Citizenship Tests in Five Countries – An Expression of Political Liberalism?
Engaging discussions on civic integration for immigrants, this comparison systematically analysis citizenship tests in the US, Austria, the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands. A central question discussed is whether these tests can be interpreted as assimilation, repressive liberalism or as a neutral instrument that changes its function according to the surrounding citizenship regime as some authors argue. The analysis has the surprising result that none of the hypotheses from the existing literature on civic integration can explain the content of all five citizenship tests. In particular I find that the characteristics of the surrounding citizenship regime are not a good predictor for the content of the respective citizenship tests: countries with rather restrictive citizenship regimes such as Austria or Germany have opted for a citizenship test with a liberal content that is comparable not only to the British but also to the US-American test. On the other hand the content of the Dutch citizenship test does not fully correspond to a Rawlsian definition of political liberalism although the Dutch citizenship regime is relatively open. Therefore I conclude that the formal character of a citizenship regime is only loosely connected with the national definition of citizenship as it is conveyed by the content of citizenship tests. It is not because civic integration requirements are obligatory and restrict the free will of future citizens that citizenship itself is defined in illiberal terms.
The Politicisation of European Treaty Reform
The thesis that European integration has become “politicised” has prompted a major debate in comparative political science and research on the EU. This debate nevertheless remains inconclusive with regard to links between the objects and thematic focal points of EU controversies (justification dimension) and the patterns of polarisation between political parties arising within these debates (interaction dimension). This paper seeks to explore these links through an analysis of parliamentary debates between 2005 and 2009 in the German Bundestag and UK House of Commons over revision of the EU treaties. The results of analysis suggest that disaggregating the various aspects related to the institutional reform of the EU helps to shed light on the different variants of political contention arising in public debates about Europe. It is shown that the democratic legitimisation of European integration in particular prompts relatively strong and “atypical” patterns of party polarisation, whereas questions concerning the political goals and action capacity of the EU are more consensual and appear to be more “domesticated” in the sense of being debated within the established patterns of domestic party politics.
Thailand's Muslim Minorities: Assimilation, Secession, or Coexistence?
THAILAND is a predominantly Buddhist country. For most people its very name conjures up images of saffron-robed monks, temple bells, and statues of the Buddha-images that travel brochures or impressions gained during a fleeting visit do little to dispel. Yet a more careful scrutiny of the Thai scene reveals signs of a very different religious tradition existing side-by-side with the Theravada Buddhist establishment. For Thai Islam, its presence indicated equally by the halal foodstall in a crowded Bangkok market or by the silhouette of a minaret against a rural skyline, continues to flourish throughout much of the country. Today an estimated 1,750,000 people, about 4% of the total population, are Muslims, making Islam the second religion of Thailand.' This article briefly outlines the historical background and geographical distribution of Islam in Thailand, drawing particular attention to the ethnic diversity of the various Thai Muslim peoples, before analyzing the nature of contemporary political relationships between the Thai Buddhist establishment and Thailand's Muslim minority. Even though there can be no precise date for the introduction of Islam to Thailand, it is evident that Arab and Persian Muslims en route to