Current Political Dynamics Research Articles

Strategi Positioning “Gemoy” Prabowo Subianto melalui Media Digital

This research aims to analyze the transformation of Prabowo Subianto's image from a stern and authoritative figure to a more relaxed and attractive one, focusing on the development of a "gemoy" image ahead of the 2024 Indonesian presidential general election. Using a qualitative methodology and case study approach, the research collected data through documentation, observation, as well as content and discourse analysis from print, electronic, and online media. The study shows that Prabowo's image change is influenced by the current political dynamics, the evolution of information technology, and the changing preferences of voters, especially the younger generation. The main findings show that Prabowo's positioning strategy through digital media, especially on social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, plays a crucial role in shaping a new image that is more relaxed and fun. This research provides insights into how politicians can adapt their image to attract voters, especially from the younger generation, in the digital era. The findings also highlight the importance of digital media in contemporary political campaigns, where it is not only a communication tool but also a strategic instrument in political image formation and management. This research contributes to the understanding of the dynamics of political image formation in Indonesia, providing evidence of how images can be strategically altered to achieve greater resonance with voters in a changing political context.

Explorations into middle class urbanites, social movements and political dynamics: impressions from Namibia’s capital, Windhoek

ABSTRACT Namibia’s National Assembly and Presidential Elections in November 2019 documented for the first time a decline in the hegemonic status of the former liberation movement, SWAPO. This culminated since then in an unforeseen loss of support in the Regional and Local Authorities Elections of November 2020. Most municipalities and towns are now under the control of new political alliances. These include agencies with social movement elements. The urban middle class deserves in this context some special attention: Has it influenced voting patterns? Can an urban middle class be of sufficient political influence to play a significant role in changes of political governance? The dramatic political shifts in Windhoek are explored: if and to what extent might a focus on urban middle-class political behaviours help to analyse current political dynamics unfolding?

Memilih Pemimpin dalam Islam

This article discusses about choosing a leader in Islam. As it is known that the current political dynamics of the nation are often neglected and excluded religion, the rise of demonstrations sometimes demand the leader resignation. Blaming the leader cannot be justified because he is the product and consequence of the election. This research aims to delve how Islam gives guidance to choose a leader. This is a library research in which the data was collected from documents such as journals, books, and manuscripts. They are analyzed in Islamic perspective, and then drawn into conclusion. The research concludes that Islam has taught muslims how to choose a leader. It is quite different from choosing a leader in democracy. In Islam, it is highly recommended and even mandatory to choose a prospective leader who meets the requirements and criteria in Islam, because a voter who determines his voting right is responsible to his religion for his choice. The state of being careless and neglacting in choosing a leader who is not in accordance with Islam will destroy the nation and people. At the end it is all the responsibilities of people, especially muslims to their the Creator.

ВНЕШНЯЯ ПОЛИТИКА СОВРЕМЕННОЙ ТУРЦИИ: РЕГИОНАЛЬНАЯ ДЕРЖАВА В НЕОИМПЕРСКОЙ ПЕРСПЕКТИВЕ

The article examines the conceptual foundations of Turkey's contemporary foreign policy. Based on comparing a range of empirical data with a list of theoretical indicators compiled by D. Nolte the author classifies Turkey as a regional power and at the same time highlights the concept’s insufficient explanatory capacity for analyzing the country’s contemporary foreign policy. The author forms a hypothesis consistent with H. Spruyt's theory of institutional competition between political forms and of their selection. The hypothesis states that the current political dynamics lead to the emergence of novel political entities – neoempires. To test it, the autor defines ‘neoempireness’ as a feature of foreign policy and undertakes a comparative analysis of ‘empireness’, ‘post-empireness’ and ‘neoempireness’. It is noted that the term ‘post-empireness’ reflects spontaneous, unintended influence of the imperial past on the subsequent development of the former empire's core and peripheries as independent national states, whereas ‘neoempireness’ implies deliberate adaptation of the imperial experience to the contemporary realities for the purpose of engaging in the global competition more efficiently. The analysis of a range of significant political decisions and actions recently taken by the Turkish government allows to make the conclusion that its foreign policy has assumed a neoimperial nature.

