The Commonwealth of Nations and the EU after the ‘Global’ Crisis: Rethinking Post-2015 ‘Global’ Development?

Abstract

The continuing ‘global’ crisis has accelerated divergences between regions, especially between the ‘rising’ global South, the European Union (EU) of the PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain) and Cyprus, which belongs to both the Commonwealth and the EU. This article studies the emerging ‘vertical’ divergences between the EU and the global South, especially around the so-called Economic Partnership Agreements, and the parallel ‘horizontal’ divergences among Anglophone, Francophone (the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie) and Lusophone (the Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa) Commonwealths, with their inheritance of emulation and competition. It focuses on the possibilities of enhanced human/citizen security to propose an analysis that challenges established perspectives and points towards prospects for Commonwealth ‘schools’ of international relations/development.     

History,Religion and Progress: The View of the ‘Modernity’ of the American Protestant Missionaries in Late Ottoman Syria

The Syrian Protestant College in Beirut is commonly considered very important to the transmission of western ideas in nineteenth-century Syria. What has not been sufficiently investigated until now is the nature of those ideas, which are generally defined as ‘liberal’ and ‘modern’ without further specification. This article investigates the American missionaries’ main ideas concerning history, progress and religion, or, more generally, their concept of ‘modernity’. Finally, after having identified these ideas, the article considers their possible affinity with the ideas of the German philosopher, G.W.F. Hegel.     

Identity,Politics and Nation: Algerian Nationalism and the ‘Berberist Crisis’ of 1949

Abstract

Between the 1940s and the 1950s, a crucial period of change for Algerian nationalism and state formation, Berber activists within the anti-colonial nationalist movement challenged the political line of the nationalist party, the Mouvement pour le Triomphe des Libertés Démocratiques. This opposition focused on the need to redefine the concept of identity: activists did not reject either Arabic or Islam—the dual linguistic-religious core of national identity for Algerian nationalists—but they identified with a broader idea of an ‘Algerian Algeria’ that could incorporate various components of society.

Through the study of archival sources, this paper analyses the origins and consequences of the 1949 controversy within Algerian nationalism known as the ‘Berberist crisis’. Particular attention is paid to the idea of the nation proposed, assessing whether and how Berber activists participated in the political debate and state-building.     

The War in Ukraine: Risks and Opportunities For the ‘Post-Soviet South’

The invasion of Ukraine sent shock waves through the South Caucasus and Central Asia, subjecting the eight countries of the post-Soviet area to economic, political, and social challenges. Refusing to support Russia in circumventing sanctions or taking a stand against the invasion could expose these countries to retaliatory measures. But aligning with Moscow could lead to international isolation and the imposition of secondary sanctions. This article explores the ways these countries are navigating the new geopolitics, with Azerbaijan gaining but Armenia seeking new allies. It then examines the economic benefits to these countries of Russia's desperation, though this leaves them vulnerable to US and European penalties. It concludes with an analysis of how these states are dealing with the tensions caused by migration out of Russia. In all of these areas, the post-Soviet South must weigh the risks of aligning with the weakening great power or the West.     

Creating the ‘New Woman’ in Early Republican Turkey: The Contributions of the American Collegiate Institute and the American College for Girls

Abstract

This article examines the ways in which two American schools, the American College for Girls and the American Collegiate Institute, contributed to the development of the early Turkish republic's ideal of the ‘new’ Turkish woman. Kemalist rhetoric exhorted women to serve the nation as educated women while fulfilling their traditional roles as wives and mothers. This article first describes the founding and early development of the two American schools and then discusses how the changes in their goals, curricula, and extracurricular activities both supported and transcended the Kemalist Westernizing project.     

Coming to terms with a ‘European identity’: The Sudeten Germans between Bonn and Prague

An expansion of the welfare state is often expected to cause a strengthening of the identification of ‘the people’ with the state. It is the aim of this article to show that the integration of the pension system of the former GDR into the pension system of the FRG has to be seen as an expansion of the welfare state that did not have this positive effect. To this purpose, the German pension systems and their unification are analysed. It is argued that the gauge for identification with the welfare state is the national interest and not private benefit and that therefore the integration of the GDR pension scheme did not result in a strengthening of identification, despite the welfare expansion.     

