scholarly journals Why have Anti-Offshore Tin Mining Movements Failed in Bangka but Succeeded in East Belitung? Political Opportunity Structures and Political Settlement in the Context of Indonesia's Democratic Future

PCD Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-227
Author(s):  
Eko Bagus Sholihin
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Economic Resources ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Political Opportunities ◽  
Political Access ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures ◽  
Important Position ◽  
Political Settlement

Civil society movements have occupied an important position in Indonesia's democratisation. This article seeks to determine why anti-offshore tin mining movements in the post-authoritarian era failed in Bangka but succeeded in East Belitung, an area where tin mining has historically been important. By analysing the political opportunity structures and political settlement mechanisms involved, this article argues, first, that the movement's success in East Belitung can be attributed to open political access, fragmentation within elite circles, and alliances with influential elites; such political opportunities were not available in Bangka. Second, in Bangka, the local bourgeoisie and brokers used clientelistic approaches in their political settlement and prevented resistance by co-opting local communities within the extraction chain. In East Belitung, meanwhile, such efforts were stymied by the lack of local bourgeoisie, the strength of environmental awareness, and the availability of alternative economic resources. It may thus be concluded that, while a clientelistic approach to settlement may prevent conflict, it also limits the political participation of civil society movements—an important element of democracy.

Strategies for Survival: Human Rights Organizations’ Responses to the Closing of Political Opportunity Structures in Hungary

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-139
Author(s):  
Márton Gerő ◽  
Pál Susánszky ◽  
Ákos Kopper ◽  
Gergely Tóth
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Political Opportunities ◽  
Human Rights Organizations ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures

In the last decade, there has been a tendency for governments to impose tighter restrictions on civil society organizations, especially those promoting democracy and human rights. In this study, we examine how human rights organizations are responding to the increasingly hostile political environment in Hungary. The expanding limits on civil society organizations is usually discussed within a framework labelled as the closing space for civil society, which emphasizes the legislation and governmental actions directly attacking civil society organizations. Despite the impression that the restrictions threaten the existence of these organizations, a closer examination reveals that well-established organizations are capable of developing coping strategies to survive. To fully understand how these strategies are developed, we need to supplement this framework with the theory of political opportunity structures. This broader theoretical perspective examines the openness of decision-making processes for non-ruling actors and includes the role of perceptions in the examination of reactions to changes in the opportunity structure. As our study shows, perceptions about the social environment have a crucial role in understanding the strategies of human rights organizations. Examining the reactions of ten organizations, primarily using the method of organizational interviews, we show that rather than direct restrictions attacking civil society organizations, the major factor shaping their strategies is the closing of political opportunities. As a consequence of an almost total closure of decision-making mechanisms, they have been changing their activities from focusing on their roles as experts and working with state institutions to emphasizing social embeddedness, community building and raising awareness.

Occupy Movement, Religion and Social Formations

2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-24
Author(s):  
Matt Sheedy
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Religious Communities ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Social Formation ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Occupy Movement ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures

The Occupy movement was an unprecedented social formation that spread to approximate 82 countries around the globe in the fall of 2011 via social media through the use of myths, symbols and rituals that were performed in public space and quickly drew widespread mainstream attention. In this paper I argue that the movement offers a unique instance of how discourse functions in the construction of society and I show how the shared discourses of Occupy were taken-up and shaped in relation to the political opportunity structures and interests of those involved based on my own fieldwork at Occupy Winnipeg. I also argue that the Occupy movement provides an example of how we might substantively attempt to classify “religion” by looking at how it embodied certain metaphysical claims while contrasting it with the beliefs and practices of more conventionally defined “religious” communities.

scholarly journals It's Not Just Structural: Social Movements are not Homogenous Responses to Structural Features, but Networks shaped by Organisational Strategies and Status

2009 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Saunders
Keyword(s):  
Structural Features ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Government Institutions ◽  
Political Opportunities ◽  
The Status ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Different Characteristics ◽  
Environmental Organisation

