Discoursing stability: the conception of minorities in the human domain under Turkish sovereignty

Abstract

The concept of human security has become a broad one over the last decades, covering aspects ranging from military threats to terrorism, energy and food security, issues concerning migration and minorities and emergencies associated with them. This presentation brings into discussion the conceptualisation of the political identity of the human domain vis-à-vis ethnic identities in Turkey. It suggests the ways in which public political discourse inspired by and encoded in the letter and spirit of the constitution can actually act as major sources of instability at regional level. The presentation aims therefore at illustrating with the Turkish case an important category of potential threats to regional and continental stability originating not in aggressive foreign policies but in the appearance of domestic tranquillity.