Participation in Civil Society Organizations and Political Parties in Post-Communist Europe

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franziska Blomberg ◽  
Edina Szöcsik
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Civil Society Organizations

scholarly journals Non-Violent Resistance in Iranian Kurdistan After 1979

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
Allan Hassaniyan
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Significant Part ◽  
Iranian Revolution ◽  
City Councils ◽  
Important Challenge ◽  
The Creation ◽  
New Phase ◽  
The Revolution

This paper sheds light on the significance of the 1979 Iranian Revolution for the Iranian Kurdish movement, arguing that the Revolution provided Iranian Kurds with multifaceted opportunities as well as challenges. In the ensuing years, the Kurdish movement entered into a new phase of its rise. With the emergence of numerous civil society organizations and political parties, the Kurdish movement experienced a hitherto unprecedented growth and diversification of actors and organisations. Kurdish civil society flourished drastically, and a significant part of the Kurdish movement’s challenge to the newly-established government in Tehran was channelled through collective non-violent resistance. The creation of city councils (şoray şar) across Kurdistan constituted the first important challenge to the authority of the Provisional Revolutionary Government, whilst the mobilisation of collective non-violent resistance introduced new forms of resistance to the post-Revolutionary authoritarian state’s policies in Kurdistan.

Can Civil Society Organizations Solve the Crisis of Partisan Representation in Latin America?

2008 ◽  
Vol 50 (02) ◽  
pp. 1-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn Hochstetler ◽  
Elisabeth Jay Friedman
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Political Outcomes ◽  
Recent Representation

AbstractThis article takes up the question of whether civil society organizations (CSOs) can and do act as mechanisms of representation in times of party crisis. It looks at recent representation practices in Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil, three countries where political parties have experienced sharp crises after several decades of mixed reviews for their party systems. At such moments, any replacement of parties by CSOs should be especially apparent. This study concludes that the degree of crisis determines the extent that CSOs' representative functions replace partisan representation, at least in the short term. Where systems show signs of re-equilibration, CSOs offer alternative mechanisms through which citizens can influence political outcomes without seeking to replace parties. Where crisis is profound, CSOs claim some of the basic party functions but do not necessarily solve the problems of partisan representation.

scholarly journals Self-maintenance vs. goal attainment: drivers of mortality anxiety in organized civil society

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Bolleyer ◽  
Patricia Correa
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Interest Groups ◽  
Goal Attainment ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Organizational Infrastructure ◽  
Voluntary Membership ◽  
Active Interest ◽  
Service Oriented ◽  
The Uk

AbstractWhen do membership-based civil society organizations such as interest groups, political parties or service-oriented organizations consider their existence under threat? Distinguishing pressures of organizational self-maintenance from functional pressures of goal attainment, which all voluntary membership organizations – irrespective of their political or societal functions - need to reconcile, we propose a framework theorizing distinct categories of drivers of mortality anxiety in organized civil society. To test our hypotheses, we apply ordered logistic regression analysis to new data covering regionally and nationally active interest groups, service-oriented organizations and parties in Germany, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. We find that factors enhancing intraorganizational resilience thereby facilitating self-maintenance as well as exposure to different representation challenges complicating goal attainment have significant effects on mortality anxiety experienced by interest groups, political parties and service-oriented organizations alike – the former reducing, the latter enhancing it. Stressing the importance of a stable, durable organizational infrastructure with loyal and involved members to operate in increasingly volatile and diverse environments, our findings highlight the on-going importance of ‘traditional’ (sometimes considered ‘outdated’) organization-building.

Political Opposition in Civil Society: An Analysis of the Interactions of Secular and Religious Associations in Algeria and Jordan

2008 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 561-578 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Cavatorta ◽  
Azzam Elananza
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Coalition Building ◽  
Political Opposition ◽  
Authoritarian Rule ◽  
Religious Associations

AbstractThe lack of effective political parties is one of the dominant characteristics of modern Arab polities. The role of opposition to the authoritarian regimes is therefore left to a number of civil society organizations. This study examines the interactions among such groups in the context of the traditional transition paradigm and it analyses specifically how religious and secular organizations operate and interact. The empirical evidence shows that such groups, far from attempting any serious coalition-building to make common demands for democracy on the regime, have a competitive relationship because of their ideological differences and conflicting policy preferences. This strengthens authoritarian rule even in the absence of popular legitimacy. The article focuses its attention on Algeria and Jordan.

scholarly journals IS THERE CIVIL SOCIETY IN BANGLADESH?

