Otoriter Rejimi Yeniden Yapılandırmak: 1990’larda Cezayir’de Kriz Sonrası Rejim Konsolidasyonu

Abstract

Cezayir rejimi 1990’larda bir demokratikleşme çabası ve bir iç savaşla sarsılmıştı. Ancak takip eden süreçte rejim oldukça dirençli bir hale gelmeyi başardı. Her ne kadar 2000’lerden sonra başta Arap Baharı ve Hirak isimli toplum hareketleri olsa da Cezayir rejimi protestoları yatıştırmanın ve hayatta kalmanın yollarını bulabildi. İstikrarsız geçen 1990’ların ardından Cezayir rejim elitleri nasıl oldu da bu kadar dirençli bir otoriter rejim geliştirebildiler? Rejim 1990’larda içine düştüğü siyasal krizden nasıl bir dönüşümle çıkmayı başardı ve bu dönüşüm rejimim hayatta kalma dinamiklerini nasıl etkiledi? Bu sorulara yanıt verirken bu makale Cezayir’de otoriter rejimin dönüşümünü vaka analizi yoluyla incelemekte ve bulgularını saha araştırması sırasında yapılmış mülakatlarla desteklemektedir. Buna göre rejim 1990’lar öncesinde hayatta kalmak için kullandığı araçlar daha sınırlı olmuştur. Ancak 1990’larda rejim bir yandan bazı eski araçlarını yeniden yapılandırırken bazı yeni araçları kullanıma sokarak hayatta kalma araçlarını çeşitlendirmiştir. Bu çerçevede rejimin 1990’larla beraber hayatta kalmak için farklı ihtiyaçları daha iyi karşılayabilen araçları üç grupta ele alınabilir. Birincisi doğal kaynak gelirleri gibi eskiden beri kullanılan araçlar, ikincisi baskı aygıtlarını güçlendirilmesi ve meşruiyetin yeniden tanımlaması yoluyla yenilenen ve geliştirilen araçlar, üçüncüsü ise siyasal liberalleşmeyi aktif bir şekilde kullanmaya başlamak ve muhalefetten gelebilecek tehditleri kontrol edebilmek için çok partili seçim sistemi yerleştirmekle geliştirilen yeni araçlardır. İşte bu yeniden yapılanma sayesinde Cezayir rejimi 1990’larla beraber dirençli ve modern bir seçimli otoriter rejime dönüşmüştür. Bunun sonucu olarak da rejim 2000’lerle beraber yükselen tehditlere daha başarılı bir şekilde yanıt verebilecek hale gelmiştir. Cezayir vakası üzerinden ilerleyen bu makale bir yandan ülkedeki rejimin dönüşümünü gösterirken bir yandan da yakın dönemde dünyanın dört bir yanında otoriter rejimlerin yaşadığı dönüşümlere de bir örnek sunarak literatürle bağlantılar kurmaktadır.

Keywords

• otoriter hayatta kalma
• seçimli otoriterlik
• Cezayir
• siyasal rejimler
• muhalefet

Reconfiguring Authoritarianism: Post-Crisis Regime Consolidation in Algeria during the 1990s

Abstract

The Algerian regime was contested by a democratization attempt and a civil war in the 1990s. However, it has succeeded to become a very robust regime since then. Even with the challenges that emerged in the following decades such as the Arab Spring and the Hirak movement, the Algerian regime found ways to absorb protests and survive. Following the tumultuous decade of the 1990s, how was it possible for the Algerian elites to acquire such a robust authoritarian regime? How did the regime manage to escape from the political crisis of the decade with a reconfiguration and how did these changes affect its dynamics of survival? Answering these questions, this article examines the transformation of the authoritarian regime in Algeria by carrying out a case analysis and supports its claims with interviews conducted during fieldwork. According to that, the regime had used a rather limited toolset for its survival prior to the 1990s. However, while the regime reconfigured some of its old tools, it introduced several new ones during the 1990s. The regime’s diversified toolset following this period can be categorized under three groups: The first is the old tools such as natural resources rents, the second is the reconfigured tools like a strengthened coercive apparatus and a redefined legitimacy, and the third is the new tools such as starting to use political liberalization effectively and introducing the multiparty system to control the challenges from the opposition. Thanks to this reconfiguration, the Algerian regime transformed into a robust and modern electoral authoritarian regime in the 1990s. As a result, the regime became more successful in responding to challenges in the following decades. With these, based on the case of Algeria, this article aims at two things: explaining the reconfiguration of the Algerian regime and making connections with the broader literature on comparative authoritarianism by examining an important example of how authoritarianism transforms in recent decades.

Keywords

• authoritarian survival
• electoral authoritarianism
• Algeria
• political regimes
• opposition

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