Nergis Canefe
Professor
Research Faculty, Center for Refugee Studies
Nathanson Center, Osgoode Hall Law School
Office: Ross South 644
Phone: (416) 736-2100 Ext: 20994
Email: ncanefe@yorku.ca
Media Requests Welcome
Accepting New Graduate Students
My areas of interest are memories of atrocities and injustice and the way they shape the notion of citizenship for marginalized groups, critical studies of human rights, genocide and crimes against humanity, the relationship between nationalism and minority rights in the Balkans and the Middle East, forced migration, and debates on ethics in international law pertaining to mass political violence. I have supervised graduate work on minority rights in the Middle East, Muslim diasporas in Europe and Canada, genocide and societal amnesia, and chronic abuses of human rights of migrants and refugees, global politics of dispossession and statelessness. I am cross-listed with PPA program, SocioLegal Studies, SPT graduate programme at York, and supervise graduate work at Osgoode Hall Law School.
Nergis Canefe a scholar trained in the fields of Political Philosophy, Forced Migration Studies and International Public Law with special focus on Critical Human Rights and state-society relations. She has over twenty years of experience in carrying out in-depth qualitative research with displaced communities and teaching human rights and public law globally. Her research experience includes working with the Muslim and Jewish Diasporas in Europe and North America, refugees and displaced peoples in Turkey, Cyprus, India, Uganda, South Africa, Bosnia and Colombia. She worked as the Associate Director of Center for Refugee Studies, York University between 2008-2013. She is an executive committee member of the IASFM (international Association for the Study of Forced Migration) since 2016 and the Vice-President of IASFM since 2018.
In the field of legal studies, she is specialized in international public law, with particular emphasis on state accountability and state criminality. Professor Canefe joined York University in 2003 and has been a full-time faculty member regularly teaching at departments of Political Science, Social and Political Thought, Socio-Legal Studies, Public Policy, Administration and Law at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Prior to joining York, she worked at London School of Economics, UK and Bilgi University and Bogazici University, Turkey as a faculty member. Professor Canefe holds a PhD and has an SJD degree in public international law, both granted in Canada.
Professor Canefe published widely in the following areas: theories of nationalism in the global south, state criminality and accountability, forced migration and post-colonial state formations in the Middle East, Muslim and Jewish diasporas in the West, human rights law, public law and ethics, and, minority rights. She has done extensive fieldwork on the role of political violence and forced migration in post-imperial nation-state formation and capital accumulation in the Middle East. Her research has been funded by international and Canadian organizations. She also regularly conducts some of her human rights, minority rights and refugee rights-related work on a pro bono basis. She acts as an expert witness and public lecturer on subjects related to forced migration, diasporas in exile, minority rights and genocide in international and Canadian media, Canadian courts, and Canadian and Turkish public services.
She has over 50 scholarly articles and four books, Transitional Justice and Forced Migration (edited volume, under contract with Cambridge University Press) The Jewish Diaspora as a Paradigm: Politics, Religion and Belonging (edited volume, 2014, Libra Press –Jewish Studies Series), Milliyetcilik, Kimlik ve Aidiyet (sole author, 2006, Nationalism, Identity and Belonging], Istanbul: Bilgi University Publishing House), and Turkey and European Integration: Accession Prospects and Issues (2004, edited volume in collaboration with Mehmet Ugur, Routledge). Her new books include The Syrian Exodus (Bilgi University, 2018) and Limits of Universal Jurisdiction: A Critical Debate on Crimes against Humanity (University of Manchester International Law Series, forthcoming) are to be followed by an edited volume on unorthodox minorities in the Middle East and The Politics of Transformation of Administrative Law in the Middle East. Her scholarly articles appeared in Nations and Nationalism, Citizenship Studies, New Perspectives, Refugee Watch, Refuge, South East European Studies, Peace Review, Middle Eastern Law and Governance, Journal of International Human Rights, and, Narrative Politics. Professor Canefe is also a trained artist and her designs and mural have been showcased regularly since 2008.
Degrees
SJD Doctorate in Law, Osgoode Hall Law SchoolPhD, Department of Social and Political Thought, York University
MA, Department of Sociology, State University of New York
MA, Department of History, Boğaziçi University
BA, Department of Sociology, Boğaziçi University
Appointments
Faculty of Graduate StudiesProfessional Leadership
2018- Vice-president, International Association for the Study of Forced Migration
2020-present Advisory Board Member, Royal Roads University, Victoria BC, Canada
2019-2022 Editorial Board Member, Frontiers Journal of Political Science
2019-2022 Review Editor, Frontiers Journal Refugees and Conflict
2019-2022 Co-editor, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security
2018-2021 Adjunct Faculty Member, Royal Roads University, Justice Studies Graduate Program, Victoria, BC, Canada
2018-2021 Executive Board Member, International Association for the Study of Forced Migration [pro bono work]
2017-present Executive Board Member, Delhi School of Transnational Affairs (DSTA), Delhi University, India
2016-2019 Executive Board Member, Center for Forced Migration Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, USA
2015-present Adjunct Faculty Research Associate, Center for Human Rights Law, Bilgi University Law School, Turkey
2014-present Adjunct Faculty Research Associate, Nathanson Center, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Canada
Community Contributions
Pro Bono work for Human rights Law and Refugee Law; Frequent Expert Witness on issues related to forced migration; Community Artist and Musician
Research Interests
- Fellowship, IWM, Vienna, Austria - 2022
- Fellowship, IWM, Vienna, Austria - 2021
- DARE project funding for working with human suffering & reparations - 2022
- Fellowship, Open Society Archieves, Hungary - 2023
2021 (Sole Author) Crimes Against Humanity: Limits of Universal Jurisdiction in the Global South (University of Wales, International Law Series)
2019 (Sole Author) Critical Debates on Administrative Law, TopHat Publishers Textbook Series
2019 Transitional Justice and Forced Migration: Perspectives from the Global South (forthcoming with Cambridge University Press)
2018 (Sole Author) The Syrian Exodus in Context: Precarity, Mobility and Rights (published with Bilgi University, Human Rights Law Series, Istanbul, Turkey)
2014 The Jewish Diaspora as a Paradigm: Politics, Religion and Belonging. Edited volume in collaboration with William Safran, Professor Emeritus, University of Colorado (forthcoming, Edwin Mellen Publishers)
2006 (Sole Author) Milliyetcilik, Kimlik ve Aidiyet [Nationalism, Identity and Belonging], Istanbul: Bilgi University Publishing House.
