Emel Elif Tugdar – författare

After the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the establishment of close relations between the West and the Kurds after 2003, there has been an increase in the demand towards reading and learning about this ethnic group. However, while in Western countries, there is substantial literature on the politics of gender, giving a deeper insight into the role that women play in the field, in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), women rarely come up as a topic of discussion. This trend has also affected the literary works that detail their role in social and political affairs. Little has been written to establish the position in politics and their unexploited potential. On the other hand, in Iraq and in the Middle East at large, the Iraqi Kurdish society has made significant strides towards modernization and observation of the rule of law and governance in line with international standards. The National Action Plan and the Declaration of the Elimination of Violence against Women among others are the documents that are binding over Kurdistan to work towards ensuring the rights of women and their participation in politics. However, whether the contents of these documents on the involvement of women in the political landscape and respect for their rights are being honored or just remain on paper is still debatable. With a focus on these issues, this book examines the politics of gender in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, delving into the regional phenomena, i.e. resource curse, tribalism, religion, elitist feminism, and political culture. Using a mixed-methods approach, this book also acts as a pointer to how the country regards women even in the private spheres, including in the civil society level. Understanding the challenges that women face in articulating and shaping their interests and the place of tribal structure of the society and religion besides the oil economy that lead to gender inequality in political, social, and economic spheres is important towards helping them increase their representation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).

This edited volume addresses the issues of Iraqi Kurdistan’s political economy with historically grounded, theoretically informed, and conceptually relevant scholarship that prioritizes comparative politics over international relations. The book seeks to explore the dynamics of Iraqi Kurdistan at the stage of referendum for independence from a political economy perspective within its own debates, conflicts, and interests. Overall, the authors contribute to these debates by exploring key questions in novel ways, focusing on comparative methodology that serve to expand the scope of scientific inquiry and place it into more solid understanding.

This edited volume introduces the political, social and economic intra-Kurdish dynamics in the Middle East by comparatively analyzing the main actors, their ideas, and political interests. As an ethnic group and a nation in the making, Kurds are not homogeneous and united but rather the Kurdish Middle East is home to various competing political groups, leaderships, ideologies, and interests. Although many existing studies focus on the Kurds and their relations with the nation-states that they populate, few studies analyze the Kurdish Middle East within its own debates, conflicts and interests from a comparative perspective across Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Syria. This book analyzes the intra-Kurdish dynamics with historically-grounded, theoretically-informed, and conceptually-relevant scholarship that prioritizes comparative politics over international relations.

 This edited volume introduces the political, social and economic intra-Kurdish dynamics in the Middle East by comparatively analyzing the main actors, their ideas, and political interests. As an ethnic group and a nation in the making, Kurds are not homogeneous and united but rather the Kurdish Middle East is home to various competing political groups, leaderships, ideologies, and interests. Although many existing studies focus on the Kurds and their relations with the nation-states that they populate, few studies analyze the Kurdish Middle East within its own debates, conflicts and interests from a comparative perspective across Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Syria. This book analyzes the intra-Kurdish dynamics with historically-grounded, theoretically-informed, and conceptually-relevant scholarship that prioritizes comparative politics over international relations.  

This edited volume introduces the political, social and economic intra-Kurdish dynamics in the Middle East by comparatively analyzing the main actors, their ideas, and political interests. As an ethnic group and a nation in the making, Kurds are not homogeneous and united but rather the Kurdish Middle East is home to various competing political groups, leaderships, ideologies, and interests. Although many existing studies focus on the Kurds and their relations with the nation-states that they populate, few studies analyze the Kurdish Middle East within its own debates, conflicts and interests from a comparative perspective across Iran, Iraq, Turkey, and Syria. This book analyzes the intra-Kurdish dynamics with historically-grounded, theoretically-informed, and conceptually-relevant scholarship that prioritizes comparative politics over international relations.

This edited volume addresses the issues of Iraqi Kurdistan’s political economy with historically grounded, theoretically informed, and conceptually relevant scholarship that prioritizes comparative politics over international relations. The book seeks to explore the dynamics of Iraqi Kurdistan at the stage of referendum for independence from a political economy perspective within its own debates, conflicts, and interests. Overall, the authors contribute to these debates by exploring key questions in novel ways, focusing on comparative methodology that serve to expand the scope of scientific inquiry and place it into more solid understanding.