Reconfiguration of Politics in Times of Crises and Authoritarian Context: Turkey under the AKP Rule

Abstract

Turkey is experiencing a period of reinforcement of authoritarian practices through the restriction of opposition and pluralism under AKP rule. The Gezi Park demonstrations in the summer of 2013 and the failed coup attempt which occurred in July 2016 represented the peak of Turkish political crises and triggered an unprecedented acceleration of repression. The panel will aim to discuss, “what are the power networks within the Turkish state and society and where does resistance occur?” Turkey’s system is characterized by a lack of state autonomy, the appropriation of state resources by the dominant party, and the predominance of social capital in politics. In addition to this, the political field’s influence on different fields reinforces itself constantly. Actors from various backgrounds holding different types of resources circulate more easily between institutions, political parties and associations. What are the channels, networks and mechanisms through which the dominant and contentious actors circulate, mobilize and exchange resources? How did the AKP rule stabilise and consolidate its power over 15 years? What are the consequences of the recent political crises on different networks (not only the AKP and power networks but also those of contentious actors)? How does the literature on political crises offer an alternative understanding of the construction and transformation of political networks? Two main aspects will be discussed primarily: 1. Political and economic networks in the authoritarian context and the impacts of the crises on these networks 2. Networks and resources in contentious politics Regarding the methodology and research tools, the papers prioritize the notion of “fieldwork” (observations, interviews, research of written and oral archives), which will enable the discourse and other practices to be put into perspective in the analysis of networks under the AKP rule. The panel is the result of a collective reflexion through a French research project entitled “Spaces, networks and circulations. The reconfiguration of politics in Turkey” bringing together researchers from different institutions in France and Turkey. This panel would also fit in the section number 045 "Political networks" endorsed by the ECPR Standing Group on Political Networks.