2004 (Co-Editor and Contributor) Turkey and European Integration: Accession Prospects and Issues. In collaboration with Mehmet Ugur, Jean Monnet Professor at University of Greenwich. London and New York: Routledge.
2022 (Sole Author) Critical Debates on Public International Law: The Wealth of the Commons and the Administrative State (under review with Bilgi University, Human Rights Law Series, Istanbul, Turkey)
2022 (Sole Author) Histories of Statehood and the Fate of Unorthodox Minorities in the Middle East: Limits of Nationalism (contract signed with Lexington Books, planned publication date is Spring 2022)
2021 “Gender, Dispossession and Ethics of Witnessing,” and “Gender, Identity and Displacement: Nexus Requirements for a Critical Epistemology” in Nasreen Chowdhory and Paula Banerji, eds., Gender, Identity and Migration in India, Palgrave (forthcoming in Fall 2021)
2021 “Genealogies of Forced Migration in the Middle East: An Overview of Minority Displacements,” in Onur Yıldırım, ed., Forced Migration in the Middle East (forthcoming in Fall 2021)
2021 "Histories of Statehood in the Middle East: Intellectual Cross-Polinations in Historiography,” in Deniz Kuru and Hazal Pabuccular, eds. Global Intellectual History (forthcoming in Fall 2021)
2021 “Radical Hope and the Global South: Redefining Marginality,” Gamal Abdel-Sheikh, ed., Radical Universalisms: Essays in Honour of Ato-Sekyi-Otu (forthcoming in Summer 2021)
2019 “Redefining State Sovereignty in the Context of Statelessness,” in Nasreen Chowdhory, ed. The Rohingya Crisis, Springer Press.
2018 “Far from the Madding Crowds: Redefining the Field of Socio-Legal Studies from Within,” in Patrick Taylor et al. eds., Critical Interventions in Socio-Legal Studies, University of British Columbia Press (submitted/forthcoming)
2018 “Dispossession, Precarity and Statehood in Contemporary Middle East,” in Kenneth Christie and Marion Boulby, eds., Human Security Reframed, Berghan Press (submitted/forthcoming)
2018 “Rethinking Displacement: Transitional Justice and Forced Migration Studies,” in Susan McGrath and Julie Young, eds., New Horizons in Forced Migration Studies, University of Toronto Press (submitted/forthcoming)
2018 “Borders, Citizenship and the Subaltern in South Asia, “in Nasir Uddin and Nasreen Chowdhory, eds. Deterritorialised Identity and Transborder Movement in South Asia, Springer Press.
2006 “Do Muslims in Canada constitute a diaspora? An Exercise in Critical Citizenship Theory” in Diasporas and Opportunity Structures. University of Nevada Press.
2006 “Ottoman Jews or Turkish non-Muslims: Characters in Search of an Author.” In Nergis Canefe and William Safran, eds. The Jewish Diaspora as a Paradigm.
2005 “Ethics of Pseudo-Humanitarian Intervention in Macedonia: the Case that Fits.” In Charles Sampford and David Shugarman, eds., Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention. London: Routledge.
2004 “Turkey and European Union: Introduction,” (pp. 1-17), “Turkey and European Union: Conclusion,” (pp. 265-274), and, “The Turkish Contract of Citizenship and the Union Model,” (pp. 215-240) in Turkey and European Integration: Accession Prospects and Issues. Mehmet Ugur and Nergis Canefe, eds. London and New York: Routledge.
2003 “Communal Memory and Turkish Cypriot National History: Missing Links.” In Maria Todorova, ed., National Identities and national Memories in the Balkans. London: Hurst and Company, pp. 77-102.
2002 “Türkiye’de Milliyetçiligin Populist Yüzleri [The Populist Faces of Turkish Nationalism].” (co-authored with Tan?l Bora) Published in Tan?l Bora, ed., The Encyclopedia of Turkish Nationalism. Istanbul: Iletisim Yay?nlar?, pp. 305-335.
2001 “K?br?s’?n Türklesme Tarihinde Bir Dönüm Noktas? [A Turning Point in the Turkification of Cypriot History].” In Esra Özyürek, ed. Hat?rlad?klar? ve Unuttuklar? ile Türkiye’nin Toplumsal Haf?zas? [Remembrance, Forgetting and Social Memory in Turkey]. Istanbul: Iletisim Yay?nlar?, pp. 49-85.
2001 "One Cyprus or Many: Historical Memory in Turkish Nicosia." in Simon Gurr and Robert Morris, eds., Identities in Space: Contested Terrains in the Western City since 1850. Aldershot: Ashgate Press, pp. 60-78.
1998 "Rediscovering Politics: The Tribalist Dictum of the Ultra-Nationalist Right in Turkey," in Kenneth Christi, ed., Tribalist Politics. London: Curzon Press, pp. 153-173.
1997 “The Kurdish Minority in Canada”, Encyclopedia of Minorities in Canada, Multicultural History Society of Ontario Publication, University of Toronto Press.
1996 “Minority Rights and Beyond: A Reconsideration of Identity and Difference in National Politics,” in Mortimer Sellers, ed., The New World Order, Sovereignty, Peoplehood and Minority Rights, New York and London: Berg Press.
