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Begin New Search Content Type Journal Article Journal Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations

21. Transformation of Turkish Foreign Policy Toward the Middle East : From Non-Involvement to a Leading Role

Author:
Mustafa Yetim and Cengiz Dinc
Publication Date:
05-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
Turkey's foreign policy toward the Middle East has gone through a radical change over the decades. Earlier periods were marked by almost a complete neglect. However, since Özal, Turkey's interest toward the region has constantly increased. Especially in the last few years of the AKP government, in line with the new foreign policy vision, the Middle East has started to occupy a central place in Turkish foreign policy. In this article, underlying factors of this changing policy and newly envisioned regional role for Turkey will be analyzed. Turkey now pursues a pro-active and multidimensional foreign policy; and the Middle East seems to be the most suitable area for Turkey to implement a successful foreign policy based upon its new parameters.
Topic:
Foreign Policy
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Israel

22. The Trials and Tribulations of Constitutionalism and the Constitution Making Process in Zimbabwe

Author:
Jephias Mapuva
Publication Date:
05-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
Constitutionalism in Zimbabwe has been characterised by controversy with citizens getting a raw deal. The colonial era was characterised by deprivation of basic rights and civil liberties. A plethora of constitutions were established to try and create a semblance of black representativity. The post-colonial era was informed by governance structures provided by the Lancaster House Constitutional document which was a surrender document that brought the protracted liberation struggle to an end. The vagaries of the Lancaster House Constitution lived to haunt even those who fought for the country, leading to an expression of dissatisfaction with its contents. After successive indecisive elections conducted under the Lancaster House Constitution, the political and economic crises of 2008 led to an impasse and the signing of the Global Political Agreement which gave birth to the Inclusive Government, a transitional arrangement during which a new constitutional draft would be written and put to a referendum. This paper will explore the general theory of constitutions from the Aristotelian classical perspective. Thereafter the paper will also provide an overview of the concept of constitutionalism, followed by the case of Zimbabwe from the colonial era and the various constitutional documents that existed. The recent political development and the role of civil society herein represented by the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) will be presented and how the civic group has articulated the constitution reform debate since its inception in 1997.
Political Geography:
Zimbabwe

23. Critical Security in the 21st Century: The Resonating Voices of Thucydides

Author:
James Rochlin
Publication Date:
05-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
What makes Thucydides' work so incredibly alive and relevant for global politics today is the analytic of how the story is told. Three points stand out in this regard. First, the The Peloponnesian War features a momentous epistemological jump. One facet of this, among so many, is that divinity is swept aside and humans become the masters of their own destiny. Next, despite its recent reputation for being a classic text of Realism, Thucydides' work is not subject to the stultifying shackles of ideological boundaries. It is vastly eclectic and non-doctrinaire. Finally, the unraveling of the 27-year epic war is told through a multitude of competing voices that evokes the reader to interpret the text's ultimate meaning. It is this element that injects so much life into the text, since rather than being subjected to the dictation of 'truth' through an author's monologue, the reader must assume the role of judge and truth producer. These themes of epistemic rupture, human agency, eclecticism and situated truth are vital in relation to analyzing the current juncture in world politics, especially regarding the opportunities and perils of navigating through a sweeping transformation of the global constellation of power.

24. American Democracy Promotion In The Arabian Gulf

Author:
Muhammad Azam and Sagheer Ahmad Khan
Publication Date:
05-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
Advanced democracies, including the United States, have been championing democratic promotion around the world. In the past, American policy towards the Arab Middle East, however, had been mainly based on just paying lip-service to democracy sans concrete measures for promoting a democratic culture in the region. The events of 9/11 marked a watershed in the history of US foreign policy towards the region. Facing calls for a democratic Arab World from home and abroad in the wake of 9/11 the US government raised the ante for pushing democracy in the Arab Middle East. The rhetoric and emphasis laid on 'democracy in the Arab World' by the American leadership over the years after 9/11 was unprecedented. This study deals with the visible shift in US foreign policy vis-à-vis democracy in the region, focusing on the six GCC states, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. In addition to American approach and strategy, practical measures taken in the areas of politics, economy, education, media, civil society, and human rights is also furnished. An effort is made to understand and highlight the methods and tools employed by the foreign democracy promoters, both at the levels of state and society. However, a large part of the study appertains to the activities conducted at the grass-roots level. The study is comparative in its nature, based on empirical analysis.
Topic:
Civil Society and Human Rights
Political Geography:
United States, America, Middle East, Kuwait, Arabia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman

