The Transformation of Turkey: Europeanization and beyond
(15 364)
| Typ | Hauptseminar |
|---|---|
| Dozent/in | Dr. Bilgin Ayata |
| Raum | Garystr. 55 / 302b |
| Zeit | Mi 16.00 - 18.00
|
As the most contested candidate country for EU Membership, the controversy on Turkey's accession does not abide. In this course, we will go beyond the polarized debate on Turkey's EU candidacy and explore Turkey's domestic and foreign policy reforms in light of both Europeanization processes and other factors, such as the rise of new political actors like the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). While on the one hand, a series of significant democratization reforms were passed in the past decade that are often explained by Europeanization processes, on the other hand, there is also a growing concern within Turkey about Islamization and Turkey's drift away from Europe towards the Arab World - concerns that also stand for a deepening of societal and political cleavages within Turkey. Outside of Turkey, Prime Minister Erdogan's recent announcement, that Turkey will freeze negotiations with the EU in 2012 for the duration of Cyprus holding the presidency of the EU Council has revived the question where Turkey is heading to, particularly as an emerging regional power. Rather then seeking a clear- cut answer to this question, this course aims to grasp and analyze the complexities of Turkey's transformation process within the context of its EU candidacy, yet not limited to it. The course will begin with an overview on key aspects of Turkish history, political culture and political system and then focus on the reform process beginning from the 2000s. We will critically examine to what degree the standard Europeanization literature can explain Turkey's transformation and include other bodies of literature. The language of the seminar will be English.