This study focuses on private security companies as a component of the AKP’s security policies, which has enabled the Turkish state to extend its dominance over the society. The AKP era, spanning over ten years in Turkey, is a continuity of the neoliberal transformation that began with the Özal era in the 1980s. As the new actor of neoliberal transformation in Turkey, the AKP has implemented the transformation in question extensively. Thus, the AKP reign has become a period when the institutionalization of neoliberal regime in Turkey has become perceivable with all its aspects. In this study, the revamping of the state dominance in the neoliberal era is discussed within the theoretical analysis of Loïc Wacquant’s anthropology of neoliberalism. The study treats the AKP’s role in constituting the neoliberal hegemony as a period that has institutionalized the state control by recalling Wacquant’s notion of the “Neoliberal Leviathan.” In this manner, the study links the revamping of the state authority with the rise of privatization of the security services. The ratification of Law 5188 on Private Security Services enacted during the AKP era is portrayed as the step that lays the foundation for the existing private security sector in Turkey. Thus, this study concludes that private security companies enlarge the state’s capacities of surveillance and supervision.ABSTRACT................................................................................................................V
ÖZ................................................................................................................................VDEDICATION...........................................................................................................VIIACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................... VIII
TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................ IX
INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1CHAPTER
1. THE REVAMPING OF THE STATE DOMINANCE ............................................. 4
1.1.The Market Rule Approach ................................................................................. 7
1.2. The Governmentality Approach ....................................................................... 10
1.3. Wacquant’s Notion Of The “Neoliberal Leviathan” ........................................ 13
2. THE TRANSITION TO NEOLIBERALISM IN TURKEY ................................... 16
2.1. The AKP Era .....................................................................................................20
3. THE TURKISH STATE AS A “NEOLIBERAL LEVIATHAN” UNDER THE AKP RULE.................................................................................................................. 24
3.1. The Increased Domain Of Executive Power .................................................... 25
3.2. The Integration Of The Three Branches Of The State – The Executive, The Legislative And The Judicial................................................................................... 26
3.3. Rising Role Of Mass Media ............................................................................. 28
3.4. Neoliberal Populism ......................................................................................... 30
3.5. Reconfiguration Of The Field Of National Security ........................................ 32
4. RECONFIGURATION OF THE SECURITY FIELD IN TURKEY ..................... 34
4.1. Security As A Perception .................................................................................. 34
4.2. The Reconfiguration Of National Security In Turkey During The Neolibera......................................................................................................................39
4.2.1. National Security ....................................................................................... 41
4.2.2. Neoliberalism And The Police Force In Turkey ........................................ 44
4.2.3. Lynch Culture And “Responsible Citizen” ................................................ 46
4.2.4. Bio-Administration .................................................................................... 50
4.2.5. Privatization Of Security ........................................................................... 54
5. PRIVATE SECURITY COMPANIES .................................................................... 56
5.1. An Overview Of The Privatization Of Security ............................................... 56
5.2. Private Security Companies In Turkey ............................................................. 57
5.2.1. Law 2495 ................................................................................................... 57
5.2.2. Law 5188 ................................................................................................... 61
5.2.3. The Nexus Of Private Security And The Public Force .............................. 63
5.2.4. Duties And Jurisdictions Of Private Security Guards, And The Police Society................................................................................................................. 65
5.2.5. The Private Security Sector And Its Relationship With The Public Force 67
5.2.6. Problems Of Private Security Sector ......................................................... 71
5.2.7. Private Security Companies And The Rise Of State Surveillance ............ 73
CONCLUSION...........................................................................................................79
REFERENCES..........................................................................................................8
