The limits of instrumentalizing disorder: Reassessing the neopatrimonial perspective in the Central African Republic

2018 ◽  
Vol 118 (471) ◽  
pp. 307-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lotje de Vries ◽  
Andreas Mehler

Abstract Assumptions about the political economy of African states predominantly centre on a dominant elite’s ability to stabilize power. A key assertion is that elites maintain clientelistic networks of rents and redistribution and in turn extend their control over their respective territories by instrumentalizing disorder. We challenge the assumption that disorder plays such a functional role. Largely drawing on data and fieldwork from the Central African Republic, we demonstrate the profoundly unproductive consequences of disorder that tend to be overlooked through current approaches to the political economy of African countries. We investigate how disorder impacts three dimensions of effective politics of domination: a set of elite groups that structure power in society, a political economy that redistributes its benefits through formal and informal networks, and the existence of functional centre–periphery ties across a territory. The article shows with regard to the Central African Republic that disorder has produced a small political elite that is largely unable to stabilize its power basis. We argue that certain African states are subject to forms of disorder that political elites cannot turn into an advantage.

Urban History ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 568-588
Author(s):  
Frederik Buylaert ◽  
Jelten Baguet ◽  
Janna Everaert

AbstractThis article provides a comparative analysis of four large towns in the Southern Low Countries between c. 1350 and c. 1550. Combining the data on Ghent, Bruges and Antwerp – each of which is discussed in greater detail in the articles in this special section – with recent research on Bruges, the authors argue against the historiographical trend in which the political history of late medieval towns is supposedly dominated by a trend towards oligarchy. Rather than a closure of the ruling class, the four towns show a high turnover in the social composition of the political elite, and a consistent trend towards aristocracy, in which an increasingly large number of aldermen enjoyed noble status. The intensity of these trends differed from town to town, and was tied to different institutional configurations as well as different economic and political developments in each of the four towns.


2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takaaki Masaki

Abstract:This article utilizes a newly available dataset on the geographical distribution of development projects in Zambia to test whether electoral incentives shape aid allocation at the subnational level. Based on this dataset, it argues that when political elites have limited information to target distributive goods specifically to swing voters, they allocate more donor projects to districts where opposition to the incumbent is strong, as opposed to districts where the incumbent enjoys greater popularity.


2009 ◽  
Vol 53 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 290-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce Masters Masters*

AbstractThe return of Ottoman rule to Aleppo in 1840 corresponded with the inauguration of the reform era (1839-76). Although the central Ottoman state could not have foreseen the outcome, these political reforms undermined its economic sovereignty in two key areas. The Ottoman land reform law of 1858 and schemes to settle the Bedouin in northern Syria enabled Aleppo’s political elite to scramble for the steppe lands of the Euphrates valley and ultimately paved the way for European capitalists to exploit the agricultural resources of the region. Additionally, attempts to control the abuses of the capitulatory system provoked a marked decline in the relative fortunes of the city’s traditional commercial elite, with much of the internal regional trade shifting into the hands of European merchants.Le retour des Ottomans à Alep en 1840 correspond au début de la période de réformes (1839-1876). Bien que l’état central ottoman n’eût pas pu prévoir leurs conséquences, ces réformes politiques ont miné sa souveraineté économique dans deux régions clé. Le code foncier ottomane de 1858 et les projets visant à la sédentarisation des Bédouins dans la Syrie du Nord ont permis à l’élite politique d’Alep une ruée vers les steppes de la vallée de l’Euphrate et ont fini par préparer le chemin aux capitalistes européens qui sont venus exploiter les ressources agricoles de la région. En outre, les tentatives d’obtenir le contrôle des abus du système capitulaire ont provoqué le déclin marqué des fortunes concernées de l’élite commerciale traditionnelle car une grande partie du commerce intérieure régio-nale tombait dans les mains des négociants européens.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maher Hamoud

This article aims at critically analysing the hegemony of Egypt’s business elite and the private press they own following Mubarak’s fall. Hegemony requires the exercise of power to maintain consent under changing conditions such as the 2011 uprising and the 2013 military coup. This study answers the question of “why and how Egypt’s business elite controls the post-Mubarak press?”. Situated within the interdisciplinary domain of “critical political economy of communication”, this article focuses on the two most popular privately-owned newspapers al-Masry al-Youm and al-Watan. Interviews with high-profile sources have been conducted and embedded into the research. Findings show that the Egyptian private press, particularly in the post-Mubarak era, is closely controlled by the business elite in favour of their interests, and indirectly in favour of the political elite – whether civilian or military. The sector’s hegemonic position was briefly shaken by the 2011 uprising, then quickly maintained and reinforced before the 2013 coup.


