as tourists stay here more than My content analysis revealed that ceive religion to be the principal a week and assemble some peo- “dirtiness,” “prostitution,” and value shared by locals and Arab ple around them to promote their “investment” are crucial media visitors. This was also borne out agidah actively…They pray in our catchphrases linked to Arab tour- in interviews: mosques, disseminate their re- ligious materials…and refuse to ism. In my sample, approximate- pray behind local imams during ly 300 articles (many of them At least religion is worth mentioning congregation (jamaat) praying. republished) use these words to as the only common ground that we describe the behavioral discrep- share with Arab people. I cannot ob- serve any other element that bridges Despite the official’s concerns ancy between Baku residents and us (Int. 9). about the religious aspect of Arab Arabs.10 tourism, media outlets generally The T-test illustrates that the sense of sharing religious val- Figure 3. Discursive framings of Arabs in local ues is common to all age groups. media, by frequency of use However, gender does appear to have some influence. According to Pearson’s Chi-squared test, men are less likely than women to be- lieve that and Arabs share religious values (p-value 0.023, 95 percent confidence lev- el). The magnitude of difference is 15.3 percent, with 2 degrees of freedom. The Chi-squared test (X2) also indicates that there is some correlation between an in- dividual’s educational attainment and his or her sense of having common religious values with Ar- abs (p-value = 0.041). People who have higher education think that they have some level of common religious values with Arabs. The Source: Author’s compilation based on online media sources lower an individual’s educational level, meanwhile, the lower his or

CAP Fellows Paper 216 4 Figure 4. Could you define the common ground between residents and Arab tourists? significant (-0.177** and p-val- ue=0.001). The survey results about shared moral and cultural values with visitors reveal dif- ferent attitudes toward tourists from different regions. Residents of Baku consider that they share more moral and cultural values with tourists from neighboring countries such as , , and than they do with those from European and Arab countries (see Figure 5).

Interviews help us elaborate on the reason for these attitudes, pointing to a shared recent histo- Source: Author’s survey ry, ethnic similarity, and sectari- Figure 5. Level of perceived shared cultural/moral val- an ties. Although Turkish people ues with tourists from different countries/regions have the same religious affiliation (Sunni) as Arabs, residents of Baku emphasize the importance of the shared ethnic background (Turkic) over religious attach- ment. In the case of Russians, who share neither ethnic nor re- ligious background with Azerbai- janis, the focus is on a shared So- viet history. Meanwhile, Iranian tourists, who are mainly ethnic Azerbaijanis living in Iran, enjoy a strong shared ethnic identity and some religious sectarian (Shia) association. Int. 20 emphasized Source: Author’s survey the high number of Azerbaijani Iranians as central to attitudes her perception of shared religious important unifying factor between toward these tourists: values with Arab tourists. them and us. Perhaps Arab people are eager to visit Azerbaijan because There are 35 million Azerbaijanis in of religious similarity, as they do not Some interviewees suggested that Iran, which puts Iranians in a unique experience radical reactions to their these perceptions of religious position. I do not feel right calling religious identity…which happens [if them tourists. Also, Iranian Azerbai- similarity with Arabs are rooted they visit] Christian-majority com- janis are Shias as we are. That makes in history. Int. 8 explained: munities. us feel extra close to them in compar- ison to Arabs. Thinking about cultural similarities, Returning to the survey, the Pear- I can only mention religion—Islam— son Correlation indicates that the Analysis of local media discourse because Azerbaijan was occupied association between religion and reveals a similar approach to Ira- by the Arabs historically and Islam was literally brought to our lands by cultural values may be relative- nians. The promotion of ethnic them. I believe religion is the most ly weak among respondents in and cultural similarity with Ira- Baku, but it is still statistically nians and the positive attitude to-

CAP Fellows Paper 216 5 ward them as tourists is the dom- anymore. According to the information giv- inant trend in media articles. One en to our Committee, Arab tourists online source explained:11 In an effort to further investigate try to conduct congregation prayer this topic, we asked residents without local imams appointed by

