L’Irish Republican Army (IRA), le principal groupe paramilitaire républicain, fut fondé en 1969. Dès lors, il lutta contre la présence britannique en Irlande du Nord et pour la réunification de l’île d’Irlande. Le désarmement de l’IRA, considéré comme irréalisable jusqu’en 2001, s’accomplit pourtant bel et bien entre 2001 et 2005 dans le cadre du processus de paix. Le 26 septembre 2005, l’IRA avait officiellement déposé les armes. Quels mécanismes avaient alors permis, au sein du processus de paix nord-irlandais, d’aboutir à la "mise hors d’état de nuire" de l’arsenal de l’IRA qui déclarait pourtant encore en 1998 qu’il n’accepterait pas de rendre les armes ? Comme l’annonce le titre de cette thèse, trois questions sous-tendent notre analyse : quels étaient les enjeux de l’abandon de la violence et du désarmement pour l’IRA et le Sinn Féin durant tout le processus de paix ? Quelle était la portée symbolique du désarmement pour le groupe armé clandestin et pour le mouvement républicain dans son ensemble ? Enfin, quels mécanismes, tant diplomatiques que psychologiques, avaient pu convaincre l’IRA d’abandonner la violence puis de désarmer ? À la demande du groupe clandestin, la nature du dispositif de désarmement et le nombre d’armes détruites demeurent confidentiels. Cette étude ne prétend donc pas révéler des secrets d’État, mais bien de mettre en évidence la dynamique du processus qui a mené l’IRA de la violence armée à l’abandon des armes. / The Irish Republican Army (IRA), the main Republican paramilitary group in Northern Ireland was founded in 1969. From then on it fought to put an end to the British presence in Northern Ireland and to achieve the unification of Ireland. The decommissioning of the IRA, which seemed unrealizable until 2001, was indeed accomplished between 2001 and 2005, as part of the Peace Process. On 26 September 2005, the IRA officially laid down its weapons. What mechanisms played a role in the IRA putting its arsenal beyond use during the Northern Ireland Peace Process, despite the armed group’s declaration in 1998 that there would be no disarmament? As mentioned in the title of this thesis, three questions underlie our analysis: What was at stake in the giving up of violence and in decommissioning for the IRA and Sinn Féin during the Peace Process? What was the symbolic significance of decommissioning for the IRA and for the whole Republican movement? Finally, what diplomatic and psychological mechanisms managed to convince the IRA to give up violence and then to disarm? At the clandestine group’s own request, the technical aspects of decommissioning and the number of arms which were destroyed still remain confidential. Therefore, this study does not reveal any State secrets, but rather underlines the dynamics of the process which led the IRA from armed violence to the giving up of arms.

<p><strong>Essay in Political Science, C-level, by Camila Alvarez Cea, spring semester 2010.</strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Tutor: Alf Sundin</strong></p><p><strong>“Reality or a Political Mirage? – A Study of the Swedish Press Views on the Health Insurance Reform in the USA”</strong></p><p> </p><p>The purpose of this essay is partly to examine whether the picture that Swedish press presents of the health insurance reform in the US, which is part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Act bill, will be of crucial importance to the possibilities that the American population has to receive health insurance. The main research question is accordingly: <em>“Does the picture that Swedish press presents of the health insurance reform in the USA, seem like something that will be of radical importance to the possibilities of the population to receive healthcare?”</em> The purpose is also to examine in which model (demand or market) the opinions of the Swedish press fits. This purpose will be answered by using three specific questions asking whether their opinions differ when it comes to three criterions: organization, financing/resources and delivery systems. These criterions come from a model from Milton I. Roemer’s book “National health systems of the world,” which also is the theoretical foundation of this essay.</p><p> </p><p>The methodological approach of this essay is a qualitative text analysis along with an analysis chart, where the three criterions have been examined from the reporting of the four Swedish newspapers chosen for this essay. The conclusions that have been reached from the analysis chart are that the opinions differ greatly within Swedish press, and that the picture that Swedish press presents of the health insurance reform is that it will become easier for the American population to receive health care.</p>

