ABSTRACT

This study compares state policies of Israel and Turkey regarding their citizens of Palestinian and Kurdish descent, respectively. It then explores the reasons for the differences and points at the consequences for Israel’s and Turkey’s democracy. Israel’s citizens of Palestinian descent and Turkey’s citizens of Kurdish descent have faced systematic discrimination. While Israel never considered assimilating its Palestinian citizens into mainstream Israeli national identity, considering Jewishness as its essential and indispensable element, Turkey engaged in assimilation policies vis-à-vis its Kurdish citizens, which met with limited success. While applying different methods in defining the boundaries of Israeli and Turkish ethnicity, both Israel and Turkey have refused to view members of these groups as equal citizens. Awarding full citizenship rights has been questioned on accounts of Jewish sovereignty-dilution fears in Israel and of Kurdish self-determination and partition in Turkey. Failing to distinguish their citizens from their trans-border ethnic kin groups and viewing them as part of a transnational community threatening Israeli and Turkish sovereignty, Israel’s citizens of Palestinian descent and Turkey’s citizens of Kurdish descent have been turned into ‘inside outsiders’. This has deprived them of fundamental constitutional rights and limited the prospects of democratic consolidation in both states.

摘要

本研究分别比较了以色列和土耳其对其巴勒斯坦和库尔德血统公民的国家政策。然后探讨了差异的原因，并指出了对以色列和土耳其民主的影响。以色列的巴勒斯坦裔公民和土耳其的库尔德裔公民面临系统性歧视。虽然以色列从未考虑过将其巴勒斯坦公民同化为以色列的主流民族认同，并将犹太身份视为其基本和不可或缺的要素，但土耳其对其库尔德公民实施了同化政策，但收效甚微。在用不同的方法界定以色列和土耳其族裔的界限时，以色列和土耳其都拒绝将这些群体的成员视为平等的公民。由于以色列担心犹太人的主权被稀释，以及土耳其的库尔德人自决和分裂，因此授予完全的公民权受到质疑。由于未能将他们的公民与其跨界族裔亲属群体区分开来，并将他们视为威胁以色列和土耳其主权的跨国社区的一部分，以色列的巴勒斯坦裔公民和土耳其的库尔德裔公民已经变成了“内部局外人”。这剥夺了他们的基本宪法权利，并限制了两国巩固民主的前景。由于未能将其公民与其跨界族裔亲属群体区分开来，并将其视为威胁以色列和土耳其主权的跨国社区的一部分，以色列的巴勒斯坦血统公民和土耳其的库尔德血统公民已被变成“内部局外人”。这剥夺了他们的基本宪法权利，并限制了两国巩固民主的前景。由于未能将他们的公民与其跨界族裔亲属群体区分开来，并将他们视为威胁以色列和土耳其主权的跨国社区的一部分，以色列的巴勒斯坦裔公民和土耳其的库尔德裔公民已经变成了“内部局外人”。这剥夺了他们的基本宪法权利，并限制了两国巩固民主的前景。