Master Thesis - The NGOization in Palestine: An empirical study of the prevailing discourses in the NGO sector in Palestine
Translated title
Master Thesis - The NGOization in Palestine: Et empirisk studie af de herskende diskurser i NGO sektoren i Palæstina
Authors
von Wildenradt, Edda Maria ; Andersen, Maria Lagoni Grube ; Nielsen, Maria Schnell
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2018
Submitted on
2018-05-31
Pages
95
Abstract
Dette speciale undersøger, hvordan og hvorfor lokale organisationer i Ramallah formulerer moddiskurser over for en international diskurs i Palæstinas NGO-sektor. Med udgangspunkt i Ernesto Laclau og Chantal Mouffes diskursteori analyserer vi, hvordan betydninger skabes, og hvordan forskellige forståelser konkurrerer om at blive hegemoniske, det vil sige dominerende. Undersøgelsen bygger på et kortere etnografisk feltarbejde: seks måneders praktik, en uges forberedende feltarbejde og fem ugers feltarbejde i Ramallah. Datagrundlaget omfatter syv interviews med organisationer og eksperter i NGO-sektoren i Palæstina, deltagerobservationer, uformelle samtaler og sekundærlitteratur. Resultaterne viser to dominerende diskurser i NGO-sektoren: en lokal og en international, hvor den internationale er stærkt præget af vestlige ideologier. Vi identificerer flere moddiskurser, som udfordrer den internationale diskurs for at opnå dominans. De tre hovedmoddiskurser under feltarbejdet er: international donorers dagsorden-diskurs (donorer fremmer politiske dagsordener gennem finansieringskrav, der begrænser organisationers autonomi), underordningsdiskurs (NGO-sektoren forbindes med nye kolonilignende magtstrukturer, der hæmmer et palæstinensisk ledet nationalt projekt) og individualiseringsdiskurs (NGO-tilvæksten bidrager til en mere individualiseret og passiv civilsfære, knyttet til neoliberale og kapitalistiske logikker). Vi finder også et generationsskel i synet på NGO’er: Yngre aktører udnytter oftere de muligheder, NGO’er giver, mens ældre generationer generelt er mere kritiske. Endelig peger analysen på, at moddiskurserne udspringer af bestemte personlige og ideologiske perspektiver, herunder en romantiseret forestilling om fortiden, diaspora-perspektiver og marxisme. Konklusionen er, at der ikke findes én stabil dominerende diskurs. I stedet foregår der en vedvarende kamp mellem den internationale diskurs og forskellige moddiskurser.
This thesis examines how and why local organizations in Ramallah articulate counter-discourses in response to an international discourse in Palestine’s NGO sector. Using Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe’s discourse theory, it analyzes how meanings are constructed and how different narratives compete to become hegemonic, meaning dominant. The study is based on a short ethnographic inquiry: a six-month internship, one week of preparatory fieldwork, and five weeks of fieldwork in Ramallah. Data include seven interviews with organizations and experts in the Palestinian NGO sector, participant observations, informal conversations, and secondary literature. Findings indicate two dominant discourses in the sector: a local discourse and an international one, the latter being strongly shaped by Western ideologies. Multiple counter-discourses challenge the international discourse in a bid for dominance. The three main counter-discourses identified during fieldwork are: the international donors’ agenda discourse (donors advance political agendas through funding rules that constrain organizational autonomy), the inferior status discourse (the NGO sector is linked to new colonial-like power structures that limit a Palestinian-led national project), and the individualisation discourse (the growth of NGOs contributes to a more individualised and passive civil sphere tied to neoliberal and capitalist logics). The study also notes a generational gap: younger actors tend to make use of the opportunities NGOs provide, while older generations are more critical. Finally, these counter-discourses are traced to particular personal and ideological perspectives, including a romanticised view of the past, diaspora perspectives, and Marxism. The thesis concludes that there is no single, stable dominant discourse; rather, there is an ongoing struggle between the international discourse and various counter-discourses.
[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]
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von Wildenradt, Edda Maria:
Andersen, Maria Lagoni Grube:
Nielsen, Maria Schnell: