Georgetown University LogoGeorgetown University Library LogoDigitalGeorgetown Home
    • Login
    View Item 
    •   DigitalGeorgetown Home
    • Georgetown University Institutional Repository
    • Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service
    • Georgetown University in Qatar
    • Qatar Faculty Scholarship
    • View Item
    •   DigitalGeorgetown Home
    • Georgetown University Institutional Repository
    • Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service
    • Georgetown University in Qatar
    • Qatar Faculty Scholarship
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Royal Factionalism and Political Liberalization in Qatar

    Creator
    Kamrava, Mehran
    Abstract
    Qatar's much publicized liberalization campaign that began in the mid-1990s was a direct result of efforts by the new Amir, Shaykh Hamad, to compensate for his fragile base of support within the ruling Al Thani family by appealing to a broader base of Qataris and also to the international community. Historically, the Al Thani family had been one of the only centers of potential opposition to the reigning Amir, with merchant families or the religious establishment having been politically neutralized due to a variety of historical and structural reasons. Nevertheless, in relation to both groups the state has pursued a nuanced policy of simultaneous co-option and political incapacitation. Meanwhile, steady rises in oil and gas revenues allowed the state to significantly deepen its capacity in relation to society, and, by doing so, to ensure that groups from within civil society did not rise to positions of prominence. Within the Al Thanis, Shaykh Hamad undertook a number of significant changes, not the least of which was the creation of new institutions and offices that were staffed by his loyal supporters, including some of his sons and daughters. He also streamlined the line of succession to include only his own descendants. With the traditional political disquiet of the Al Thanis thus silenced, at least for now, all talks of liberalization have been dropped and the Qatari state remains fundamentally autocratic.
    Permanent Link
    http://hdl.handle.net/10822/713207
    External Link
    GU-Q Library: https://wrlc-gu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid=gale_ofa205906720&context=PC&vid=01WRLC_GUNIV:QATAR&search_scope=GT_and_CI&tab=Everything&lang=en
    Date Published
    2009
    Rights
    This item is currently unavailable in DigitalGeorgetown due to copyright restrictions by the publisher.
    Subject
    Liberalization; Democracy; Political succession; Political power; Heirs apparent; Qatar;
    Type
    Article
    Is Part Of
    The Middle East Journal, 63(3)
    Publisher
    Middle East Institute
    Collections
    • Qatar Faculty Scholarship
    Metadata
    Show full item record

    Related items

    Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.

    • Thumbnail

      Frozen Political Liberalization in Jordan: The Consequences for Democracy 

      Kamrava, Mehran (Taylor & Francis, 1998)
      Prompted by serious economic difficulties, in 1989 the Jordanian government launched a series of political liberalization measures aimed at rejuvenating the country's parliament and party politics, and restoring freedom ...
    Related Items in Google Scholar

    Georgetown University Seal
    ©2009 - 2023 Georgetown University Library
    37th & O Streets NW
    Washington DC 20057-1174
    202.687.7385
    digitalscholarship@georgetown.edu
    Accessibility
     

     

    Browse

    All of DigitalGeorgetownCommunities & CollectionsCreatorsTitlesBy Creation DateThis CollectionCreatorsTitlesBy Creation Date

    My Account

    Login

    Statistics

    View Usage Statistics

    Georgetown University Seal
    ©2009 - 2023 Georgetown University Library
    37th & O Streets NW
    Washington DC 20057-1174
    202.687.7385
    digitalscholarship@georgetown.edu
    Accessibility