Allying beyond social divides: An introduction to contentious politics and coalitions in the Middle East and North Africa

Abstract

This introduction highlights the need for studies exploring the formation of coalitions in North Africa and the Middle East by privileging processual, relational and intersectional approaches. First, it proposes conceptual clarifications, followed by a discussion of the main trends that characterize the literature on coalitions in the region. Using several examples, the authors argue that in order to better understand the making (but also the unmaking) of coalitions in the MENA region it is essential to provide micro-sociological studies that look beyond the ideological divides to analyse the manifold transformations that emerge out of 'coalition moments', and that link processes of alliance-building to processes of differentiation and categorization. KEYWORDS Coalitions; social movements; political change; MENA region; social differentiation Coalitions of actors that have traditionally not been allies but who join forces to achieve a common goal have been a recurrent factor in contentious politics in North Africa and the Middle East, from anticolonial movements to post-independence mobilizations. Bridging social, regional, and ideological divides, they have developed in various social spaces such as anti-regime opposition groups, anti-globalization networks, and movements claiming economic rights, the equal distribution of resources, and social justice. Within such alliances, 'strange bedfellows' (Clark, 2010, p. 101) have joined forces: Islamists with leftists, urban with rural protesters, lawyers with peasants, armed forces with opposition movements, workers with students, marginalised populations with established elites.Coalitions are nothing new in the Middle East: the early struggles against European colonization, including the Arab revolt of 1915, the 1919 insurrection in Egypt and the Iraqi uprising of 1920, offer many examples of coalitions that brought together broad constituencies. More recently, however, such coalitions have especially attracted the attention of researchers because processes of CONTACT Marie Duboc

Mobilization, Repression and Policy Concessions in Authoritarian Regimes: The Cases of Egypt and Jordan

“…During the past decade, the literature on coalition building and informal networking in authoritarian contexts increased (Bayat, 2013;Berriane and Duboc, 2019;Casani, 2020;Durac and Cavatorta, 2015), adding to our knowledge on its impact on pushing the boundaries of authoritarianism, and adding incremental social and political change in authoritarian contexts. Scholars have also analysed the different types of activism that are tolerated or not tolerated in authoritarian contexts (Chen, 2020).…”

“…They develop the social ties which allow for the exchange of information in addition to the available resources that are available by different organizations and activists (Fioroni, 2019). Networks in return are the important for coalition building, since the social ties that bind organizations and individuals allow the exchange of information and various resources between them (Berriane and Duboc, 2019). Thus, having access to different resources can impact the success of different actors, especially those who focus on issue-oriented grievances in authoritarian regimes.…”

“…Thus, having access to different resources can impact the success of different actors, especially those who focus on issue-oriented grievances in authoritarian regimes. Efficiency and access to networks increases the prospects for collective action, and the efficacy of collective action can be partially conditional on the inclusiveness of networks and organizations (Berriane and Duboc, 2019;Corcoran et al, 2011). Citizens who share a common identity and purpose can mobilize more individuals to their cause, through their access to various resources (Crossley and Diani, 2019).…”

Old Civil Society Networks and their Role for the Tunisian Political Landscape

“…I argue that this perceived strength relates to the network configurations of the Tunisian civil society, but not necessarily that network configurations persist in the same way. Recent research emphasized the diffusion of tactics, protest, and ideas in the mena region (Berriane and Duboc 2019;Volpi and Clark 2019). However, this diffusion is dependent on existent networks.…”

“…Networks are seen as particularly important for socialization and meaning construction or identification (Passy 1998, on identification see Polletta andJasper 2001 or Johnston 2014). In addition, networks and notably coalitions allow for the diffusion of meanings and references (Berriane and Duboc 2019). Boundary definition is not only a problem of social network theory in general but also of social movement approaches in particular (Krinsky and Crossley 2014), which is why I limit the analysis to the ego-networks (from the perspective of an organization) of four organizations to allow for an overview on networks within Tunisian civil society.…”