The ‘Europeanization’ of the Religious Cleavage in Turkey: The Case of the Alevis

The EU accession process reveals a series of paradoxes, which are not merely indicative of the complexity of Turkey's state–religion relations in general but also point to how the Justice and Development Party (JDP) government portrays controversies such as the Sunni–Alevi divide. The religious cleavages in Turkey have become Europeanized and found expression in the European political and legal structures. The Alevis have been one of the groups most affected by this issue partly because of their heterodox and transnational religious identity and partly as a result of their links with secularist political sectors. The paper underlines a dilemma of current Turkish politics. The case of the Alevis shows that the regime's current transformation undermines its basis through exclusion. The JDP's political strategy, focusing on the effective control of the mainstream Sunni base, does not willingly accept or tolerate the autonomy of some civil society groups, including the Alevis.     

Challenging Bipolarity: The Socialist International and the ‘Chilean Democratic Cause’ during the Cold War

This article analyses, the Socialist International's (SI) new international positioning strategies from a transnational perspective, through its relationship with the Chilean cause in the context of the Cold War détente. Focus will be placed on the SI's strong commitment to the Chilean democratic cause after the coup and its sustained activism during the military regime. Drawing from primary sources in various international archives, this article's main goal is to shed light on the SI's positioning regarding Latin America as a way to challenge the bipolar order.     

The death of ‘Socialism with a Latvian Face’: The purge of the Latvian national communists,July 1959–1962

The purge of the Latvian national communists was the most extensive of the Khrushchev era. This article offers the first comprehensive examination of the purge, based on research in Russian and Latvian archives, and utilizing recently released Communist Party personal files. Previous works rarely proceed beyond the beginning of the purge in July 1959 or provide only a cursory overview. This article, however, identifies patterns in the purge with a comprehensive analysis. The methodology of Arvīds Pel?e, the purge’s architect, is explored, exposing the purge’s six distinct phases, which ousted the national communists and defined Latvian politics for a quarter-century.     

Constructing the ‘Immigrant’: Germany’s Radical Left in the Refugee Crisis

The article scrutinises how Germany’s non-political party radical left has discussed immigration and ‘cultural’ or ‘national’ identity in the context of past and current immigration into Germany, with a focus on the refugee crisis of 2015. Three types of radical left discourse are identified. First, some in the radical left have come to regard immigrants, in particular refugees, as an ‘ersatz proletariat’ and therefore as potential revolutionary instruments for their own project. Second, some agree that revolutionary change is necessary but subordinate their principles to practical support for immigrants and refugees in the here and now. Third, given the improbability of communist revolution and the crisis of ‘Western modernity’, some on the radical left have called for the defence of ‘the West’ and to help immigrants assimilate into Western civilisation. The article makes a timely contribution to the knowledge about contemporary radical left politics in Germany and shows the fractured nature of Germany’s non-political party radical left in the context of the refugee crisis. It also investigates the impact of ‘crisis’ as an ‘open moment’ and ‘catalyst’ on the radical left’s discourse-as-practice.     

Lawrence of Arabia: The life,the legend. A review of the exhibition at the Imperial War Museum, 14 October 2005–17 April 2006

Biography and Autobiography

Wilfrid Scawen Blunt. A memoir by his grandson, The. Earl of Lytton. Macdonald, London. Pp. 357. Index, illus. 30s.

Gertrude Bell. From her Personal Papers. 1914–26. Vol. II. By Elizabeth Bur‐goyne. Benn, 1961. Pp. 399. Illus., index. 45s.

The Yoshida Memoirs. By Shigeru Yoshida. Translated by Kenichi Yoshida. Pp. 291. Heinemann. 30s.

Kuniyoshi. By B. W. Robinson. Published by the Victoria and Albert Museum. 1961. Pp. 71. Plates 98. 27s. 6d.

Mao Tse‐tung and I Were Beggars. By Dr. Siao Yu. Hutchinson. Illus. Index. Pp. 253.

