Suchergebnisse

"Prolonged war, international sanctions and the growing politicization of ethnic and religious identities have resulted in significant setbacks to the social status of women in Iraq. At the heart clashing visions on the role of religious norms in society lies the struggle about the Iraqi Personal Status Code and the question whether the state courts that have hitherto determined family law, issues should be transformed into shari'a courts. In contrast to many other, often symbolic, debates concerning the influence of religion on government and legislature, personal status legislation has a direct impact on everyday life and especially on women. In this political tug-of-war, not only disagreement about family-related matters and women's rights are coming to the fore, but moreover a profound struggle about the principles of democracy and citizenship." (author's abstract)

Popular uprisings and revolts across the Arab Middle East have often resulted in a democratic faragh or void in power. How society seeks to fill that void, regardless of whether the regime falls or survives, is the common trajectory followed by the seven empirical case studies published here for the first time. This edited volume seeks to unpack the state of the democratic void in three interrelated fields: democracy, legitimacy and social relations. In doing so, the conventional treatment of democratization as a linear, formal, systemic and systematic process is challenged and the power politics of democratic transition reassessed. Through a close examination of case studies focusing on Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, this collection introduces the reader to indigenous narratives on how power is wrested and negotiated from the bottom up. It will be of interest to those seeking a fresh perspective on democratization models as well as those seeking to understand the reshaping of the Arab Middle East in the lead-up to the Arab Spring.