Political Economy

Theorizing the Arabian Peninsula Roundtable: Thinking Globally About Arabia

[This is one of seven contributions in Jadaliyya's electronic roundtable on the symbolic and material practices of knowledge production on the Arabian Peninsula. Moderated by Rosie Bsheer and John Warner, it features Toby Jones, Madawi Al-Rasheed, Adam Hanieh, Neha Vora, Nathalie Peutz, John Willis, and Ahmed Kanna.] (1) Historically, what have the dominant analytical approaches to the study of the Arabian Peninsula been? How have the difficulties of carrying out research in the Arabian Peninsula shaped the ways in which knowledge is produced for the particular country/ies in which you have worked, and in the field more generally?  Does the Arabian Peninsula ...

Theorizing the Arabian Peninsula Roundtable: Unpacking Knowledge Production and Consumption

[This is one of seven contributions in Jadaliyya's electronic roundtable on the symbolic and material practices of knowledge production on the Arabian Peninsula. Moderated by Rosie Bsheer and John Warner, it features Toby Jones, Madawi Al-Rasheed, Adam Hanieh, Neha Vora, Nathalie Peutz, John Willis, and Ahmed Kanna.]   (1) Historically, what have the dominant analytical approaches to the study of the Arabian Peninsula been? How have the difficulties of carrying out research in the Arabian Peninsula shaped the ways in which knowledge is produced for the particular country/ies in which you have worked, and in the field more generally? Some of the dominant ...

Theorizing the Arabian Peninsula Roundtable: Towards a Critical Cartography of the Political in the Arabian Peninsula

[This is one of seven contributions in Jadaliyya's electronic roundtable on the symbolic and material practices of knowledge production on the Arabian Peninsula. Moderated by Rosie Bsheer and John Warner, it features Toby Jones, Madawi Al-Rasheed, Adam Hanieh, Neha Vora, Nathalie Peutz, John Willis, and Ahmed Kanna.] (1) Historically, what have the dominant analytical approaches to the study of the Arabian Peninsula been? How have the difficulties of carrying out research in the Arabian Peninsula shaped the ways in which knowledge is produced for the particular country/ies in which you have worked, and in the field more generally?  I must say at the beginning ...

بمباركة ملكية: إصلاحات يقودها القطّاع الخاص في الأردن

Protests in Ouargla: Focusing on Job Creation in Algeria

[The National Committee for the Rights of the Unemployed (Comité national pour la défense des droits des chômeurs, CNDDC) made a call for protests that brought together thousands (more than ten thousand, according to some) of people in Ouargla, in the south of Algeria, on 14 March 2013. Despite the regime’s accusations that Tahar Belabbès (national coordinator of the CNDDC) was "plotting against the integrity of his country" with assistance from Qatar and other foreign powers, Belabbès stressed the "national and peaceful character" of the protests, which called for increased employment and development of the southern regions of the country.  ...

The Impact of World Bank Policy and Programmes on the Built Environment in Egypt

[The following report was issued by the Egyptian Iniative for Personal Rights on 20 March 2013.]  Despite billions of Egyptian pounds in infrastructure investment both from national and international sources, Egypt's cities, towns and villages continue to grow and function in much the same way they have over the last three decades, namely through self-reliance. There are varying degrees of deprivation such as shortages in housing, municipal services and transport--the three main ingredients of functioning communities-- while on the other hand, a minority is very well served. It is no surprise then that the main call of the January 25thRevolution was “Bread! ...

Social Struggles in Tunisia: A Curse or a Revolutionary Opportunity?

The Tunisian revolution was often painted as a sort of “divine” event during which the united and homogenous “Tunisian people” succeeded in getting rid of their “dictator.”  As if by the force of some quasi-magical act, all it took was the coming together of the people screaming a unified dégage on 14 January 2011 for the dictator to suddenly take flight. In using this lens, the causes and consequences of the revolt itself are glossed over. Moreover, the historical context is abandoned in favor of a de-politicized narrative that revolves around young bloggers triggering a spontaneous movement, managing to succeed in dragging a whole population out into the streets ...

Not Enough Water in the West Bank?

This Friday is World Water Day and an opportune time to highlight the gross misallocation of water resources between Israel and the Palestinians. Water is one of the five permanent status issues in the Oslo Peace Accords, twenty years old this year. Accordingly, its accesss and consumption is relegated to political negotiations and beyond the purview of international law on water. As a result, the Palestinian Authority has had little basis upon which to challenge Israel’s confiscation of water for the past twenty years.  Sixty percent of one of Israel’s most significant water sources, the Western Aquifer, is located in the occupied West Bank. Israel derives eighty ...

Self-Immolations Continue in Tunisia

On 12 March, Adel Khadri, a twenty-seven year old cigarette street vendor, set himself on fire on Tunis’ main street, Habib Bourguiba Avenue. According to eyewitnesses, Khadri shouted: “This is a young man who sells cigarettes because of unemployment,” before setting himself on fire. Khadri passed away early this morning at Ben Arous’ Burns Hospital. Collective blog Nawaat reports [fr]: Le jeune vendeur à la sauvette qui, désespéré par ses conditions de vie, s’était immolé, est décédé mercredi à l’aube, dernière illustration en date des tensions sociales en Tunisie auxquelles le nouveau gouvernement devra faire face une fois investi. “Il est mort ...