The Boss (The Story of Gamal Abdel Nasser). By Robert St. John. Arthur Barker, Ltd. London. 1961. Pp. 288. Index. 21s.

King Mongkut of Siam. By A. A. Griswold. Published by the Asia Society. New York. Pp. 60. $1.

Memoirs of a Bengal Civilian. By John Beames. Chatto and Windus, 1961. Index. 30s.

Religion and Philosophy

A Short History of Islam. By S. F. Mahmud. Pakistan branch O.U.P. i960. Pp. x + 724. Maps 24. 35s.

Studies in Islamic History and Civilisation. Ed. by Uriel Heyd. (Scripta Hierasolymitanc, vol. IX). Jerusalem, 1961. Pp. 228. 40s.

Yoga. Union with the Ultimate. The Sutras of Patanjali. By Archie J. Bahm. Published by Fredk. Ungar Publishing Co., N.Y. 1961. $3.50.

The Confucian Persuasion. Edited by Arthur Wright. Published by the Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, U.S.A. Index. 68s.

Selected Chinese Sayings. Translated and annotated by T. C. Lai, M.A. Published by University Book Store, Hong Kong. Pp. 191. U.S. $3.50 or 20s.

A New Selection from the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. By John C. E. Bowen. Published by The Unicorn Press, London, 1961. Pp. xv + 136. Illustrations. 21s.

Asia (general)

Blueprints for Independence. By Dr. R. C. Winter. Djambatan (Amsterdam). Pp. 351. Bibliography and Annexes.

Far East

The Japanese Seizure of Korea, 1868–1910. By Hilary Conroy. Pennsylvania Press (London: Oxford University Press). Pp. 507. 60s.

East Asia: The Great Tradition. By Edwin O. Reischaucr and John K. Fairbank of Harvard University. Published by George Allen and Unwin, Ltd., London, i960. Pp. 690. Illus. Index and Biblio. 55s.

Contemporary China—Volume III, 1958–59. Ed. by Professor E. Stuart Kirby. Published by Hong Kong University Press. 1961. 45s.

Communist China Today. By S. Chandrasekhar, with a foreword by Frank Moraes; Asia Publishing House. 1961. No illustrations. Pp. 199. 21s.

South‐West Asia

The Emergence of Modern Turkey. By Bernard Lewis. Oxford University Press. Pp. 495. Biblio. Index and maps. 48s.

Crisis in Lebanon. By Fahim I. Qubain. The Middle East Institute, Washington D.C. 1961. Pp. 235. Map, appendices and index. I5.

A Modern History of the Sudan. By P. M. Holt. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. Pp. 240. Illus., index, biblio. and maps. 27s. 6d.

South Asia

The Soul of India. By Comtc Amaury de Riencourt. Jonathan Cape. Pp. xvi + 431. 25s.

The National Culture of India. By S. Abid Husain. Asia Publishing House, London, 1961. Pp. xi + 237. Index. 32s.

Indian Economic Policy and Development. By P. T. Bauer. Allen and Unwin, 1961. Pp. 152. Index. 16s.

The Quintessence of Nehru. Selected and with an introduction by K. T. Narasimha Char. Allen and Unwin, London, 1961. Pp. 271. Index. 21s.

Pakistan, the Formative Phase. By Dr. Khalid bin Sayeed. Pakistan Publishing House, Karachi, i960. Pp. xii + 492.

A History of the Freedom Movement. Published by the Pakistan Historical Society, Karachi. 1957–1960. Volume I, 1707–1831. Pp. xiii + 630. Volume II, 1831–1905. Pp. viii + 332.

Central Asia

The Changing Map of Asia. A Political Geography. Edited by W. Gordon East and O. H. K. Spate. 4th Edition. Revised. (London: Methuen and Co., Ltd. New York: E. P. Dutton and Co. Inc.). Pp. xviii + 436. Maps, tables and index. 36s.

The Slno‐Soviet Dispute. Edited by G. F. Hudson, Richard Lowenthal and Roderick MacFarquhar. Published by The China Quarterly, London. 5s.

