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B01=Suzi Mirgani
Category1=Non-Fiction
Category=JP
community organisation
community politics
COP=United Kingdom
Delivery_Delivery within 10-20 working days
democracy
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eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
informal politics
Language_English
Middle East
PA=Available
politics
Price_€20 to €50
PS=Active
softlaunch
Product details
- ISBN 9781787384828
- Dimensions: 138 x 216mm
- Publication Date: 29 Jul 2021
- Publisher: C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Paperback
- Language: English
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The culture of politics within any system of governance is influenced by how state and society interact, and how these relationships are mediated by existing political institutions, whether formal or informal. The chapters in this volume highlight two broad types of informal political engagement in the Middle East: civil action that works in tandem with the state apparatus, and civil action that poses a challenge to the state. In both cases, these activities can and do achieve tangible results for particular groups of people, as well as for the state.
For many, informal politics and civil mobilisation are not a choice, but a necessity to secure--collectively--some kind of social security, through communal reciprocity and everyday activism. Ironically, Middle Eastern authorities often turn a blind eye to informal organising, because 'self-help' schemes allow certain social groups to survive--reducing their instinct to make demands of, or seek support from, the state. People are discouraged from political action and dissent; yet they are simultaneously encouraged to seek their own betterment, often leading to politicised groups and associations. By analysing these formations, the contributors shed light on informal politics in the region.
Suzi Mirgani is Assistant Director for Publications at the Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS), Georgetown University in Qatar. She is the author of Target Markets, the editor of Art and Cultural Production in the Gulf Cooperation Council, and an independent filmmaker, telling stories from the Arab world.
