A critique of the ‘Bureaucratic authoritarian state’ thesis: The case of the Philippines

The article reviews characteristic patterns of domestic resource mobilization, investments and foreign capital inflows in developing Asia and identifies the emerging issues in resource mobilization. It finds that high levels of investments and savings have been an important reason that developing Asia has had better growth performance than other regions of the world. The pattern of resource mobilization has been different across countries depending upon their development stage. Low-income countries tend to rely on concessional official sources as their debt-servicing capacity is limited and their domestic resource mobilization capacity is weak, while higher income countries rely on domestic resource mobilization as well as competitive financing from international capital markets and foreign direct investment.

Development challenges in Asia continue to be high in the 1990s and will require substantial resources. The challenges will in principle have to be met by domestic resources, indicating the need for strengthening the resource mobilization effort. However, the role of external resources will remain important because of limited domestic resource mobilization in developing Asia. Potential shortage in the global capital market implies that developing countries will have to improve their investment environment to induce more foreign private capital, including foreign direct investment. The possible shortage also indicates the need to strengthen the role of multilateral financial institutions.     

Remaking the public through the square: invention of the new national cosmology in Turkey

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the formation of authoritarian populism in Turkey by analysing mass mobilization and its repercussions in the symbolic and imaginary realms as authoritarian right-wing populisms have gained global popularity. It scrutinises the AKP government’s mobilization of the masses in the so-called ‘democracy watches’ after the coup attempt on 15 July 2016. During the demonstrations that took place in various locations in Istanbul, authors carried out participant observation fieldwork and field interviews. The paper concludes that democracy watches constitute a significant means of constructing and consolidating a new authoritarian regime, thereby endowing this consolidation process with a popular legitimacy.     

The 13th Malaysian General Elections from a Sabah Perspective

Abstract

This article looks at the campaign for the 13th Malaysian election as conducted in Sabah, and will offer some observations on the local issues that were deemed particularly important by Sabah voters. It will also address the changing forms of mass mobilisation, issue-framing, and the rise of Sabah-centric politics in the state, all of which may have played a part in deciding the outcome of the election results in that state.     

From military tutelage to civilian control: an analysis of the evolution of Turkish civil–military relations

ABSTRACT

The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) have been the main discussion topic in the political arena over the last decade in Turkey, with a focus on curtailing military supervision over political life. This article investigates the evolution of civil–military relations (CMR) in Turkey. Thus, the aim of this study is to explore the factors and dynamics that have led to the development and realignment of CMR in Turkey. The focus will be on how military tutelage in Turkey has been ended, what factors have caused this and finally whether Turkish CMR have been normalized.     

Paiens unt dreit? Reversed dichotomy and the East in Boeve de Haumtone and Bevis of Hampton

ABSTRACT

It is usually accepted that Saracens are evil and Christians are good in medieval narratives. The common medieval thought towards binary opposition can be pointed out by the Chanson de Roland: ‘paiens unt tort e Chrestiens unt dreit’. However, it seems that there is religious prejudice and ignorance towards the Saracens and their geographical location, the East. The Anglo-Norman Boeve de Haumtone is an early medieval narrative that focuses on cross-cultural interaction within a framework that combines political, social and religious events with geographical exploration both in the East and the West. Similarly, Bevis of Hampton is the Middle English version that reshapes the socio historical and religious events on which their sources have focused. The aim of this article is to explore the idea that another East existed during the Middle Ages. This article will address the question of what relation Boeve de Haumtone and Bevis of Hampton might have to crusading geography. It will be argued how and why the East is not portrayed as a scary, evil place as it is in other contemporary romances, and the evidence for this may be presented by the hero’s preference for living in the East for the rest of his life.     

The latent politicization of Alevism: the affiliation between Alevis and leftist politics (1960–1980)

Abstract

Traditional Alevism, which was based on rural/isolated life started to dissolve as a result of urbanization in the 1960s and the 1970s. The social dynamics of Turkey associated the dissolution of archaic Alevism with political mobilization that Turkey experienced in the same period; therefore, the Alevis affiliated themselves with socialist movements in order to participate into political process more efficiently. This article analyses the affiliation between Alevis and socialist movements within the framework of the overlap between the socio-political culture of the Alevis and the political needs of the socialist movements in the 1960s and the 1970s. This affiliation might be followed in Alevi folk songs, squatter settlements, villages and the massacres that Alevis suffered in the late 1970s. Because the relation between the Alevis and socialist movements meant not the politicization of the Alevism as an independent politics of identity, but rather the politicization of Alevis through their affiliation with leftist politics, this article conceptualizes the politicization dynamism of the Alevism between 1960 and 1980 as latent politicization.     

