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C r ' y , / ~t"dO Mel = r : 4 ~"I Utkl6~ ~'1r1 1 . ~lt,"';-Il' !Yew Z>e-lh/ : o t . J P r he;;

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BEYOND THE_NATION?OR WITHIN?*

Partha Chatterjee, ,

Itis QDly by separatinc the t w o : inte~ issu~ of civil socidJ""m~rnityan d pol i de a I~ ra cy tha t w e w i l l begin to se e t~e dimen5tOllS ofp ow e r an d polit ical strategy w ithout a n aw are n ess of wbi~ t he p ~ po nIsto 'move beyoad the n atio n' a re qu ite l ikely t o s tr eI lc th en m e q- .J al it ie s a n dd e f e a t the t truale ford em oc rae y the ,world over .I'We . . 4 : t o t h i n k . ourselves beyond the n a t ion ', ~ A tjun~_ia_ th e first s eD t e n c : e olbia 1993 ~y P am otls m a nd .Itsh c u r I t ~ . ' f w e ... t o t ake senously Appadural s p~onl to ~the~i.narr of the territorial s t a t e . ' on e of theways rrughtbe to take f r e s b look at some of the c o nc e p tu a l c ompo n e n ts that

.. cn omk ... P o l i r i o e I WtMiy , 4-t1.JanuaJ) ' 1m ., _ ' -~.-1A rja a ~ 'PItr iotism a D d lu Putum'p,,~ o,ltIm. 5~),1~31pp. 411-29, DO W i D c h a d e d illAppachuai. MOtimt i ty ~-lAre ~.Dimfruio;n-/GIH ,Ii rim, Univeni ty of M in ne sotl l P~ . M an nca p~ u. 1"~ pp. 158-77.A ll ,. m q e D C : a to Appadurai in my t e xt a re (rom thd book.

"

B ey on d the N ation ? + 13 5claim to t ie toge th er loc al s tru cture s o f c om mun ity w i th t er rit or ia ln atibIH ta te s. L et me bring these up here: fami ly, civi l soc i e t y ,pol i t i ca l society, a nd th e s ta te . T he se a re c la ss ic al c on ce pts o f p olit ie altheory, b ut u se d, W~ kn ow , in a w id e wriety of s en se s a nd ofte n w ithm uch in con sis te n cy . I must clar i ty he re the s en se in w hich I l ind ituseful to em p loy the se con c ep ts in W king about con temp ora rypo lit ic a l fo rma tion s . - '.'.Hege l ' s syn thes i s in the P h i l o s o p h y o f Right of the s e e lemen ts ofwhat he c - a l l e d 'e th ic a J l if e' s p ok e of fa mily , c iv il s oc ie ty , a nd th e state,bu t bad no place for a d is tin ct s ph er e o f p olit ic al s oc ie ty . H ow e ve r,in under s t and ing th e str\lCtUJ'e and d yn am ic s o f m as s p olit ic al fo rm a-

tions intwen t i e t h- c en tu ry natiOrHtates, ifs e ems to meuseul to thinkof a domain of m ed ia tin g in sti tu tio ns b etw e en civil $Ocl t ty an d thes ta te . T he .barpnesS of th e n in ete en th-c en tury d ia tioc tion b etw e enstate an d c i vi l s o c ie t y . developed a lon g the tra d ition of Europ ean _ab501ut i s t th inking, h a s ' th e a na ly tic al d isa dva nta ge tod ay ' of e ic ltrreprding t b J d o I D l i l l of th e civil a s-a d ep olit ic iz ed d om ain in ~ n ttQ twith the ' ~dtali46~. of the sta te , or of blurring t he d i st in c ti ona l toge thef ' I i ) " da i~ l I t a t II I civil ins t i tut ions ate p o li ti ca l. N e it he rempha s i s is>o( he1pi in undemanding th e compl~. of _politiQIphe nome n a in large parts of the oon tem pora ry w orL l',I find it useful 'to reta in th e tenil 'civil soc : i e ty~ to-hose charac-t e ri s ti c i n a ti r ut io n s of m o d e r D associationaJ l ife originating in ~soc ie t ie s that a re bas ed on equa l i ty , autonomy, f r e e dom of en t ry aodexi t , con~ deliberativeprocedures o f d e c is io n - m ak in g. ~rightl an d d utie s of membe rs , a n d such othe r pr inc ipJeS. Obvious l y ,this is Dot to d eay . tha t the his tory of modern i ty in nog. .wes te t .ncounmes con ta in s ':n ume rous examp le s of the eme rgen ce of w h J tcould wel l b e called c i v i l - s o c i a 1 institutions which neVertheless d onot a lW a y s conform to these p r i nc i p l e s . Rathe r , it is - predse ly .10id en tify tbe se ma rk a of diffe rence . t o u nd e rs ta n d their -significance,to a p p re c ia te h ow by th e cof? tinued invoca t ion Ofi ~re- (model Q fo~ iDitituJoill of modetn i ty u th eywere meant to bMDO~ di scoune c : : : a n mil continue to ene rg i ze a ad shape th eevons forms of social ins t i tut iona in th e nonwesta, w orld , _I w ould p re fe r-e ta m ain th e more daa i ca l ser tse of' the t e r m I c l W J~e c r~e r than adopt a n y of it s r ec en t r ev is ed versions. 2 I nd e e d .

