Political Opposition Research Articles

THE POLITICS OF URBAN ECOLOGY: Paul Duvigneaud and the Rise of Ecological Urbanism in Brussels during the 1970s

AbstractToday, design disciplines such as ecological urbanism aim at fusing natural and social sciences to restore the equilibrium between social and natural systems, and in extenso the urban and natural environment. But recent literature in urban political ecology and urban history has shown how this socioecological approach is generally stripped down to a merely ecological perspective, ignoring the sociopolitical side of the urban ecological project. I therefore argue that there is a need for a research programme that interrogates the history of the interaction between ecology, planning and politics. In this article I respond by developing a historical perspective on the rise of the ecosystemic approach towards the city, delving into the agency and political nature of ecological science itself. Through an in‐depth historical analysis of the Brussels school of urban ecology and urban ecologist Paul Duvigneaud, I highlight how urban ecology influenced politics through its association with the regional government and vice versa to argue that ecological knowledge was used to overcome political opposition, incorporate a specific regionalist agenda and build an ecological zoning practice in urban planning policies.

Review: The Energy Implications of Averting Climate Change Catastrophe

Conventional methods of climate change (CC) mitigation have not ‘bent the curve’ of steadily rising annual anthropic CO2 emissions or atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases. This study reviews the present position and likely future of such methods, using the recently published literature with a global context. It particularly looks at how fast they could be implemented, given the limited time available for avoiding catastrophic CC (CCC). This study then critically examines solar geoengineering, an approach often viewed as complementary to conventional mitigation. Next, this review introduces equity considerations and shows how these even further shorten the available time for effective action for CC mitigation. The main findings are as follows. Conventional mitigation approaches would be implemented too slowly to be of much help in avoiding CCC, partly because some suggested technologies are infeasible, while others are either of limited technical potential or, like wind and solar energy, cannot be introduced fast enough. Due to these problems, solar geoengineering is increasingly advocated for as a quick-acting and effective solution. However, it could have serious side effects, and, given that there would be winners and losers at the international level as well as at the more regional level, political opposition may make it very difficult to implement. The conclusion is that global energy consumption itself must be rapidly reduced to avoid catastrophic climate change, which requires strong policy support.

MIDDLE CLASS IN UKRAINE: GOVERNMENT OR OPPOSITION?

MIDDLE CLASS IN UKRAINE: GOVERNMENT OR OPPOSITION?

The Political Opposition: Some Theoretical-Methodological Problems

The article interprets the main theoretical analyzes of the political opposition at the level of its definition, place and role in the political process. The main goal of the study is to systematize the main classifications and models of political opposition in the scientific literature and to propose an author's definition of opposition. The ideas of leading scholars of political opposition such as Robert are subjected to analysis and interpretation. Dahl, Gita Ionesco and Isabel de Madariaga, Leonard Shapiro and Rudolf Tökes. Special attention is paid to the different models and types of opposition, as well as to the possible criteria for the classification of the political opposition. Based on the performed analysis, the author makes basic conclusions and generalizations related to the need for future theoretical analyzes and empirical studies of the political opposition.

The wealthy as a barrier to tax reform

Abstract In the optimal design of tax reform proposals, and in decisions about when and how to recommend them, it is useful to take explicit account of issues of political feasibility. In the United States—and probably around the world—important political barriers work against the enactment of major progressive tax reforms. A close look at US poll and survey data indicates that opposition by the general public is not a significant barrier: large majorities favour progressive taxation in general and favour a number of specific progressive tax changes, including higher top personal income tax rates; higher taxes on corporations; increased taxation of realized capital gains; and taxation of unrealized gains at death. But there exist other serious political barriers against tax reform, including an institutional status quo bias that makes any major policy change (especially any progressive change) very difficult; and strong political opposition from business corporations and wealthy individuals. The best available evidence indicates that nearly all US business firms, and most multi-millionaires and billionaires, oppose practically any sort of progressive tax reform. The best evidence also indicates that these firms and individuals exercise far more influence on policy-making than ordinary citizens do. We mention some possible strategies for dealing with this problem.

Political Tribalism in Kuwait: The Shift of Badū from the Regime's Political Ally to Political Opposition

Addressing issues of political tribalism in Kuwait, the study reported here examined the political role of tribes in Kuwait, particularly to determine why badū tribespeople in Kuwait have shifted from being the regime's political ally to its political opponent. To that end, a survey questionnaire was created and distributed to 696 badū individuals living in Kuwait. The results suggest that most badū in Kuwait agree with the political opposition's agenda and feel excluded, marginalised, powerless, deprived of equal social justice, and deliberately targeted by certain local media networks. Furthermore, most badū sampled agreed that parliamentary elections are an effective way to exercise their political influence and that their tribes provide them with social protection as well as political power.

