THE INDIAN COMMUNITY IN BAHRAIN : LABOR MIGRATION IN A PLURAL SOCIETY

Abstract

Abstract : Indian migration to Bahrain has increased geometrically since the mid-1970s, due to the recruitment of Indians for employment in the rapidly expanding construction and service sectors of the economy. Rapid growth policies were, in part, distributive responses to political demands stemming from the illegitimacy of the local government and religious and ethnic tensions in society. These same demands entail the social control of the large foreign population that was the direct result of rapid growth. Indians are controlled and incorporated into Bahraini society through administrative regulation and personal sponsorship, which are extensions of the system of tribal authority. These institutional constraints, in turn, affect cultural expression and group formation among Indians. The thesis elaborates these arguments and examines the history and structure of the Indian community. Social organization reflects the complex patterns of cultural pluralism present in the population. However, only some cultural elements and ascriptive distinctions are expressed. This is attributed in part to the backgrounds of the migrants. Contextual restraints also channel the bases, forms, and functions of organization. Of the many caste and sect categories present in the population, only those with influence in the local society are organized. While Muslim and Hindu Indians are rarely organized, politically innocuous Christians organize freely. The national category is weakly organized. The principal bases of organization are language and region of origin, and the main functions are recreation and cultural expression—all politically neutral and socially acceptable. Voluntary associations and other institutions do not effectively articulate or represent the political and economic interests of Indians. Exploitation is common, and, in general, the position of Indians has declined as their numbers have increased. The thesis discusses the relative position of other foreign groups, the nature of Bahraini attitudes toward foreigners, and the general effects of political, economic, social, and cultural change on processes of pluralism in society.