 Ziya
Öniş and Umut Türem, Entrepreneurs, Democracy, and Citizenship in
Turkey The
increasing interest of big business in democracy in Turkey is explained by
a mix of domestic and global influences. Democracy is highly valued by big
business because its absence effectively isolates Turkey from global norms
and from benefits of full membership in the European Union. Domestically,
democracy is conceived instrumentally as a necessary mechanism to limit
arbitrary state intervention and contain redistributive pressures from
below and threats from other segments of the business community. Though an
improvement over current arrangements, this understanding of democracy
does not extend social rights or challenge existing power relations. It
seeks instead to create a more stable and predictable environment in which
an externally competitive market economy can flourish. |