- Berlin, Germany & Istanbul, Turkey
Ole Frahm
Kadir Has University, International Relations, Department Member
- African Studies, Nationalism, Statebuilding, Nationbuilding and Statebuilding, Postconflict Reconstruction, Transitional Justice, and 9 moreTransitional justice and reconciliation processes, Post conflict, Reconstruction, Peace building and Transitional Justice, Peacebuilding, Peace and Conflict Studies, Post-Conflict State Building, Turkish Foreign Policy, Modern Turkey, Black Sea region, and Post-Soviet Studiesedit
- I am a political scientist with a broad range of interests from conflict studies to nationalism to statebuilding and ... moreI am a political scientist with a broad range of interests from conflict studies to nationalism to statebuilding and with a geographic focus on Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, the post-Soviet space and Turkey.edit
This chapter analyses how the Turkish government’s populist policies and discourses have evolved over time as the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi = AKP) has been losing popular support. Specifically, it looks at... more
This chapter analyses how the Turkish government’s populist policies and discourses have evolved over time as the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi = AKP) has been losing popular support. Specifically, it looks at whether the Turkish government changed course or persisted across several subfields of politics: cultural, economic, immigration and foreign policy. Despite substantial changes in approaches to economic and foreign policy, there are other core areas of populist policies that have remained unchanged throughout the crisis. The reason for this remarkable level of persistence in the face of declining popularity is, we argue, the fact that these areas denote not only the core of the AKP’s message but also of the party’s and its leaders’ core ideological belief system. This empirical finding points to a wider need to reorient the debate over whether populists are thin ideologues that readily adapt their policy offerings to public sentiments. The analysis of how populist discourses evolved in the case of Turkey adds empirical weight to the claim that there is a certain thickness in populists’ ideology. This in turn may explain why populist parties in decline stick to some of their approaches even when their impact on popularity diminishes.
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In newly independent South Sudan, the state's not yet fully demarcated territory plays an intriguing and in certain aspects contradictory role in shaping and defining personal and group identities. While neighbouring states’ armies... more
In newly independent South Sudan, the state's not yet fully demarcated territory plays an intriguing and in certain aspects contradictory role in shaping and defining personal and group identities. While neighbouring states’ armies and their proxies interfere with South Sudan's international sovereignty, Juba is itself active beyond its borders by supporting Sudanese rebels. Nonetheless, the ruling elite hold onto the model of the unified and centralised territorial nation-state with clearly demarcated borders. Alas, the state's failure to territorialise its authority creates hybridity with regard to territorial control, which impacts negatively on the state's domestic legitimacy but also weakens attempts to propagate a national identity that transcends ethnic ties. Instead, the current civil war and calls for a decentralised federal structure are evidence of the continued salience of subnational loyalties while those non-state actors, like localised militias, that fill the areas void of government presence are generally themselves sources of insecurity.
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Research Interests: African Studies, Gender Studies, Political Science, Africa, Discourse, and 15 morePolitics, Nationalism, East Africa, National Identity, Referendum, Newspapers, Online Media, Separatism, Politikwissenschaft, National Development, Diskurs, Nationalismus, nationale Identität, descriptive study, and Ostafrika
Delineation, demarcation and legal-nominal control over territory have been high on the South Sudanese governments political agenda since signing the CPA in 2005. In reality, South Sudans international frontiers say very little about... more
Delineation, demarcation and legal-nominal control over territory have been high on the South Sudanese governments political agenda since signing the CPA in 2005. In reality, South Sudans international frontiers say very little about actual power relations and the scope and reach of government authority. Large swathes of territory are outside of the governments reach, neither benefitting from positive government services like education, health care and infrastructure, nor falling under the purview of police or judiciary. Sudans SAF regularly cross the border, Ugandas UPLF maintains a presence, rebel militias operate and the Ilemi Triangle is lawless territory. Conversely, the GoSS is also not constrained by borders as it supports the SPLM-N in Sudan. The focus on borders and territory is therefore better understood in the logic of internal and external political communication and legitimation than in actual interests or matters of control. For one, it is an attempt to rekindle the common bond and nationalist spirit of the anti-Northern struggle during the civil war (1983-2005) that has since given way to inter-tribal raiding, criminality and rebellion. Secondly, clearly defined external boundaries are essential for Jubas interaction with the international community and its acceptance into the club of internationally recognized sovereign nation-states.
