Everyday Forms of State Power and the Kurds in the Early Turkish Republic

Aslan, Senem

doi:10.1017/s0020743810001200

Cited by 74 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The reach of top-down modernizing and Turkifying reforms is critically analyzed by some recent studies which emphasize the uneven impact of such reforms and the capacity of citizens to negotiate forms and meanings of social engineering practices (Aslan, 2011; Yılmaz, 2013). Nevertheless, it is fair to say that the state capacity was sufficient to assimilate territorially dispersed Caucasian and Balkan migrants, or small autochthonous minorities such as the Laz.…”

Section: Historical Background: Constructing the Boundaries Of Turkismentioning

confidence: 99%

Strategies of making and unmaking ethnic boundaries: Evidence on the Laz of Turkey

Serdar

2017

Ethnicities

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The main aim of this article is to explore different strategies of boundary making and unmaking by a minority ethnic group. I apply the theories of “boundary work” and constructivist understanding of ethnicity and nationhood to the case of the Laz, one of the autochthons of the Eastern Black Sea region of Turkey. I analyze two main strategies—boundary crossing and contraction—in the context of three sets of encounters and interactions, with Turks/Turkishness, people of Black Sea—Karadenizli—and Kurds/Kurdishness. First, I argue that assimilating into the official Turkish identity is one of the strategies adopted by the ethnic Laz. The Laz are incorporated into Turkishness both by their search for economic mobility, status, and by assimilationist policies of the state especially aimed at the spread of Turkish. To become a full-fledged true member of the nation and access to potential benefits, Turkishness through language shift has been realized that allowed boundary crossing of the Laz. Second, I state that despite the efforts of the top-down assimilationist policies, noncontentious ethnic identities can be reproduced by means of symbolic boundaries. The Laz contextually activate symbolic boundaries in informal settings by contracting from other people of Black Sea—Karadenizli—or ethnic Turkishness. The ethnic language is substituted by nonthreatening ethnic performances and rhetoric, less marked and more subjective traits of self-asserted differences. Such symbolic boundaries correspond to unofficial forms of hierarchies and competition over local belongings. Third, the analysis of the Laz–Kurd relationship unveils that ethnic boundaries can be redefined according to changing conditions. The impact of the Kurds on the Laz identity, either by means of personal acquaintances or the relationship between the state and the Kurdish national movement, is imperative. It triggers contradictions in the Laz identity by revealing new potential redefinitions and recasting of boundaries.

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Section: Historical Background: Constructing the Boundaries Of Turkismentioning

confidence: 99%

Strategies of making and unmaking ethnic boundaries: Evidence on the Laz of Turkey

Serdar

2017

Ethnicities

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“…Thus, it has become a prosperous and peaceful place among the other violent and unstable parts of Iraq [66]. However, Kurdistan region like many other parts of Iraq and other developing countries suffer from rampant corruption.…”

Section: Background Information About Kurdistan Regionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Accounting Reform in Deterring Corruption Practices in the Public Sector: A Case Study in Kurdistan Region

Ghaffoori¹

2016

J Bus Fin Aff

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“…Successive Turkish governments denied a distinct Kurdish identity and severely repressed its various manifestations, pursuing a state-based ethnicisation process from the 1920s to the 2010s (Aslan, 2011; Gunter, 2004; Yegen, 2006). This process aggregated Kurds’ grievances, deepened the distance between the state and the Kurdish community, and planted the seeds of the Kurdish nationalist movement.…”

Section: The Kurdish Movement and Women’s Engagementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strong in the Movement, Strong in the Party: Women’s Representation in the Kurdish Party of Turkey

Mencütek

2015

Political Studies

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This article shows how extant theories on women's representation in parties can only partially explain the Kurdish ethno-nationalist party's exceptional level of women's descriptive representation vis-à-vis the Turkish average. It demonstrates that women's very high level of representation in the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) can be better understood by examining the interaction between party-related and movement-related factors. Drawing on extensive empirical research, the study demonstrates that the party's leftist ideology, along with the mobilisation strategies and needs of the movement, have had a decisive impact in creating the conditions for women's self-assertion and their taking positions of power within the party, including the adoption and scrupulous implementation of a voluntary party gender quota. The study suggests that, in the case of parties closely tied to broader social movements, it is the relationship between the two organisations (party and movement), rather than just the former, that should be analysed. This is particularly evident in the case of ethno-nationalist parties that emanate from highly mobilised or even armed movements.Women continue to be under-represented as voters, elected officials and political leaders in many countries in spite of a rising global trend in the last two decades. Studying the various factors and mechanisms that affect women's representation in political institutions remains crucial for understanding and perhaps for improving contemporary democracies. The growing scholarship on gender and politics demonstrates that women's political representation varies dramatically across countries and often in parties within the same country. This article aims to contribute to the debate on women and politics, with particular reference to the role of political parties regarding intra-country variations in women's descriptive representation. Focusing on the case of the Kurdish ethno-nationalist party in Turkey, currently called the 'Peace and Democracy Party' (BDP, Barış ve Demokrasi Partisi), 1 this article shows how extant theories can only partially explain this party's exceptional level of women's descriptive representation vis-à-vis the Turkish average. This case is particularly puzzling for two reasons. First, scholars working on gender and nationalism have largely regarded the latter to be an ideology at odds with gender balance and women's emancipation in the political sphere (EnloeArticle Sahin-Mencutek 471 representation in the BDP can be fully understood by examining the interaction between party ideology and the mobilisation strategies of the ethno-nationalist movement. Combining with the fertile ground provided by the party's leftist ideology, the mobilisation strategies and needs of the broader ethno-nationalist Kurdish movement have had a decisive impact in creating the conditions for women's self-assertiveness and their taking positions of power within the party, including the adoption and scrupulous implementation of a voluntary party gender quota.This case ...

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Everyday Forms of State Power and the Kurds in the Early Turkish Republic

Cited by 74 publications

References 15 publications

Strategies of making and unmaking ethnic boundaries: Evidence on the Laz of Turkey

Strategies of making and unmaking ethnic boundaries: Evidence on the Laz of Turkey

The Role of Accounting Reform in Deterring Corruption Practices in the Public Sector: A Case Study in Kurdistan Region

Strong in the Movement, Strong in the Party: Women’s Representation in the Kurdish Party of Turkey

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