The Problem of Theorizing Local Governance in Palestine between the Emerging Political System and the Tribal Political Culture 1994-2004: A Study in Concepts and Theoretical Approaches
Ayman Yousef, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Arab American University, Jenin, Palestine.
Abstract
This research tackles the philosophy of local governance in Palestine from theoretical and conceptual perspectives in order to realize the link between this issue and other related concepts like political system, good governance and political/ societal culture. The tackling of local governance in separated track from the overall surrounding circumstances will result into wrong concepts and visions and unrealistic results. The overlapping relation between local governance and these related concepts is emerging with global dimensions in the shadow of globalization of politics, economics and transparent administration.
The ministry of local governance was founded in 1994 in Palestine inaugurating therefore a local Palestinian experiment coinciding with the peculiarity of the Palestinian case where we see the institutional semi-state build up without reaching final liberation status for Palestine, and without having a sovereign state that controls the land and the air. The evaluation of the Palestinian local ministry is not in the essence of this research, but the focus is on the theoretical approaches and conceptual terms of the phenomenon of local governance and its links with other determinants such as political system, political culture and good governance. Realizing the relationship between local governance and other related scientific knowledge and concepts is at the core of this research.
If the local governance means managing people's affairs over specific piece of land through granting acceptable powers and authorities, then public administration primarily means managing state's affairs and institutions to guarantee efficiency. Political system on the other hand concentrates on studying external and internal environment surrounding the public institutions and the three major powers. This framework is greatly helpful to evaluate the whole experiment of local governance in terms of its success, failures and its future developments.