The shared historical and cultural about their attitudes toward Ar- CMB [the Caucasus Muslim Board], which is prohibited by law and unac- values (Novruz Holiday, language, abs’ selection of their own imams ceptable to us. religion/sect, and ethnicity) of Azer- for congregation prayers. We baijanis and Iranians and their geo- found that 57.8 percent of respon- Despite the government’s con- graphical closeness stimulate Irani- dents had negative feelings about cern, sects are not considered by ans to visit Azerbaijan. this, compared to 19 percent who Baku’s residents to be a funda- saw it positively. The reasons for mental threat to religious harmo- This analysis reveals that religion this negativity about Arabs’ refus- ny in the city today. The survey is far from being the only deter- al to pray with local imams were results also highlight that 88.3 mining factor of a positive or neg- clarified during in-depth inter- percent of respondents do not ative reaction. A number of oth- views. Int. 16 emphasized: er factors related to history and perceive Arabs to be a hazard to ethnic links contribute to positive If Arabs refuse to pray with local their religious identity. views of some “others.” imams, my reaction is negative, be- cause it is a kind of discrimination But another set of questions— It is worth considering how re- against other Muslims. There is no looking at attitudes toward in- spondents reacted to sectari- need to set yourself apart from oth- termarriage between Arabs and an—Sunni vs. Shia—differences ers. We have the same religion and Azerbaijanis—revealed the preva- between locals and Arabs. When sharia for everybody. lence of stereotypes about Arabs. survey respondents were asked Among survey respondents, 98.3 how they felt sectarian differ- Even though there are some dif- percent responded negatively ences affected relationships and ferences between the Sunni and to the prospect of intermarriage communication between Arabs Shia schools in terms of their in- with Arabs. This negativity stems and locals, 65 percent of respon- terpretations of Islamic scripture, mainly from the perception that dents indicated that such differ- respondents generally did not Arabs practice polygamy, which ences were not necessarily an see a disparity between the two discourages local women from in- obstacle to establishing relations tarigats. However, the Azerbai- termarrying. Sharia law allows a with Arabs, in comparison to 15.6 jani government and Caucasus man to have up to four wives, but percent of respondents who said Muslim Board (CMB) officials see this contradicts Azerbaijani secu- they did make a difference. A fur- it differently, as reported in the lar and legal views on marriage, ther 19.4 percent said that they local media. Deputy leader of the which dictate that monogamy is were indifferent toward sectar- CMB Salman Musayev stressed, the only acceptable family struc- ian differences. Int. 3 clearly ex- for instance, that:12 ture. As Int. 18 put it: plained why sectarian differences are not a deal-breaker for people Arab tourists promote their religious I would not be fond of marrying an in Baku: ideology in our mosques. That could Arab. I would never agree to be a be very hazardous for our communi- third or fourth wife of anybody. ty. If we fail to take preventive mea- Now modern Azerbaijani people can sures, people will suffer. understand what the fundamentals Symptomatically, none of my fe- of the Sunni and Shia struggle were. male interview respondents re- The war happened as a result of the The deputy head of the State acted positively to the prospect Western imperial interests to “di- Committee on Religious Asso- of marrying an Arab. This stereo- vide and rule politics,” which aimed ciations, Gunduz Ismayilov, has type was also borne out in online to fragment Muslim civilization. So likewise expressed his disappro- media: Mehriban Zeynalova, the for me—and, I believe, for others like 13 bation in the media: head of an NGO called “Temiz me—it does not matter whether they 14 are Sunni or Shia. It is not a hot topic Dunya,” told modern.az that:

CAP Fellows Paper 216 6 The one specific feature of Arab fam- Baku Residents’ Perceptions We have some cultural differences ily structure is polygamy; only old, of Arabs: The Urban Behav- with Arabs. Their behavior is differ- widowed Azerbaijani women or eco- ioral Culture Prism ent from locals’. We do not throw nomically poor ones would agree to rubbish everywhere in the city cen- marry them…. If religious and ethnic differences ter, but they do. are not seen as significant issues Said Int. 10: Along similar lines, local women for Baku residents, what is the perceive Arabs as a threat to their basis for their negative reaction secular lifestyle, since female There could be some cultural simi- toward Arab tourists? My sur- larities, but it is hard for me to define Arab tourists wear very strict re- vey reveals that this stems from ligious dress that conflicts with any. However, I can easily count a a perceived difference in urban couple of differences, like public be- Baku secular urban culture. In cultural habits. The survey un- havior or tidiness in the streets. We general, Azerbaijanis are not con- derlines, for instance, that 61.8 know how to behave properly... sidered to be as devout as Arabs percent of respondents were in their practice of Islam. The concerned about Arabs’ behavior The perception of Arabs’ lack majority of them do not practice disturbing public order. A signif- of cleanliness in the downtown namaz (prayers) during the day, icant proportion of media outlets area, the most prestigious and treat women in a more equal way, and interviewees likewise cited historical part of the city, is a piv- and do not abstain from alcohol Arabs’ public behavior and their otal point of contention, fostering as textual Islam requires. role in rising prostitution as the negativity on the part of the me- principal concern surrounding dia and locals. Int. 17 compared Another aspect of Azerbaijanis’ Arab tourists’ presence in Baku the behavior of European tourists reluctance to marry Arabs is their (see Figure 6). to that of their Arab counterparts: different ethnic backgrounds. Int. 8 explained: The in-depth interviews con- European tourists usually behave firmed this perception of a gap in and express their respect for our his- Overall, I am not positive about public behavior. Int. 4 explained: toric heritage. For example, when marrying somebody from another ethnicity. It does not matter wheth- er they are Arabs or anyone else. I Figure 6. Problems discursively associated am against mixing kinship, which with Arab tourists20 results in future generations losing their ethnic identity.