Will the Real Caravelle Manifesto Please Stand Up? A Critique and a New Translation

The Caravelle Manifesto of 1960 is arguably the most famous document ever produced by the political opposition in the Republic of Vietnam. Although domestically censored at the time, a published translation of the manifesto appeared abroad and became the standard version of the document in the English-speaking world. Yet this widely available translation is profoundly flawed. I have located what appears to be the original Vietnamese version, and I authenticate it through internal textual analysis and a comparison with earlier, more obscure translations. I urge scholars to adopt this version as the new standard and offer a more accurate translation.

Police Repression and Trauma in Light of the Revolutions in Kyrgyzstan

Abstract The 2005, 2010 and 2020 regime changes in Kyrgyzstan began as public revolts followed by mass violence and brutal confrontations between law enforcement and protestors. The goal of this paper is to explore the police repression in the handling of mass mobilizations and the trauma and moral injury. The research is based on interviews with fifteen active duty and retired police officers, ranging from rank-and-file officers to police chiefs. My research shows that the Kyrgyz police are deeply traumatized by political upheavals which bring the public and police into violent conflict, with skirmishes which result in the loss of lives of civilians and police officers. Police officers now fear public disorder and are often reluctant to participate in crowd control operations. They often feel as though they are used as a tool by incumbent leaders to suppress political opposition, and are subsequently betrayed by whoever succeeds ousted political elites.

Does Thinking and Working Politically improve support for social business? Evidence from a water business in Cambodia

AbstractMotivationSocial business is business that aims primarily to achieve social ends, while at least covering its costs. Social business has been put forward as a means to achieve development aims, such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Thinking and Working Politically (TWP) is an approach to ensure development interventions are politically feasible and not stymied by political opposition. Are the two approaches compatible?PurposeThe article asks whether social business can ally with TWP for more effective development, taking a social business for water provision in Cambodia as a case in point.Methods and approachA review of development policy literature on social business and TWP is combined with data we collected from fieldwork in Cambodia from November 2018 to February 2019. We interviewed key informants from social business, UNICEF, and government in the capital. At two water kiosks in eastern Cambodia, one successful the other less so, we interviewed 2 kiosk operators, 20 customers, and local leaders; we held four focus groups of customers; and we observed operations at the kiosks. Data was analysed using an ethnographic, or immersive, qualitative approach.FindingsIn this case, UNICEF intuitively used TWP to connect a social business to government departments. Water kiosks depended heavily on local political dynamics. We found Commune officials mindful of their standing in local society who often had the interests of the local community in their hearts, but the compatibility of TWP and social business at the local project level is variable.Policy implicationsTWP can potentially help development actors supporting social business to make political connections, in this case to appropriate government departments and local official. The key, however, is to understand context. The danger is to view social business as a turnkey intervention that can be used without adaptation to context, without consideration of local politics. Donors supporting social business need to appraise each business, case by case.Donors might also want to consider the motivations of international companies partnering with social business, particularly when different development objectives might be in conflict.

Parliamentary debate in lawmaking process – technology of politics

The article analyses the duration of parliamentary debate in the lawmaking process in the period when Poland was governed by populist groups (2015–2019). These groups (the United Right) are critical of the modern idea of parliamentary democracy, and populist parties treat a debate in the Parliament as a political technique rather than an important political and ethical value. Formally, contemporary populism does not deny the Parliament but lowers its rank and clearly instrumentalises it, which is manifested in the practice of limiting discussion, not taking up talks, and imposing the majority’s will. At the same time, the Parliament reflects the real attitude of populist groups to the political opposition and their attempts at its political annihilation.

“The CDC Won't Let Me Be”: The Opinion Dynamics of Support for CDC Regulatory Authority

Context: The CDC's ability to respond to communicable disease threats has recently met significant political and legal opposition. The authors unpack the influence of political ideology on support for CDC authority, and they experimentally assess whether highlighting ideology's role in responding to health threats might bolster CDC support. Methods: The authors fielded a demographically representative online survey experiment to 5,483 US adults. They assessed the sociopolitical correlates of CDC attitudes via multivariate regression analyses limited to a study-wide treatment group. Additionally, they tested the effectiveness of their experimental treatments via multivariate models that interact indicators of stimulus exposure with political ideology. Findings: Although most Americans support the CDC's role in responding to health crises, self-identified conservatives are significantly less likely to do so. This effect holds when accounting for respondents' limited government and anti-expert attitudes, which the authors replicated in nationally representative data. Encouragingly, though, emphasizing the CDC's role in combating the spread of COVID-19 is associated with significantly stronger levels of support on the ideological right. Conclusions: Efforts to communicate the CDC's importance in responding to health threats can help bridge existing ideological divides and might create an incentive for policy makers to codify the agency's regulatory powers.