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Die EU und Indien, die sich beide als „Union“ bezeichnen, haben ihren Ursprung in der unmittelbaren Zeit nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg. Trotz ihrer sehr unterschiedlichen Natur und Entwicklungsgeschichte stehen beide zu Beginn des neuen... more
Die EU und Indien, die sich beide als „Union“ bezeichnen, haben ihren Ursprung in der unmittelbaren Zeit nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg. Trotz ihrer sehr unterschiedlichen Natur und Entwicklungsgeschichte stehen beide zu Beginn des neuen Jahrtausends vor vergleichbaren Herausforderungen und hegen ahnliche Ambitionen. Angesichts des Aufstiegs Chinas und der dauerhaft grosen Dynamik der USA sehen beide die Notwendigkeit zu einschneidenden Reformen, um den eigenen Ambitionen, ein wichtiger „Player“ in einer kunftigen multilateralen Ordnung zu werden, zu entsprechen.
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This article examines debates about national identity in the media landscape of post-referendum and post-independence South Sudan. Having never existed as a sovereign state and with its citizens being a minority group in Sudan, collective... more
This article examines debates about national identity in the media landscape of post-referendum and post-independence South Sudan. Having never existed as a sovereign state and with its citizens being a minority group in Sudan, collective action among South Sudanese has historically been shaped in response to external pressures: in particular, the aggressive nation-building pursued by successive Khartoum governments that sought to Arabize and Islamize the South. Today, in the absence of a clear-cut enemy, it is a major challenge for South Sudan to devise a common identity that unites the putative nation beyond competing loyalties to ethnicity, tribe and family. Analysing opinion pieces from South Sudanese online media and placing them in the context of contemporary African nationalism, this article gives an initial overview of the issues that dominate the public debate on national identity: fear of tribalism and regionalism, commemoration of the liberation struggle, language politic...
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surroundings and the broader imperial worlds which Burtt was connecting. Given how expansively Higgs retells Burtt’s story, this is a great accomplishment. It helps that Higgs is a good writer, which further strengthens her ability to... more
surroundings and the broader imperial worlds which Burtt was connecting. Given how expansively Higgs retells Burtt’s story, this is a great accomplishment. It helps that Higgs is a good writer, which further strengthens her ability to introduce and hold together the many stories her narrative expounds. Among the multitude of historical perspectives retold through Burtt’s journey, one remains so muted as to be almost absent. The photograph opposite the title page is captioned “William A. Cadbury, Joseph Burtt, and an unidentified African man in Luanda”. This more or less sets the tone for much of the work to follow. The plantation workers themselves – the servic ais – are the core of the question that the book’s actors are trying to answer, yet they remain silent and largely unknowable. The debates over their status as slaves were considered then, and are examined here, through measures that have little to do with the workers themselves: death rates, material conditions, the possibility of repatriation, and so on. Higgs incisively analyses the terms through which outsiders litigated this debate, astutely noting that the fundamental question was whether to define labour as slavery because of its material realities or because of the broader degree of freedom afforded to workers to control when and where they worked. The plantation owners preferred the former definition, arguing that they treated the servic ais well enough to forestall any charges of slavery. In contrast, for anyone who subscribed to the view that free work required the free entry and exit of workers, the impossibility of repatriation for servic ais sent to São Tomé (to say nothing of the fact that any children they bore were automatically contracted to the plantation) left little room for ideological manoeuvre. But the question of how the workers themselves might have conceptualised the distinction between slavery and free labour is not something that gets much attention. Could the servic al have spoken? Not with the sources Higgs is using, and quite possibly not at all. Higgs is interested in the servic ais as historical subjects, but Burtt was not: as Higgs notes, he displayed a consistent disinterest in the possibility of actually talking to Africans, was himself deeply influenced by casually racist ideas, and depended upon the offices of Portuguese officials to arrange his investigations. This conundrum is unfortunate, but it does not undermine the value of Higgs’s study. This book is recommended for anyone seeking a highly readable and informative account of the São Tomé cocoa scandal and its relevance within the broader panorama of labour and empire in early twentieth-century Africa.
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This article makes a contribution to the debate over the interconnectedness between democratization, corruption and resource dependence by way of a qualitative analysis of three African states, Ghana, Nigeria and South Sudan, in various... more
This article makes a contribution to the debate over the interconnectedness between democratization, corruption and resource dependence by way of a qualitative analysis of three African states, Ghana, Nigeria and South Sudan, in various stages of democratization, from post-conflict transition to increasingly consolidated democracies. The underlying question guiding the analysis is to assess how both the practice and perception of corruption change in the course of democratization. Using survey data, secondary literature and empirical observations, the article juxtaposes empirical findings with theories of the African state and finds neo-patrimonialism and the concept of the gatekeeper state the most satisfactory explanatory models for the sources and types of corruption in African democracies afflicted by the resource curse.
