A summary of lecture notes surrounding issues of Sovereignty in the Middle East and North Africa Region. It addresses what sovereignty is, as well as what challenges sovereignty in the 21st century.
The notes also discuss topics such as: the State of Exception, Giorgio Agamben, Bare life and the ...
Sovereignty in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) Region.
Objectives:
- How is life regulated?
- How does sovereignty operate in the Middle East?
- How is sovereignty contested?
Key Thinkers:
- Krasner
- Weber
- Caporaso
- Giorgio Agamben
- Dawla and Umma
What is Sovereignty?
- It’s defined as Autonomy in a particular Geographical Area.
- It’s a fundamental source of power that must be recognised as a state by other states
or government, and a holder of power.
- There is debate around whether sovereignty is international or domestic, and can it be
both. For example, can a state be truly sovereign if also held accountable by
international organisations such as the UN?
- Western/Eastern Debate: Is the sovereignty in one state the same as the other and is
the institutional structure the same in different regions of the world? Some may say
that ‘The State’ is a western construct. Can this idea explain what is happening in
Latin America, the Middle East, Eastern Asia etc?
What is Authority?
- The right to rule
- Legitimacy within a state or ruler – Weber: Power wielded legitimately
- Authority requires hierarchy to work. A figure of authority must possess powers
above their peers.
- How do we understand authority? – where does authority lie to the individual when
discussing state and religion. Who does an individual obey if they believe in multiple
figures of authority? Some religions say that authority can only be found in God,
rather than a state or government.
Sovereignty in the 21st Century
Westphalian Sovereignty, the idea that each state can the right to rule over its designated
territory, is becoming continuously more eroded, willingly or unwillingly.
‘Survival of the State’
This helps us to understand how states behave yet cannot be used as a ‘one size fits all’
approach. To develop these theories in the western world, then apply the same ideas and
assumptions to the rest of the world is orientalist and ignorant. To recognise this can show us
the internal dynamics of a state.
Citizenship
To be a citizen is to be a member of a political community and, in Westphalian terms, possess
membership of the state.
Territory
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