2 An ac coun t of som e of these ve molU is c ive n in J e t n L , Cohe n l in d N 1 ~Amo. C iW l S o ck " MId PoIitir.1 Tbto", . MIT P re ss , C ambr td ,e , 'M a s ~1994. ' ..'.":

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13 6 + Concepcua l iz ing Civi l Society Beyond t he N a ti on ? + 13 7the gre ate r p ar t of the p op ula tion , eve n the state d o e s n ot m a k e thisa s sump tion . - .

T he con ce ptua l m ove tha t seems to have b e en m a d e ve ry widely,even if som ew ha t im pe rc ep tib ly , is from th e id e a of society asc on st itu ted by the e le me nta ry uni t s o f h om op ae ou s families totha t of a populat ion, di f feren t i a t ed bu t c l as s if iab le , d e scr ibabl e , ande num era ble . M ic he l F ouc aul t ha s b e e n mor e p er ce pt iv e than o the rsocial p hilo so ph ers o f r ec en t t imes i n n o ti ci n g th e Crucial impor t an eeof the n ew con ce p t of p op ula t ion for the emergence of moderngo ve rn m en ta l te ch nologie s. P erha ps w e s hould a l s o no te th e conu i -bu tion he re of c olon ia l an throp ology a nd c ~lon .w a dm in is tra tivetheo rie s . -P op ula tio n, the n, c on st itu te s th e mater i a l of society. U n lik e thefami ly inc lass ica l t h eo ry , th e c on c ep t o f p op ula ti on i s d es cr ip tiv e an de m pir ic al , n ot n or ma ti ve . Indeed , p op ula tion is 'assumed to containla rge elements of 'n atU ra ln es s ' a n d 'p rim ord ia li ty '; the in te rn alp rin cip le s of the c on stitu tion of p ar tic ula r p op ula tion group s is n otexpected to be ra t ion ally e xp lic able s in ce the y a re n ot the p rod uc tso f r at io n al contractual a s soc ia t ion but a re , a s it were, p r e - r a t ion a l .W ha t the c on cep t of p op ula tion d oe s, how e ve r, is m a ke a va ila ble fo rgo ve rn m en ta l fun ction s (e con om ic p olic y, bure au cra tic a dm in is tra -t ion , law a nd p oli tic al m obil iza t ion ) a se t of ra tion al ly m an ip ula blein strum en ts for re ac hin g la rg e s ec tion s of the in ha bita nts of a c oun trya s the targets o f ' p ol ic y '.C ivil soc ia l in stitu tion s, on the othe r han d, if the y a re to c on formto the n orm ative mode l p re sen te d by w es te rn m od e rn ity , mus tn ece s sa r i l y exclude from its s cop e the va s t mas s o f th e p op ula tio n.U n l ik e m an y rad ic a l the or is ts , I d o n ot th in k tha t th is 'defect' o f thec la ss ic al c on ce p t n e ed s t o b e r ec tifie d b y r ev is in g th e d efin itio n o f c iv ils oc ie ty in o rd er to i n c lude within i t s o ci a l i n st it ut io n s based on o the rp rin cip le s. R athe r, I t h ink re ta in in g the old er idea of civil soc ie tya c tu al ly h el ps us c ap tu re s om e o f th e c on fl ic tin g des i re s o f mo d e rn i tytha t a nim ate c on te mp ora ry p ol itic al a nd cu l tu ra l d e b a t e s in coun t r i e ssuch a s India.Civi l soc ie ty in suc h. c oun tr ie s is b es t u se d to describe thosei n st it ut io n s o f modern a ss oc ia ti on a lli fe s et u p by nat iona l is t eli tes inth e e ra of c olon ia l mod e rn ity , though often a s part of their an t i -co lon i a l struggle. T h e s e i ns ti tu ti on s em bo dy th e d e s i r e of t hi s e li teto rep lic a te in its ow n socie ty th e form s a s wel l a s th e subs tance ofw es te rn m od e rn ity . It i s a d e s ire for a n ew e thic a l li fe in s oc ie ty , o n e

