‘Hybridity by Design’: between liberal norms and illiberal peace in Turkey

Abstract

This article investigates the interplay between liberal norms, hybridity, and illiberal peace by proposing ‘hybridity by design’ as a framework for understanding domestic agency of political actors in ‘homegrown’ peace processes. Hybridity by design refers to strategies used in peace processes that are not guided by external third parties for selectively adopting norms and practices associated with the liberal peace model while maintaining an illiberal peacemaking approach. The study focuses on the case of Turkey’s recent experience in peacemaking regarding the Kurdish conflict in two periods. First, the 2009–2015 period is analyzed as a ‘homegrown’ peace process during which ‘hybridity by design’ was the primary strategy used by the government to promote peacemaking combining liberal and illiberal norms and practices. In the post-2015 period, the government emphasized the ‘authentic’ aspects of the Kurdish issue, adopting a friend/enemy discourse, delegitimizing opponents, and rejecting negotiations as a means for solving the conflict.