25. Rabindranath's Nationalist Thought: A Retrospect

Author:
Narasingha P. Sil
Publication Date:
05-2012
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
Tagore's anti-absolutist and anti-statist stand is predicated primarily on his vision of global peace and concord—a world of different peoples and cultures united by amity and humanity. While this grand vision of a brave new world is laudable, it is, nevertheless, constructed on misunderstanding and misreading of history and of the role of the nation state in the West since its rise sometime during the late medieval and early modern times. Tagore views state as an artificial mechanism, indeed a machine that thrives on coercion, conflict, and terror by subverting people's freedom and culture. This paper seeks to argue that the state also played historically a significant role in enhancing and enriching culture and civilization. His view of an ideal human society is sublime, but by the same token, somewhat ahistorical and anti-modern.
Topic:
Nationalism

26. The European Union: A Schumpeterian Model of Democracy?

Author:
Markus Pausch
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
One of the most discussed aspects of the so called democratic deficit of the EU is the lack of a European public sphere. The Union's democracy is perceived by its citizens as Schumpeterian in nature and this perception corresponds to a large extent to reality. Schumpeter described democracy as the rule of the politician, who gains decision making power in the free competition over votes. The parliament's role is of minor importance; it decides more by acceptance than by initiative. Citizens can neither bring up the issues nor decide them. The European Union is indeed an ideal platform for such a model, be - cause it is elitist, technocratic and rather complicated for the ordinary citizens. European integration was and still is an elite-dominated project, where citizens do not have many possibilities to intervene during legislation-periods. Over many years, the consensual behaviour of the political elites hindered the emergence of broad debate and of conflict in a European public sphere. As a consequence, scepticism towards the integration process became stronger in the Member States. At the beginning of the new millennium, politicians tried to turn the table by stressing the importance of the involvement of the citizens. A convention was installed to work out a Constitutional Treaty. But once again, the debate remained elite-dominated. The heads of governments finally signed another elitist compromise without the broad involvement of the citizens. The rejection of the Constitutional Treaty in France and the Netherlands in 2005 can thus be considered as the result of an elitist and Schumpeterian model of democracy which is perpetuated by the new reform treaty of Lisbon. Thus, the claim for a European public sphere remains relevant, although scholars differently define such a sphere. The argument of this paper is that besides the often claimed Europeanization and transnationalisation of European debate, the notion of broad conflict is of high importance for the emergence of a European public sphere.
Political Geography:
Europe, France, and Netherlands

27. Compromize and Controversy Over Global Intercountry Adoption: A Comparative Analysis of Adoption in Haiti, Chad, Southeast Asian Countries, and Cambodia

Author:
Dr. Kieran E. Uchehara
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
Authorities in belligerent countries are now faced with a new problem: modern warfare and natural disasters. Between 2001 and 2010, four relatively publicized adoption related cases have caused some Third World countries to revitalize their concerns over the rights of children in such cases of adoption, mainly the New Life Children's Refuge (NLCR) in Haiti, the Zoe's Ark in Chad, the Katherine Hart case in Southeast Asian countries, and the twelve United States adoptive parents' case in Cambodia. The thesis of this paper is that there are systemic vulnerabilities and gaps in the current global adoption systems across the Third World Countries, thus creating irregularities and scandals that are predictable to an extent, such as the ones in the four cases under consideration. An investigation will be made as to some of the lessons that can be drawn there from. In the end, this paper concludes by highlighting that, although the four do not hint at the full picture of complications that may arise as a result of global adoption in their corresponding regions, they do, indeed, bear important ramifications, ones that are ignored at the cost of the well-being of children involved.
Political Geography:
United States, Asia, and Cambodia