From sustainable development through green growth to sustainable development plus

Abstract

From sustainable development (SD) through green growth to sustainable development plus (SD+)! Does the ‘+’ really matter? This is the question that brings life to this article and the answer is: YES, it does. The ‘+’ makes a huge difference especially for developing countries such as those from Africa that for a long time have not been fully brought on board in shaping global discourses and the preferred future global development agenda. This article argues that the time has come for globally privileged countries of the North to realise that operationalising ‘The Future We Want’ after Rio+20 demands that developing countries be accorded unpolluted space to contribute to providing answers to difficult and elusive questions on the unsustainable ways of the past development paradigms. Among such questions are: When will the issue of resource intensive development and overconsumption be finally answered? Can green growth transition be part of the solution? How will a post 2015 framework best address the needs of developing countries? The conclusion is that SD+ signals a deeper, wider and knowledge-based understanding of global (un) sustainable perspectives that result in global citizens understanding The Future We Do Not Want.     

The dams of Northern Sudan and the policy of demographic engineering

ABSTRACT

This article discusses the deteriorating situation in Northern Sudan linked to policies of demographic engineering, embedded in plans for the further construction of dams along the Nile River in the North by the Government of Sudan. Although the generation of power and agricultural irrigation are the declared purpose of the dams, the fact is, these dams will, as past dam constructions have, cause a massive displacement of the Nubian, Manasir and Amri-Hamdab people far from their ancestral lands. With the collaboration of the Egyptian government the areas vacated will be repopulated with Egyptian peasants, as part of both governments’ plan to alter the demographics of North Sudan.     

Brexit and Trade Ties between Europe and Commonwealth States in Sub-Saharan Africa: Opportunities for Pro-poor Growth or a Further Entrenchment of North–South Inequalities?

Abstract

Brexit will of course have major implications for trade between Commonwealth African nations and the European continent. In the short term, the European Commission’s Economic Partnership Agreements with regional groups such as the East African Community will be complicated by the UK’s decision to leave the European project. Moreover, there are longer-term consequences to be considered, not least the role which the UK—as an independent trade actor—will adopt in its trade relations with Commonwealth African countries. This article examines the impact of Brexit for Commonwealth African nations’ trade with Europe (including the UK). It particularly points to several potential pitfalls arising from the Brexit referendum vis-à-vis African development.     

Restoring degraded landscapes: Assessing the utility of biodiversity offsets for the business sector in Africa

Abstract

Increasing pressure for the conversion of tropical and sub-tropical wetlands and forests to alternative land usage raises the possibility that biodiversity offsets will increasingly take centre stage in biodiversity conservation planning and ecosystem restoration discourses. This article explores the major discourses on and utility of biodiversity offsets in the African context with a view to identifying and articulating some of the challenges and opportunities evident in attempts to operationalise the concept in practice. The discussion establishes that as intuitively pleasing as they have become in recent years, with potentially large benefits expected to be derived from offset initiatives, several significant hurdles need to be overcome for them to become well established practice in Africa. For instance, some observers have argued strongly that, in practice, land use and wetland mitigation in most countries have come nowhere near achieving the goal of ‘no-net-loss’. There are also enduring questions about the credibility of the formulae used to calculate net-losses and net-gains in biodiversity offset schemes. In the light of these and other outstanding questions, the article concludes that biodiversity offsets may seem simple but are much more complex to design and implement to the extent that they become really convincing as a conservation tool for businesses in Africa.     

Twenty-First Century Philippine–American Security Relations: Managing an Alliance in the War of the Third Kind

Abstract

This paper examines the changing nature of twenty-first century Philippine–US security relations. It notes that the alliance is against a non-state actor, and raises the possibility that this security arrangement might be difficult to maintain given its prohibitive governance cost and the systemic nature of the threat. It also observes that the alliance has been plagued by dissension between the two countries. In conclusion, the article maintains that these two allies have compelling reasons to revitalize and maintain their security ties. They have also developed forms of cooperation to reduce the alliance’s governance costs, iron out their differences, limitations and conflicting interests, and ensure that the partnership will remain functional in the face of new and long-term security challenges posed by international terrorism.     

