Political Systems (and finishing post-WWII)

Last classStrategies for Consolidating Power

Cases: Turkey, Iran, Egypt

Today Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon in brief

(see readings for comprehensive treatment)

A Typology of Government Systems

Video

Tomorrow – Arab-Israeli Wars

Iraq before Saddam Hashemite Monarchy

Problems in the 1950s

Qasim’s coup in 1958

Baath Party takes power in 1963 Arif brothers Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr Saddam takes power in 1979

Syria before Asad Legacy of French Mandate

Parliamentary system and political parties

Military intrusion

Michel Aflaq and Syrian Ba’athism

Hafez al-Asad takes power in 1970

Jordan after Abdullah Assassination of King Abdullah in 1951

Hussein takes power – coup attempts, assassination attempts, and internal war with the PLO in 1970

Martial Law in 1957

US support under Eisenhower doctrine

Lebanon Liberal economic policies – strong financial sector and cultural expression

Consociationalism (sectarian pluralism) – the institutionalization of religious identities in politics

Za’im system – localized, regional sectarian interests with individual representatitive

Establishment of Regional sectarian organizations the Phalange (Gamayel) Progressive Socialists (Jumblatt)

Muslims calling for new census due to demographic changes

1958 Civil War

Possible Typology4 groups:

Nationalist Revolutionary RepublicsAlgeria, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Tunisia

MonarchiesJordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Gulf States

Conditional DemocraciesTurkey, Israel, Lebanon

Islamic StatesIran, Sudan

Nationalist Revolutionary RepublicsAlgeria, Libya, Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Tunisia• Single-party rule• Exposure to intellectual currents of European state consolidation •Nationalism, some political liberalism, socialism

• Soviet Union as capable model of dealing with challenges• European countries were seen as primary culprits of colonialism, US emphasized anti-communism > support of liberal democracy.• Political left (esp. socialist organizations) were most active at opposing colonialism character of nationalism

•Strong, centralized, bureaucratic state-- Secularization - Western legal systems installed as opposed to indigenous or religious legal codes (shari’a for personal status issues)

Single-party dominance (often masked by multi-partism)

Personalistic Systems - Syria, Libya, Iraq, with dictatorial rulers and legislative bodies

MonarchiesJordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Gulf States

• Government ruled by a single person, power passed down hereditarily, separate from all other members of the state

• ABSOLUTE vs CONSTITUTIONAL (limited)

• More robust after 1950s and 60s when monarchies were not durable

• Economic strength (oil rents) in many of the monarchies allows consolidation of power through patronage and cooption

• All have aligned with the West (Cold War Balance of Power)

• Bahrain, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman have same ruling family for more than two-hundred years!

• Arab kingship not like Europe – gained legitimacy through capable leadership, few institutionalized succession processes, competition among successors produces strong kings

Conditional DemocraciesTurkey, Israel, Lebanon

• Elected president and legislature• checked by military, religious authorities, or institutionalized confessional appointments

• Turkey• Kurds• Expression restricted

• Israel• Most open political system• Jewish character of the state (confronts balancing secular and religious like other ME states)• No written constitution, but ‘basic laws‘• Arab Israelis

• Lebanon• Parliamentary republic• Confessional system

Islamic StatesIran and Sudan

• Pahlavi regime overthrown by Khomeini• Creation of Islamic Republic

• Shari’a Law and conservative social norms

• Supreme authority in the hands of religious council w/ Supreme Leader (Khamenei) at the very top

• Also secular structures of modern state

• Not a model of religious totalitarian state due to limits of religious authorities’ involvement in governance (esp. over administering public projects and services – division of labor)