2021 “Do not go Gentle into that good night: The Anthropecene and the Cyclical Time of Human Suffering,” Globalizations (in print)
2021 Lead Editor, Special Issue on Redefining Human Security at Pandemic Times, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (forthcoming in Summer 2021)
2020 “Drowning by Numbers: Death and Dispossession across the Mediterranean and Aegean Waters.” Art Installation and Curatorial Article, Refugee Voices (online exhibition)
Guest editor, Special Issue on Critical Times, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (printed in May 2020)
2019 Emerging Scholars Network on Refugee and Forced Migration Studies, Interventions Series, Guest Panelist on Critical Methods (November 2019 online issue)
Statelessness as a Permanent State: Challenges to the Human Security Paradigm.” Special Issue on Critical Times, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (printed in May 2020)
“Humanism in Ruins Review Article” Europe Now (August Issue)
2018 Special Issue on Thinking beyond the Traditional Paradigm on Human Security, guest editor and contributor, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (forthcoming)
2018 “Beyond Multiculturalism: Interculturalism, Diversity and Urban Governance,” Review Article, Ethnic and Racial Studies Review (forthcoming)
2018 “Invisible Lives: Gender, Dispossession and Precarity amongst Syrian Refugee Women in the Middle East.” Refuge Special Issue, Feminist Perspectives on the Syrian Crisis (forthcoming)
“To be or Not to be: The Politics of Criminalization of Muslim Youth in Canada.” Forthcoming in Western Minaret (May 2017 issue)
2017 “Mea Culpa, Sua Culpa, Tua Maxima Culpa: Collective Responsibility and Legal Judgment.” Revista Direito UFMS 3 (1).
2017 “Syrians are Coming” Arts Narrative, Journal of Narrative Politics (published in March 2017 issue)
2017 “Hybrid Courts and the Future of International Criminal Law.” Submitted to Transnational Human Rights Review (under review)
2017 “Legislating the Unforgivable: Jurisprudential Debates on Crimes Against Humanity.” International Human Rights Law 2(1).
2017 “Syrian Refugees in the Middle East and Statelessness in Public International Law.” Submitted to Canadian Journal of Human Rights (under review)
2017 “To be or Not to be: The Politics of Criminalization of Muslim Youth in Canada.” Western Minaret (published in May 2017 issue)
2017 Editor of Special Issue titled Syrians are Coming; “Introduction: Syrians are Coming? Reframing the Syrian Refugee Crisis.” Refugee Watch 48 (May 2017): 1-7.
2017 “Migration as Necessity: Contextualizing the European Response to Syrian Exodus.” Refugee Watch 48 (May 2017): 82-104.
“Management of Irregular Migration: Syrians in Turkey as Paradigm Shifters for Forced Migration Studies,” New Perspectives on Turkey 54 (2): 9-32.
“Post-Colonial State and Violence: Rethinking the Middle East and North Africa outside the Blindfold of Area Studies,” Refugee Watch No. 45 (June): 7-31.
2006 Book review on Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return, Journal of International Affairs.
2005 “An Act of Citizenship? Freedom of Speech and University Politics in the Case of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.” Citizenship Studies (accepted with minor revisions)
2004 “Foundational Paradoxes of Balkan Nationalisms: Authenticity, Modernity and Nationhood.” Turkish Review of Balkan Studies 8. Published by Ortadogu ve Balkan Incelemeleri Vakfi [Research Foundation of Middle Eastern and Balkan Studies], pp. 107-148.
2004 “The Kurdish Problem in Turkey.” Review Article, South European Society and Politics 8 (3), pp. 56-73.
2003 “K?br?s Türk Toplumunda Tarihsel Aidiyet ve Vatanda?l?k Akti Aras?ndaki Geçi?lilik. [The Critical Relationship between Citizenship and Historical Belonging in Modern Turkish Cypriot Society] ” Toplum ve Bilim (Haziran), pp. 73-89.
2003 “Refugees or Enemies: Turkish Cypriot Perceptions of the 1974 War." South European Society and Politics 7 (2), pp. 1-28.
2002 "From Ethnicity to Nationalism: Intricacies of Turkish Cypriot Identity in the Diaspora" Rethinking History 6 (1), special issue edited by Patrick Finney, pp. 57-76.
2002 “Intellectual Roots of Anti-European Sentiments in Turkish Politics: The Case of Radical Turkish Nationalism.” (co-authored with Tan?l Bora) Turkish Studies (Special Issue on Turkey-Europe edited by Barry Rubin and Ali Carkoglu) 4 (1), pp. 127-148. (reprinted in book format)
2002 “Kosovo’s Refugees?” Review Article, Refuge (February), pp. 134-136.
2002 “The Legacy of Forced Population Movements in Modern Turkish Society: Remembrance of the Things Past?” Balkanologie 5 (1-2), pp. 153-179.
2002 "Turkish Nationalism and Ethno-Symbolic Analysis: Costs and Benefits." Nations and Nationalism 8 (2), pp. 1-28.
2002 "Turkish Nationalism and Ethno-Symbolic Analysis: The Rules of Exception." Nations and Nationalism 8 (2), pp. 133-155.
1999 "Cleansing Ethnicity from the [Balkan] Conflict." Times Higher Education Supplement (June 23 1999)
1998 "Citizens versus Permanent Guests: Social and Political Effects of Immigration and Citizenship Laws in a Reunified Germany," Citizenship Studies 2 (3), pp. 519-544.
1994 "The Yugoslavian Puzzle: Which Nation, Whose Nationalism and Other Unsettling Questions," Refuge. (June-July 1994) Special Issue on Yugoslavia.
2006 “Blasphemy or Freedom of Speech? Issues Behind the Protests related to the Caricatures of Prophet Muhammed” Invited speaker at the Osgoode Hall Law School Roundtable on Muslim Minorities in the West, Toronto.
2006 “The Muslims of France, or, Paris is Burning” Invited speaker in the Guest Lecture Series, Canadian Center for German and European Studies, York University, Toronto.
2006 “The Politics of Belonging among the Muslims Diasporas in the Anglo-American World” International Studies Association Annual Meeting, San Diego, USA.
2005 “Diasporas as the new site for Redemption? Hopes Crushed after 9/11” World International Studies Association First Annual Meeting, Istanbul, Turkey.
2005 “Humanitarianism Undefined: Lessons to be Learnt from the faith of minorities in the Balkans.” World International Studies Association First Annual Meeting, Istanbul, Turkey.