Liderazgo político para un mundo nuevo: cambios globales y pandemia de la Covid-19

<div class="page" title="Page 1"><div class="layoutArea"><div class="column"><p><span>Este artículo analiza el fenómeno del liderazgo político en el marco del mundo de la globalización atemperada y limitada, a raíz de la crisis sanitaria global causada por la pandemia de la Covid-19. Como resultado de dicha pande- mia, y de cambios anteriores a ésta, se transita hacia un mundo que se caracteriza por profundas transformaciones globales, así como por el recurrente protagonismo de los Estados e instituciones nacionales y de los liderazgos políticos, los cuales centran nuestra atención a través de dos preguntas: ¿qué rasgos definen el contexto sociopolítico en el que los liderazgos políticos han de actuar?, ¿qué cualidades y estilos requieren incorporar dichos liderazgos ante los retos actuales? Atendiendo a ambas preguntas, en primer lugar, se analizan los factores contextuales en clave nacional y global del liderazgo. Luego, se delimita el contexto y el concepto de globalización y se argumenta cómo ello contri</span>buye a entender las vigentes dinámicas políticas. En tercer lugar, se revisan las teorías sobre el liderazgo y éste es conceptualizado a la luz del nuevo mundo. Finalmente, se reflexiona sobre el presente contexto, las cualidades y estilos del liderazgo.</p></div></div></div>

Soft Power: theoretical framework and political foundations

Although 30 years have passed since it was first formulated by the American political scientist Joseph Nye Jr, experts in international relations still debate on the contribution that soft power can give in foreign policy. This article aims to analyse the epistemological framework of soft power since its elaboration over the years till now. The research delves into two essential angles of soft power. The former is the study on the relevance of the concept of soft power in the current political dynamics. The latter is the definition of the idea of soft power with a focus on the evolution of such an idea since it was formulated by Joseph Nye Jr. The academic debate around the concept of soft power can be summarised mostly around four points: (1) the definition of soft power, (2) the relationship between hard and soft power; (3) resources and behaviours generating soft power; (4) the actors involved, when we speak about soft power. In the political debate of the last few years, some political scientists and practitioners have raised doubts about relevance and effectiveness of soft power in the current international political dynamics. However, the COVID-19 pandemic, which is reshaping the global order, is demonstrating that deploying effective public diplomacy is still crucial in international relations.

COSMOPOLITANISM IN THE FACE OF POPULISM – CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES ON THE PATH OF EUROPEAN IDENTITY FORMATION

The paper examines the continuing viability of the critique of methodological nationalism in the context of recent resurgence of nationalist sentiments across western liberal democracies. Using the distinction between first and second modernity, it shows how cosmopolitan social theorising can actually be seen as predictive of some of the effects that nationalist populism has enjoyed in the context of the post-2008 series of crises. The discussion is mostly focused on the challenge the current political dynamics poses to the weak forms of social integration underpinning the project of European supra-national unification.

The Military, Politics, and Populism in Indonesia

The military institution has faced a dilemma emerges because there is political opportunity for military to return to politic practices due to civilian inferior political groups who disappointed with the dynamic democratization process. The failure of democratic transition some countries with democratic politics that cannot shape into democratic country was caused by inferiority factor of civil politicians who lured military to take part into practical politics. Situation, both politics and threat against State has made military institution considered as answer to unresolved civilian government. In Indonesia, the weak civilian group as a known as Continuous Islamic Defending Rally (Aksi Bela Islam-ABI) has increased political tension of several political elites in Jakarta including some military officers who considered the ruling civil government incapable to control the situation. Base on that the paper will elaborate the position of military in the context of national leader based on current political dynamics. There is a current of the TNI neutrality as an institution to keep distance with political practice and militaristic culture. The paper will also elaborate the role of TNI in national leadership formation as part of administration through democratic process, where national leader should be selected from political mechanism that supported democratic political system.

Complex Politics in Single Numbers? The Problem of Defining and Measuring Democracy

Whether the Arab world has become more democratic since the Arab Spring is a heated debate. References in these discussions often are made to comparative democracy indices that are considered either with appreciation or skepticism. In this article, the regional coordinator for Middle East and North Africa of the Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI) discusses some insights from the assessment process of the most recent data for the BTI's 2014 edition. It shows that the revolutionary changes since 2011 have brought major challenges to those who want to measure democracy. Case studies from certain Arab countries illustrate practical problems and methodological challenges that resulted from the dramatic changes for the BTI 2014 assessment. However, it concludes that the BTI weathered the storms convincingly well, and that the 2014 findings are a useful tool for a deeper understanding of the region's current political dynamics.

Will Malaysia Follow the Path of Taiwan and Mexico?

This essay focuses on the subset of semiauthoritarian systems that Beatriz Magaloni calls hegemonic-party autocracies. In such autocracies, a single party or coalition holds power without interruption for several decades under semiauthoritarian conditions while conducting regular multiparty elections. Within this category, the experiences of Mexico and the Republic of China (ROC or Taiwan) from the l980s to 2000 are particularly helpful in illuminating the current political dynamics in Malaysia and its prospects (or lack thereof) for democratization.