Discipline, Development, and Duress: The Art of Winning an Election in Bangladesh

ABSTRACT Bangladesh’s ruling Awami League Party has now won three consecutive general elections, an unprecedented achievement in the country’s political history. The 2014 and 2018 elections were, however, mired in controversy. Current analyses of the most recent of these center on the institutional and coercive tactics used by the Awami League to limit the political opposition. International media outlets have focused on allegations of vote rigging and intimidation. This article develops a deeper analysis of the Awami League victory, focusing on two city constituencies, both of which are traditional strongholds of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Based on research before and after the 2018 election, it shows that managing party discipline enabled a coherence in the election not achievable by the opposition. The Awami League has, furthermore, successfully built a narrative around development achievements in the country and its vision for the future, both of which have had genuine traction with the public. The 2018 election revealed three pillars of the Awami League’s success: discipline, development, and duress.

Political Conversion Opposites: Two Writers and their 1920sSoviet Union Experience

This study reopens the question of the nature of political commitment and its causes during a time that drastically altered the history of the 20th century, the 1920s and 1930s. Focused largely on a body of texts produced by Japanese female writer Miyamoto Yuriko (1899-1951) who returned from a three-year long trip to the Soviet Union in late 1920s as a convinced communist, the study offers a comparison with communism renunciation writings produced by leftist Romanian French writer Panait Istrati (1894-1935), as well as other communist and fellow travelers who experienced the same Soviet realities as Miyamoto but with opposite outcomes, such as French writer André Gide (1869-1951). What made those members of the intelligentsia so passionately embrace or renounce certain political ideologies that ultimately changed the face of modern history?

Examining the Role of International Human Rights Tribunals in Promoting Accountability for Human Rights Violations

This study investigates the crucial role of international human rights courts in advancing accountability for human rights abuses. Its primary objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of these tribunals in holding accountable those — individuals, states, and non-state actors are to blame for major human rights violations. As part of the research methodology, relevant literature, case studies, and legal decisions from international human rights tribunals are thoroughly examined. The International Criminal Court (ICC), the International Court of Justice, and local human rights courts are all part of this. The scope of the investigation includes War crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity, torture, and enforced disappearances. The findings underscore the substantial contribution made by international human rights courts in ensuring justice, truth-seeking, and redress for victims of human rights abuses. These tribunals have played a pivotal role in establishing legal precedents, clarifying the extent of human rights obligations, and fostering international cooperation to address impunity. The study also explores the challenges confronted by international human rights courts, including limited jurisdiction, enforcement capacity, and political opposition. Additionally, it examines potential synergies between international tribunals and national justice systems to strengthen accountability mechanisms at both the international and domestic levels. The findings of this study have significant implications for policymakers, individuals who advocate for human rights, and those who work in the legal field because they highlight the importance of a powerful and independent international human rights court in promoting accountability and providing justice for victims of human rights violations all over the world.

Between two Acts: competing narratives, activism and governance in Singapore’s digital sphere

Civil society in Singapore has existed in the interstices of society with frequent instances of conflict with the government. The ruling People’s Action Party government has had a long history of quashing its political opponents, and this same approach has influenced how the government deals with social-political dissent, ranging from human rights groups being gazetted and their funding source curtailed, to opposition politicians and free speech advocates sued for libel and contempt of court. This paper examines how the Singapore government has made two significant moves towards online media that appears at once restrictive and accommodating towards dissent. The first is the increase in legal and regulatory burdens on the media, while the second is a perceptibly generous invitation for media freedom advocates to discuss and debate about such legal frameworks. We contend that this dualism, far from signalling inclusive governance with a firm hand, only affirms the Singapore government’s authoritarian tendencies towards media freedom advocates. This paper juxtaposes the evolution of narratives of dissent between the 2013 Amendment to the Broadcasting Act to the 2019 public debate on the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA). We explore the dynamics of resistance and posit that, even with the enlarged space for free speech in Singapore, the practice in public discourse points to further curtailment of such free speech.

Relevance and electoralism in the study of political oppositions: the case of Morocco’s radical left

ABSTRACT Relevance is a key concept in the study of political parties. This article argues that the conceptions of relevance used in the study of political oppositions in authoritarian settings need to be clarified and reformulated. More specifically, and in light of current knowledge on electoral authoritarianism, the notion of relevance must go beyond the electoralist conceptions traditionally used when studying democratic contexts. Drawing on the case of Morocco, the article highlights the obscuring effect that such conceptions can have. It then provides an alternative framework, adjusting the concept of relevance to the specificities of the context and the evolving nature of the actors operating within it. The case of al-Nahj al-Dīmoqratī, a Moroccan radical-leftist opposition party, is used to illustrate the analytical power of the framework.

