CIAO DATE: 09/2012
Volume: 14, Issue: 3
Summer 2012
Editor's Note (PDF)
İhsan Dağı
Another hot summer in the Middle East… Tens of thousands of Syrians continue to flee the violence inflicted upon them by Bashar Assad’s regime by seeking refuge in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon. Now desperate, the regime is using its airplanes to punish the opposition in Aleppo and other cities of Syria, and is threatening to use its chemical weapons.
Egypt at a Crossroads: The Presidential Elections and Their Aftermath (PDF)
Basheer Nafi
On June 17, Egypt ended the second and final round of the first presidential election since the removal of Mubarak and his regime in February 2011. This was a long-awaited appointment on the revolutionary calendar, as many Egyptians hoped that the election of a new president would conclude the long and drawn-out transitional period. Since the fall of Mubarak, Egypt has been ruled by the 19 generals of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, who were expected to hand over power to the new president. But the new president, Dr Muhammad Mursi, was the Muslim Brothers candidate. Against all odds, Mursi came first in the first round of elections, and went on to triumph against a powerful opponent in the second. To contain Mursi’s rise to the presidency and secure their share of power and influence, the military took a number of preemptive measure aimed at limiting the president’s power and authority. This is an examination into the presidential elections and their aftermath.
Egypt After Elections: Towards the Second Republic? (PDF)
Ahmed Abd Rabou
While Mohamed Morsi was being named as the fifth president of the Republic of Egypt and the first person to occupy the post since the January 25 revolution, a harsh battle was going on among different political actors to decide the political future of the nation. Elected on the basis of a complementary constitution created solely by a military that had grabbed power over a wide range of political and security issues, Morsi is torn now between both the constitutional and the revolutionary legitimacies and as a result he needs to make compromises to satisfy all actors. Will he be able to do so? Can he harness the military, the intelligence, the presidency, and other deep institutions in a country where his political affiliation was for six decades considered illegal? Will Morsi meet regular Egyptians? high expectations in the political, economic, and social spheres? These questions will be examined in this paper as part of an analysis of the implication of latest the presidential election in Egypt.
Turkey's EU Journey: What Next? (PDF)
Amanda Paul
Since EU membership negotiations began in 2005, Turkey has faced a range of obstacles, which have led to an impasse in the talks. As a consequence, domestic reforms have slowed, support in the country has dropped as Turks have become increasingly disillusioned with the process, and trust between the two partners has been eroded. Moreover, all this has happened at a time when Turkey has become increasingly self- confident and the EU is suffering from an economic and political malaise. With an economy much stronger than a number of EU member states, and with Ankara playing an increasingly important role on the global stage, many Turks believe that Turkey is better off staying outside the EU. In an effort to rebuild trust the EU has launched a “new positive agenda” that includes taking steps to implement visa liberalization, and a change in leadership in France has also increased hope in a improvement in relations.
The Positive Agenda and Beyond: A New Beginning for the EU-Turkey Relations? (PDF)
Cengiz Aktar
What do Turkey’s democratic transformation, its future EU membership and its growing position in the Middle East signify for a Europe which is experiencing severe difficulties in its relations with Islam? Answers to these questions will determine the EU’s future policy towards Turkey both as a candidate for membership and as a full partner of the EU and its Member States. Only after such a soul searching can a new era of genuine partnership start between Turkey and its future European partners. Recently the European Commission, in consultation with Turkish authorities, the European Council, as well as members of Turkish civil society, has launched a brand new initiative called the Positive Agenda. The objective is to revive the stalled relationship between the EU and Turkey by rebuilding confidence and normalizing the process. If successful the Positive Agenda could let the EU revisit its basic principles that have made recent enlargement rounds beneficial to the stability in Eastern Europe. To that end it may consider proposing to Turkey a clear date for accession without which no initiative could be conclusive and sustainable.