Research Interests: Criminology and Law
This paper discusses the main strands of Turkey’s post-Cold War foreign policy in its post-Soviet Black Sea neighbourhood of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine with a focus on the period of Justice and Development... more
This paper discusses the main strands of Turkey’s post-Cold War foreign policy in its post-Soviet Black Sea neighbourhood of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine with a focus on the period of Justice and Development Party rule (2002-2018). Based on the analysis of Turkey’s rhetorical stance towards the region’s countries and its actual interaction across five sectors – trade, energy, security, education/culture and migration – our findings demonstrate that the foreign policy rhetoric with its strong emphasis on historical ties, economic and energy cooperation and support for regional countries’ territorial integrity is not matched by Turkey’s observable engagement. An important factor for the mismatch between rhetoric and engagement is that relations with the region are seen at least partly through the prism of Turkey’s more salient relations with Russia. While not a priority region, Turkey’s policy towards this space gained momentum after 2002 when the Turkish...
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It has become increasingly clear that the judicial component in post-conflict reconciliation is vital for long-term stability. In Africa, in particular, the International Criminal Court (ICC), the European Union, the African Union, and... more
It has become increasingly clear that the judicial component in post-conflict reconciliation is vital for long-term stability. In Africa, in particular, the International Criminal Court (ICC), the European Union, the African Union, and national processes strive for legitimacy and public acceptance in an environment shaped by growing distrust towards international mingling in African affairs. Hybrid courts as in Senegal that combine national and international law may be part of the solution to bridge this growing antagonism.
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Northern Iraq has seen ethnic mobilization and violent political conflict since the creation of the current state system in the interwar period. Throughout this period, Iraq’s Kurds have rejected attempts of various governments to... more
Northern Iraq has seen ethnic mobilization and violent political conflict since the creation of the current state system in the interwar period. Throughout this period, Iraq’s Kurds have rejected attempts of various governments to assimilate and absorb them into their pan-Arab ideologies. The underlying fear on behalf of Turkey’s government is that an independent Kurdistan would have an osmotic effect and automatically strengthen irredentist and pan-Kurdish segments and sentiments among Turkish Kurds and in a worst case scenario lead to a renewed intra-state conflict between separatists and the state on the scale of the early 1990s.
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As hybrid regimes persist, we need to better understand their behaviour in international affairs. Concentrating on business actors, we use a qualitative study of Turkey's foreign relations with Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine in... more
As hybrid regimes persist, we need to better understand their behaviour in international affairs. Concentrating on business actors, we use a qualitative study of Turkey's foreign relations with Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine in the period 2014–2018 to explore how hybrid regimes disseminate regime-related principles. Inspired by the concepts of neo-patrimonialism and limited access orders, we argue that hybrid regimes lack cohesion and cannot compel all relevant actors to disseminate a coherent set of regime-related principles. Depending on their domestic environment, Turkish actors transmit both neo-patrimonial closure and competitive openness, which makes Turkey's hybrid regime a dual agent of transition.
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In times of increasing conflict, the European Union (EU) and Turkey should continue at least a minimum of co-operation by shifting the focus to novel areas that are not as politically charged. An area with potential for co-operation is... more
In times of increasing conflict, the European Union (EU) and Turkey should continue at least a minimum of co-operation by shifting the focus to novel areas that are not as politically charged. An area with potential for co-operation is the Eastern Partnership, which holds an important if not primary position in both Turkey’s and the EU’s foreign relations. Given the limited success of the EU’s Eastern Partnership policy, cooperation with an established regional actor like Turkey is especially attractive. Economic, cultural, historical and migration ties deeply connect Turkey with Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine. Turkish actors also enjoy greater credibility than the EU due to their longstanding presence in the region and Turkey’s own very recent experience as an emerging economy. Co-operation should strongly involve non-state actors from Turkey, especially businesspersons. This would both enhance the connections to pro-European factions in Turkey and benefit the Eastern Partnership countries.
