Ihsan Yilmaz

This book examines how Turkey’s ruling party, the Justice and Development Party (AKP), under the leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdogan produces and employs necropolitical narratives in order to perpetuate its authoritarian rule. In doing so, the book argues that as the party transitioned from socially conservative Muslim democratic values to authoritarian Islamism, it embraced a necropolitical narrative based on the promotion of martyrdom, and of killing and dying for the Turkish nation and Islam, as part of their authoritarian legitimation. This narrative, the book shows, is used by the party to legitimise its actions and deflect its failures through the framing of the deaths of Turkish soldiers and civilians, which have occurred due to the AKP’s political errors, as martyrdom events in which loyal servants of the Turkish Republic and God gave their lives in order to protect the nation in a time of great crisis. This book also describes how, throughout its second decade in power, the AKP has used Turkey’s education system, its Directorate of Religious Affairs, and television programs in order to propagate its necropolitical martyrdom narrative.

This book examines how Turkey’s ruling party, the Justice and Development Party (AKP), under the leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdogan produces and employs necropolitical narratives in order to perpetuate its authoritarian rule. In doing so, the book argues that as the party transitioned from socially conservative Muslim democratic values to authoritarian Islamism, it embraced a necropolitical narrative based on the promotion of martyrdom, and of killing and dying for the Turkish nation and Islam, as part of their authoritarian legitimation. This narrative, the book shows, is used by the party to legitimise its actions and deflect its failures through the framing of the deaths of Turkish soldiers and civilians, which have occurred due to the AKP’s political errors, as martyrdom events in which loyal servants of the Turkish Republic and God gave their lives in order to protect the nation in a time of great crisis. This book also describes how, throughout its second decade in power, the AKP has used Turkey’s education system, its Directorate of Religious Affairs, and television programs in order to propagate its necropolitical martyrdom narrative.

This book takes a comprehensive approach to investigate how Sharia influences and manifests in the everyday lives of young Muslims, aiming to unravel the meaning and relevance of Sharia-driven laws and practices in English-speaking Western societies. By focusing on the grassroots level, it provides a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of Muslims and their relationship with Sharia. The presence of Muslims in Western countries has a long history, with recent waves of migration and conversions contributing to their increasing numbers. This study recognizes the diverse nature of the Muslim community, comprising both migrants and local converts, who have become integral parts of the pluralistic fabric of multicultural societies. The research draws on in-depth interviews with 122 young Muslim individuals from diverse backgrounds representing three different Western countries: Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Diversity of participants allows for a broader exploration of the Muslim community and the inherent diversity of opinions, interpretations, and practices regarding Sharia. This approach moves beyond theoretical debates, providing concrete insights into the practical implications of Sharia for young Muslims in their respective Western contexts. The book also sheds light on the evolving landscape of information and knowledge acquisition in the age of digital technologies and cyberspace. It explores how young Muslims access and seek knowledge in the twenty-first century, recognizing the impact of changing sources and modes of information on their religious practices and beliefs. This aspect adds a valuable dimension to the study, capturing the dynamic nature of knowledge dissemination and acquisition among young Muslims in Western societies. The book will be fascinating reading for academics, researchers, and policy-makers working in the areas of Law, Political Science, Minority Studies, Religious Studies, and Islamic Studies.

font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Readers will benefit from an in-depth understanding of how authoritarian regimes operate across borders and the vulnerabilities in global governance systems they exploit.

Through a series of interconnected chapters, the book navigates key themes such as Shari’a and legal pluralism, Shari’a vis-à-vis the experiences and political participation of Muslims in Western democracies, the role of religious scholars, the dynamics of Shari’a courts, Shari’a and multiple belongings, and transnational loyalties.

line-height: inherit; word-spacing: 0px;"> looks at the role of imams in diaspora communities, the trust (or skepticism) placed in online religious sources, and the influence of family, friends, and digital religious figures.

This book, based on a systematic analysis of leaders' speeches, examines how regimes in Turkey, India, Russia, and China strategically weaponize the concept of 'civilization' along with emotional appeals, such as pride, fear, and nostalgia, to challenge global liberal democratic norms. As the influence of liberal democracy wanes, these nations increasingly declare themselves ‘civilization-states’. By redefining national identity to include peoples living in foreign countries, justifying belligerence abroad, and reinforcing anti-democratic practices domestically, these regimes position themselves as guardians of transnational peoples with distinctive civilizational values. This is the first book to systematically explore how and why these states leverage civilization and emotional manipulation to reshape both domestic politics and international relations.

This book examines the narratives and collective emotions of diaspora groups who originate from Turkey and now live in Australia, focusing on their experiences of collective victimhood, competitive victimhood, and intergroup emotions in relation to other diaspora groups from Turkey. Based on 122 semi-structured extensive interviews with Armenians, Kurds, Alevis, Gülenists, Kemalists and Erdoganists, the book argues that, while in power, dominant groups driven by competitive victimhood often exhibit indifference toward the victimhood of other groups. This dynamic reflects how ressentiment can perpetuate cycles of oppression and antagonism. However, this pattern can shift when powerful groups find themselves in opposition. In such scenarios, they may become more attuned to the grievances of other groups.

Based on semi-structured interviews with ordinary citizens in Pakistan, this book analyses the complex relationship between populism, political identity, and historical experiences in Pakistan, highlighting how populist discourse influences and is influenced by varied interpretations of Pakistaniat - the identification with Pakistan. It introduces a novel theoretical framework for analysing populism in the public sphere, using Laclau's view of populism as a discursive logic and Panizza's definition as a mode of identification. This connection allows for a deeper understanding of how populist constructs form a collective identity amidst diverse demands, particularly through the concept of "the people" as an empty signifier. The book also examines the multiple meanings associated with Pakistani identity and their ties to the rise of populism, addressing gaps in existing literature regarding the demand side of populism and its impact on both politicians and the public.