Mehriban Zeynalova touched on similar themes in her interview with modern.az:15

I am not against mixed marriage, but we have to think: what kind of citi- zens will appear after some years?

All in all, religious requirements and the fear of ethnic identity loss discourage locals from marrying Arabs. Source: Author’s survey

CAP Fellows Paper 216 7 they visit , they try role of Arabs in encouraging pros- 2015. It does not matter if it is an to follow the rules and respect ev- titution in the city. Int. 18 under- Arab tourist or anybody else, if an individual cannot afford to buy es- ery single piece of art there. Arabs, lined that this is a new trend: meanwhile, leave rubbish there or sential things for a family and cannot scratch the historical stones with find a relevant job, then the situa- If prostitution was present in Baku tion forces them to sell their body for their initials. [before Arab tourism], at least it was some money. hidden. Now it has become easily Even though the notion of sheha- accessible, since the Arabs have in- However, media outlets are less da (a martyr for religion, God, or creased demand for it. likely to consider local economic the country) is considered to be factors, laying the blame squarely a sacred symbol of Islam, people Int. 7 expressed his concern: at the feet of Arab tourists. In one negatively assessed Arabs’ behav- article, a journalist quoted a taxi ior at Martyrs’ Alley: It is getting challenging to go down- driver as saying:18 town with your spouse or girlfriend. I have met Arabs at Martyrs’ Alley. Six out of ten people there are Arabs Since Arab [tourist] flows to Baku, They acted up in there. They were and they feel no shame at approach- most of the prostitutes are inclined laughing and shouting at each oth- ing ladies on the street or calling out to have sex with them, as they are er and also showed other disrespect “habibi.” That annoys me a lot. more generous than any other to our martyrs, which irritated me. [men]. I never knew where night- They could at least copy other visi- A significant share of local media clubs, massage parlors, or relaxation tors’ [behavior] during their stay in articles (152 out of 300) were de- centers were in this city before Arabs’ the Alley (Int. 13). voted to this problem. One local appearance here. media article explicated:17 The perception that Arabs lack Symptomatically, my research cleanliness and engage in unac- I used to see this kind of thing did not find any articles linking ceptable public behavior is the abroad, but now I see the same in social problems and prostitution. one negative aspect of Arab tour- Baku. I was deeply shocked when I Instead, various opinion polls run ism that has been extensively and was in “Torqoviy” (downtown) yes- in the media showed that respon- intensively presented in local me- terday. I witnessed an Arab man ne- gotiating with a girl to have sex in a dents considered Arab men the dia, even prompting a discussion hotel for 100 euro. main drivers of prostitution in in parliament. In that discus- Baku. Although prostitution is il- sion, MP Araz Alizadeh indicated Although residents link the ar- legal in Azerbaijan, there are now that:16 rival of Arabs in Baku to the rise more than five escort websites with phone numbers of prosti- Arabs misbehave wherever they go. of prostitution (see Figure 6), a They are filthy and cannot control sizable minority (48.4 percent) tutes, a virtually unknown phe- 19 themselves in the streets, restau- indicate that this rise is due not nomenon before 2016. rants, and hotels. only to increasing demand from tourists, but also to social and Baku Residents’ Perception According to the survey, the rise economic problems, which create of Arab Tourists: The Eco- in prostitution in Baku is also the background conditions for nomic Prism associated with Arab tourists’ ar- women’s openness to this illegal rival in the downtown area. The way of earning money. Int. 1 com- The government’s recent policy Pearson Correlation analysis of mented: of attracting Arab tourists to the the results revealed that there is country was designed to improve no statistically significant (p-val- The upsurge in prostitution is not Azerbaijan’s financial stability ue = 0.201, 95 percent confidence directly correlated with the arrival of and reduce the economic impact level) disparity between men and Arabs. The social and economic de- of the decline in the oil price. It cline in residents’ quality of life has women in terms of their attitudes is therefore worth examining how had a negative impact on it, especial- economic factors have increased toward the prostitution problem: ly since the decline in the oil price both genders point to the alleged and the devaluation of the manat in loyalty to Arabs despite their neg-

