Working Papers
One of the outcomes of the knowledge programme is the working paper series. The main aim is to share new findings and insights of our Knowledge Programme with a broad audience such as academics, policy makers and practitioners.
20: So Many Similarities: Linking Domestic Dissent to Foreign Threat in Iran
This paper offers an analysis of Iran’s hardline narrative about the 2009 events in general and the Green Movement in particular. This narrative dismisses domestic challenges to the regime as a product of Western interference. The paper shows that this narrative is a product not of simple paranoia, but an inherently consistent and thought through narrative based in existing understanding of Western meddling. The regime not only tries to defuse opposition by connecting it to a foreign thr...
19: The First Lady Phenomenon
This paper assesses the so-called ‘first lady phenomenon’ in (semi) authoritarian context. More specifically it discusses to what extent organizations in which Queen Rania is involved affect the development of a truly independent organizational life in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Queen Rania Al Abdullah is known for her extensive list of public activities. She is founder of several Jordanian organizations, ‘NGOs’ in the Kingdom’s terminology, as well as an active lobbyist and member of s...
18: The Political Implications of a Common Approach to Human Rights
The topics of human rights and civil society provoke a lively debate on both sides of the Mediterranean. It is important to underline the fact that in the political arena these two issues are particularly emotive. Working Paper 18 examines this synergy, looking at the role of external participants (in this case, Europeans) in promoting democratic values, and looking at the reception that has been given to this “interference” by official bodies of the societies in question. The debates and con...
17: Authoritarianism and the Judiciary in Syria - ARABIC version
Working Paper 17 analyzes the role of the judiciary in Syria’s strongly authoritarian setting wherein ‘the rule by law’ serves as a tool of repression; qualities that have far-reaching implications for foreign assistance programs on judicial reform, the rule of law and reform generally. This is the Arabic version.
17: Authoritarianism and the Judiciary in Syria
Working Paper 17 analyzes the role of the judiciary in Syria’s strongly authoritarian setting wherein ‘the rule by law’ serves as a tool of repression; qualities that have far-reaching implications for foreign assistance programs on judicial reform, the rule of law and reform generally. Firstly, the paper argues that Syria showed since 1963 a zigzag pattern wherein modest and indeed inadequate levels of judicialization were interrupted by significant lapses into extra-judicial violence, but m...
16: Civil Society in Iran: Transition to which Direction?
In this Working Paper on the state of civil society in Iran, Sohrab Razzaghi makes a number of claims and offers recommendations for bolstering independent civil society in Iran. Two of the most thought-provoking points concern the role of the UN in propping up state-sponsored and dependent civil society as opposed to independent civil society and the influx of former political insiders into independent civil society. Razzaghi writes: At present, and for the first time, an opposition has emer...
15: Re-rethinking Prospects for Democratization
Literature on democratization rarely gives attention to the ‘big picture’. More often, scholars select one (or a few) key factors which are supposedly essential for democratization to take place or for a democracy to maintain its vibrancy.As a result, many blank spots within research on democratization remain existent. Working Paper 15 goes beyond such approaches. Democratization is a highly complex matter. A holistic framework is needed and, therefore, within this paper the concepts of democ...
14: Dissecting Global Civil Society: Values, Actors, Organisational Forms
What we see in global civil society depends on what value lens we use to define it. The trend towards networked organisation may have emancipatory effects, but may also obscure inequalities and clashing values. Working Paper 14 systematically describes the different expectations people have of global civil society. Each of us, Marlies Glasius suggests, carries a slightly different picture of the concept in our head. She describes the different normative connotations, normative ideal types, th...
13: Non-Democratic Rule and Regime Stability:Taking a Holistic Approach
Looking at historical facts, it becomes clear that non-democratic government has been the norm for most of human history. Nevertheless, much of the existing (western-oriented) literature focuses on ideals of democracy and on democratization-issues. Besides being the historical dominant political system, there are more reasons to study non-democratic regimes. It highlights the moral ambiguities and contrasts involved in government and politics, it illustrates differences of the structural beha...
12: The Uncertain Future of Democracy Promotion
Democracy promotion has had a tough decade, nowhere more so than in the Middle East. In Working Paper 12 Steven Heydemann reviews the policy paper Beyond Orthodox Approaches: Assessing Opportunities for Democracy Support in the Middle East and North Africa. Ten years ago, the democratic optimism that followed the end of the Cold War was in relatively good health. Today, after a decade of authoritarian reversals, a sustained “backlash against democracy promotion,” and authoritarian resurgence...