fo r r heo re c ir a l p u rpos e s, Ive n find it useful to hold on to t h e s e n s eo f c i v il socie .y w ed in Hegel a nd Ma r x a s bour g eoi s socie ty ( b u r g e r l i c h eg e s d J s c h a f t ) A n im p orta nt c on sid era tion in thin kin g a bout t h e r el at io n b et w e enc iv il s oc ie ty a nd th e s ta te in th e m od em his tory of form er ly c olon ia lc ou ntr ie s s uc h a s, fo r e xa m pl e, Indla i s t he fact tha t w h er ea s th e le ga l-bure auc ra tic a pp ara tus of the s ta te ha s be en a ble , by th e l a te c o lo n ia lan d c e rta in ly in the pos t -colon ia l p er iod , to re ach a s t he _ta rg et o fm a ny o f it s a cti viti es v ir tu ally a ll of th e p op ula tion tha t in ha bits it ste r r i tory I th e domain o f c iv il s o c i a l in s tit utio ns a s c on c eiv ed a bo veis stil l restr icte:d to a fairly small s c :d io n o f j ci ti ze m '. This hia tus isextremely l i g n i f i c an t because it 'is th e mark o f n o n -w e s t e rn modern i tya s a n a lw ay s in com ple te p roje c t o f 'm od e rn iza tion ' an d of th e ro leof a n e n li gh te n ed e li te e ng ag ed in a pedagogical miss ion in r e l a t ionto th e rest c soc ie ty ., ..B u t t he n , -h ow are w e to concep tua l i z e th e rest of soc ie ty tha t l iesouts id e the doma in of mod e rn c iv il soc ie ty? The most, c ommonap p roa c h ha s be e n to use a tra d ition al/m od e rn d ic hotom y. O nedifficulty w ith this is th e trap, n ot a t all easy to a v oi d . o f dehistOricizingand e s se n c ia li zi ng 't ra d it io n '. T he r el at ed dif f icul ty is on e of d en yin gthe p os sib i lity tha t th is othe r d om ain , re legated to th e zone of thetr ad itio na l" c ou ld fi nd w a y s o f c op in g with the m od e rn tha t m igh tn ot c on form to th e (w e s t e r n bourgeois , secularized CluUt i an ) pr in-c ip le s of m od e rn c ivil soc ie ty . I think a n otion of pol i t i ca l soc i e tyly in g b et w ee n civil soc i e ty a n d th e ,state could help us s ee som e ofthese his toric a l p oss ib i lit ie s . .B y p olit ic al soc ie ty , I m ea n a d oma i n o f i n st it ut io n s a n d a c ti vi ti esw h ere s eve ra l m ed ia tion s a re c ar rie d out . In th e c lass ica l th eo ry , th efamily is th e e le m en ta ry u nit o f s oc ia l o rg an iz at io n: b y th e n in e te en thc en tu ry , th is is w i de ly assumed to mean t he n u cl ea r fami ly o f m o de rnbourgeoi s pa t r i a r chy . (Hegel . w e kn ow , strongly resisted th e i d e atha t the family w a s baed on con tra c t , but by th e l at e n in e te e n th -ce n tury the con tra c tua l ly form ed fam ily becomes th e no rma t ivemodel of m os t s o c i a l theor iz ing in th e west a s wel l a s o f reformedl aw s of m arr ia ge , P rop en y, inheri tance, a nd p e rs on a l ta xa tio n.I n d e e d . the fa mily be co me s a. p ro du ct o f c on tr ac tu al a r r angemen t sbe tw ee n in divid ua ls w ho a re th e p r ima ry uni t s o f s oc ie ty .) Inc oun tr ie s s uc h a s India , it would be comp le t e ly uo.realistic to a s sumethis d efin itio n o f th e family a s o bt ai n in g u n iv er sa ll y. In fact , w ha t iss ign ific an t is tha t in form ula tin g i ts p olic ie s a nd l aw s tha t m us t re ach