Political opportunity structures are often used to explain differences in the characteristics of movements in different countries on the basis of the national polity in which they exist. However, the approach has a number of weaknesses that are outlined in this article. The article especially stresses the fact that such broad-brush approaches to political opportunity structures fail to account for the different characteristics of movement organisations within the same polity. The article therefore recommends using a more fine-tuned approach to political opportunities, taking into account that the strategies and status of organisations affect the real political opportunities they face. This fine-tuned approach is used to predict how the status and strategy of environmental organisations might influence the extent to which different types of environmental organisations in the UK network with one-another. We find that organisations that face an open polity - those with a moderate action repertoire and a constructive relationship with government institutions - tend not to cooperate with those with a radical action repertoire and negative relations with government institutions. On the other hand, those that vary their action repertoires, and which have variable status according to the issues involved or campaign targets, have a much broader range of network links with other types of organisations. Thus, there is much more diversity in types of environmental organisation in the UK than the broad-brush to political opportunity structures would account for. Nonetheless, it does seem that environmental organisations are aware of how their own behaviours might influence (non-structural) political opportunities, and that they mould their strategies and networking patterns around this awareness.

scholarly journals Transnational Relations and Activism in International Relations: Debates and Consensus in Literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 142
Author(s):  
Ani W. Soetjipto ◽  
Arivia Tri Dara Yuliestiana
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Transnational Activism ◽  
Transnational Advocacy ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Transnational Relations ◽  
Norm Diffusion ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures

This article explores the concepts of transnational relations and activism in the study of International Relations, specifically the role of civil society in transnational advocacy. It is fascinating to discuss the role of civil society when state actors are no longer the most prominent actors in International Relations studies in the midst of globalisation. Some articles related to transnational relations have been written by the scholars of International Relations such as Thomas Risse-Kappen (1995). Even so, one of the most sophisticated concepts of transnational activism was introduced by Margaret Keck and Kathryn Sikkink (1998), in Activists Beyond Borders: Advocacy Networks in International Politics. In order to fully understand transnational activism in the study of International Relations, a divergent perspective can be applied. In this article, the authors aim to examine the recent debates and its counternarratives in International Relations through critical and constructivism lenses. Firstly, this article would describe the concepts of transnationalism and transnational activism in the study of International Relations (state of the art). Secondly, it would be a discussion in the literature on transnationalism and transnational activism which cover themes about norm diffusion, the ‘boomerang pattern’, political opportunity structures and accountability and effectiveness. The last part is conclusion that can be drawn from this consensus and debates in the concept of transnational activism.

scholarly journals Welfare States, Political Opportunities, and the Mobilization of the Unemployed: A Cross-National Analysis

2008 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 297-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Giugni
Keyword(s):  
Original Data ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Welfare States ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Political Field ◽  
Political Opportunities ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures ◽  
National Analysis ◽  
The Unemployed

This article follows a revised political opportunity approach to argue that mobilization of underprivileged groups is constrained by the political opportunity structures provided by the institutional context of the country in which they act. Contrary to traditional opportunity theories, it is suggested that their mobilization also depends on a set of opportunities specific to the political or issue field most directly addressed by their claims. I propose to look for these specific opportunities in the institutional approaches to unemployment. I further maintain that such opportunities stem largely from the ways in which a given political or issue field is collectively defined. I apply a theoretical framework stressing both general and specific opportunities as well as the discursive context of claim making to original data on claim making in the unemployment political field in six European countries for the 1995-2002 period. The findings provide some support for the proposed theoretical framework, but also point to its shortcomings, especially in the lack of attention to economic factors.

The Ulama: Pragmatism and Political Acquiescence

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walid Jumblatt Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
The Political ◽  
Thought Processes ◽  
Costs And Benefits ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures

This chapter investigates the position of the ulama within the political system in Singapore. It interrogates the various cleavages amongst the ulama, the strategies they undertake to further causes which they deem important, the issues they shun, and the thought processes behind their decisions. The ulama, just like other actors, are pragmatic creatures, fully cognizant of the costs and benefits of their actions. Different ulama prioritize various goals, depending on their own worldviews and ranking of what is important to them. As a result, the ‘pragmatic alim’ is able to operate within the political opportunity structures in an attempt to maximize his/her gains, while being aware of what has to be given up in order to achieve those objectives.