CAP Fellows Paper 216 8 ative urban behavior, the rise in would rather establish a business Another concern is that the rise in prostitution, and religious sectar- partnership with Europeans or Arab tourism causes locals to be ian and ethnic differences. Russians than with Arabs. treated as second-class citizens by service providers such as restau- The survey highlights that the vast Another measure of willingness rants, taxis, hotels, and shopping majority of residents (93 percent) to do business with Arabs was centers. Because Arab tourists are are not in favor of having business property ownership and selling not as restricted in their spending relations with Arabs. That being property to Arabs. Some inter- as locals are, the service sector said, in-depth interviews reveal viewees shared that they would caters to their demands rather that for residents, the financial never sell property to Arabs, no than to those of local customers. benefits of such interactions far matter the individual buyer’s In downtown Baku, many restau- outweigh the detrimental effect personality or devoutness. How- rants have menus and labels in of ethnic, religious, and behavior- ever, the vast majority of respon- Arabic and Azerbaijani, although al disparities between locals and dents said that they would sell to this is against current law. Arabs. Int. 15 stated, for instance, whoever was prepared to pay the that: most, regardless of ethnic or re- In sum, economic factors encour- ligious background. While inter- age people to go into business Although I do not like these people viewees may take an unfavorable with Arabs, while cultural, reli- as a Muslim and a human being, I view of Arabs’ presence in Baku, gious, and ethnic factors discour- would incorporate a business with they are willing to sell property to age them from doing so. How- them for my commercial interests if Arabs if they will pay more for it ever, given Azerbaijan’s current that person invested in my business. than locals would. Among my in- financial situation, economic fac- terviewees, only one indicated an tors tend to win out. Int. 4 asked: unwillingness to sell to Arabs at any price. Conclusion If there is a benefit, why not? Arabs are financially wealthy, and that is necessary for any commercial activ- The in-depth interviews con- Arab tourism has increased 28- ity, but they are a bit unsystematic firmed that although residents fold in the past three years, and in some ways, as I have seen in my are in favor of attracting Arab this number is expected to con- experience with them. counterparts to their entrepre- tinue to rise. However, Arab neurship activities, they harbor tourism in Baku is not without Some interviewees indicated some concerns regarding Arabs’ side-effects on residents’ percep- that they would prefer to go into increasing participation in the tion of these newcomers. Islam business with religiously devout economy and the business com- is the only common ground be- Arabs than with secular Arabs. munity. First and foremost, Ar- tween locals and Arabs, but the They suggested that Islam might abs’ spending habits drive up Soviet past and secular lifestyle of prevent Arabs from engaging Baku prices for locals. Interview- Baku residents curtail the poten- in misconduct in their business ees indicated that since Arabs be- tially unifying power of religion. dealings. However, the survey in- gan to show an interest in becom- Locals do not tolerate the idea of dicated that only 15.5 percent of ing property owners, the prices of Arabs leading prayers and other respondents take this view. A fur- houses and apartments in the his- religious rituals; they view Arabs’ ther 11.1 percent of surveyed resi- toric downtown and surrounding demand for Arab imams as dis- dents would prefer to have secular areas have shot up. According to criminating against locals. That Arabs as their business partners, Int. 14: being said, religion is not seen as a while the vast majority (73.3 per- crucial factor in relationships be- cent) do not care whether Arabs The property prices in Baku keep tween Arabs and Baku residents. are secular or religious as long going up because of Arabs, and this Notably, local media also does as they have financial means. It factor affects the purchasing ability not paint the religious compo- of locals. Soon, Baku residents will should also be noted that respon- nent of Arab tourism as a source be the tenants of Arab landlords. dents generally agreed that they of anti-Arab sentiment. Ethnic