This book examines the projection of soft and sharp powers through the Turkish civilizational populist TV series "Resurrection: Ertugrul" and its reception in Pakistan. By analyzing the content of the series, elite responses, interviews with ordinary Pakistanis, and Pakistani cyberspace, the book argues that beyond soft power, the show exerts Turkey’s sharp power transnationally, through themes of authoritarianism, violence, warfare, desire for killing and dying, Islamist collective victimhood, conspiracy theories and anti-Christian sentiments. The book contributes to the literatures on sharp power, populism, and authoritarianism.

By exploring the trajectories of Islamist parties in six diverse countries (Turkey, Morocco, Tunisia, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Malaysia), this book provides a comparative analysis of the strategies employed by Islamist groups to confront established political structures through electoral processes and their subsequent governance practices if and when they assume power. The latter aspect is less explored than the predominant focus on Islamist opposition movements. The book analyses how these Islamist political parties navigate and negotiate with oppositional forces and establishments, concisely discussing the complex dynamics at play within each country. The book also bridges the gap between North Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Asia Minor, providing a comparative analysis across regions. Primarily serving as an introductory text to the subject of Islamist parties, the book functions as a comprehensive reader and handbook. Each chapter covers a range of key issues and themes relevant to the governance and political activities of the Islamist party of the country studied in the chapter, offering a general overview of Islamist party experiences across various themes and different historical periods.

This book takes a comprehensive approach to investigate how Sharia influences and manifests in the everyday lives of young Muslims, aiming to unravel the meaning and relevance of Sharia-driven laws and practices in English-speaking Western societies. By focusing on the grassroots level, it provides a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of Muslims and their relationship with Sharia. The presence of Muslims in Western countries has a long history, with recent waves of migration and conversions contributing to their increasing numbers. This study recognizes the diverse nature of the Muslim community, comprising both migrants and local converts, who have become integral parts of the pluralistic fabric of multicultural societies. The research draws on in-depth interviews with 122 young Muslim individuals from diverse backgrounds representing three different Western countries: Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Diversity of participants allows for a broader exploration of the Muslim community and the inherent diversity of opinions, interpretations, and practices regarding Sharia. This approach moves beyond theoretical debates, providing concrete insights into the practical implications of Sharia for young Muslims in their respective Western contexts. The book also sheds light on the evolving landscape of information and knowledge acquisition in the age of digital technologies and cyberspace. It explores how young Muslims access and seek knowledge in the twenty-first century, recognizing the impact of changing sources and modes of information on their religious practices and beliefs. This aspect adds a valuable dimension to the study, capturing the dynamic nature of knowledge dissemination and acquisition among young Muslims in Western societies. The book will be fascinating reading for academics, researchers, and policy-makers working in the areas of Law, Political Science, Minority Studies, Religious Studies, and Islamic Studies.

This book is a comprehensive introductory text to the subject of Western Muslims’ diverse interpretations, discussions and practices of Shari’a with a particular focus on their daily lives in the West. Through a series of interconnected chapters, the book navigates key themes such as Shari’a and legal pluralism, Shari’a vis-à-vis the experiences and political participation of Muslims in Western democracies, the role of religious scholars, the dynamics of Shari’a courts, Shari’a and multiple belongings, and transnational loyalties. Functioning as a comprehensive reader and handbook, the book offers non-experts a comprehensive understanding of the meaning and relevance of Shari’a in Western contexts, exploring how Muslims interpret and apply its principles in their lived experiences and challenging the one-dimensional narratives.

Using semi-structured interviews with 122 young Muslims in Australia, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States of America (USA) from diverse ethnic backgrounds, this book investigates the lived reality of young Muslims from their own perspectives. It explores their ideas of key Islamic and secular issues, their struggles, world views, triumphs, how the stigmatized group negotiates their identity in these three English language speaking Western countries, 20 years after 9/11. The key aspect of this book is to transcend binaries and reductionisms by exploring what Muslims actually think and say rather than intellectual articulations on them. The book presents a very detailed account of these young Muslims in the Anglophone West on their political beliefs, their knowledge and understanding of sharia law, their interest and participation in local and transnational political activism, their positive and negative feelings about their own communities, and indeed how they define theircommunity.

For decades after the declaration of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, the Turkish state promoted the idea of a desired citizen. The Kemalist state treated these citizens as superior, with full rights; but the 'others', those outside this desired citizenship, were either tolerated or considered undesirable citizens. And this caused the marginalization of ethnic and religious minorities, religious Muslims and leftists alike. In this book, Ihsan Yilmaz shows how historical traumas, victimhood, insecurities, anxieties, fears and siege mentality have negatively impacted on and radicalised the nation-building projects of the two competing hegemonic ideologies/regimes (those of Ataturk and Erdogan) and their treatment of majority and minority ethnic, religious and political groups. Yilmaz reveals the significant degree of overlap between the desired, undesired citizen and tolerated citizen categories of these two regimes, showing how both regimes aimed to create a perception of a homogenous Turkish nation.

This book focuses on securitization and authoritarianism in Turkey with research on the country’s Islamist populist ruling party’s (AKP) oppression of different socio-political, ethnic and religious groups. In doing so, it analyzes how the AKP has securitized to oppress different socio-political groups and identities, according to the time and need for the party's political survival. Research in the book sheds light on the use of traumas, conspiracy theories, and fear as tools in the securitization and repression processes.