States, Local Communities and Informal Institutions in Eastern Europe and Russia

Session Submission Type: Created Panel

Session Description

The papers of this panel contribute to our understanding of the interaction between state policy and international processes on the one hand, and local communities and practices, on the other. Papers investigate why states promote customary law and legal pluralism in Chechnya; how citizens perceive informal state institutions vs. formal state institutions in Kosovo; when rebel groups transform into successful political parties in the Balkans. The papers are based on field research including surveys, a natural experiment, interviews, and textual analysis.

Sub Unit

• DIVISION 13: The Politics of Communist and Former Communist Countries

Individual Presentations

• Autocratic Pluralism: Why the Chechen Government Promotes Custom and Sharia - Egor Lazarev, Columbia University

• Efficient Anarchy? Perceptions on Kosovo's Parallel State System (1991-1999) - Adrian Florea, University of Glasgow

• From Rebels to Politicians: Albanian Rebel Successor Parties in the Balkans - Pellumb Kelmendi, Auburn University

• The Role of Patron States in the State Building Processes of De Facto States - Till Spanke, London School of Economics and Political Science

Chair

• Jesse Driscoll University of California, San Diego

Discussant

• Jesse Driscoll University of California, San Diego