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13 8 + Con c e pt ua l iz in g C i vi l Soc i e t yt ha t is in conform i t y with t he v in u es of the en ligh te n men t a n d ofbourgeois fr e e dom a nd w hose k n ow n cultu ra l fo rm s a re those ofs e c : u 1 a r i z e d western C h ri st ia n it y. T h es e a re ap p a re n t in m os t of thea r g umen t s u s e d by e a rl y n a ti on a li st elites in c olo nia l c oun tr ie s fo r~ ng up n ew in s t i tu tion s of secular publ i c l i ie. ~ti s w e ll recognizedIn~se a rgum~ts t ha t ~ e n ew do~ n of civil s oc ie ty w i ll lo ngr em a m. a n e xc 1u stV e do tnaU l of the e lite , tha t the a c tua l p ub l iC ' W Illn o t match up to th e s ta n d ar d s r eq ui re d by c iv il soc ie ty a nd tha t thef u.n c ti on o f civil socia l in sti tu t ion s in re la tion to the p ublic ;,t la rgewi l l b e on e of pedagogy ra the r tha n of f r e e a s soc i a t i on .C ou ntr ie s w i th re la t ive ly l on g h is to ri es o f c ol on ia l m o d er n iz at io na nd n ation alis t m ov em en ts o fte n h av e q uite a n e xte ns ive a nd im pr es -s iv e n etW O rk o f c iv il s o c i a l in sti tu tion s of th is k in d. In In dia , m os tof them surv ive to this d ay , n o t a s qua in t rem n an ts of co lon ia lmoderni ty but ofte n a s s e r ious p ro tagO nis ts of a p ro je c t of cu ltura lm o d er n iz at io n s ti ll to b e c om p le te d. H o w ev er , inm or e r ec en t tim e s,the y se e m to be un d e r a state o f s ie ge .To un de rs ta n d th is , w e will n ee d to h is to ric ize m or e c ar eful ly th econc ep t s of c iv il lO c ie ty . p o li ti ca l society, an d the s ta te in co lon ia la n d p o st :- co lo n ia l c o nd it io n s.

B ey on d th e N atio n? + 13 9

II

H ow eve r , e n tw in ed . w ith th is p roc es s of the form ation of m od emcivil soc ia l i ns ti tu ti on s , s om e th in g e l s e w as a ls o h ap p e ni ng . I a veexp la in ed e ls ew he re how the , va r ious c u ltu ra l form s of w es te rnm ~ w e re p u t t h r ough a n ation alis t s ie ve a nd o nly s ele ctiv elyadop t ed , a n d the n combin ed w ith the re c on s titu te d e lem en ts ofw h a t was 'c la im ed to be in dige nous tra dition .) D icho tom ie s suc h a ss pir it ua l/m a te ria l, in n er /o ute r, a lie n/in d ig en ou s, e tc . w e re a pp lie d tojustify a n d l e gi ti m iz e t h e s e ' c ho ic e s from the s ta nd po in t of a n ation -al ist cul tura l p o lit ic s . W ha t I w ish to p oin t ou t he re in p a r tic u la r istha t e ven a s the a s soc ia tion al p rin c ip le s of s e cu la r bourgeo is c iv ilins t i tut ions we r e ad op te d in the n ew c iv il soc ie ty of the n ation al is te li te , the p os sib ili ty of a d iffe re nt m ed ia tio n b etw e en th e p op ula tio nan d the state w as al ready b e in g i ma gi n ed , one t ha t w o ul d n o t g ro u nditsJ{ on .. l ' I 'Wtinniud c iw s o c i e t y . .The impetus he re w a s d ir e c tly p olit ic al. I t ha d to d o w ith the factthat t he g cv er nm e nta l t ec hn olo gie s o f th e c olo nia l s ta te w e re a lr ea dys e d c i n g to b rin g w i th in it s r e a ch la rge s e c t ion s of the p op ula tion a sth e t ar ge ts of its p olic ie s. N ati on alis t p ol it ic s ha d to fin d an a d e q U 2 t es tr at eg ic r es p on s e if it " t i I a s n ot to rem a in im mobi lize d w ithin thec on fi ne s o f t he p ro pe rly c on stitu te d' c iv il society o f th e u rb an e lite s.The c ultu ra l p olit ic s of n ation alis m sup pl ie d th is a n sw e r by wh i c hit c ou ld mediate p o li ti ca ll y b et w e en th e p op ula tion an d the n ation -state o f t he f ut ur e. Inthe In dia n c as e, th e m os t d ra ma tic a nd e ffe ctiv eform of tli s m ed ia tion was r e p re s e n te d. by w hA t I have e ls e whe redeser ibed lS the Gandh ian m om e ne o f m an oe uv re .This m td ia tion be tw ee n the p op ula tion a n d the s ta te ta k e s p la c eon the s it t o f a new pol i t i ca l society. It is b uil t a ro un d th e fr am ew o rkof m od em . p olit ic a l a s soc ia tion s such a s p olit ic a l p ar tie s . B ut , a sr e s ea r ches o n n ation alis t p olit ic al m ob iliz atio ns in th e G an dhia n e rah av e s ho vn r ep ea te dly , elite a nd p op ul ar a n ti-c olo nia l p ol it ic s, e ve na s they am e toge the r w ith in a form al ly organ ized a re n a such a s tha tof the Ird ia n Na tion al C on gre s s , d ive rged a t sp ec ific m om en ts a n dsp ined (N er the lim its la id d ow n by t he o r ga n iz a ti on .s This a re n a ofn atio na l p olit i cs , in o th er w o rd s, b ec am e a s ite o f s tr ate gic m an oe uv re s,