Turkey and the Arab Spring: Between Ethics and Self-Interest (PDF)
Ziya Öniş
Turkey redefined its geographical security environment over the last decade by deepening its engagement with neighboring regions, especially with the Middle East. The Arab spring, however, challenged not only the authoritarian regimes in the region but also Turkish foreign policy strategy. This strategy was based on cooperation with the existing regimes and did not prioritize the democracy promotion dimension of the issue. The upheavals in the Arab world, therefore, created a dilemma between ethics and self-interest in Turkish foreign policy. Amid the flux of geopolitical shifts in one of the world’s most unstable regions, Turkish foreign policy-making elites are attempting to reformulate their strategies to overcome this inherent dilemma. The central argument of the present paper is that Turkey could make a bigger and more constructive impact in the region by trying to take a more detached stand and through controlled activism. Thus, Turkey could take action through the formation of coalitions and in close alignments with the United States and Europe rather than basing its policies on a self-attributed unilateral pro-activism.
The "AKP Model" and Tunisia's al-Nahda: From Convergence to Competition? (PDF)
Stefano Maria Torelli
More than a year after the start of the Tunisian and Egyptian revolts, the question of how political Islam will return to regional politics is still open. This article explores the differences between the AKP’s Turkish model and the Tunisian al-Nahda movement. The Tunisian and the Turkish case studies are examined and compared on three levels. First of all the historical and structural contexts of the two countries and the relationship between the state and Islam are taken into account. Secondly the two models of political Islam that have developed in Tunisia and Turkey are analyzed. Finally, the two different views of the social, political and economic life proposed by al-Nahda in Tunisia and by the AKP in Turkey are compared. By examining the structural differences between these two contexts, and consequently by looking at the two distinctive ways of understanding Islam in public life, the article will also demonstrate how and why the “Turkish model”, as represented by the AKP, cannot be applied to Tunisia, although the al-Nahda has itself embarked on a process of “de-radicalization.”
Feriha Perekli
The “Turkish model,” in the form of a marriage between moderate Islam and democracy, the AKP’s electoral success and the economic growth witnessed in the last decade, has become the ultimate allure to which Arab Islamists aspire. This study focuses on the main premises of the Islamist PJD (Parti de la Justice et du Développement) of Morocco in order to understand what the “Turkish model” signified for them. By not confining the “Turkish model” solely to the AKP policies, but stretching it instead to the pre-AKP Islamist parties, the idea is to uncover which features of the “Turkish model” are espoused by the Moroccan Islamists and which features are not appreciated. After a brief introduction regarding the AKP’s understanding of secularism and how it differs from radical secularism, the emphasis is given to the PJD’s position on secularism. The following section explores lessons gathered by the PJD from Turkish parliamentarian Islamism in regards to engagement in political participation in the face of state repression. The last section examines the transition of the PJD’s discourse from being moralistic-based to policy- oriented, in which the Turkish experience once again formed a reference point.
Turkey, the US and the KRG: Moving Parts and the Geopolitical Realities (PDF)
Bill Park
In a remarkable turnaround, Turkey and the Kurdish Regional Government have recently emerged as close partners in a region increasingly characterized by uncertainty. They share a discomfort with the centralizing inclinations of Baghdad’s current government, a stake in seeing an end to the PKK’s campaign of violence, and a preference for greater unity between the various forces opposing the Assad regime in Syria. Their economies are increasingly interlocked, and the KRG’s emergence as a significant producer of energy is of benefit to both parties. Furthermore, the Ankara-Erbil relationship is one that serves Washington’s regional interests and perspectives well. However, serious differences remain. Iraqi Kurds still aspire to incorporate Kirkuk, and support greater autonomy for the Kurds of Turkey and Syria too. Turkey’s support for Erbil could unintentionally help produce greater Kurdish autonomy throughout the region. This article explores some of the possible ramifications of the burgeoning Ankara-Erbil relationship.