Political Change in the Middle East: An Attempt to Analyze the 'Arab Spring'

This article deals with the Arab Spring as a process of deep political change in the Arab world, previously the only major world area where authoritarianism persisted unchallenged for decades. While in various countries of the Arab world mass protests in 2011 forced rulers to resign, other authoritarian regimes have – despite political and economic pressure – so far been able to remain in power, or have even been only insignificantly affected. This paper applies central social science approaches in order to analyze recent developments in the region – a major task of theoretically oriented social sciences in the coming years. In addition to providing an overview of the existing literature on the Arab Spring, the article examines the empirical results of political diversification in the Arab world. A two-by‐two matrix of political rule that differentiates according to the type of rule and the degree of stability is presented and discussed. Although the analysis draws heavily on rent theory, it also applies findings from transition theory and revolution theory to illuminate the current political dynamics in the Middle East.

Research on Gender and the Military in Israel: From a Gendered Organization to Inequality Regimes

This article offers an analytical review of the research on gender and the military in Israel since the 1970s. I argue that the research in this field has undergone a paradigmatic shift that is based on five analytical transformations: (1) a move from a binary gendered conception to intersectionality analysis; (2) a shift from a dichotomous perception of the military organization to an analysis based on 'inequality regime' theory; (3) an emphasis on women as agents of change and resistance; (4) a focus on men and militarized masculinities; and (5) macro-analysis of the significance of women's service in a militaristic society. The article concludes with a discussion of the current political dynamics and conflicts that shape both the construction of the military gender regime and the production of the research in this field.

Current political dynamics in Asia: Issues, developments and threats

The author examines the current political dynamics in Asia and the potential threat situations jeopardizing the regional security. The article looks at proliferation of nuclear weapons and the North Korean and the Iranian nuclear cases. It studies the international pressures, diplomacy moves and the Iranian reaction and the EU and American perceptions. The Taiwan issue and territorial dispute of the South China Sea and the problem of Kashmir between Pakistan and India are discussed. The regional radical terrorism networks under the Islamic guise are also examined.

Handbook of federal countries, 2002

For more than two centuries federalism has provided an example of how people can live together even as they maintain their diversity. The Handbook of Federal Countries, 2005 continues the tradition started by the 2002 edition, updating and building on the work of Ronald Watts and Daniel Elazar in providing a comparative examination of countries with federal tendencies. Unique in its timely scope and depth, this volume begins with a foreword by Forum President Bob Rae that reflects on the importance of the federal idea in the contemporary world and provides an excellent introduction to federalism. New comparative chapters examine the recent draft constitutional treaty in Europe and the possibility of federalism being adopted in two countries with longstanding violent conflicts - Sri Lanka and Sudan. As a project of the Forum of Federations, an international network seeking to strengthen democratic governance through federal values, practices, and principles, the 2005 handbook is an essential sourcebook of information with maps and statistical tables in each chapter. The international authors examine a wide range of themes including the development of federalism in the country, the constitutional provisions relating to federalism, and the country's current political dynamics. The authors also include sources readers can consult for more information. Contributors include Dirk Anthony Ballendorf (University of Guam), Kaiser Bengali (Social Policy and Development Centre, Pakistan), Allan Brewer-Carias (Columbia University), David Cameron (University of Toronto),Valeriano Mendes Ferreira Costa (Sao Paulo - Brasil), Mihailo Crnobrnja (special advisor, Government of Serbia), Rohan Edrisinha (University of Colombo), Ann Griffiths (Dalhousie University), Siobhan Harty (Department of Social Development, Ottawa), Rudolf Hrbek (University of Tuebingen, Germany), Paul King (Management Systems International, Nigeria), Andre Lecours (Concordia University), George Mathew (Institute for Social Sciences, India), Gordon Means (emeritus, McMaster University), Yemile Mizrahi (Washington, DC), Viviana Patroni (York University), Tom Patz (Gesellschaft fur technische Zusammenarbeit), Cesare Pinelli (University of Macerata), Cheryl Saunders (University of Melbourne), Sanford Schram (Bryn Mawr College), Lee Seymour (Northwestern University), Julie Simmons (University of Guelph), Thomas Stauffer (University of Fribourg), Roland Sturm (University of Erlangen-Nurnberg), Janis van der Westhuizen (Stellenbosch University), Gary Wilson (University of Northern British Columbia), and Marie-Joelle Zahar (Universite de Montreal).