) T b tN .~ ." a I ts Fr.~ts: C%ni4lmrJ Po s t c o l rm i J H i s to r i n , Pr ince tonU n l ve r st y P re s s, P ri nc e to n , 1 99...< f Mti tm . / i s t nought II,", th t C o lo nW W o rld , Z e d B oo ks , L on d on , 1 98 6 .S Ole ~ of s tud ie s of Ind ian n a ti oM i is t p o li ti c s tha t e x pl ic i tl y a d dr e ss e s t hi s'spl i t it t he 'd om ai n of p o li ti c s' i s c o n ta i n ed in th e vo l ume s of S u IM le m f S t .J it ta n d it l e V e r .l lmonog r .l p hs w r i t te n by hjs tor i~n . t cont r ibut ing [0th2[ s e r i e s .

T he e xp lic it fo rm o f th e p os t-c olo nia l state in In dia is tha t o f a m od er nlibe ra l d em oc ra cy . It is o ft en s ai d, n o t u n ju st if ia bl y, that th e re as onw hy libenl d em oc ra tic in sti tu tio ns h av e p er fo rm .e d m or e c re di ta blyin India thaain m an y o th er parts of the form er ly c olon ia l w or ld isthe s tr e n gth of i ts civil s oc ia l in sti tu tio ns th at a re r ela tiv ely in d ep e n-d en t of the po li t ic a l d om ain of the state. But on e n e ed s to be moreC 2 r e f u l about th e precise r ela tio ns hi ps in vo lv ed h er e.Be fore th e r ise of m as s n a tion a l is t m ovem e n ts in the e a r lytwent ie th century, n at io na lis t p oli t ic s in In dia w a s la rge ly c on fin edto the s am e circle of elites tha t was t he n busy s ett in g u p the n ewin sti tu tio ns o f ' na t iona l ' c iv il s oc ie ty . T he se e lite s w e re th or ou gh lywedded to th e n or ma tiv e p rin cip le s o f m od er n a ss oc ia tio na l p ub licl ife a n d criticized th e c ol on ia l s ta te p re cis el y fo r not l iv in g up to thes t a n d a r d s of liberaJ col l t t i tuc iona l state. In ta lk in g a bo ut this p a r tof th e his tory of n a tion a lis tm odem ity , w e d o n ot n e ed to biin g int h e not ion oE. p oU tic aJ s oc ie ty m ed ia tin g b etw e en c iv il s oc ie ty a ndth e s ta te .

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14 0 + Co n ce p tu a li zi n g C i vi l S o c ie t y Beyond th e Nat ion? + 1.1to br ing t h e d i s cu s s io n back to th e suppos ed crisis of th e naUon4U.tean d the pouibility o f p os t-n a ti on a l fo rm a tio ns , le t me p u t forwardt h r o e theta t ha t m i gh t be punued further . Thae a re t h r e e thaa thatar ise from th e historical s tUdy of modern i t y innon... . . .-n I O C i e t i e a .