„Die Transvestiten haben das Wort“: the politics of gender variation, sexual distinction and morality in the transvestite magazine Das 3. Geschlecht

This article analyzes the Weimar-era transvestite magazine Das 3. Geschlecht (1930–1932), originally published by Friedrich Radszuweit, and assesses the affective and political qualities of the transvestite public culture that it organized. Scholars have shown how transvestite counter publics emerged in Germany alongside gay and lesbian collectives, spurred by the development of a queer press and urban social networks and tempered by a politics of respectability. As Das 3. Geschlecht shows, certain transvestites responded to the new publicity around transvestism by turning to modesty, privacy and inconspicuousness, not necessarily to public resistance or visibility as trans*. My argument explains this tendency toward gender conservatism, heterosexism, and middle-class conventions like domesticity and decency by emphasizing how this space operates as an intimate public, building on the concept by Laurent Berlant. Focusing on normative and ‘generic’ mediations of the experience of transvestism, I explore how the magazine’s public sought to shape the conditions for living as a transvestite in Weimar society, when the norms for trans personhood were still being conceived and disputed. Aspirational fantasies of gender and sexual normalcy and seamless belonging in middle-class society prove more significant to these mediations than oppositional or emancipatory politics.

'Kontra-partido': untangling oppositional local politics andhealthcare devolution inthe Philippines.

A long-recognized problem of healthcare devolution in many developing countries is its inextricability from the influences of local politics. This has been particularly self-evident in the Philippines, where, since the adoption of the Local Government Code of 1991, the devolution of health governance, planning, administration and service delivery has placed the health system largely under the control of individual provinces, cities, municipalities and villages or barangays. In this article, we utilize the notion of 'kontra-partido' (the Filipino term connoting 'oppositional politics') to concretize local, oppositional politics as a lived experience of health workers, government officials and ordinary citizens in the country. Through multi-sited qualitative fieldwork, we demonstrate how 'kontra-partido' politics ultimately worsens health outcomes in any locality. We show how such politics figures in the relational dynamics of health governance, often resulting in petty infighting and strained relationships among local health authorities; how it leads to the politicization of appointments and prevents the local workforce, especially those at the grassroots, from doing their jobs efficiently amid environments rife with hostile patronage; and how it impedes service delivery as politicians prioritize 'visible' projects (over sustainable ones) and selectively deliver health care to their known supporters. In turn, health workers and ordinary citizens alike have been actively negotiating their roles within this political milieu, either by joining the so-called political frontlines or by engaging in the transactional relationships that develop between politicians and their constituents during perennial election seasons. We conclude with a reflection on the vulnerability of health to politicization and the visceral consequences of 'kontra-partido' politics to health workers, as well as an identification of possible areas of intervention for future policy reform, given the deepening political polarization in the country and the upcoming implementation of the recently passed Universal Health Care Law.

카자흐스탄 권위주의 체제에서의 정치적 반대와 정부의 대응

The aim of this article is to give a diachronic analysis of the processes in which political opposition and government’s responses towards it have unfolded in Kazakhstan’s authoritarian regime. The first generation of political opposition in Kazakhstan was the social movements that were organized on the initiative of intelligentsia from the late Soviet period to the early 1990s and raised national and environmental issues. Nazarbayev’s government responded to this type of political opposition with repression and co-optation. The second generation of political opposition in the form of a profit-seeking party arose from the late 1990s to the early and mid 2000s. The responses of Nazarbayev’s government towards it were strong repression and offensive discourse. Since 2010s the third generation of political opposition in the new form of a mass protest has been rising up and Kazakhstan’s government has been responding to it with repression and offensive discourse as before. But the same way of responses as before in different conditions of state-society relations has not achieved the effect of stabilization of the regime.

The (non) Europeanization of Latvia’s Far Right

Abstract Latvia’s far right has had a great deal of political influence since the late 1980s, when nativist movements played a key role in mobilizing political opposition to Soviet power. Far-right parties have been in 16 of the 22 government coalitions in Latvia between 1993 and 2023. Since 2010, the National Alliance (NA), a merger between an established far-right party and a more youthful political party, has come to dominate Latvia’s far right and has been a part of every government coalition from 2011-2023. This article begins with a discussion of Europeanization, the Europeanization of political parties, and the qualitative methodology used in the article to examine the impact of Latvia’s membership in the European Union on NA’s international links and program. The article then outlines the development and influence of Latvia’s far-right. The following sections examine links between Latvia’s far right and Europe’s far right and the impact of Europe on NA’s ideology and program. It finds little evidence of Europeanization of Latvia’s far right. Latvia’s far right is more hawkish toward Russia than the West European right and also enjoys greater domestic influence and respectability. “New nativist” anti-immigration and cultural Marxism themes have lower salience in Latvia where Russian-speakers are perceived as a bigger and more immediate threat than Muslims or “Woke” activists.