POLITICAL PARTY POLICIES ABOUT LOCAL AUTONOMY IN TURKEY

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The dominant paradigm in public administration today views local autonomy which has political, administrative and financial dimensions as an important sign of democratization. Both national and international social scientific platforms also defended the benefits of local autonomy considerably. Similarly, political parties are regarded as the most important actors in a democracy. Political parties play important roles in present and future public policy processes in a country. Therefore, understanding the views of political parties about local autonomy will allow us to predict the direction of this important issue in next decades. This study evaluates the policies of political parties towards the issue of local autonomy. To this end, the data from political party election manifestos and debates about local government reform in parliamentary committees and in plenary sessions have been used. The views of political parties about local autonomy depend on their position along political and social divisions in Turkey. The center and periphery cleavage and recent changes in this division together with ethnic and national nationalism cleavage are the most important factors affecting political party views about local autonomy.

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Autonomy , local autonomy , political party , democratization

Mustafa Kemal University Journal Of Graduate School Of Social Sciences

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Mustafa Kemal University Journal Of Graduate School Of Social Sciences