( 1 ) The molt s ig n ifi c an t s it e of ~ormatioAl in th e co1~nia1p er iod is tha t of civil Soci~i the . mos t ~~t ~ rma t1on soccu r r i ng in t he p cm -c o lo n ia l penod a re In p o l i t i c : a 1 l O C l e t y .(2 ) T he que stion tha t f rames t he d e ba te over s o c i a l t ransformat ionin th e c olo nia l period is th at o f m od er nity . Inpolicical"society of th epos t -colon ia l pe r i od . th e framing ques t ion is that o f democracy .( 3 ) In th e c o ot ex t, o f th e la tes t p ha se of th e g lo ba liz at io n o f c a p i t a l .w e may w d l be ~ an ~g oPpOSi t ion ~.een ~-oity an d democracy , i.e., b e tw e e n avll soaety an d pollUcal soae t y .T he im plic at ion s of the se the se s w il l, I be lie ve , diverge in impo r -tan t w aY ' from the p rop osa ls for c re a tin g p os t-n a tion a l form s ofgove rnmen t. U one look s c lose ly at the ~n s of th e cr is is-r id d e n n a ti on -n a te indi f feren t parts of th e con tem pora ry ~ on ew il l fin d tw o 's eu of in te rr ela te d a rg um en ts . One is about th e fai lureo f e ffe ctiv e g ove rn ab il ity . T his h as to do, in tertns of th e unct ionsl is te d a bove , w ith the fa ilure of the s ta te to p rovid e for the 'we l fa re 'of p op ula tion s. T he s ec on d se t of a rgum en ts re la tes to the d e ca y orla c k of ap prop ria te c iv il s oc ia l in st i tu t ion s tha t could p ro~ a .~fo un d ati on fo r a p ro pe r r ela tion sh ip b etw e en a uto nom ou s in dlV 1 du ~l ives in soc ie ty a nd the c olle ctive p oli tic al d om ain of th e s t a t e . Thisis w he re c om pla in ts a re made about the a uthor i ta ria n or ty raanica1r ol e o f t he n a ti on -s ta te . The tw o s ets of a rg um en t$ a re o fte n c olla ps edin to a s in gle p rogn os is . a s inA p pa d ur ai. a bo ut th e f a i I U t ' C o f n a ti on -states to a rbitra te be tw een globa li ty an d m od ern ity . I wi l l argue thatthe re a re ac tua lly tw o k in d s of m ed ia tion t h a t a re being expectedhe re -on e. be tw ee n globa lity a nd m od ern ity . an d th e o th er , b et w ee ngloba li ty a nd d em ocra cy . T he tw o-a t le as t a pp are nd y--c ann ot b ep erform ed by the sam e se t of in sti tut ion s. This, a s I s ee it , is th ec ur re nt c ris is o f th e n ation -s ta te .W e ca n trace t hi s c r is is . in te rm s of the c on ce ptua l e le me nts I ha ves et o ut a bo ve , fo r a t le as t tw o d iffe re nt s ite s-o ne , th e o ld n a t io n .4 t at c Sa n d liberal d em oc ra cie s of the west ( m cl ud in g Au st ra l ia an d New2 'ea land), a nd the othe r, ti le c oun tr ie s. m os tly ex< olon ia l, of Asia an dA fric a a nd those of the form er socialist blo c in E as te rn E urop e a ndC en tr al A sia . In th e first c a se . t he h is to ri ca l yardst ick is p rov i ded by

re sis ta nc e, a nd a pp rop ria tion by d iffe re nt group s a nd classes, manyof th os e c on te sts r em ain in g u nr es olv ed even in th e p re se nt p ha se of,h e p os t-c olon ia l s ta te . T he p oin t is t h a t th e p ra ct ic es th at a ct iv ate th eform . a nd m ethoC is of m obil iza tion a nd p ar t ic ip at ion in po li t ica lsoc ie ty a re n ot a lw ay s con sis ten t w ith th e p ri nc ip le s o f a ss oc ia ti onin c ivil soc ie ty . "w ha t the n a re the p r in c ip le s tha t gove rn p olit ic a l soc ie ty ? Theque stion ha s be en addressed in m an y W a y s in the li te ra ture on m assmo bi li ia t io D S , e le c to ra l p o li ti cs , e th n ic p o li c ie s , etc. Inthe H ebt of th econcep tua l di s t inct ions Iave m a d e above be tween populat ion , civils oc ie t y. p o li ti ca l tociety, a n d th e s ta te , w e wi l l n e e d to focus morec le ar ly on th e m ed ia tion s be tw e en p op ula tion on th e on e ha nd a ndp olit ic al s oc ie ty a nd th e state on th e o th er . T he m ajo r iN tr um en ta lfo rm h er e in t he p o st -c o lo n ia l p e ri od is that o f t he d e ve lo p n :e n ta l statewh i ch .eeks to r ela te to d iffe re nt s ec tio ns o f th e p op ula tio n th ro ug hthe gove rn men ta l fun ction of welfare. Cor r e s pond i ng l y . Iw e haveto give a n ame to the m ajor form of m obiliza tion by w hic h p olit ic als oc ie ty ( pa rti es . m ov em e nt s" no n-p a rt y p ol iti c:;.1 f or m at io as ) ~ ri e:otoc ha nn elize a nd ord er p op ula r d e m a n d s on the d eve lop me nta l s ta te .w e should ca ll i t democracy . T he in sti tu tio na l fo rm s o f th is e me rg en tp oli tic al s oc ie ty a re s ti l l u nc le ar . Ju st a s th er e is a c on tin uin g a tte m ptto ord e r the se in s ti tu tion s in the p re s c r ibed form s of lbera l civi ls oc ie ty , t he r e is p roba bly a n e ve n s tron ge r te nd en cy to s trise for w ha ta re p erc eive d to be d em oc ra tic r ig hts a nd e ntid em en ts bJ viola t ingthose in se itu t ion al n orm s. I ha ve sugge ste d e lse w he re tha t the un ce r-ta in in st itu tio na liza tio n o f th is doma in o f p o li ti ca l society C a n bet r aced to t he a b le n c e o f a s u ic ie n d y d i ff er e n ti at e d an d f le x it le n o ti o nof c om mun ity in the the ore tic al c on ce ption of the m od ern sta te .61na ny c as e, th er e is m uc h c hu rn in g in p olit ic al s oc ie ty in t he c ou n tr i e sof the p os t-c olon ia l w or ld . n ot all of w hic h a re w orthy of sp prova l,w h ic h n ev er th ele ss c an b e se en a s a n a tte mp t to fin d n ew d em oc ra ticform s of th e modern state tha t w ere not thought out by !he pos t-e nlighte nm en t soc ia l c on se nsus of the secularized C hr is ti an w o rld .illIn ord e r to look more c lose ly a t w ha t I s ee a s the n ew movtmen to f p oli tic al s oc ie ty a nd th e d es ir e fo r d em oc ra cy it r ep re se nts , am al so

