Hemşehrilik and Favouritism in the Context of Political and Civil Society Organizations

This study focuses on the intersection of the two phenomena hemşehrilik and favouritism each of which separately has a significant place in social and political lives. It analyses the hemşehrilikfavouritism relationship by focusing on hemşehrilik organisations, political parties and bureaucratic organisations separately due to the fact that each of these organisations are situated differently in the political-civil society distinction. While hemşehrilik organisations are analysed in relation to charity, political parties and bureaucratic organisations are discussed in relation to patronage and clientelism, alienation and patrimonialism respectively. Besides, the following questions are discussed: Whether or not favouritism and/or clientelism, which are frequently associated with discrimination, are in-themselves and universally negative; what may be the conditions under which clientelism can be pushed out of both political and civil societies and what may be the impacts of the presence of clientelism on both civil and political societies. In each section and the conclusion, it is stressed that the presence of hemşehrilik and clientelism in civil and political societies should be linked with macro processes and the meanings of them in people s everyday practices, instead of treating them as something peculiar to a specific period or a group of people.