CAP Fellows Paper 216 9 differences are apprehended as stimulate investors, including awareness, which will an obstacle to intermarriage, Arab investors, to develop their improve dialogue about the but not to every form of interac- businesses in various regions cultural and sociological tion. Instead, the most disputed of the country, where there are background of tourists; component of the Arab presence recreational capacities not found • Taking a stance against in Baku is their public behavior, in the city. all forms of xenophobia in which is considered incompatible • The government should media broadcasts about with local cultural norms. Arab provide tax incentives to rent land Arabs in order to change public behavior is associated with in other regions of the country. the current negative public untidiness and a lack of respect This process will enhance perception of them. toward local history. Yet econom- national economic development ic considerations help mediate and reduce the congestion of negative views of Arabs. Arabs in Baku, thus limiting the culture clash and increasing All in all, the influx of Arabs is acceptance of newcomers. having multifaceted effects on • The criminal law regarding Baku. If the city follows the TALC prostitution should be amended model, despite its initial adverse to fine those who solicit sex. This reaction to Arab tourists, the policy will protect Azerbaijani community will eventually adapt locals from sexual harassment. and modify its attitude. • An “Arab cultural week”— or specific events for different Recommendations Arabic-speaking countries— should be organized in Azerbaijan The issue of Arab tourism in in order to enhance cultural Baku requires governmental and awareness of Arab culture. parliamentary engagement. The • The Azerbaijani government Ministries of Culture, Economy, should ease the visa procedure and Internal Affairs, as well as for developed countries in the the State Tourism Agency, should European Union and beyond in actively participate in this process order to balance the effects of wherever their administrative urban tourism in Baku. If tourism support is necessary. I recom- from other countries increases, mend the following activities in this will smooth the problems order to improve Baku residents’ perceived to be created by Arab perception of Arab tourists and tourism. increase the benefits of tourism • The media should engage in to the population of Azerbaijan at building cultural bonds between large: locals and Arabs. It currently behaves very negatively toward • The tourism sector should be Arabs and taints the local developed not only in Baku but perception of Arabs through the in the country’s other regions in dissemination of hate speech order to allow Azerbaijani citizens and audio-visual materials; this to benefit more inclusively from role should be revised and used the tourism industry. There is to build cultural awareness. The a need for vocational education following activities could be in the tourism sector in regions carried out: outside Baku. • Preparing TV and radio • The government should programs to raise public

CAP Fellows Paper 216 10 Appendix 1. List of online media sources used in content analysis

• www.azinforum.az • www.azadliq.org • www.oxu.az • www.azadlig.info • www.modern.az • www.azvision.az • www.milli.az • www.sputnik.az • www.azxeber.az • www.trend.az • www.bbc.com/azeri • www.daytube.az • www.xezerxeber.az • www.atv.az • www.axar.az • www.aznews.az • www.olaylar.az • www.sonxeber.az • www.virtualaz.org • www.istipress.com

Appendix 2. Interview questions for residents

• How often and where do you meet with Arab tourists? • Have you ever heard of Arabs buying property in Baku? Are there any positive or negative features of Arabs’ engagement in the property market? • If a local and an Arab offered the same price for your property, which one you would prefer? If an Arab paid slightly more? • Would you like to have an Arab business partner? Why? Would you prefer a devout Arab or a secular one? • Would you prefer a European business partner to an Arab? Why? • Are there cultural or moral similarities and differences between Arabs and locals? • How would you react if you had an Arab neighbor? Why? • Do you think that sectarian differences between you and Arabs might affect your attitude toward Arabs? • How would you react if Arabs in Baku refused to pray with local imams during congregation praying? • Would you prefer to have family relations with Arabs, like marrying an Arab man/woman? Why or why not? How would ethnic and religious factors influence your decision? • How does your attitude toward Arabs from different regions of the world vary?