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Turkey and the European Union are facing several crises that have turned both into more fragile and unpredictable international actors. This policy paper on Europe and Turkey and the road ahead highlights the salience of thinking afresh... more
Turkey and the European Union are facing several crises that have turned both into more fragile and unpredictable international actors. This policy paper on Europe and Turkey and the road ahead highlights the salience of thinking afresh about the nature and conduct of the relationship between the European Union and Turkey. Based upon an inductive stock-taking of the current state of the European Union as well as the likely scenario of where it is headed in the near to mid term, this paper points out how the EU’s evolution is likely to impact Turkey and Turkish policy options in a number of geographical and topical areas. At the same time, the paper contemplates the areas in which EU-Turkey relations might improve or might take a further turn for the worse.
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This paper discusses the main strands of Turkey’s post-Cold War foreign policy in its post-Soviet Black Sea neighbourhood of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine with a focus on the period of Justice and Development... more
This paper discusses the main strands of Turkey’s post-Cold War foreign policy in its post-Soviet Black Sea neighbourhood of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine with a focus on the period of Justice and Development Party rule (2002-2018). Based on the analysis of Turkey’s rhetorical stance towards the region’s countries and its actual interaction across five sectors – trade, energy, security, education/culture and migration – our findings demonstrate that the foreign policy rhetoric with its strong emphasis on historical ties, economic and energy cooperation and support for regional countries’ territorial integrity is not matched by Turkey’s observable engagement. An important factor for the mismatch between rhetoric and engagement is that relations with the region are seen at least partly through the prism of Turkey’s more salient relations with Russia.
While not a priority region, Turkey’s policy towards this space gained momentum after 2002 when the Turkish government increasingly voiced regional ambitions and sought to leverage its neighbourhood for a more prominent global role. Accordingly, Turkey’s engagement with the six countries varies depending on cultural proximity, diaspora ties and the country’s potential to serve Turkey’s regional ambitions. Relations with Azerbaijan are therefore the most intense while those with Belarus the most aloof. In terms of sectoral engagement, economic links but also cultural and educational ties are promoted most actively and consistently. Turkey is more ambiguous with regard to security and pays little attention to migration. A substantial contribution to relations with the post-Soviet neighbourhood is on the other hand made by Turkish non-state actors, especially the business community.
While not a priority region, Turkey’s policy towards this space gained momentum after 2002 when the Turkish government increasingly voiced regional ambitions and sought to leverage its neighbourhood for a more prominent global role. Accordingly, Turkey’s engagement with the six countries varies depending on cultural proximity, diaspora ties and the country’s potential to serve Turkey’s regional ambitions. Relations with Azerbaijan are therefore the most intense while those with Belarus the most aloof. In terms of sectoral engagement, economic links but also cultural and educational ties are promoted most actively and consistently. Turkey is more ambiguous with regard to security and pays little attention to migration. A substantial contribution to relations with the post-Soviet neighbourhood is on the other hand made by Turkish non-state actors, especially the business community.
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Seit ihrer Gründung oszillieren viele Staaten Subsahara-Afrikas zwischen Bemühungen, die Staatsgewalt zentral zu steuern, und Versuchen, ein dezentraleres föderales Regierungs- und Verwaltungssystem aufzubauen.
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It has become increasingly clear that the judicial component in post-conflict reconciliation is vital for long-term stability. In Africa, in particular, the International Criminal Court (ICC), the European Union, the African Union, and... more
It has become increasingly clear that the judicial component
in post-conflict reconciliation is vital for long-term stability.
In Africa, in particular, the International Criminal Court (ICC),
the European Union, the African Union, and national processes
strive for legitimacy and public acceptance in an environment
shaped by growing distrust towards international mingling
in African affairs. Hybrid courts as in Senegal that combine
national and international law may be part of the solution to
bridge this growing antagonism.
in post-conflict reconciliation is vital for long-term stability.
In Africa, in particular, the International Criminal Court (ICC),
the European Union, the African Union, and national processes
strive for legitimacy and public acceptance in an environment
shaped by growing distrust towards international mingling
in African affairs. Hybrid courts as in Senegal that combine
national and international law may be part of the solution to
bridge this growing antagonism.