The Evolution of Chinese Foreign Policy: New Incentives with Slowing Growth

Abstract

Rising powers such as the People's Republic of China (PRC) experience two distinct stages of relative capability growth. China is currently in the first stage of growth, which is defined by increasingly rapid expansion and incentives for foreign policy accommodation. As the PRC shifts to the second stage, however, relative growth will slow, and leaders in Beijing will be presented with new incentives for foreign policy confrontation. This article formalizes a two-stage model of relative power growth and argues that China's shift to the second stage of growth will threaten regional and global stability. During this shift, the key to international security will be a coordinated, multilateral effort that responsibly balances China's growing power with a similarly expanded international role for China.     

The Kerala model of development A debate (Part 1)

Abstract

BCAS has invited noted Kerala scholars to comment on the critical position regarding the “Kerala model of development” that Joseph Tharamangalam articulated in his article in the January-March 1998 issue of the Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars (Vol. 30, No. 1), “The Perils of Social Development without Economic Growth: The Development Debacle of Kerala, India,” The responses will be published in two installments. Part 1 appears below; part 2 will appear in the October-December 1998 issue of the Bulletin.     

Hierarchy in Asian International Relations: 1300-1900

Abstract

Scholars in the field of international relations tend to treat the contemporary Asian system as if it emerged fully formed from nothingness in the post-World War II and post-colonial era. This essay explores a major historical epoch—the Asian international system from 1300 to 1900. During that time, the Asian international system was both intensive and extensive, in both interactions and relations between Asian states. Thus, understanding and incorporating this system into our theories of international relations is critical. To date, scholars have rarely described the main features of this system. In this article, I attempt such a task, and will also draw implications for mainstream international relations theories. In short, the research in this essay reveals that the historical Asian international system was stable and hierarchic in nature. The main theoretical finding is an alternative to the balancing proposition. That is, the findings in this article present a major empirical challenge to the argument that balance of power is a recurrent phenomenon across time and geography. Furthermore, this article shows that hierarchy may be more stable than balancing as an organizing principle in international relations.     

Taking Disaster Seriously: East Asian Military Involvement in International Disaster Relief Operations and the Implications for Force Projection

Abstract

The participation of East Asian militaries (Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea) in international disaster relief is a relatively new phenomenon having many implications that will shape the global landscape of the 21st century. This article looks at the historical record of these operations and notes how they have evolved in size and scope over time. Empirical data are presented and analyzed to identify and compare demonstrated capacities for force projection. These demonstrated capacities are considered with current and future capabilities to contemplate the trajectory of the militaries' future participation in disaster relief and ability for force projection. Finally, the article concludes with a brief assessment of implications and policy considerations.     

Islam,ethnicity and the state: contested spaces of legitimacy and power in the Kurdish-Turkish public sphere

ABSTRACT

The pro-Kurdish nationalist mobilization in Turkey was mostly built on the right to self-determination aligned with the Marxist-Leninist ideology for the insurgent Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the early 1980s and ethnic minority rights for the secular-leftist pro-Kurdish legal parties in the 1990s. The Turkish state mostly framed the legal and illegal pro-Kurdish mobilization as ‘the enemy of the state’ and ‘the enemy of Islam’ in its counter-insurgency efforts. However, in the 2000s, the PKK and the pro-Kurdish legal parties became more tolerant and inclusive toward Islamic Kurdish identity by mobilizing their sympathizers in events such as ‘Civic Friday Prayers’ and a ‘Democratic Islamic Congress’. This move aimed to function as an antidote to the rising popularity of the ruling conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Kurdish Hizbullah in the early 2000s. In other words, Islam and pious Muslim identity has increasingly become contested among Turkish Islamists, Kurdish Islamists, and the secular Kurdish nationalists. This article seeks to unpack why, how, and under what conditions such competing actors and mechanisms shape the discursive and power relationships in the Kurdish-Turkish public sphere.     

The EU‐SA free trade arrangements

The rehabilitation of the DRC's economy in general, and logging in particular, will require the full collaboration of the state, the private sector and the people. But is this possible, given the significant challenges that pose a threat to such collaboration? The article looks at the issues with regard to the forestry sector.     

Fear Factor: Northeast Asian Responses to China's Rise

Abstract

In 2008, India and Japan made a joint security declaration while asserting that a strategic partnership between the two countries would become an essential pillar for the future architecture of the region. This article examines whether the security declaration is a step toward building an enduring security partnership. It will consider perceptions in Japan and India of the bilateral security relationship, proposals for how to give it substance, and key issues that may impede the deepening of the relationship. This article will conclude that although there is no clear consensus as to the substance of the relationship, the relationship between India and Japan is likely to grow in coming years.