28. Regional Innovation Policy: An Analysis of Turkey's Aegean, Marmara, East Anatolia and Southeast Anatolia Regions

Author:
Yavuz Selman Duman
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
This paper analyzes the main intuition behind the concept of Regional Innovation System (RIS) and the corresponding policy implications in a literal notion. The aspects that are the reasons of regional disparities in terms of innovation such as clusters, agglomerations, research and development (R) will be investigated via observing whether development agencies, clusters, industrial zones and universities which overall are contributing factors in regional development exist or not. Aligned with these aspects, this paper analyzes the reasons for the disparities between regions. Consequently, policy approaches and innovation strategies towards the regions that are distinguished due to disparities (as peripheral, metropolitan and industrial regions) will be presented. The following will constitute of the analysis of Turkey's Aegean, Marmara, East Anatolia and Southeast Anatolia regions with respect to the results reached in the prior analysis. The objective is to investigate the characteristics of the corresponding regions and determine the aspects for the developmental gap between them. The policy applications regarding regional innovation systems, the effects of universities in the mentioned regions and the adopted policies within the process of EU membership are presented. The literal analysis indicates that although in the recent years there have been improvements regarding regional development, previously it has been the western regions that received the most attention. These findings could be verified in a further research with a thorough statistical analysis using regional data on labour productivity, capital investment, expenditure on R, registered patents and economic growth.
Political Geography:
Turkey

29. Turkish Political Culture and Civil Society: An Unsettling Coupling?

Author:
Begüm Burak
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
This paper attempts to analyze Turkish politics in the post-1980 period with a special reference to the relationship among the state elites, political elites and societal actors, and its impact on the constitution of civil society in Turkey. After the 1980 military intervention, the political and economic realms of Turkey witnessed a relative degree of liberalization through Özal's neo-liberal policies. The January 24 economic decisions paved the way for economic liberalization as well as letting new economic and societal actors emerge. These new economic actors were different from the prevailing economic actors which used to enjoy a considerable amount of opportunity spaces in the economic sphere. Together with the Özal governments, Islamic segments started to become powerful in both political and economic realms. This paper analyses the chief traits of Turkish politics and economics and their impact upon civil society aftermath the 1980 coup in general, and the relationship and/or interaction among the state elites, political elites and societal actors in particular. The engagements of newly-emerging societal and economic actors into Turkish political scene and the challenge of these actors against the so-called “Kemalist-Republican” elites are also illustrated in the paper. Moreover, state-Islam interaction, politics-Islam interaction as well as Kemalism-newly-emerging societal and economic actors interaction will be studied with a special emphasis to the post-1980 period. The major argument of the paper is that, in Turkey, both civil society issues and political issues reveal outcomes which are primarily shaped by the nature of the relationship between state elites and political elites in general and by Turkish political culture in particular.
Topic:
Civil Society
Political Geography:
Turkey

30. Transitioning Afghanistan in the Post-Withdrawal Era: Setting the stage for a stable political order

Author:
Reza Sanati
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations
Institution:
Center for International Conflict Resolution at Yalova University
Abstract:
Within the coming year, the American led-NATO mission will begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan. Though the decrease in troop levels in the short-term has been expected, the final date wherein all American and NATO troops leave the country is still a matter of heated debate, primarily for two reasons: the inconclusive steadiness of the present Afghan regime and the uncertainty of what a post-withdrawal Afghanistan would like. With this in mind, this article intends to explore both the logic of NATO intervention and the subsequent occupation of that war-torn country. It examines the primary reasons why stability and progress within Afghanistan have been elusive, the current debate amongst policy makers regarding the steps ahead, and finally proposing an alternative model that proposes a new US and NATO regional strategy that places the burden on Afghanistan stability and reconstruction on neighbors who share the larger NATO goal of a self-sufficient and stable Afghan government. Accordingly, the most potentially successful NATO approach towards Afghan stability would adopt the proven economic, social, political, infrastructural, and local governance models of regional states, and honing and adopting those models into the broader Afghan domestic theatre. For this to happen, a new plan of cooperation from both NATO and American policy makers with regional states and their respective civil societies needs to be constructed and implemented.
Topic:
NATO and War
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and Middle East