6 1Lt Naticn a nd I ts F ra gmmU . ch . 11.

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1..2 + Co nc e p tu a li zi n g C i vi l Soc i e t ya d esc r ip tion (abs tra ct a nd ofte n . id ea lize d) of a sort of n orm at ivee qu ilib riu m w h er e civil s oc ie ty a nd state w e re w e ll d em arc a te d a ndp ro pe rly b ala n ce d. T his is th e l iberal d e sc ri pt io n o f t he 'c on s ti tu ti on 'th at s up po se dly p ro vid es bo th an abs tra c t un ive r s a l theory an d ah is to ric ally e mb ed d ed , n atio n-s pe ci6 c, in sta nc e o f t he a ctu al a n d m or eor le s s p e rm an ~ t su~ ~ ve ~ n te n t of po li t ic a l l i fe . This re la t ive lys ta ble n orm ativ e e quihb nu m JS n ow ofte n se en a s hav in g b e e nd i s tu rbed by the n ew imm igra tion of the la s t three decades, A sres idents , the n ew im migran ts ha ve free a cc es s to tb e in st i tu tio ns o fc i vi l JOc ie t y , b ut a re o fte n in su ffi cie ntl y e d uc ate d in o r u na p pr ec ia tiv eo f i ts p n c ti ce s . Mp op ula tio ns , th ey a re benef ic i ar i es o f g o ve r nm en t alw e lfa re a ctivit ie s b ut do n ot a lw ay s have a comm itm e n t to orso lid a r ity w ith the p o lit ic a l commun ity of the bos t n a tion . Asc it ize ns , th eir p olit ic al lo ya ltie s a re s ee n a s b ein g suspect an d m anydo n ot e ve n w a nt c it ize ns bip if t he y c an e njo y tb e e co no mic a nd s oc ia la d va n ta ge s o f res idence . H e re , tr an sn atio na l s ol id ar it ie s a m on g im m i-g ra nt g ro up s, in . fact, bec om e evid en ce for . the cha rge tha t the y a rein ap pro pr ia te s ub je cts o f th e n atio n's c ivi l a nd p olit ic al l ife . T his h asc re a te d a cr i s i s bo th fo r th e u niv er sa lis t "a ss um p tio ns o f civil soc i e t yand fo r th e p ar tic ul ar c ult ur al c on te nt of n atio nho od . O n e r es po ns eto thi s ha s been to re cogn ize the c ha nge in h is to r ic a l s itua tion a ndre de fin e the s ub sta ntiv e c on te nt o f c ivic a nd p o1 itic all ife th ro ugh a na c ti ve c H or t a t." mu lt ic u lt ur al is m '. B u t t he re h as a ls o b e e n t he a tt em p tto curb im migra tion , d en y c itize nship to m an y im migr an ts a nd evenre str ic t th e a cc es s of residents to ( th e p re su ma bly u nive rs alis t) c iv ilsoc ia l and w e l fa r e i n st it ut io n s .In th e c a S e o f th e fo rm erly c olo nia l c oun tr ie s of A sia a nd -A fr ic a,t he d om in a n t approach i s to ap ply the s am e y ard stic k of the abs tr a c tm od el of the m od em . n a tion -s ta te a n d p la c e the d iffe re n t a c tua llyexis t ing states on a sc a le of 'd eve lop men t' o r 'm od ern iza tion '. Theo ve rw h elm in g th em e is on e of la ck , som etim es w ith a n ad dition al$ tOry that d e s c r i b e s the re cen t d ec ay of a m od era te ly s a tis fa c torya lb e it i n a d eq u at e set of in s t i~ tion s. But tbe la ck , a s I sa id be fore , isof tw o k in d s -on e in th e d om ain o f g ov er nm e nta li t y, tb e o th er in. tha tof a n e ffe c tive c ivi l soc ie ty . For a c on sid era ble p art of the 196 0s a ndt970s,. ~ od em iza tio n d em an de d p rim ari ly , o fte n e xc lu siv ely , a r ap idexptnItOfl of th e g ov er nm .e n t .fu nc tio ns o f th e d ev e1