Democracy or Partition: Future Scenarios for the Kurds of Iraq (PDF)
Burak Bilgehan Özpek
Following the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, Kurdish politicians were involved in Baghdad governments, and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) became a federal unit with increased autonomy. Nevertheless, the KRG’s quest for keeping its autonomy was challenged after the withdrawal of US forces at the end of 2011. When US forces left Iraq, the Baghdad government, headed by Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, the leader of the Shiite State of Law Coalition, tried to centralize power. Unsurprisingly, Maliki’s centralization efforts have generated criticism and secessionist repercussions among Kurdish political circles. Furthermore, the Maliki government has violated the basic principles of power sharing, which is sine qua non to strengthen the confidence building processes in divided societies. Increasingly, the Kurds’ willingness to remain as part of Iraq considerably decreases as the Baghdad government consolidates its power and excludes the ethnic and religious groups from the political system.
Survival Strategies and Diplomatic Tools: The Kurdistan Region's Foreign Policy Outlook (PDF)
Shwan Zulal
The Kurds were late to the idea of nationalism in the 20th century, and when the borders were drawn in the region they became the largest stateless nation in the world, divided mainly between Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria. In an unlikely period when hope was fading, a Kurdistan regional government in Iraq was born as the former Iraqi regime was weakened after the first Gulf War and the subsequent no-fly zone. Two decades on, the region has become more assertive and been making many new friends, largely because of its newfound wealth, its influence in post-Saddam Iraq, and its stability when compared with the rest of Iraq. Oil has been a curse for the Kurds and Iraq as a whole, but now the Kurds appear to have found a way to use its resources for economic development, ensuring that the Kurdistan region remains stable and can establish itself as a self-governing and influential entity.
The EU's "Rhetorical Entrapment" in Enlargement Reconsidered: Why Hasn't It Worked for Turkey? (PDF)
Beken Saatçioğlu
This article analyzes the EU’s December 2004 Brussels decision regarding membership talks with Turkey. While the Brussels Council launched accession negotiations with Turkey, the adopted Framework for Negotiations formulated exceptionally stringent membership terms. This is a puzzle for normative institutionalism because prior to Brussels, Turkey had sufficiently complied with the EU’s liberal democratic membership criteria and systematically engaged in “rhetorical action” to “entrap” the EU in its liberal, inclusionary enlargement discourse. It is argued that the puzzle is explained by how the EU member states’ enlargement preferences played out in an intergovernmental bargaining context when it came to the inclusion of Turkey.
The Geopolitics of Support for Turkey's EU Accession: A View from Lithuania (PDF)
Azuolas Bagdonas
Why does Lithuania support Turkey’s accession to the European Union? The article analyzes some of the key domestic factors and the strategic thinking behind Lithuania’a continuous support. Domestically, the political culture of the foreign policy elite and the permissiveness of public opinion allow treating Turkey’s accession as a foreign policy issue, subject to cost-benefit calculations. Short-term calculations involve mutually advantageous deals between Turkey and Lithuania. Long-term assessments focus on how Turkey’s membership would affect global, regional, and intra- European dynamics of power relations. The article suggests that, in the context of lasting foreign policy objectives and concerns, Turkey is attractive to Lithuania primarily due to its geopolitical roles: its traditional transatlantic alignment, its function as a transit hub for energy supplies to Europe, and its potential to become a great power, engaging in regional competition with Russia.
A Millennium of Turkish Literature: A Concise History (PDF)
Michael McGaha
In this little book Talat Halman continues his lifelong campaign to acquaint the English-speaking public with Turkish literature. This introduction is intended for readers who know nothing about the subject and do not have the time or interest to read a more in-depth study. Inevitably, it occasionally bogs down into long lists of names, but on the whole it is surprisingly readable.
Reproducing Class: Education, Neoliberalism, and the Rise of the New Middle Class in Istanbul (PDF)
Amy Mills
Reproducing Class is a neatly focused examination of the transformative work of globalization in Istanbul through a focus on the family. With an in-depth study of the educational practices of the upper middle class, inspired by Bourdieu’s theories of cultural capital, Rutz and Balkan examine the ways in which this particular social group has developed strategies for negotiating the climate of increasing economic and political instability brought on by Turkey’s economic restructuring in the 1980s. Istanbul was a natural site for the study because the city has historically been a locus of economic and cultural transformation, something linked to the historic nature of its selective education. Istanbul elites’ global orientation is visible in the European influence in the private, foreign schools that are the most selective, and most desired, for the families in this study. This study of elites and their strategies of social reproduction is important because these same elites have long constituted a privileged class who themselves were the dominant agents of political and social change in Turkey. The fieldwork behind this project was conducted in various stages from 1990 to 1997 (with some follow-up interviews in 2006), and the major survey that provides foundational information regarding the educational, professional, and lifestyle characteristics of the study group was conducted in 1993. As such, this book provides a close analysis of a particular moment that subsequent research has found to be quite consequential for the largest questions Turkish society faces today in the new millennium.