The main objective of this thesis is to examine both external and internal dynamics in terms of their preparation for the ways to democratization in Turkey between 1945 and 1950. It was asserted in many academic and nonacademic works that the main influences for democratization of Turkey in this period came from outside as external dynamics. But in this study, it will be argued that while the external dynamics may stimulate different actors for democratization, survival and consolidation of this democratization process requires internal dynamics more than the external ones. In order to check the validity of this argument, the thesis focuses on Turkish democratization period between 1945 and 1950. This historical interval is important / because, although there were some efforts for transition to democratic regime by that time, all those efforts failed due to the unpreparedness of the Turkish rulers, the Turkish people, and also insufficient social, economic and political conditions in the country. Within the five year period between 1945 and 1950, both the internal and the external dynamics which would contribute democratization in Turkey had changed. The new conditions emerging from the WW II and the post war period transformed economic, political, and social structures of the society that changed expectations in the country. All these dynamics playing important roles in the democratization of Turkey will be mentioned in the thesis. The period in the thesis will start with the termination of the WW II and it will end with the general elections held on May 14, 1950.

Al costat de la causa republicana va estar majorment la societat argentina, però el govern es va amagar darrera una política de abstenció amb respecte a la mateixa, primer, i de reconeixement del nou govern espanyol després, encobrint una conducta conservadora que recolzava la causa nacional. El conflicte espanyol va ser un dels fets que majoritàriament va impactar en la societat i política argentina fragmentant partits, produint escissions en els Centres regionals i fent que el govern adoptés mesures opressores a l’oposició, a més de restringir les polítiques migratòries. El refugiat republicà va passar a convertir-se en un refugiat indesitjable. Primer fou la guerra civil, després l’exili provocant que la societat hispano-argentina intensifiqués tot un sistema d’ajudes que havien estat agilitzant des del principi mateix de l’enfrontament, a traves de centenars d’organitzacions i comitès d’auxili pro-republicans. La premsa bonaerense y de Mar del Plata, independent o de partit, a través del seu rol com actriu política i creadora d’opinió pública no fou indiferent a l’esdeveniment espanyol. / A favor de la causa republicana estuvo mayoritariamente la sociedad argentina, sin embargo el gobierno se salvaguardó detrás de una política de prescindencia con respecto a la misma, primero, y de reconocimiento del nuevo gobierno español después, encubriendo una conducta conservadora que apoyaba la causa nacional. El conflicto español fue uno de los sucesos que mayormente impactó en la sociedad y política argentina fragmentando partidos, produciendo escisiones en los Centros regionales y haciendo que el gobierno adoptara medias opresoras a la oposición, además de restringir las políticas migratorias. El refugiado republicano pasó a convertirse en un refugiado indeseable. Primero fue la guerra civil, después fue el exilio provocando que la sociedad hispano-argentina intensificara todo un sistema de ayudas que habían estado agilizando desde el inicio mismo de la contienda, a través de centenares de organizaciones y comités de auxilio pro-republicanos. La prensa bonaerense y de Mar del Plata, independiente o de partido, a través de su rol como actriz política y creadora de opinión pública no fue indiferente al evento español. / Favourable to the republican cause was the Argentinean society, however the government initially chose an abstention’s position and than recognized the new Spanish government, hiding a conservative policy supporting the national cause. The Spanish conflict was one of the events that most had an influence on the Argentinean society and politics dividing parties and Regional Centres. The government passed measures against any possible political extremism and limited the migration policies, as far as possible. Therefore the republican refugees became undesirable exiles. First the Civil War and then the exile pressed the Spanish-Argentinean society to create, and intensify, a system of assistance working through hundreds of pro-republican organizations and committees. The press of Buenos Aires and Mar del Plata, independent or not, through its role as political actor and creator of public opinion was not indifferent to the Spanish event.