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1 4 4 + C on ce p tua lizin g C ivi l S oc ie tyin the ve ry he a r t of w e s te rn n a tion -s ta tU ~ d libe ra ld em oc ra cie s, juS tas they a re the d r iv in g forc e of poli t ics in ,m an y n op .w e s te n ic oun tr ie s , They a re loc a te d on ,d iffe re n t si te , n o't the in ora l~ ltun dground of mod e rn ity a n d the exte rna l i na t i tu t iona l d o m a i n of a g loba lc ivi l soc ie ty , bu t ra the r m e groun d of d e m o c r a c y a n d the in te rn ald om a in of na t ion a l po li ti c a l, s o 'C je t y .W ha t t h e s e t endenc i e s in m an ycoun tr ie s a roun d the w or ld show up a re the glar ing i n adequac :Ms ,o fthe o ld forn ts , of d em oc ra tic .re p re& e tlta tio4 , D n t - C o n l y in the J ~ S $mod e rn ized . coun tr ie s of the ' nQ n .w e s .c e rn . w or ld bu t .in w e a t e r Dd em oc ra c ie s them se lve s . The re ~ D l u c h CQ D te s ta tion oy er n ew c la im sa n d e n t it lem en ts , those t h a t , were n ot part Qf the e a r l i e r , l ibera lc on sen sus on sta te-c ivi l . society r e l a t ions . In many c as es " the newc la im s d ire c tly c on tra d ic t a n d v iola te \ J n i v e r s a l ' modem'cO .nven t i onsof c ivi l soc ie ty . The his to r ic a l t a s k that h a s been set by the sem ovem en ts is to w ork out n ew form s of d emoc ra tic in s ti tu tion s a n dp ra c tic e s on the m ed ia tin g fie ld of p olit ic a l soc ie ty tha t l ies b e tw e e n 'c iv i l s oc ie ty an d the n a tion .,ta te . _ :,'" ,

The fram ew ork of g loba l mod e rn i ty w ill , i t s e ems to me, inevi tab lys truc tu re the w o r ld a c cord in g to a p atte rn _ tha t is p rofoun d ly c olon ia l;the fram ew ork of d emoc ra c y , on the o the r hand , wi l l p ronounc em od e rn ity its e lf a s in a p p rop r ia te a n d d e e p ly l a - w e d . An impor t an tobse rva tion tha t A rujn Ap p ad ura i of'tc n m~ con c e rn s tl ,te ."Iin y inw h ich tra n sn a tion a l te n d en c ie s have m ad e : d ee p in roa ds in to con tem porary w e ste rn soc ie tie s a n d r ende r ed Curre t lW exis t ing na i i a :ns t a t efo rm s in a d eq ua te . In p ar tic ula r ,ta lk in g a bout the c i t i e s_o l tho wes te rnw orld , H ols ton an d Ap 'p a dura i have recent ly .ne t l ced the abandon -men t of the n otion of sha re d p ublic space a s a Ji a ttr i~ te of a~'p,a n d the re tre a t in to s e gre ga te d p riva te sp ac es , T~ havea l so_co~ype r ce ived this as an is sue tha t is d ire c tly c o n n e c t e d wi t h t l t e ques t ionof the d emoc ra tic n e go tia tion of. c ic i:te n shil' un d er cond i t i o~ q global iza t ion. 7 Mya rgu ,men t in th is p re s e o.ta tlo~ is tha t it iI,on ly ::bys ep a ra tin g the tw o i n t e r re l a t ed i s sues of civi l $oc i t t y~~n i t y Ind.political soc i e t y -democ r acy that w e w i l l b e g i n . to s e e t h e d im . e a J i _ o l 1 lof p ow e r a n d p oli t ic a l strategy that ,unde rl ie tIlis q~UOl l+ Withou~th is aw a re n e s s , the p rop osa ls to 'move b e y o n d : t h e nat ion ' ," , quitel ike ly to s t re n gthen in equa lit ie s a n d d efe a t the s trug le for d e m o , c t a c ytbe w or ld ove r . . ,

7J Hoi _ _ ..l A . App ac i . ....!-!_- __ ..l ....:.:'.. __ ..L! 'ft."U!_anleJ s ton ~ IJW) Uftt, ."-'IUC5 aug ~_p.J ~Cul t u re , 8 (2 ) , Win t e r 1996 , pp. 187 -204 .