Representations and Othering in Discourse: The Construction of Turkey in the EU Context (PDF)
Bill Park
Notwithstanding its somewhat misleading title, this book focuses exclusively on the representations of Turkey in the French debate about Turkey’s EU accession bid. Part I of the book focuses on the historical dimension and context of the French debate. Part II goes on to apply Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to this debate. CDA is concerned with “the relationship of language to other elements of social processes and power” (p.15), and draws on the contents of speeches, debates, media reports, and the like. The book adds to the growing literature on the role of identity in politics, and on how these are constructed. In particular, it explores the relationship between Self and Other in the French political discourse on Turkey.
Democracy in Turkey: The Impact of EU Political Conditionality (PDF)
William Hale
In the ever-increasing stream of academic studies of Turkey’s foreign policy, no aspect is better covered than Turkey’s relations with the European Union. In fact, this reviewer counted no less than twelve books on this subject published in the last five years, excluding this one! Furthermore, there are more books on Turkey- EU relations than all the other books on Turkish foreign policy all together. To justify another addition to an already long inventory, the author must believe he has something new to say, or at least is covering aspects not addressed by others. While Dr Usul’s book offers a useful summary of the literature on the role of external actors on democratisation in general, and the emerging policies of the EU in creating democratic conditionality for candidate states, his coverage of the Turkish experience adds little to the existing body of literature, and is out of date.
Harem Histories: Envisioning Places and Living Spaces (PDF)
Züleyha Çolak
Controversies over the realities of life in the harem have long been in need of a treatment that challenges the stereotypically narrow perception of the concept and provides the opportunity to see the harem’s multi-layered structure from a critical perspective. This collection of readings on the harem as a cultural and social institution provides such an approach. As stated by the editor, the emphasis of the book is “on the concept/institution/image of the harem as shaped and represented within the societies of the Middle East and North Africa, while . . . [contributing writers] also attend to its representational and political uses by visitors to and observers of these societies.”
Rise of Think Tanks: Foreign Policy and National Security Culture in Turkey (PDF)
Mehmet Yegin
In the recent decade, the number of think thanks in Turkey skyrocketed. Those numbers should not cause overexcitement since along with the serious think tanks many others consist solely of a catchy name and an internet website. Indeed, the think tank sector is a fledgling one in Turkey. The position of think tanks in the policymaking process has not yet been consolidated. They do not have billion dollar budgets as their counterparts in Europe and the Americas. Thus, they mostly do not have the ability to recruit fulltime researchers that allocate their priorities according to their research agenda. Along with these problems, their reputation is not as well established. Since the think tank culture is new in Turkey, some people are questioning their value and influence, while others are more cynical about their purpose and international links.
Stable Outside, Fragile Inside? Post-Soviet Statehood in Central Asia (PDF)
Rafis Abazov
Stable Outside, Fragile Inside? Post- Soviet Statehood in Central Asia brings together a team of authors who address the complex issues of building statehood and state institutions in the Central Asian region post-independence. For nearly 20 years, five states in the region have been engaged in the process of nation-state building and the building of “statehood”– a term the authors use extensively throughout the book. Yet, many expert scholars and foreign observers believe that the achieved statehood is quite weak and the political systems in the region remain volatile. The events in Kyrgyzstan in spring and summer 2010 perhaps best illustrate this fragility, though this edited volume was prepared for publication before the revolution and interethnic conflicts in the country formerly known as the “Island of Democracy.”