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Northern Iraq has seen ethnic mobilization and violent political conflict since the creation of the current state system in the interwar period. Throughout this period, Iraq’s Kurds have rejected attempts of various governments to... more
Northern Iraq has seen ethnic mobilization and violent political conflict since the creation of the current state system in the interwar period. Throughout this period, Iraq’s Kurds have rejected attempts of various governments to assimilate and absorb them into their pan-Arab ideologies. The underlying
fear on behalf of Turkey’s government is that an independent Kurdistan would have an osmotic effect and automatically strengthen irredentist and pan-Kurdish segments and sentiments among Turkish Kurds and in a worst case scenario
lead to a renewed intra-state conflict between separatists and the state on the scale of the early 1990s.
fear on behalf of Turkey’s government is that an independent Kurdistan would have an osmotic effect and automatically strengthen irredentist and pan-Kurdish segments and sentiments among Turkish Kurds and in a worst case scenario
lead to a renewed intra-state conflict between separatists and the state on the scale of the early 1990s.
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Humboldt University Berlin
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Speech at the University of Mainz Institute for Anthropology and African Studies, 13 May 2014
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This chapter analyses how the Turkish government’s populist policies and discourses have evolved over time as the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi = AKP) has been losing popular support. Specifically, it looks at... more
This chapter analyses how the Turkish government’s populist policies and discourses have evolved over time as the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi = AKP) has been losing popular support. Specifically, it looks at whether the Turkish government changed course or persisted across several subfields of politics: cultural, economic, immigration and foreign policy. Despite substantial changes in approaches to economic and foreign policy, there are other core areas of populist policies that have remained unchanged throughout the crisis. The reason for this remarkable level of persistence in the face of declining popularity is, we argue, the fact that these areas denote not only the core of the AKP’s message but also of the party’s and its leaders’ core ideological belief system. This empirical finding points to a wider need to reorient the debate over whether populists are thin ideologues that readily adapt their policy offerings to public sentiments. The analysis of how populist discourses evolved in the case of Turkey adds empirical weight to the claim that there is a certain thickness in populists’ ideology. This in turn may explain why populist parties in decline stick to some of their approaches even when their impact on popularity diminishes.
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The chapter retraces the intricate link between the responsibility to protect and South(ern) Sudan. First, a historical retrospective shows how humanitarian efforts in Southern Sudan created the consciousness that an international norm to... more
The chapter retraces the intricate link between the responsibility to protect and South(ern) Sudan. First, a historical retrospective shows how humanitarian efforts in Southern Sudan created the consciousness that an international norm to prevent human rights abuses was vital. Subsequently, an analysis of the 2013–2018 civil war in South Sudan illustrates highly diverging interpretations of R2P’s implementation in practice. Four dimensions of how R2P’s preventive and punitive aspects find expression in discourses and actions are highlighted: judicial accountability, limits to national sovereignty, the United Nations’ changing self-conception, and sanctions regimes. Findings show the mutual exclusivity of different measures, the UN’s shift to human security, the salience of civil society activism in setting the agenda and South Sudanese actors’ active utilization of the R2P norm.
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This chapter examines how contestation over land ownership and belonging to the land have shaped lines of conflict in the world’s newest state, South Sudan. He argues that the South Sudanese government has actively, if unwittingly,... more
This chapter examines how contestation over land ownership and belonging to the land have shaped lines of conflict in the world’s newest state, South Sudan. He argues that the South Sudanese government has actively, if unwittingly, worsened the situation by enacting community-based land legislation that pushes people to exclude others from their group and what they claim as their soil. This has ignited a debate over federalism and decentralisation with severe overtones of ethnic cleansing. At the same time, land has become an increasingly valuable asset both for the state in its attempt to diversify away from oil revenues, and for individuals and groups eager to cash in. He further contends that the alleged foreign grab is a chimera that may change once the ongoing fighting in the country subsides. Therefore, highlighting and understanding how much and in what way land matters will not only be of academic interest but will lay out a map of sources of potential future conflicts in the country.
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Sub-Saharan African nationalism and nation-building in the post-colonial period has been characterized by a couple of largely successive developments: 1) State-driven inclusive nationalism opposed to ethnic and tribal distinctiveness; 2)... more
Sub-Saharan African nationalism and nation-building in the post-colonial period has been characterized by a couple of largely successive developments: 1) State-driven inclusive nationalism opposed to ethnic and tribal distinctiveness; 2) Failure of official nation-building to take root in the population and assertion of ethnic identities and ethnic separatism; 3) Emergence of the politics of belonging and discourses of autochthony. South Sudan as a unique late-comer to independence with hardly any colonial or pre-colonial antecedents as a state or group collective provides a fascinating test case to contrast to the above narrative. Therefore, this paper aims to show that South Sudan in its early post-independence period, effectively in year 9 of autonomous rule since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) was signed in 2005, follows a very idiosyncratic trajectory in terms of devising and struggling with the idea of a national identity and community.