2005 “Jewish Enlightenment in the East? Nationalist Aspirations among Sephardic Jews of the Ottoman Empire.” Panel presentation, Jewish Diasporas: Myths and Realities Conference, York University, Toronto, Canada (also the organizer of the conference)
2004 “Diasporas, Transnational identities and the Nation-State: End of Citizenship?” Paper tabled at the Imagining Diasporas: Space, Identity and Social Change Conference, University of Windsor, Canada.
2004 “Diasporas, Transnational Migration and Limits of Citizenship: Points of Anchorage in the European Context.” Paper presented at the Immigration, Multiculturalism and Citizenship in Europe: Inclusion/Exclusion Conference organized by Canadian Centre for German and European Studies, Toronto.
2004 “Dilemmas of identity Formation among Young Canadian Muslims: Tradition, National Belonging and Religious Identity in the Diaspora.” Paper presented at the International Conference on The Making of The Islamic Diaspora. Sponsored by SSHRCC, MCRI, Diaspora, Islam, and Gender Project, York University; The Ford Foundation Educational Project for Palestinians; York Centre for Refugee Studies; York Center for Feminist Research.
2004 “Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention: the Case of Macedonia.” International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Hawai, USA
2004 “Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention: the Long-term Effects of Regional Ethno-Politics.” Workshop participant at the Key Centre for Ethics Workshop (joint Canadian-Australian team), Brisbane, Australia.
2004 “Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention: What Kind of Liberal Justice?” Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention Workshop (joint Canadian-Australian team), York University, Canada.
2004 “Identity, Culture, and Paradigms of Incongruity in International Relations: the Case of Islam.” Paper presented at the Governance and Global (Dis)orders: Trends, Transformations, and Impasses. Eleventh Annual York Centre for International and Security Studies Conference in Conjunction with the Nathanson Centre for the Study of Organised Crime and Corruption.
2004 “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict in Canadian Politics: A Just Third Party?” Halbert Centre for Canadian Studies, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
2004 “Politics and Religion in the Diaspora.” Issues of Social Justice Conference, York University, Canada (organized by Vijay Agnew)
2004 “Religion, Migration and Belonging in a Comparative Context.” Transnational Religion and Migration Workshop, Cape Town, South Africa. Organiser: Social Science Research Council, New York, USA.
2004 “Theories of Ethno-nationalism and their Effects in the Middle Eastern Context.” Paper presented at the 14th Annual Conference of ASEN (Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism), The Nationalism Debate, London School of Economics, UK.
2003 “Citizenship, Belonging and New Formulations of Identity in a Transnational Context.” Workshop organiser and presenter, Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey.
2003 “Remembering and Forgetting Izmir/Smyrna.” Paper presented at the Politics of Memory Workshop, Bo?azici University, Istanbul, Turkey.
2003 “The Legacy of Forced Population Exchanges: The Turko-Greek Case.” Paper presented at the Forced Migration Conference, University of Bath, United Kingdom.
2003 “Whose Culture, Which Rights: Thoughts in the aftermath of Anglo-American Invasion of Baghdad.” Paper presented at the Panel Series on Sanat ve Insan Haklari [Art and Human Rights], Istanbul Technical University, Institute of Social Sciences, Istanbul, Turkey.
2002 “Blind Spots in Turkish Migration Research: Refugees, Diaspora and Minorities.” Paper presented at the New Directions in Turkish Studies of Migration Conference, Bo?azici University, Istanbul, Turkey.
2002 “How to Approach Religion in Migration Studies: The Things We Don’t Want to do.” Paper presented at the International Workshop on Transnational Migration and Religion Organised by the American Social Science Research Council, Istanbul, Turkey.
2002 “Muslims in the Balkans: Who Are They Supposed to Be?” paper presented at the British International Studies Association Working Group on Balkan History Workshop, London School of Economics and Political Science.
2002 “Paradoxes of Turkish Nationalism.” Paper presented at the Bilgi University Invited Speaker Series, Istanbul, Turkey.
2001 “Europe in the Eyes of the ‘New’ Radical Turkish Right.” Paper presented in the special panel on Turkey and Europe, Pan-European International Studies Association Meeting, Heidelberg, Germany.
2001 “Ottoman Legacy in Modern Turkish Society: The Issue of Civilisation.” Paper presented at the workshop on Traditions of Liberty in the Balkans, Halkidiki, Greece (organized by Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeastern Europe, Thessaloniki)
2000 "Bi-Communal Relations in the Diaspora: Questions about the Cypriot Case." Paper presented at the Vienna Core Group Meeting, Project on Gender and Conflict Resolution, Bruno Kreisky Forum for International Dialogue, Vienna Austria.
2000 "British Perceptions of the Yugoslav Refugees: Why Will The Kosova Crisis Cost so Dear to the Labour Government?" Paper presented at Bergen Workshop on Refugees and Migrants in Europe, August 2000, International Society for History of European Ideas, Norway.
2000 "Citizenship and Memory in Turkish Cypriot Society." Paper read at History and Memory in Eastern Mediterranean Societies Workshop, Brown University, U.S.A.
2000 "Diasporas and National History: The Case of Turkish Cypriots of London." Paper presented at the History and Memory in Southeast Europe Conference, University of Lampeter, Wales, U.K.
2000 "Extreme Turkish Nationalism and History: Uneasy Alliances." Paper presented at the British Social History Society Conference, Cambridge, U.K.
2000 "History as We Learnt It: The Rediscovery of the Ottoman Civilisation in Turkish Cypriot Society" Paper presented at the Regional Workshop on History and Nationalism, organised by Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeastern Europe, Larnaca, Cyprus.
1999 "Changing Definitions of Race and Ethnicity in Historical Studies: Lessons from Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda." Paper presented at the Anglo-American Historians' Conference, Institute of Historical Research, U.K.
1999 "Communal Memory and History Textbooks in Turkish Cypriot Society: Missing Links." Workshop Presentation at the Meeting on National Memory and History in Southeastern Europe, Halki, Greece
1999 "Divided Memories of a Common History: Renovation of Turkish Cypriot Nicosia." Panel Presentation at the Annual Urban History Conference, Oxford University, U.K.
1999 "Power, Visibility and Belonging in the Turkish Cypriot Diaspora." Paper presented at the Cypriot Society in the New Millennium: Globalisation and Social Change Conference, Greenwich, London
1998 "Area Studies: Could We Write the Historiography of Academic Histories of Europe's Others?" Paper presented at the Social and Political Thought Program, 25th Year Anniversary Celebrations, York University, Canada.
1998 "One Cyprus of Many? The Critical Relationship between Demography and History in Cyprus." Panel Presentation at the Pan-European International Relations Conference, Vienna, Austria.
1998 "Remaking Cyprus: Long-term Effects of Population Displacements" Paper presented at the International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Minneapolis USA
1997 "Citizens versus Permanent Guests: Cultural Memory and Citizenship Laws in a Reunified Germany" Paper Presented at the Conference on Inclusion and Exclusion: International Migrants and Refugees in Europe and North America, New School for Social Research, New York, USA.
1997 "Feminism, Refugees and Constructions of Otherhood: A Critical Approach" paper read and tabled at the 1997 Canadian Learneds Conference, Canadian Association of Socialist Studies Panel on Citizenship organized by Sedef Arat-Koc, St. Johns, Newfoundland.
1997 "Genocidal Tendencies in Modern Turkish Ultranationalist Politics: The Alevi Massacres" paper read and tabled at the Second Meeting of the Association of Genocide Scholars, Montreal, Canada.
1997 "Return of Utopia in Extremist Identity Politics" Paper presented at the 51st Annual Conference of New York State Political Science Association, New York, USA.
1997 "The Construction of the Kurdish Problem in the Middle East as a Security Issue" Paper presented at the International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada
1996 "A Comparative Analysis of Population-Exchange Policies as a Remedy for Minority-Related Problems.” Paper presented at Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada.
1996 "Democratic Liberalism and Changing Definitions of Ethnicity" paper tabled at the International Studies Association-North East Division Annual Meeting, Boston, USA
1996 "Minorities versus the Middle East: Is the 'Kurdish Problem' Unique?" Paper presented at the Women in International Security Annual Workshop "Security Policy at Crossroads," Annapolis, USA
1996 "Radical Marxism, Liberation Struggles and Languages of Descent" paper tabled at the 3rd Rethinking Marxism Conference, University of Massachusetts, USA.
1996 "The Sovereign Nation-State and Minority Rights: Critical Approaches" Paper presented at the Special Workshop on Sovereignty and Human Rights, International Political Science Association, University of Essex, England.
1996 "What is a 'National Minority'? Questions and Answers in the Context of Greek-Turkish Relations since the Lausanne Treaty" Paper presented at the Canadian Association of Studies in International Development, 1996 Canadian Learneds Meeting, Brock University, Canada
1995 "A Critique of the Liberal Underpinnings of the International Human Rights Regime" Paper presented at the International Workshop on Women's Rights are Human Rights, York University, Toronto, Canada
1995 "From margins to the Core: Minority Related Refugee Problems in Balkan States.” Paper presented at Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada
1995 "Membership versus Justice: The Bridges Between Habermas and Rawls" Paper presented at the Canadian Society of Political Science, 1995 Canadian Learneds Conference, Montreal, Canada
1995 “Regional Responses to Ethno-Nationalist Secessionism: A Comparative Reading of Cyprus and Yugoslavia.” Paper presented at the Annual International Studies Association Conference, Chicago, USA
1995 "The 'Others' of the Yugoslavian Civil War: The Future of the Muslim Communities in the Balkans" Paper presented at the First Bi-Annual Conference of International Society of Genocide Scholars, Williamsburg, College of William and Mary, Virginia, USA
1995 "The Enigmatic Revival of Utopia in Identity Politics" Paper presented at the Annual Conference of Society for Utopian Studies, Toronto, Canada.
1995 "The insiders and outsiders of German Nationalism after Re-unification" Paper presented at the Canada-Europe: Ethics and Migration Conference, The Hague, Netherlands
1995 "The pan-Nationalist Element in Early Greek and Turkish Histories and Its Ramifications" Paper presented at the Modern Greek Studies Association Annual Meeting, Harvard University, Boston
1994 "A Preliminary Analysis of the Minority-Related Problems in the Middle East.” Paper presented at Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada
1994 "Canonisation of National Narratives: A Critical Approach" Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Canadian Society of Cultural Studies, University of Toronto, Canada
1994 “Minorities in the Middle East: Historical Anomaly or Theoretical Impasse?” paper tabled at the Fourth International Research and Advisory Panel Conference on Refugees, Somerville College, Oxford, England (5-9 January 1994)
1994 “Nationalism, Ethno-nationalism and the New World Order.” Paper presented at the Academic Council for the United Nations Annual Summer Workshop, Brown University, USA
1993 "Death of Art-End of Tradition: The Riddle of an Emancipatory Recapturing of the Work of Art in Early and Late Frankfurt School" Paper presented at the Annual Philosophy, Interpretation and Culture Conference, State University of New York, Binghamton, U.S.A
1993 "Feminism, Membership, and Theories of Justice: Critical Readings", Paper presented at the Conference on Gender Issues and Refugees: Development Implications, York University, Canada
1993 “Possibilities of Repatriation: The Kurdish Case.” Paper presented at the Repatriation and Development Workshop I, Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada
1992 “The Kurdish Enigma in the Middle East.” Paper presented at the Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada
2006 “Muslims in Canada: Minority or Diaspora?” Guest Lecturer, Brown Bag Series, Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada.
2005 “Internally Displaced People in International Humanitarian Law.” Faculty Lecturer, Centre for Refugee Studies Summer School, York University, Canada.
2005 “Liberalism versus Citizenship? Freedoms of Speech on Canadian Campuses.” Guest lecturer at the UCLA (Los Angeles, USA) Muslim Diasporas in the West Series.
2004 “Jewish Enlightenment Amiss? Histories of Sephardic Jews in the Ottoman Empire”, Truman Centre, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
2002 Invited participant and discussant, Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeastern Europe Workshop on History Textbooks in Cyprus, London, U.K.
2001 “Kemalism Old and New: Transmutations of Turkish Nationalism.” Invited speaker for the LSE Association for the Study of Nationalism and Ethnicity Seminar Series.
2000 “The Historical Pedigree of the Ottoman Legacy: Revisiting Truisms.” Invited Speaker for the History Workshop Seminars, London.
2000 "The Turkish Nationalist Right: Old Wine in New Bottles?" Invited speaker for the SOAS Turkish Studies Seminar Series.
1999 "Religion versus Nationalism in Republican Turkish History: The Case of Christian Minorities." Invited speaker at the Balkan History Seminar, Institute of Historical Research, University of London.
1999 "The Missing 'Ottomans' in Balkan National Histories: Lessons Learnt from the Turkish Case." Guest speaker at SSEES/CSEES seminars, University of London.
1997 "The Legacy of Greek-Turkish Population Exchanges: Critical Thoughts." Guest lecturer, Refugee Studies Program, Oxford University, UK.
1995 "German Romanticism Unbound: Greek and Turkish Early Nationalist Narratives Compared," Guest Lecturer Series, Department of Classical Studies, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, USA.
1995 "The Turkish State versus Minority Rights." Symposium on Minority Rights in Turkey: Remembrance of the Events of September 6-7, 1955, Greek Canadian Association of Constantinople, Toronto, Canada.
Approach to Teaching
I teach in the areas of Human Rights Law/Critical Perspectives, Comparative Minority Rights Law, War Crimes, Public Administrative Law, Politics of Utopia, Critical Perspectives on Socio-Legal Studies, and, Politics of International Law.
Current Courses
| Term | Course Number | Section | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6200 6.0 | A | Adv. Study In International Relations | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6410 6.0 | A | The Study Of Comparative Politics | SEMR |
Upcoming Courses
| Term | Course Number | Section | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2025 | AP/POLS3110 3.0 | M | The Process of Urban Politics I | LECT |
| Winter 2025 | GS/SOCI6542 3.0 | M | Violence, Identity and Subjectivity | SEMR |
| Winter 2025 | GS/PPAL6120 3.0 | M | Administrative Law and Ethics | SEMR |
| Winter 2025 | GS/PPAL6120 3.0 | N | Administrative Law and Ethics | SEMR |
| Winter 2025 | GS/SLST6000 3.0 | M | Law and Social Theory | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6200 6.0 | A | Adv. Study In International Relations | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6410 6.0 | A | The Study Of Comparative Politics | SEMR |
My areas of interest are memories of atrocities and injustice and the way they shape the notion of citizenship for marginalized groups, critical studies of human rights, genocide and crimes against humanity, the relationship between nationalism and minority rights in the Balkans and the Middle East, forced migration, and debates on ethics in international law pertaining to mass political violence. I have supervised graduate work on minority rights in the Middle East, Muslim diasporas in Europe and Canada, genocide and societal amnesia, and chronic abuses of human rights of migrants and refugees, global politics of dispossession and statelessness. I am cross-listed with PPA program, SocioLegal Studies, SPT graduate programme at York, and supervise graduate work at Osgoode Hall Law School.
Nergis Canefe a scholar trained in the fields of Political Philosophy, Forced Migration Studies and International Public Law with special focus on Critical Human Rights and state-society relations. She has over twenty years of experience in carrying out in-depth qualitative research with displaced communities and teaching human rights and public law globally. Her research experience includes working with the Muslim and Jewish Diasporas in Europe and North America, refugees and displaced peoples in Turkey, Cyprus, India, Uganda, South Africa, Bosnia and Colombia. She worked as the Associate Director of Center for Refugee Studies, York University between 2008-2013. She is an executive committee member of the IASFM (international Association for the Study of Forced Migration) since 2016 and the Vice-President of IASFM since 2018.
In the field of legal studies, she is specialized in international public law, with particular emphasis on state accountability and state criminality. Professor Canefe joined York University in 2003 and has been a full-time faculty member regularly teaching at departments of Political Science, Social and Political Thought, Socio-Legal Studies, Public Policy, Administration and Law at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Prior to joining York, she worked at London School of Economics, UK and Bilgi University and Bogazici University, Turkey as a faculty member. Professor Canefe holds a PhD and has an SJD degree in public international law, both granted in Canada.
Professor Canefe published widely in the following areas: theories of nationalism in the global south, state criminality and accountability, forced migration and post-colonial state formations in the Middle East, Muslim and Jewish diasporas in the West, human rights law, public law and ethics, and, minority rights. She has done extensive fieldwork on the role of political violence and forced migration in post-imperial nation-state formation and capital accumulation in the Middle East. Her research has been funded by international and Canadian organizations. She also regularly conducts some of her human rights, minority rights and refugee rights-related work on a pro bono basis. She acts as an expert witness and public lecturer on subjects related to forced migration, diasporas in exile, minority rights and genocide in international and Canadian media, Canadian courts, and Canadian and Turkish public services.
She has over 50 scholarly articles and four books, Transitional Justice and Forced Migration (edited volume, under contract with Cambridge University Press) The Jewish Diaspora as a Paradigm: Politics, Religion and Belonging (edited volume, 2014, Libra Press –Jewish Studies Series), Milliyetcilik, Kimlik ve Aidiyet (sole author, 2006, Nationalism, Identity and Belonging], Istanbul: Bilgi University Publishing House), and Turkey and European Integration: Accession Prospects and Issues (2004, edited volume in collaboration with Mehmet Ugur, Routledge). Her new books include The Syrian Exodus (Bilgi University, 2018) and Limits of Universal Jurisdiction: A Critical Debate on Crimes against Humanity (University of Manchester International Law Series, forthcoming) are to be followed by an edited volume on unorthodox minorities in the Middle East and The Politics of Transformation of Administrative Law in the Middle East. Her scholarly articles appeared in Nations and Nationalism, Citizenship Studies, New Perspectives, Refugee Watch, Refuge, South East European Studies, Peace Review, Middle Eastern Law and Governance, Journal of International Human Rights, and, Narrative Politics. Professor Canefe is also a trained artist and her designs and mural have been showcased regularly since 2008.
Degrees
SJD Doctorate in Law, Osgoode Hall Law SchoolPhD, Department of Social and Political Thought, York University
MA, Department of Sociology, State University of New York
MA, Department of History, Boğaziçi University
BA, Department of Sociology, Boğaziçi University
Appointments
Faculty of Graduate StudiesProfessional Leadership
2018- Vice-president, International Association for the Study of Forced Migration
2020-present Advisory Board Member, Royal Roads University, Victoria BC, Canada
2019-2022 Editorial Board Member, Frontiers Journal of Political Science
2019-2022 Review Editor, Frontiers Journal Refugees and Conflict
2019-2022 Co-editor, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security
2018-2021 Adjunct Faculty Member, Royal Roads University, Justice Studies Graduate Program, Victoria, BC, Canada
2018-2021 Executive Board Member, International Association for the Study of Forced Migration [pro bono work]
2017-present Executive Board Member, Delhi School of Transnational Affairs (DSTA), Delhi University, India
2016-2019 Executive Board Member, Center for Forced Migration Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, USA
2015-present Adjunct Faculty Research Associate, Center for Human Rights Law, Bilgi University Law School, Turkey
2014-present Adjunct Faculty Research Associate, Nathanson Center, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Canada
Community Contributions
Pro Bono work for Human rights Law and Refugee Law; Frequent Expert Witness on issues related to forced migration; Community Artist and Musician
Research Interests
Awards
- Fellowship, IWM, Vienna, Austria - 2022
- Fellowship, IWM, Vienna, Austria - 2021
- DARE project funding for working with human suffering & reparations - 2022
- Fellowship, Open Society Archieves, Hungary - 2023
All Publications
2021 “Gender, Dispossession and Ethics of Witnessing,” and “Gender, Identity and Displacement: Nexus Requirements for a Critical Epistemology” in Nasreen Chowdhory and Paula Banerji, eds., Gender, Identity and Migration in India, Palgrave (forthcoming in Fall 2021)
2021 “Genealogies of Forced Migration in the Middle East: An Overview of Minority Displacements,” in Onur Yıldırım, ed., Forced Migration in the Middle East (forthcoming in Fall 2021)
2021 "Histories of Statehood in the Middle East: Intellectual Cross-Polinations in Historiography,” in Deniz Kuru and Hazal Pabuccular, eds. Global Intellectual History (forthcoming in Fall 2021)
2021 “Radical Hope and the Global South: Redefining Marginality,” Gamal Abdel-Sheikh, ed., Radical Universalisms: Essays in Honour of Ato-Sekyi-Otu (forthcoming in Summer 2021)
2019 “Redefining State Sovereignty in the Context of Statelessness,” in Nasreen Chowdhory, ed. The Rohingya Crisis, Springer Press.
2018 “Far from the Madding Crowds: Redefining the Field of Socio-Legal Studies from Within,” in Patrick Taylor et al. eds., Critical Interventions in Socio-Legal Studies, University of British Columbia Press (submitted/forthcoming)
2018 “Dispossession, Precarity and Statehood in Contemporary Middle East,” in Kenneth Christie and Marion Boulby, eds., Human Security Reframed, Berghan Press (submitted/forthcoming)
2018 “Rethinking Displacement: Transitional Justice and Forced Migration Studies,” in Susan McGrath and Julie Young, eds., New Horizons in Forced Migration Studies, University of Toronto Press (submitted/forthcoming)
2018 “Borders, Citizenship and the Subaltern in South Asia, “in Nasir Uddin and Nasreen Chowdhory, eds. Deterritorialised Identity and Transborder Movement in South Asia, Springer Press.
2006 “Do Muslims in Canada constitute a diaspora? An Exercise in Critical Citizenship Theory” in Diasporas and Opportunity Structures. University of Nevada Press.
2006 “Ottoman Jews or Turkish non-Muslims: Characters in Search of an Author.” In Nergis Canefe and William Safran, eds. The Jewish Diaspora as a Paradigm.
2005 “Ethics of Pseudo-Humanitarian Intervention in Macedonia: the Case that Fits.” In Charles Sampford and David Shugarman, eds., Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention. London: Routledge.
2004 “Turkey and European Union: Introduction,” (pp. 1-17), “Turkey and European Union: Conclusion,” (pp. 265-274), and, “The Turkish Contract of Citizenship and the Union Model,” (pp. 215-240) in Turkey and European Integration: Accession Prospects and Issues. Mehmet Ugur and Nergis Canefe, eds. London and New York: Routledge.
2003 “Communal Memory and Turkish Cypriot National History: Missing Links.” In Maria Todorova, ed., National Identities and national Memories in the Balkans. London: Hurst and Company, pp. 77-102.
2002 “Türkiye’de Milliyetçiligin Populist Yüzleri [The Populist Faces of Turkish Nationalism].” (co-authored with Tan?l Bora) Published in Tan?l Bora, ed., The Encyclopedia of Turkish Nationalism. Istanbul: Iletisim Yay?nlar?, pp. 305-335.
2001 “K?br?s’?n Türklesme Tarihinde Bir Dönüm Noktas? [A Turning Point in the Turkification of Cypriot History].” In Esra Özyürek, ed. Hat?rlad?klar? ve Unuttuklar? ile Türkiye’nin Toplumsal Haf?zas? [Remembrance, Forgetting and Social Memory in Turkey]. Istanbul: Iletisim Yay?nlar?, pp. 49-85.
2001 "One Cyprus or Many: Historical Memory in Turkish Nicosia." in Simon Gurr and Robert Morris, eds., Identities in Space: Contested Terrains in the Western City since 1850. Aldershot: Ashgate Press, pp. 60-78.
1998 "Rediscovering Politics: The Tribalist Dictum of the Ultra-Nationalist Right in Turkey," in Kenneth Christi, ed., Tribalist Politics. London: Curzon Press, pp. 153-173.
1997 “The Kurdish Minority in Canada”, Encyclopedia of Minorities in Canada, Multicultural History Society of Ontario Publication, University of Toronto Press.
1996 “Minority Rights and Beyond: A Reconsideration of Identity and Difference in National Politics,” in Mortimer Sellers, ed., The New World Order, Sovereignty, Peoplehood and Minority Rights, New York and London: Berg Press.
