Civil Society And Political Reform In Lebanon And Libya

Lebanon and Libya have undergone critical political events in recent years. However, demands for reform from civic institutions during these transitions have not led to concrete political decisions. Civil Society and Political Reform in Lebanon and Libya reveals the deeply-entrenched historical patterns and elements of continuity that have led to path dependent outcomes in the political transitions of both countries. Motivated by personal experiences as an activist in Lebanon, the author draws together a wide range of data from participant observations, nation-wide surveys, interviews and focus groups in a careful analysis of these two civil society-led reform campaigns. The study demonstrates how the combination of weak states and power-sharing agreements marginalizes civic organisations and poses institutional constraints on the likelihood of reform. Written by an active participant in the political events discussed, this book offers new insight into two countries which present comparable and informative case studies. As such, it is a valuable resource for students, scholars and policymakers interested in civil society, politics and reform in the Middle East and North Africa.

This book examines the links between civil society, religion and politics in the Middle East and North Africa region. The chapters in the volume explore the role of religion in shaping and changing the public sphere in regions that are developing and/or in conflict. They also discuss how these relations are reflected on civil society organizations and the role they are expected to play in transitional periods. This volume: investigates the conceptual dilemmas regarding what is ‘civil society’ in the Arab world today examines the dynamic roles of civil society organizations and religion in the Middle East and North Africa explores the future of the Arab civil society post-‘Arab Spring’ events, and how the latter continues to reshape the demand for democracy in the region. A comprehensive study of how the Arab civil society has come into being and its changing roles, this eclectic work will be of interest to scholars and researchers of politics, especially political Islam, international relations, Middle East Studies, African Studies, sociology and social anthropology.

Examines the politics of civil society in modern Lebanon. The Arab Spring in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and elsewhere has highlighted the growing importance of the politics of civil society in the contemporary Middle East. In Reproducing Sectarianism, Paul W. T. Kingston examines rights-oriented advocacy networks within Lebanon’s postwar civil society, focusing on movements and political campaigns based on gender relations, the environment, and disability. Set within Lebanon’s postwar sectarian democracy, whose factionalizing dynamics have long penetrated the country’s civil society, Kingston’s fascinating study provides an in-depth analysis of the successes and challenges that ensued in promoting rights-oriented social policies. Drawing on extensive field research, including interviews and a wealth of primary documents, Kingston has produced a groundbreaking work that will be of interest to Middle East experts and nonexperts alike. Paul W. T. Kingston is Associate Professor of Political Science and International Development Studies at the University of Toronto Scarborough. He is the author of Britain and the Politics of Modernization in the Middle East, 1945–1958 and the coeditor (with Ian S. Spears) of States within States: Incipient Political Entities in the Post–Cold War Era.

In this innovative study of everyday charity practices in Jeddah, Nora Derbal employs a 'bottom-up' approach to challenge dominant narratives about state-society relations in Saudi Arabia. Exploring charity organizations in Jeddah, this book both offers a rich ethnography of associational life and counters Riyadh-centric studies which focus on oil, the royal family, and the religious establishment. It closely follows those who work on the ground to provide charity to the local poor and needy, documenting their achievements, struggles and daily negotiations. The lens of charity offers rare insights into the religiosity of ordinary Saudis, showing that Islam offers Saudi activists a language, a moral frame, and a worldly guide to confronting inequality. With a view to the many forms of local community activism in Saudi Arabia, this book examines perspectives that are too often ignored or neglected, opening new theoretical debates about civil society and civic activism in the Gulf.

This open access Regional Reader describes population movement circulating within the Mediterranean area, for any reason or from any region, be them European, African, Asian or originating from any of the Mediterranean shores. It showcases a plurality of approaches to and applications of Mediterranean migration, contributing to a regional approach to migration, thereby defending this regional approach by scaling Mediterranean migration issues. This book covers a large set of questions related to the migration research agenda, such as: market and economy, politics and policies, super-diversity and intersectionality, media, society, welfare and the environment through five main parts: Geo-political Mediterranean Relations, Governance, Policies and Politics, Mobility drivers and Agency, Cities, History and Social Transformations, and Economy and Labour Markets. This Regional Reader provides an interesting read to scholars, researchers, but also policy makers and civil society organizations’ high representatives, international foundations and institutions interested in linking the Mediterranean and migration.

This edited volume examines the role of local civil society in shaping understandings and processes of transitional justice in Africa – a nursery of transitional justice ideas for well over two decades. It brings together practitioners and scholars with intimate knowledge of these processes to evaluate the agendas and strategies of local civil society, and offers an opportunity to reflect on ‘lessons learnt’ along the way. The contributors focus on the evolution and effectiveness of transitional justice interventions, providing a glimpse into the motivations and inner workings of major civil society actors. The book presents an African perspective on transitional justice through a compilation of country-specific and thematic analyses of agenda setting and lobbying efforts. It offers insights into state–civil society relations on the continent, which shape these agendas. The chapters present case studies from Southern, Central, East, West and North Africa, and a range of moments and types of transition. In addition to historical perspective, the chapters provide fresh and up-to- date analyses of ongoing transitional justice efforts that are key to defining the future of how the field is understood globally, in theory and in practice Endorsements: "This great volume of written work – Advocating Transitional Justice in Africa: The Role of Civil Society – does what virtually no other labor of the intellect has done heretofore. Authored by movement activists and thinkers in the fields of human rights and transitional justice, the volume wrestles with the complex place and roles of transitional justice in the project of societal reconstruction in Africa. ... This volume will serve as a timely and thought-provoking guide for activists, thinkers, and policy makers – as well as students of transitional justice – interested in the tension between the universal and the particular in the arduous struggle for liberation. Often, civil society actors in Africa have been accused of consuming the ideas of others, but not producing enough, if any, of their own. This volume makes clear the spuriousness of this claim and firmly plants an African flag in the field of ideas." Makau Mutua

Treating the everyday as central to the study of regional and international politics, this book reconstructs the last two decades of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, leading up to the 2011 events that sanctioned its fall. It provides a unique and vivid look into the political dynamics that characterized the everyday lives of Libyans, offering a compelling counterargument to those who insist on framing the history of the country as a stateless, authoritarian, and rogue state. Based on the collection of oral histories, what sets the tempo of this journey is an extensive collection of personal anecdotes, moods and emotions, popular jokes and rumors. In weaving the threads that link these quotidian lives to Libya’s interaction with wider international and geopolitical dynamics, the book offers a unique and timely analysis of the 2011 events that witnessed the fall of the regime reaching the current state of violence, war, and hope.