Between Oxus.and Jumna. By Arnold Toynbee. O.U.P. 1961. Pp. 202. Illustrated, map and index 21s.

The Snowman and Company. By Odette Tcherninc. Robert Hale. ? 1961. Pp. 174. Biblio. Index. Illus. 18s.

In the Kirghiz Steppes. By J. W. Wardell. Published by the Galley Press, 1961. Pp. 182. Illus. Maps. Indexed. 25s.

Everyman's Concise Encyclopaedia of Russia. By S. V. Utechin. London: J. M. Dent and Sons, Ltd. New York: B. P. Dutton and Co. Inc. Pp. xxvi + 623. 30s.     

The ‘Louis XVI of the Turks’: The Character of an Ottoman Sultan

Selim III ruled the Ottoman Empire in the Age of Revolutions, but his rule did not reflect the vigorous, expansionist and aggressive spirit of this age. He more resembled a ruler forced to defend his empire from the turbulence of the age, an effort which also shaped his character and perception of rulership. During his years in royal confinement, he clung passionately to the revival of the warrior-sultan through charismatic leadership. While on the throne, there was a gradual transformation of his perception of rulership and he became satisfied with being the bureaucratic ruler of the empire.     

The First World War Centenary in the UK: ‘A Truly National Commemoration’?

Abstract

Prime Minister David Cameron has called for ‘a truly national commemoration of the First World War’. This article shows this to be problematic, politicised and contested. This is in part due to the elision of English and British histories. Scottish, Welsh and Irish responses are noted, and the role and commemorations of ‘our friends in the Commonwealth’. There are tensions around interpretations of empire and race. There has been a failure to appreciate that the debates about the legacies of the First World War are deeply entangled with those of colonialism.     

Churches at War: The Impact of the First World War on the Christian Institutions of Jerusalem, 1914–20

The purpose of this article is to discuss the role and status of the Christian churches in Jerusalem from the beginning of the twentieth century until 1920 when British Military Administration of Palestine came to an end, with a particular focus on the First World War period. The first part of the article provides some historical background on a number of crucial issues: the history of the Christian churches in Jerusalem, the relationship between the churches and the Ottoman authorities, competition with the European powers for the control of the Holy Places, the Status Quo and the capitulations which were the most important political features of Christian Jerusalem until 1914. The case study of the Custody of the Holy Land explains the impact of the war on Christian institutions during and after the conflict, particularly in 1918 when the Custody rebuilt its influence in the city and on the international stage. The second part of the article focuses on the war period and the creation of the Christian–Muslim associations which, to an extent united the Arab population of the city providing a different example of the impact of the war on the Christian institutions of Palestine and Jerusalem.     

Radicalization of Russians in Ukraine: from ‘accidental’ diaspora to rebel movement

Abstract

The article examines different types of macropolitical identities in Ukraine and their interaction in establishing political order in the country. The authors argue that political institutional design was unfavourable to the Russian diaspora in eastern and southern regions. It hindered stable development of post-Soviet identity between Russians in the country. But during the Euromaidan protests, the Russians reacted to unpleasant political situation by exploring who they were and what social and political goals they had. Having been incipient for decades, the identity of the diaspora evolved in a soaring way within three or four months. The violent actions of the newly established government in Kiev radicalized the Russian diaspora. Diasporants started establishing alternative authorities in regions where government had no monopoly on the use of force. The involvement of Russia and international volunteers complexifies the situation in Donbass and the identity formation process in unrecognized republics also known as DNR and LNR.     

‘Social Investment’ or Back to ‘Familism’: The Impact of the Economic Crisis on Family and Care Policies in Italy and Spain

Family policies have traditionally been weak in Southern Europe. In the last two decades, however, and following a ‘catching up’ course, Spain has created new family programmes and expanded existing ones. Meanwhile, the picture for Italy during the years preceding the crisis is more of a ‘frozen landscape’. However, the diverging paths of the two countries in terms of policy reform in the years preceding the crisis do not place them in substantially different positions. The economic crisis and the austerity measures that followed have aggravated the weaknesses of family and care policies in both countries.