CAP Fellows Paper 216 11 Appendix 3. Demographic indicators of interviewees

ID Age Gender Residency Interviewee 1 55 Male Nizami Interviewee 2 18 Male Nizami Interviewee 3 50 Male Nasimi Interviewee 4 32 Male Sabail Interviewee 5 20 Female Surakhani Interviewee 6 28 Female Surakhani Interviewee 7 29 Male Surakhani Interviewee 8 22 Male Yasamal Interviewee 9 19 Male Sabunchu Interviewee 10 19 Female Yasamal Interviewee 11 20 Male Narimanov Interviewee 12 23 Male Binagadi Interviewee 13 23 Female Binagadi Interviewee 14 23 Male Binagadi Interviewee 15 21 Male Yasamal Interviewee 16 22 Male Yasamal Interviewee 17 36 Male Sabail Interviewee 18 22 Female Binagadi Interviewee 19 22 Male Sabail Interviewee 20 33 Female Nizami

CAP Fellows Paper 216 12 Appendix 4. Survey Questionnaire

Questionnaire code: Region______

Name of place ______

Address:______

Good day, my name is ______(interviewer name). I am conducting a sociological survey in different regions of Baku to study the impacts of Arab tourism. I ask you to participate in this survey. Your honest responses will help analyze the con- temporary situation of tourism in Azerbaijan. Survey materials will be used in gener- alized terms, so your first name and last name will not be written anywhere and full confidentiality will be ensured.

Respondent: ______

Interview date:______day month year

1. What is your attitude toward tourist flow to our country in recent years?Please evaluate on a 5-point scale (from 1- negative to 5 – positive).

I do not like it It does not matter I like it 1 2 3 4 5

2. Which countries would you prefer for the largest share of tourists to come from? a. European countries b. Arab countries c. Central Asian countries d. Iran e. Turkey f. Russia and the CIS g. Other______

3. How do you think incoming tourists influence local traditions and values? (from 1- nega- tive to 5 – positive)

I think negative I do not know Positive 1 2 3 4 5

4. You would feel disturbed if tourists from which region settled in your neighborhood? a. European countries b. Arab countries c. Central Asian countries d. Iran e. Turkey f. Russia and the CIS g. All h. None of them i. Other

CAP Fellows Paper 216 13 5. With persons from which region would you prefer to engage in business relations? a. European countries b. Arab countries c. Central Asian countries d. Iran e. Turkey f. Russia and the CIS g. All h. None of them i. Other

6. How do you evaluate the flow of Arab tourists to our country on a 5-point scale?(from 1- negative to 5 – positive)

I do not like it It does not matter I like it 1 2 3 4 5

7. What kind of problems does the flow of Arab tourists to our country create? (multiple responses can be selected) a. Instability in religious matters b. Disturbance in public behavior rules c. Creation of social inequality among local population d. Weakening of family institution e. Other______

8. Do you think that you share religious values with Arab tourists? (from 1- negative to 5 – positive)

I think Maybe I do not think 1 2 3 4 5

9. Can you evaluate the public behavior of Arab tourists on a 5-point scale? (from 1- negative to 5 – positive)

I do not like it I do not know I like it 1 2 3 4 5

10. To your mind, what points of commonality does the local population have with Arab tourists? (several points can be selected)

a. Common religious values b. Common historical background c. Moral commonalities d. Politically common targets e. Other______

CAP Fellows Paper 216 14 11. Can sectarian differences with Arabs create obstacles in communication? (from 1- I think to 5 – I do not think)

I think It does not matter I do not think 1 2 3 4 5

12. How would you react if Arab tourists refused to pray with local imams?

I would not react positively It does not matter I would treat it as normal 1 2 3 4 5

13. From the list below, with persons from which regions would you react positively to forging marriage ties? a. European countries b. Arab countries c. Central Asian countries d. Iran e. Turkey f. Russia and the CIS g. None of them h. It does not matter i. Other ______

14. How would you rank the tourists listed below with regard to sharing the same moral values? (from 1 – close to 8 – far)

European countries 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Arab countries 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Turkey 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Russia 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

CIS coun- tries 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Central Asian 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 countries

Iran 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Other 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ____

CAP Fellows Paper 216 15 15. Sex of respondent: a. Female b. Male

16. Age: ...... age a. 18-29 age group; b. 30-35 age group; c. 36-45 age group; d. 46-55 age group; e. 56-65 age group; f. 66 and above

17. Marital status: a. Single b. Married c. Divorced d. Widowed e. Refuse to answer

18. Nationality? a. Azerbaijan b. Tatar c. Jew d. Russian e. Lazgin f. Tat g. Avar h. Talish i. Other

19. Education level? a. I did not have any education b. Elementary level c. Incomplete secondary d. Secondary e. Vocational education (special secondary) f. Incomplete higher g. Higher h. Scholar