2018 ◽  
pp. 36-38
Author(s):  
M. S. Islam
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Social Development ◽  
The State ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Historical Method ◽  
The Government ◽  
And Control ◽  
Local Levels

Сivil society is a group of people excluded from the government and the army and providing a counterbalance and control of the state at the national and local levels in the country. In Bangladesh, since independence in 1971, civil society organizations have been successfully involved in social development, but they have been criticized not to be able promote democracy in Bangladesh because of their support for political parties. Therefore, it impedes strong opposition to corruption and non-democratic activities in the country. In this article, using the historical method, the author analyzes the features and role of civil society in Bangladesh.

scholarly journals Domesticating Vigilantism in Ghana’s Fourth Republic: The Challenge Ahead

2020 ◽  
pp. 24-39
Author(s):  
George Asekere
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Political Party ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Regional Security ◽  
Fourth Republic ◽  
The Masses ◽  
First Time ◽  
Negative Acts

Political party vigilantism in Ghana has consistently been on the ascendency since the return to Constitutional rule in 1993. Their activities have usually been during and after elections across the country. By-elections in Atiwa, Akwatia, Chereponi, Talensi, Amenfi West and more recently Ayawaso West Wuogon, have all been marred by acts of violence. Ghana in 2017 recorded for the first time political party vigilante groups storming a courtroom in Kumasi and freeing some of their members standing trial after assaulting a regional security coordinator in the second largest region in the country – Ashanti region. The paper seeks to highlight the dangers inherent in this rather negative development which could reverse the gains Ghana has made in consolidating its democracy. The author relied on secondary data including relevant media publications and statements from civil society organizations, political parties and religious bodies on vigilantism in Ghana. Findings show that the seed of vigilantism has been sowed and allowed to be nurtured to the extent that the parties have taken uncompromising positions in ending the cancer because it borders on political power. A law has been passed but indications are that nothing much is changing. The National Peace Council has intervened yet there is no sign of lasting solution to the problem. The paper concludes that all stakeholders especially the civil society organizations and the religious bodies ought to be objective and bold to openly name and shame political parties whose members engage in negative acts of vigilantism and urge the masses to vote against such parties or else the phenomenon will persist and its ramifications will be disastrous.

scholarly journals Politicized Civil Society in Bangladesh: Case Study Analyses

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farhat Tasnim
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
Local Level ◽  
The State ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Typical Scenario

Although civil society in Bangladesh is recognized for its vibrant performance in social development, it is often criticized for its inability to ensure good governance and democracy. The aim of this paper is to point out the reasons for this failure of civil society. Through performing case studies upon five civil society organizations representing different sector and level of the civil society, the paper concludes that civil society organizations in Bangladesh are often politicized and co-opted by different political parties. In a typical scenario, civil society can provide a counterbalance or even monitor the state both at the national and local level. However, in Bangladesh, often the civil society organizations have compromised their autonomy and politicized themselves to certain political parties or political block. In such a vulnerable position, civil society can hardly play its expected role to ensure good governance and strengthen democracy.

scholarly journals Insufficiently diverse: The problem of nonviolent leverage and radicalization of Ukraine’s Maidan uprising, 2013–2014

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-215
Author(s):  
Volodymyr Ishchenko
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Labor Movement ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Unique Combination ◽  
Regional Diversity ◽  
Geographical Expansion ◽  
The Government ◽  
Social Organizational

The article explains the violent radicalization of the initially peaceful Maidan uprising in January 2014 as the result of failure to build efficient leverage against Viktor Yanukovych with nonviolent methods. Maidan lacked critical diversity of nonviolent tactics insofar as directly disruptive methods of noncooperation (e.g., strikes and boycott) remained small-scale and inefficient. The Maidan protest coalition primarily lacked social-organizational resources, i.e. authoritative civil society organizations and strong labor movement, for developing nonviolent leverage that was partially connected to gaps in ideological and regional diversity and partially to unfavorable structural conditions. However, radical nationalists actively participating in the protests possessed a unique combination of resources for initiating and diffusing efficient, coordinated, and strategic violence when it became legitimated by intensifying repressions and disillusionment in the incapacity of the oppositional political parties to propose an efficient strategy against the government. Violent radicalization facilitated geographical expansion of disruption via occupations of governmental buildings in western and central Ukrainian regions that the state was ultimately incapable of containing.

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