Contemporary Turkish politics. Challenges to democratic consolidation

Book abstract:

Turkey offers a rich laboratory for comparativists interested in issues of democratisation and democratic consolidation: since 1945, it has witnessed no fewer than three breakdowns of the democratic process (1960, 1971, 1980) and three retransitions to democracy (1961, 1973, 1983). The author analyses in this book half a century of Turkish politics, focusing on the country's experiences with democracy and providing a theoretical and comparative perspective. In particular the book addresses the fundamental question of why Turkey is still so far from having reached the level of advanced representative democracies.

After an introduction, chapter two analyses Turkey's three transitions to democracy and the three corresponding breakdowns. Chapter three is devoted to an analysis of the constitution-making processes following the 1960 and 1980 military interventions. Political parties and the party system are the subjects of chapter four. Chapter five addresses the military which has not only directly intervened three times, but has also played a major political role during the civilian governments following periods of military rule. The author asserts this feature of Turkish politics as one of the constraining factors for the further consolidation of democracy. Chapter six discusses the growth of civil society and its influence on policymaking, with particular emphasis on the relationship among business interests, political leadership, and the state apparatus. Also considered in this chapter are the rise of political Islam and that of Kurdish nationalism, both threats to the Turkish state's secular, national and unitary nature. In conclusion, chapter seven presents a balance sheet for the consolidation of democracy in Turkey and discusses Turkey's place among the new democracies.

This book will be of interest to those interested in Turkey and its politics but also to those interested in transitions to and the consolidation of democracy in general.

Ergun Özbudun is professor of political science at Bilkent University, Turkey and vice president of the Turkish Democracy Foundation. His many publications include Electoral politics in the Middle East and Competitive elections in developing countries (as editor).

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