Peu d'études se penchent sur la démilitarisation de l'Irish Republican Army et la poursuite de sa lutte dans l'arène politique. Deux raisons m'ont poussée à étudier le conflit nord-irlandais. D'abord, il est intéressant d'étudier une organisation paramilitaire qui possède un lien symbiotique, une attache historique à un parti politique, le Sinn Fein, dont certains membres ont combattu dans ses rangs, sont présents à l'Assemblée nationale nord-irlandaise et agissent à titre de politiciens reconnus en Irlande du Nord. De plus, les relations internationales du 21e siècle créent d'importantes réflexions sur le phénomène de groupes paramilitaires politisés et le cas de l'Irish Republican Army est souvent repris par professeurs et journalistes comme exemple d'une victoire face à un groupe paramilitaire extrémiste. On insiste toutefois sur le fait qu'inclure la branche armée nord-irlandaise dans les négociations de paix relève d'une exception plutôt qu'une règle dans la lutte contre ces groupes. Pour bien des experts et des politiciens, il s'agit autant d'un modèle à suivre qu'à bannir dans cette lutte où la nostalgie du temps de la bonne vieille IRA semble incomparable aux demandes inaccessibles et à la terreur irréelle qu'engendre certains groupes paramilitaires d'aujourd'hui. Ainsi, dans ce travail, nous nous intéressons à la relation qu'entretient l'IRA auprès de sa branche politique, le Sinn Fein comme facteur principal contribuant à la démilitarisation du groupe paramilitaire. On se rend compte qu'une série de dynamiques sont à réunir afin d'encourager, voire de forcer, le dépôt des armes de l'IRA. Comme première dynamique, il est alors essentiel que la branche politique domine la branche paramilitaire. Pour ce faire, d'importants bouleversements internes bousculent la structure du mouvement afin que la branche politique contrôle la branche paramilitaire. De plus, la deuxième dynamique entraîne la branche politique à bénéficier d'une place au sein même des négociations de paix. Finalement, comme troisième dynamique, le soutien, voire la reconnaissance, de la communauté internationale, à la branche politique permet d'affirmer que la branche politique, le Sinn Fein, a subordonné la lutte armée de l'IRA. ______________________________________________________________________________ MOTS-CLÉS DE L’AUTEUR : Irish Republican Army, Sinn Fein, Accord de Belfast, démilitarisation.

This study aims to examine the foreign policy orientation of the Republican People&rsquo / s Party (CHP) during 2003 and 2005. Thus, four major foreign policy issues during this period will be scrutinized. These issues are namely, Turkey&rsquo / s EU membership process, the Cyprus problem, the US-Turkey relations and the Armenian question. Taking into consideration the current development concerning these issues, this study will focus on the views and reactions of the CHP. In this respect, the main determinant factors behind the foreign policy stance of the party will be discussed. Finally, comparing the foreign policy understanding of the CHP in the past, the study will focus on the question whether the CHP of today constitutes continuation or a shift from the past CHP administrations. At the end of the study, the results of a research issued at the current CHP deputies so as to evaluate their foreign policy orientations will be revealed.

The Tea Party’s influence in the recent 2010 elections suggests that the group is making an impact within American politics. This project seeks to identify the cultural forces at work and ground them within Antonio Gramsci’s framework of hegemony. Taking a cue from Michael Bérubé’s recent book The Left at War, I perform a close analysis of the Tea Party’s project for hegemony. I focus on the media discourses of the Tea Party movement, performing a close reading of two key Tea Party websites and unpacking two important televised moments relating to the Tea Party’s rise as a grassroots movement. I argue that the Tea Party uses the practice of articulation to persuade the American public that Tea Party members are the rightful heirs to the project of “America” that the Founding Fathers began centuries ago by using the theories of Bérubé, Stuart Hall, Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe as reference points. Finally, I use my analysis of the Tea Party’s articulatory practices to begin exploring a way forward for the American Left, building on the groundbreaking cultural work of Bérubé, Hall, and Laclau and Mouffe. / text