Cycles of Accumulation, Cycles of Struggle: The Zapatista Revolt in World-Systemic Perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (4-5) ◽  
pp. 667-681
Author(s):  
Christopher Gunderson
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Phase Shifts ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Expansion Phase ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
History Of ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures

The 1994 Zapatista uprising was not the first indigenous revolt in the territory known today as Chiapas, Mexico. Adopting insights from Cox and Nilsen and examining the history of three indigenous revolts in Chiapas within the framework of Arrighi’s “Systemic Cycles of Accumulation” (SCAs), this study considers the effects of such cycles on the timing of indigenous revolts. It finds a correlation between the initiation of the “financial expansion phase” of SCAs and outbreaks of indigenous revolt in Chiapas. Specifying the linkages between each SCA and developments in Chiapas, the study attributes this correlation to the effects of these phase shifts on the political opportunity structures of the indigenous communities. The implications of these findings for a theory of the timing of episodes of collective action generally is discussed.

scholarly journals Democratic Breakthrough in Malaysia – Political Opportunities and the Role of Bersih

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 109-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chan Tsu Chong
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Civic Participation ◽  
Political Context ◽  
Electoral Reform ◽  
Coalition Building ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Electoral Fraud ◽  
Political Opportunities

The 14th general election (GE14) in Malaysia saw a democratic breakthrough as the Barisan Nasional's uninterrupted rule since independence finally came to an end. This article seeks to analyse the role and impact of the Bersih movement in GE14 by examining the political context of GE14 via three key political opportunities: the 1MDB scandal; electoral fraud and manipulation; and the re-delineation of electoral boundaries. Bersih's core campaigns, actions, and strategies in response to these political opportunities will be analysed based on information and insights generated from the author's involvement as a member of Bersih's secretariat. The political opportunity resulting from the 1MDB scandal gave room for civil society and the opposition to go on the offensive; Bersih took the lead and continued the tradition of coalition-building between civil society and opposition forces, and brought focus to cross-ethnic issues. At the same time, Bersih held firm in its agenda for electoral reform by continuing to consistently monitor and mobilise against electoral fraud and manipulation leading up to GE14. Via the re-delineation exercise, it mobilised and coordinated resistance by increasing civic participation in the constitutional process and created new areas of contestation via the judiciary. In parallel, Bersih's efforts and strategies towards these political opportunities had created conditions that contributed towards Pakatan Harapan's victory in GE14.

scholarly journals How Scandals Act as Catalysts of Fringe Stakeholders’ Contentious Actions Against Multinational Corporations

2018 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thibault Daudigeos ◽  
Thomas Roulet ◽  
Bertrand Valiorgue
Keyword(s):  
Multinational Corporations ◽  
The Political ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Political Opportunity ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Corporate Scandals ◽  
Single Target ◽  
Political Opportunity Structures ◽  
Corporate Elites

In this article, we build on the stakeholder-politics literature to investigate how corporate scandals transform political contexts and give impetus to the contentious movements of fringe stakeholders against multinational corporations (MNCs). Based on Adut’s scandal theory, we flesh out three scandal-related processes that directly affect political-opportunity structures (POSs) and the generation of social movements against MNCs: convergence of contention toward a single target, publicization of deviant practices, and contagion to other organizations. These processes reduce the obstacles to collective actions by fringe stakeholders by pushing corporate elites to be more sensitive to their claims, by decreasing MNCs’ capability to repress contentious movements, by forcing the targeted MNCs to formalize a policy to monitor and eradicate the controversial practices, and by helping fringe stakeholders find internal and external allies to support their claims. This conceptual model of scandals as catalysts of contentious actions contributes to a better understanding of stakeholder politics by unveiling the role of the political context in the coordination of fringe stakeholders.

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