2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 819
Author(s):  
Durmuş Ali Arslan ◽  
Ahmet Çağrıcı ◽  
Mustafa Albayrak

Political parties and political elites are the basic elements of the democratic system. These two political and social phenomena play a decisive role in shaping the political and social structure of the country as well as in the shaping of individual political attitudes and behaviour. The most common forms of social political organization in contemporary societies are political parties. In this respect, political parties can be shortly defined as political organizations organized around the ideal of playing a decisive role in political and social life and whose ultimate goals are to reach power. In democratic societies, political parties are the most important means of political socialization and participation in the political process.In the western societies, the elite word that has been used in daily life since the 17th century. Its sociological meaning is rather different than daily life meaning. In essence, the elite can be defined as individuals who have institutional power, are in a position to control social resources, have the ability to directly or indirectly influence the decision-making process, and can fulfill their wishes and objectives in spite of their opponents. There are many elite groups in society. Political elites also form one of the most active elite groups in the social structure. Deputies and political leaders are also the most basic components of this elite group.The Democratic Party is one of the most important political parties of Turkish political life. This party holds the privilege of being the most important representative of the right of center-right politics in Turkey; Adnan Menderes also has a privileged political identity in Turkey as being the most important leader of the center-right politics tradition. Even the Democratic Party is regarded as a representative of the transition to multi-party political life in Turkey. The Democratic Party, legendary leader Adnan Menderes and the Democratic Party MPs, identified with the name party, have not only remained the pioneers of multi-party democratic life in the country; With the transition to multi-party life, they have played a decisive role in Turkey's change process and in the social and political life of the country.The Democratic Party as a political institution and Adnan Menderes, a political elite-leader have to be well known in order to understand and explain the political-social change and transformation that Turkey has experienced since about three quarters of a century. It was aimed to sociologically examine Adnan Menderes as an important political leader and political elite, and the Democratic Party, one of the most important political institutions of Turkish political life, from a historical perspective. The research is mainly designed as a descriptive sociological study type. ÖzetSiyasi partiler ve siyasi elitler, demokratik sistemin en temel unsurlarındandır. Bu iki siyasal ve toplumsal olgu, bireylerin siyasi tutum ve davranışlarının şekillenmesinde de olduğu kadar ülkenin siyasi ve toplumsal yapısının şekillenmesinde de belirleyici rol oynar. Günümüz toplumlarında en yaygın toplumsal siyasal örgütlenme biçimi siyasi partilerdir. Bu yönüyle siyasi partiler kısaca, siyasal ve toplumsal hayatta belirleyici rol oynamak ideali etrafında örgütlenmiş ve nihai hedefleri iktidara ulaşmak olan siyasi örgütler olarak tanımlanabilir. Demokratik toplumlarda siyasi partiler, en önemli siyasi sosyalizasyon ve siyasal sürece katılım araçlarıdır.Batı toplumlarında, 17. yüzyıldan bu yana günlük dilde kullanılmaya başlanan elit sözcüğü ise sosyolojik olarak günlük dilde kullanıldığında daha farklı anlam ifade eder. Çok öz olarak elit, kurumsal iktidara sahip, toplumsal kaynakları kontrol edebilecek konumda bulunan, karar verme sürecini doğrudan veya dolayı olarak ciddi bir şekilde etkileme yeteneğine sahip, karşıtlarına rağmen istek ve amaçlarını gerçekleştirebilen birey(ler) olarak tanımlanabilir. Toplumda çok sayıda elit grubu vardır. Siyasi elitler de toplumsal yapı içindeki, en etkin elit gruplarından birini oluştururlar. Milletvekilleri ve siyasi liderler de bu elit grubunun en temel bileşenlerini oluştururlar.Demokrat Parti (DP), Türk siyasal hayatının en önemli siyasi partilerinden biri konumundadır. Bu parti Türkiye’de merkez sağ siyaset geleneğinin, Cumhuriyet döneminde ilk ve önemli temsilcisi olma ayrıcalığını elinden tutarken; lideri Türkiye’de merkez sağ siyaset geleneğini temsil eden önemli bir siyasal elittir. Dahası Demokrat Parti, Türkiye’de çok partili siyasi yaşama geçişin temsilcisi olarak da kabul edilir. Demokrat Parti, ismi partisi ile özdeşleşmiş efsanevi lideri Adnan Menderes ve Demokrat Parti milletvekilleri, yalnızca ülkede çok partili demokratik hayatın öncü isimleri olmakla kalmamışlar; çok partili yaşama geçişle birlikte Türkiye’nin değişim sürecine yön vermiş ve ülkenin toplumsal-siyasal hayatında belirleyici rol oynamışlardır.Bir siyasal kurum olarak Demokrat Parti’yi ve bir siyasi elit-lider olarak Adnan Menderes’i iyi anlamadan, Türkiye’nin yaklaşık üççeyrek asırdan beridir yaşadığı siyasal - toplumsal değişim ve dönüşümü anlamlandırmak ve açıklamak mümkün değildir. Bu realiteden yola çıkarak çalışmada, önemli bir siyasi lider ve bir siyasi elit olarak Adnan Menderes ile Türk siyasal yaşamının önemli siyasi kurumlarından biri olan Demokrat Parti’nin, tarihsel bir perspektiften, sosyolojik olarak incelenmesi hedeflenmiştir. Araştırma ağırlıklı olarak betimleyici - deskriptif bir sosyolojik çalışma türünde tasarlanmıştır.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 68-87
Author(s):  
Ju. V. Roknifard

