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Book Cover
E-book
Author Altstadt, Audrey L., 1953- author.

Title Frustrated democracy in post-Soviet Azerbaijan / Audrey L. Altstadt
Published Washington, D.C. : Woodrow Wilson Center Press ; New York : Columbia University Press, [2017]

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Description 1 online resource (xxiv, 317 pages)
Contents Starting points : history and geopolitics and what they tell us -- The open wound : mountainous Karabagh and national consciousness -- Azerbaijan's best and brightest : the rise, decline, and renewal of the democratic opposition -- Oil lifts all boats? : social and economic repercussions and the rise of corruption -- Jail for the "donkey bloggers" : crushing youth activism, human rights, and a free media -- Allah-u Akbar : Islam in Azerbaijan : piety, politics, and the future -- What's next? : the choices ahead
Summary "Frustrated Democracy in Post-Soviet Azerbaijan follows a newly independent oil-rich former Soviet republic as it adopts a Western model of democratic government and then turns toward corrupt authoritarianism. Audrey L. Altstadt begins with the Nagorno-Karabagh War (1988-1994) which triggered Azerbaijani nationalism and set the stage for the development of a democratic movement. Initially successful, this government soon succumbed to a coup. Western oil companies arrived and money flowed in--a quantity Altstadt calls 'almost unimaginable'--causing the regime to resort to repression to maintain its power. Despite Azerbaijan's long tradition of secularism, political Islam emerged as an attractive alternative for those frustrated with the stifled democratic opposition and the lack of critique of the West's continued political interference. Altstadt's work draws on instances of censorship in the Azerbaijani press, research by embedded experts and nongovernmental and international organizations, and interviews with diplomats and businesspeople. The book is an essential companion to her earlier works, The Azerbaijani Turks : Power and Identity Under Russian Rule and The Politics of Culture in Soviet Azerbaijan, 1920-1940"--Publisher's website
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index
Notes Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on July 23, 2018)
Subject Post-communism -- Azerbaijan -- History
Democracy -- Azerbaijan -- History
Political corruption -- Azerbaijan -- History
Authoritarianism -- Azerbaijan -- History
Islam and politics -- Azerbaijan -- History
Petroleum industry and trade -- Political aspects -- Azerbaijan -- History
Geopolitics -- Azerbaijan -- History
POLITICAL SCIENCE -- World -- Russian & Former Soviet Union.
Authoritarianism
Democracy
Geopolitics
Islam and politics
Petroleum industry and trade -- Political aspects
Political corruption
Politics and government
Post-communism
SUBJECT Azerbaijan -- Politics and government -- 1991- http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh94005367
Subject Azerbaijan
Genre/Form History
Form Electronic book
LC no. 2016041722
ISBN 9780231801416
0231801416