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Variegated forms of embeddedness: home-grown neoliberal authoritarianism in Tunisia under Ben Ali

Evrim Görmüş, Emel Akcali Orcid Logo

Journal of International Relations and Development, Volume: 24, Issue: 2, Pages: 408 - 429

Swansea University Author: Emel Akcali Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1057/s41268-020-00196-7

Abstract

This article aims to analyse the impact of structural adjustment programmes, widelyknown as the ‘neoliberal model’, on the resilience of authoritarianism during BenAli’s regime in Tunisia, to uncover the possible outcomes of the embedded neoliberaland the authoritarian blending. To do this, it engag...

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Published in: Journal of International Relations and Development
ISSN: 1408-6980 1581-1980
Published: Springer Science and Business Media LLC 2021
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa54849
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Abstract: This article aims to analyse the impact of structural adjustment programmes, widelyknown as the ‘neoliberal model’, on the resilience of authoritarianism during BenAli’s regime in Tunisia, to uncover the possible outcomes of the embedded neoliberaland the authoritarian blending. To do this, it engages with two sets of broadquestions. How did the Ben Ali regime continue to maintain the regime’s tight gripon power in Tunisia during a ‘neoliberal’ transformation which in theory aims atreducing state influence? What does the Tunisian example tell us about the nature ofembedded neoliberalism and its links with authoritarianism in general? The articleanswers these questions through the analysis of the novel social policy institutions ofeconomic restructuring that took place during the Ben Ali era, namely the NationalSolidarity Fund, the Tunisian Solidarity Bank and the National Employment Fund.It concludes that these new tools under ‘neoliberal’ transformation increased stateintervention in both politics and the economy, and reproduced the societal dependenceon the state. Such form of neoliberalism has helped to sustain authoritarianism,but at the same time led to its demise when the social contract in which selectivesocial benefits were provided in exchange for political loyalty failed.Keywords Authoritarianism · Ben ali · Embeddedness · Neoliberalism · Structuraladjustment programmemes · Tunisia
Keywords: Authoritarianism; Ben ali; Embeddedness; Neoliberalism; Structural adjustment programmemes; Tunisia
College: Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Issue: 2
Start Page: 408
End Page: 429

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