20. Main occupation? a. Qualified professional (engineer, teacher, doctor, lawyer, computer programmer) b. Entrepreneur c. Middle or lower-level worker (secretary, nurse, etc.) d. Engaged in household production/housewife e. Worker f. Unemployed retiree g. Military or police officer h. Individual activities i. Farmer j. Student k. Unemployed l. Other (define)______CAP Fellows Paper 216 16 Notes ərəb turistlərin nəzarətə alınmasını istəyir,” Azadliq.info, September 1 State Statistics Committee of the 29, 2017, https://www.azadliq. Republic of Azerbaijan, “Number of info/203287.html (accessed August Arrived Tourists By Travel Agencies 24, 2018). and Tour Operators By Countries,” 13 Ibid. 2018, https://www.stat.gov.az/ 14 G. Raufqizi, “Ərəblər azərbaycanlı source/tourism/ (accessed Septem- qızlarla nikaha girirlər,” Modern.az, ber 18, 2018). September 2, 2016, http://modern. 2 Abraham Pizam and Ady Milman, az/az/news/110654#gsc.tab=0 “The Social Impacts of Tourism,” (accessed August 26, 2018). Industry and Environment 7, no. 1 15 Ibid. (1984): 11-14. 16 A. Zahra, “‘Ərəblər çox pintidirlər, 3 Richard Sharpley, Tourism, özlərini apara bilmirlər’—Deputat,” Tourists and Society (Huntingdon: AzVision, August 3, 2017, https:// ELM Publications, 1994). azvision.az/news/123160/-erebler- 4 R.W. Butler, “The Concept of a cox-pintidirler,-ozlerini-apara- Tourist Area Cycle of Evolution: bilmirler--deputat.html (accessed Implications for Management of October 16, 2018). Resources,” Canadian Geographer 17 “‘Tarqovı’da RƏZALƏT—Ərəb 24, no. 1 (1980): 5-12. turistlər azərbaycanlı bar qızları ilə,” 5 State Statistics Committee of the Milli.az, September 3, 2016, https:// Republic of Azerbaijan, “Number of news.milli.az/country/466446.html Arrived Tourists.” (accessed August 23, 2018). 6 Ibid. 18 “Fahişəliyin leqallaşdırılması 7 Driss Ridouani, “The yenidən gündəmə gəldi,” Sputnik.az, Representation of Arabs and December 9, 2016, https://sputnik. Muslims in Western Media,” RUTA az/life/20161209/408027729/ Communication 3 (2011): 1-15. yungul-exlaqli-qadin-qiymet.html 8 A. Rais, “Bakıya gələn ərəblər (accessed October 28, 2018). terror təhlükəsi yarada bilərmi?” 19 “Bakıda ərəb turistlərə qız Azinforum, 2016, https:// çağırmaq üçün yeni eskort azinforum.az/gundəm/bakiya- xidmətləri açıldı: ‘Bir zəngə iki gələn-ərəblər-terror-təhlukəsi- qız qapıya gəlir’ (FOTOFAKT),” yarada-bilərmi/ (accessed August Azxeber.com, March 14, 2017, 15, 2018). http://azxeber.com/az/bakida- 9 “Bakıya niyə belə çox ərəb ereb-turislere-qiz-cairmaq-ucu- turistlər gəlir?” Azadliq Radiosu, yeni-eskort-agentlikleri-ise- September 29, 2017, https:// basladi-bir-zenge-iki-qiz-qapiya- www.azadliq.org/a/ereb-turistler- gelir-arasdirma-fotolar/ (accessed namaz/28763723.html (accessed September 5, 2018). September 1, 2018) 20 Confidence interval is 95 10 “‘Ərəblər Azərbaycana bizim percent, alpha level set at 0.05 and qızlara görə gəlir’—Qara Qura,” corresponding Z score is ±1.96. YouTube video, 11:46, posted Sample size is 200. The interval by “Kanal13.az,” August 7, 2017, estimate of population proportion is https://www.youtube.com/ ±5 percent. watch?v=vYovJsX--Ic&t=422s (accessed September 3, 2018). 11 U. Ali, “Nazirlik: İrandan Azərbaycana turist sayı dəfələrlə artıb,” Oxu.az, June 26, 2017, https://oxu.az/economy/137241 (accessed September 2, 2018). 12 “Qafqaz Müsəlmanları İdarəsi

CAP Fellows Paper 216 17