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This book starts out from the deep concern with contemporary tendencies towards depoliticisation of public issues and popular interests and makes a case for rethinking more democratic popular representation. It outlines a framework for popular representation, examines key issues and experiences and provides a policy-oriented conclusion.

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Rethinking Popular Representation starts out from the deep concern with contemporary tendencies towards depoliticization of public issues and popular interests. It argues that the root cause of this is flawed representation, due to both elitist institution building and fragmented citizen participation. Hence the book makes a case for the need to rethink more democratic popular representation. Toward this end, the book outlines an overarching analytical framework for popular representation, examines key theoretical issues and empirical experiences of popular representation, and provides a policy-oriented conclusion.

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PART I: INTRODUCTION The Problem is Representation! Towards an Analytical Framework; O.Törnquist PART II: DEEPENING THE PERSPECTIVE What is the Relationship Between Participation and Representation?; N.Chandohoke The Paradox of Civil Society Representation: Constructing New Forms of Democratic Legitimacy in Brazil; P.P.Houtzager & A.Gurza Lavalle Practices of Symbolic Representation; K.Stokke & E.Selboe PART III: REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNANCE? Representative Governance or the Co-Option of Citizens? The Status of Service Users in Local Politics in West Bengal; N.Webster The Politics of Gradualismo: Popular Particpation and Decentralized Governance in Mozambique; L.Buur Representation by Design? Variations on Participatory Governance in Brazilian Municipios; G.Baiocchi & P.Heller PART IV: CHALLENGES OF POPULAR REPRESENTATION Patronage Democracy in Provincial Indonesia; G.V.Klinken Compromised Democracy: Observations on Popular Democratic Representation from Urban India; J.Harriss Trade Unions and Popular Representation: Alliances and Institution Building African Experiences; B.Beckman Popular Politics of Representation: Dilemmas and Experiments in Indonesia, the Indian State of Kerala, and the Philippines; O.Törnquist , N.Quimpo & M.Tharakan PART V: CONCLUSIONS Implications for Policy and Practice; N.Webster , O.Törnquist & K.Stokke

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