This paper analyzes the Islam’s impact on the Malaysian politics. Islam as an instrument of Malaysia’s foreign policy has been used by the political elite of the state for decades. Observers note the Islamization of the country’s foreign policy, especially during the premiership of Najib Razak (2008– 2018). However, the trend towards Islamization can be traced back to the moment Malaysia gained independence from Great Britain in 1957 and especially during the premiership of Mahathir Mohamad (1981–2003). The formation of such a foreign policy of Malaysia took place against the background of the Islamization of the political and social environment within the country, which, in turn, was the result of an internal political struggle. Thus, the projection of Malaysia’s identity into the outside world and the foreign policy corresponding to this identity was often motivated by the need to retain or attract the support of the malay-muslim majority in the domestic political arena. Since many of the issues raised in the article relate to identity both at the national and global level, a constructivist paradigm is used to conceptualize Malaysia’s foreign policy with a special emphasis on the identity of states. Particularly important in this process is the formation of domestic and foreign policy discourse. Malaysia’s Islamic identity is viewed externally in three dimensions: the Sunni state, the activist state in the Islamic world and the standard of moderate Islam. Consideration of these dimensions reveals quite obvious contradictions between them, as well as between rhetoric and real politics.


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Siti Mahmudah

Abstract. This study examines the origin,  existence, and development of Islamism group in Indonesia since pre-independence until now. Islamism is a group of Muslims who are obedient to the teachings of Islam, but they are very extreme, literal,  static and rigid in understanding the teachings of Islam (Alquran), and reject to the other Muslims who disagree with Islamic ideology that they have embraced. The group of Islamism existed and emerged in Indonesia, it was not apart from the influence of the spread of Islamic teachings from al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun that was founded by Hasan al-Banna in Egypt in 1928. The group of Islamism was the first Muslim group before the other Muslim groups in Indonesia; such as the Pos-Islamism group, the Liberal Islam Group, the Moderate Islamic Group, the Progressive Islam Group. The group of Islamism in Indonesia—as al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun in Egypt who aspires to spread the ideology of Islam for all of the world—seeks  to spread  their ideology with the movement of "creeping up" for all of the area in Indonesian, since before independence until now. Islamist groups succeeded in spreading Islam and Sharia through mosques, schools, ta'lim majlis. The existence and development of Islamist groups in Indonesia today are flattered. They have very much support from the political elite. However, they are not aware that their hands are being borrowed or exploited by political elites to seize or get the  power in irrational ways. Keywords: Islamism, Emergence, Existence, Development, Indonesia. Abstrak. Studi ini membahas tentang asal usul, eksistensi dan perkembangan kelompok Islamisme di Indonesia sejak pra-kemerdekaan sampai sekarang. Kelompok Islamisme adalah kumpulan Muslim yang patuh terhadap ajaran Islam, namun mereka sangat ekstrem, literal, statis dan kaku dalam memahami ajaran Islam (Alquran), serta menolak golongan Muslim lain yang berbeda dengan faham Islam yang sudah mereka anut. Kelompok Islamisme ada dan muncul di Indonesia tidak terlepas dari pengaruh penyebaran ajaran Islam ala  al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun yang didirikan oleh Hasan al-Banna di Mesir pada tahun 1928. Kelompok Islamisme merupakan kelompok Muslim yang pertama ada sebelum adanya kelompok-kelompok Muslim lain di Indonesia; seperti kelompok Pos-Islamisme, Kelompok Islam Liberal, Kelompok Islam Moderat, Kelompok Islam Progresif. Kelompok Islamisme di Indonesia –sebagaimana al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun di Mesir yang bercita-cita menyebarkan faham berislam ke seluruh dunia—berupaya menyebarkan paham Islamisme dengan gerakan “merayap” ke seluruh bumi Indonesia sejak sebelum Indonesia merdeka sampai sekarang. Kelompok Islamisme berhasil menyebarkan faham Islam dan Syariah melalui, antara lain:  masjid-masjid, sekolah-sekolah, majelis-majelis taklim. Eksistensi dan perkembangan kelompok-kelompok Islamisme di Indonesia zaman ini sedang merasa tersanjung, karena banyak mendapat dukungan dari para elit politik. Namun sebaliknya, mereka tidak sadar bahwa tangan-tangan mereka sedang dipinjam atau pun dimanfaatkan oleh para elit politik untuk merebut atau pun mendapatkan sebuah kekuasaan dengan cara-cara yang tidak rasional. Kata Kunci: Islamisme, Eksistensi, Kemunculan,  Perkembangan, Indonesia.


Author(s):  
A. I. Podberezkin ◽  
M. V. Kharkevich

Abstract: The article discusses the trend of securitization of the political elite as a reaction to strengthening of coercive influence upon these elites in terms of consolidation and strengthening of confrontation between different civilizations. The authors argue that the main object of the coercive influence in world politics, which ensures stable control of regime change and a managed transit is the political elite rather than civil society. The assumption then is that the main object of the security and the securitization in world politics is to be political elite. Securitization of the political elite can be seen as a necessary condition for ensuring the sovereignty at the level of local human civilization. The conclusion of this paper is, first, the assessment of the political elite as the main object of securitization in a clash of civilizations. Secondly, the removal of contradictions between the securitization of political elites and democracy at the scale of human civilizations; third, underlining the need to take into account the vital importance of the political elite in the strategic planning and development of long-term forecasting of international relations development.


2020 ◽  
pp. 001139212091309
Author(s):  
Ian Carrillo

Theories of the environmental state – treadmill of production and ecological modernization – have dominated discussion of the political economy of environmental change. While the former contends that the state’s mitigation of labor–capital relations engenders ecological instability, the latter posits that the state’s use of business-friendly incentives can goad producers and consumers to adopt sustainable practices. However, these theories largely focus on dynamics related to class, labor, and markets, and thus overlook the role that race and racism play in the political economy. In contrast, this article argues that racial politics are not peripheral influences, but rather are central to the political economy in which environmental policy formation occurs. The author advances the argument with the concept of the racial fix, which refers to the idea that race and racism are mechanisms for circumventing barriers that slow the treadmill of production. Synthesizing long-standing and emerging research, the author outlines three dimensions – spatial, political, and cognitive – that constitute the racial fix. Overall, this article not only shows how race and racism serve as building blocks for environmental state formation, but also articulates new theoretical paths for studying the relationship between race and environment.


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