Iran's Foreign Policy in the Post-Soviet Era (PDF)
Luciano Zaccara
With this book, Shireen Hunter offers an exhaustive manual of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy. However, the excessive engagement in explaining each and every aspect of Iran’s Foreign Policy from the Islamic Revolution until today – and not focusing only on the post-Soviet era, as the title indicates – undermines the profound analysis of the topic and period.
Global Salafism: Islam's New Religious Movement (PDF)
Ermin Sinanović
This volume is a compilation of essays on various aspects of Salafism, written by leading scholars and experts, mostly European based, on this global phenomenon. Unlike many books written in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, this contribution does not directly dwell on the “why do they hate us” type of questions, nor is it primarily concerned with such issues as terrorism, radicalization, or counter-insurgency. Instead, it offers an in- depth study and understanding of global Salafism from both the macro and micro perspectives, which are aimed at arriving at a (g)rounded awareness of this particular strand of contemporary Islam.
Fergana Valley: The Heart of Central Asia (PDF)
Vişne Korkmaz
Fergana Valley: The Heart of Central Asia is a remarkable volume that offers a very comprehensive and interesting study on the political and social life of the Fergana Valley and the three countries that include parts of it, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as Central Asia in general. The book is based on two general assumptions that can be easily picked from its title and the introductory words of the editor, S.F. Starr. As he maintains at the beginning, the Fergana is assumed to be the heart of Central Asia and so the contributors believe that what happens there might affect the fate of the whole region. The second assumption is summarized also by Starr in the following phrase: “nothing about the Fergana Valley is simple” (p.ix).
Islam Without Extremes - A Muslim Case for Liberty (PDF)
Sarah Wagner
In Mustafa Akyol’s book Islam With- out Extremes, the author takes up the challenge to confront the many misconceptions and false portrayals of Islam as inherently conservative or violent by tracing back Islam’s history, the development of political Islam, and offering his own vision for a modern and more liberal political Islam. Throughout his writings, he is implicitly and explicitly guided by the question why a dominantly conservative brand of Islam is nowadays present in many governments or societies. Yet in the course of the book, he contrasts (formerly) authoritarian and secularist Turkey with other Islamic countries, concluding that Islam may not be the reason for authoritarianism but that other factors are at play. Drawing also on his own experiences, religious beliefs, and Turkish heritage, Akyol analyzes the emergence of political Islam by deconstructing the past, meaning he sheds light on both conservative (Traditionalists) and more progressive (Rationalists) movements within Islam and supplements his evaluation of the movements with a discussion on other factors, such as the environment (desert vs. arid regions), cultural context (tribalism) or economics (commerce). To support his arguments and interpretations, he employs quotes from the Qur’an, Hadiths, and explains the socio-cultural setting that shaped and influenced the development of (political) Islam. Akyol focuses on the origins of Islam in the first part of the book and asserts that they provided a foundation for a more liberal future, citing women’s rights (p.53) or the role of the individual (p.49). He then goes on to follow the blossoming of Islamic culture, trade and political life which all come to an end or faced stagnation from the 12th century (to a degree even earlier) on due to, among other reasons, the economic decline, and a lack of trade (pp.125-127).
Bülent Uçar
This book presents the results of the collaborative research project “Muslims in Europe and their Societies of Origin in Asia and Africa” which was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the “Social sciences in societal dialogue” initiative. The project, which received a total of €1.3 million in funding over a three-year period, was concluded in 2009. The book, which was edited by senior researcher Dietrich Reetz, summarizes the results of a series of subprojects that were presented to the public during the conference “Living Islam in Europe: Muslim Traditions in European Contexts” which took place be- tween May 5 and 7, 2009, in Berlin. Some of the most important results of these sub- projects were subsequently published in a single volume by the Waxmann publishing house. Numerous academics from the Centre for Modern Oriental Studies (ZMA) in Berlin, Hamburg University, the Europa-University Viadrina, and the Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg actively participated in the project. The subprojects investigated a) Muslim groups with roots in Asia and Africa in Europe, and b) the role of Islamic educational institutions in European countries.