One of the foremost reasons for the success of the Northern Irish Peace Process has been the ability of the national leadership of the Provisional Republican Movement to bring the majority of their membership away from the armed campaign and towards the acceptance of peaceful politics. This dissertation analyses how they were able to achieve this. This is carried out by considering the processes of the four major splits in modern day Irish republicanism from 1969 to 1997. Each split was analysed so as to derive why the split took place and why one side was more successful than the other in the aftermath. The cases were used to test a stage-based process model of split designed by the author. The data from thirty-eight semi-structured interviews were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). This analysis treated the three Provisional splits as three micro-processes within the macro-process of Provisional Republican involvement in the ‘Troubles', as it did the two Official splits with respect to the Official macro-process of involvement. The results of the analysis showed that the success of the later Provisional leadership was significantly tied to their method of changing strategies, tactics and policies one step at a time rather than by attempting to implement a variety of substantial changes within a short space of time as the leadership of the 1960s endeavoured to. This research outlines how the acceptance of peaceful politics for a terrorist organisation is a gradual stage-based process and that in order to be successful the significant changes must be implemented in a patient manner.

This thesis analyses the process of women&rsquo / s legislative recruitment in Turkey by focusing on the interaction among the certain features of the Turkish political system including the attitudes of the party elite toward the enhancement of women&rsquo / s political representation. It has been demonstrated in earlier studies that one of the reasons behind women&rsquo / s low level of parliamentary representation in Turkey is the fact that the selectors in the political parties fail to support women candidates adequately in the elections. Related to that, women&rsquo / s legislative recruitment is also likely to be impeded by the unsupportive nature of the main dynamics of political system such as political culture, party system and the v electoral system. Considering the fact that these institutional and attitudinal factors are highly inter-related with each other, the insufficient number of women candidates nominated by the major social democratic party, the Republican People&rsquo / s Party in the 1990s, including the latest national elections on November 3rd, 2002 calls for an analysis of not only the attitudes of the RPP selectors toward positive discrimination mechanisms such as the quotas for women but also of the relevant party institutional factors rooted in the Turkish political system. The study contends that the RPP&rsquo / s women-friendly party culture and selectors&rsquo / positive perspectives towards women&rsquo / s political integration are not sufficient factors for the promotion of women&rsquo / s legislative recruitment within the party. The weakness of the intra-party democracy in the RPP which is particularly the result of the oligarchic structure and the problems with institutionalization significantly impede women&rsquo / s legislative recruitment within the party. The study has found that the low level of women&rsquo / s legislative recruitment in the RPP is a consequence of the interaction between the institutional and attitudinal factors within the RPP which perpetuates patriarchal elite oligarchy in the nomination process. The documented gap between the RPP&rsquo / s party rhetoric and practice in this study is found as the reflection of the party&rsquo / s problems in internalizing social democratic values.

A COMPARATIVE APPROACH TO NATIONAL PROTECTION LAW (1940-1956) Erdemir, &Ouml / mer M.A, Department of History Supervisor: Prof.Dr. Se&ccedil / il Karal Akg&uuml / n December 2004, 130 pages This thesis introduces a comparative history of National Protection Law of 1940 and 1956. It analyzes the two applications of the law, first, by the Republican People&rsquo / s Party governments during World War II, and second, by the Democratic Party Government during the years between 1956 and 1960 in view of the general economic policies followed during both periods. It argues, in reference to the ideological struggle over Turkish economic development during the twentieth century, that the enactments and applications of the first and second National Protection Law address the authoritarian characteristics of both the Republican People&rsquo / s Party and the Democratic Party. It further argues, the enactment and application of National Protection Law by the Democratic Party government contradicted with the party&rsquo / s economic principles whereas the Republican governments had already been on the interventionist path that they inherited from the previous decade of etatism. In addition, the thesis reveals that the first National Protection Law was more widely applied than the second. In both cases, the application of National Protection Law failed to solve economic problems and aroused a public discontent which brought about political losses for its executors.