The Turkish Deep State
The deep state ranks among the most critical issues in Turkish politics. This book traces its origins and offers an explanation of the emergence and trajectory of the deep state; the meaning and function of informal and authoritarian institutions in the formal security sector of a democratic regime; the involvement of the state in organized crime; armed conflict; corruption; and massive human rights violations.
This book applies an innovative methodological approach to concept formation and offers a mid-range theory of deep state that sheds light on the reciprocal relationship between the state and political regimes and elaborates on the conditions for the consolidation of democracy. It traces the path-dependent emergence and trajectory of the deep state from the Ottoman Empire to the current Turkish Republic and its impact on state-society relations. It reads state formation, consolidation, and breakdown from the perspective of this most resilient phenomenon of Turkish politics. The analysis also situates recent developments regarding Justice and Development Party governments, including the European Union accession process, civil-military relations, coup trials, the Kurdish question, and the Glen Movement in their context within the deep state. Moreover, this case study offers an analytical framework for cross-regional comparative analysis of the deep states.
Addressing the lacuna in academic scholarship on the deep state phenomenon in Turkey, this book is essential reading for students and scholars with an interest in democratization, politics and Middle East Studies.
Mehtap Syler received her doctorate in political science from the Humboldt University, Berlin, where she is currently conducting her post-doctoral research. Her research foci are qualitative methods, democratization, civil-military relations, coming to terms with the past, and international politics of the EU.
A very original project that sheds light on the historical legacy and the nature of the deep state in contemporary Turkey. The author brings her profound theoretical knowledge and methodological expertise to elucidate the origins, the transformation and the particular dimensions of the deep state through time and as it engaged different parts of society. This is an important addition to the the political science literature on the state, authoritarianism and democratization as well as a key contribution to the analysis of the Turkish state.
Karen Barkey, Professor of Sociology and History, and Director of the Institute for Religion, Culture and Public Life, Columbia University
A historically and conceptually profound look into the deep state in Turkey. There is much talk about the deep state, but it is rare to find a scholarly discussion of what it means and what it does not mean.
Dr Esra zyrek, Chair for Contemporary Turkish Studies at the European Institute, London School of Economics.
A strong addition to the comparative historical literature on the state. It combines a fascinating account of the development of the Turkish state, with close attention to methods and a clear theoretical argument.
Gary Goertz is Professor of Political Science at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame.
This book takes issue with an almost untouched and surprisingly understudied problem in Turkey and elsewhere: the deep state. It provides an original and compelling analysis of the criminal, undemocratic and corrupt facets of the state which have become more effective and visible in weak democracies in many parts of the world more intensely than ever in the last few decades. The issue is troubling and has serious consequences ranging from grave human rights violations and human security abuses to governance deficiencies and legitimacy problems for the regimes, certainly playing a primary role in the popular uprisings against the state in many corners of the world. It is important to note that this is not just a Turkey-specific book. The authors analysis is extremely useful for the interdisciplinary community of researchers, students, policy makers, and investigative journalists specializing in many related areas of civilmilitary relations, Middle East/Latin American studies, democratization, authoritarian politics, national security governance, as well as for the average reader interested in security, armies and democracy globally and in the region.
mit Cizre is Professor of Political Science at Istanbul ehir University
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