2021 (Sole Author) Crimes Against Humanity: Limits of Universal Jurisdiction in the Global South (University of Wales, International Law Series)
2019 (Sole Author) Critical Debates on Administrative Law, TopHat Publishers Textbook Series
2019 Transitional Justice and Forced Migration: Perspectives from the Global South (forthcoming with Cambridge University Press)
2018 (Sole Author) The Syrian Exodus in Context: Precarity, Mobility and Rights (published with Bilgi University, Human Rights Law Series, Istanbul, Turkey)
2014 The Jewish Diaspora as a Paradigm: Politics, Religion and Belonging. Edited volume in collaboration with William Safran, Professor Emeritus, University of Colorado (forthcoming, Edwin Mellen Publishers)
2006 (Sole Author) Milliyetcilik, Kimlik ve Aidiyet [Nationalism, Identity and Belonging], Istanbul: Bilgi University Publishing House.
2004 (Co-Editor and Contributor) Turkey and European Integration: Accession Prospects and Issues. In collaboration with Mehmet Ugur, Jean Monnet Professor at University of Greenwich. London and New York: Routledge.
2022 (Sole Author) Critical Debates on Public International Law: The Wealth of the Commons and the Administrative State (under review with Bilgi University, Human Rights Law Series, Istanbul, Turkey)
2022 (Sole Author) Histories of Statehood and the Fate of Unorthodox Minorities in the Middle East: Limits of Nationalism (contract signed with Lexington Books, planned publication date is Spring 2022)
2021 “Do not go Gentle into that good night: The Anthropecene and the Cyclical Time of Human Suffering,” Globalizations (in print)
2021 Lead Editor, Special Issue on Redefining Human Security at Pandemic Times, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (forthcoming in Summer 2021)
2020 “Drowning by Numbers: Death and Dispossession across the Mediterranean and Aegean Waters.” Art Installation and Curatorial Article, Refugee Voices (online exhibition)
Guest editor, Special Issue on Critical Times, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (printed in May 2020)
2019 Emerging Scholars Network on Refugee and Forced Migration Studies, Interventions Series, Guest Panelist on Critical Methods (November 2019 online issue)
Statelessness as a Permanent State: Challenges to the Human Security Paradigm.” Special Issue on Critical Times, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (printed in May 2020)
“Humanism in Ruins Review Article” Europe Now (August Issue)
2018 Special Issue on Thinking beyond the Traditional Paradigm on Human Security, guest editor and contributor, Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security (forthcoming)
2018 “Beyond Multiculturalism: Interculturalism, Diversity and Urban Governance,” Review Article, Ethnic and Racial Studies Review (forthcoming)
2018 “Invisible Lives: Gender, Dispossession and Precarity amongst Syrian Refugee Women in the Middle East.” Refuge Special Issue, Feminist Perspectives on the Syrian Crisis (forthcoming)
“To be or Not to be: The Politics of Criminalization of Muslim Youth in Canada.” Forthcoming in Western Minaret (May 2017 issue)
2017 “Mea Culpa, Sua Culpa, Tua Maxima Culpa: Collective Responsibility and Legal Judgment.” Revista Direito UFMS 3 (1).
2017 “Syrians are Coming” Arts Narrative, Journal of Narrative Politics (published in March 2017 issue)
2017 “Hybrid Courts and the Future of International Criminal Law.” Submitted to Transnational Human Rights Review (under review)
2017 “Legislating the Unforgivable: Jurisprudential Debates on Crimes Against Humanity.” International Human Rights Law 2(1).
2017 “Syrian Refugees in the Middle East and Statelessness in Public International Law.” Submitted to Canadian Journal of Human Rights (under review)
2017 “To be or Not to be: The Politics of Criminalization of Muslim Youth in Canada.” Western Minaret (published in May 2017 issue)
2017 Editor of Special Issue titled Syrians are Coming; “Introduction: Syrians are Coming? Reframing the Syrian Refugee Crisis.” Refugee Watch 48 (May 2017): 1-7.
2017 “Migration as Necessity: Contextualizing the European Response to Syrian Exodus.” Refugee Watch 48 (May 2017): 82-104.
“Management of Irregular Migration: Syrians in Turkey as Paradigm Shifters for Forced Migration Studies,” New Perspectives on Turkey 54 (2): 9-32.
“Post-Colonial State and Violence: Rethinking the Middle East and North Africa outside the Blindfold of Area Studies,” Refugee Watch No. 45 (June): 7-31.
2006 Book review on Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return, Journal of International Affairs.
2005 “An Act of Citizenship? Freedom of Speech and University Politics in the Case of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.” Citizenship Studies (accepted with minor revisions)
2004 “Foundational Paradoxes of Balkan Nationalisms: Authenticity, Modernity and Nationhood.” Turkish Review of Balkan Studies 8. Published by Ortadogu ve Balkan Incelemeleri Vakfi [Research Foundation of Middle Eastern and Balkan Studies], pp. 107-148.
2004 “The Kurdish Problem in Turkey.” Review Article, South European Society and Politics 8 (3), pp. 56-73.
2003 “K?br?s Türk Toplumunda Tarihsel Aidiyet ve Vatanda?l?k Akti Aras?ndaki Geçi?lilik. [The Critical Relationship between Citizenship and Historical Belonging in Modern Turkish Cypriot Society] ” Toplum ve Bilim (Haziran), pp. 73-89.
2003 “Refugees or Enemies: Turkish Cypriot Perceptions of the 1974 War." South European Society and Politics 7 (2), pp. 1-28.
2002 "From Ethnicity to Nationalism: Intricacies of Turkish Cypriot Identity in the Diaspora" Rethinking History 6 (1), special issue edited by Patrick Finney, pp. 57-76.
2002 “Intellectual Roots of Anti-European Sentiments in Turkish Politics: The Case of Radical Turkish Nationalism.” (co-authored with Tan?l Bora) Turkish Studies (Special Issue on Turkey-Europe edited by Barry Rubin and Ali Carkoglu) 4 (1), pp. 127-148. (reprinted in book format)
2002 “Kosovo’s Refugees?” Review Article, Refuge (February), pp. 134-136.
2002 “The Legacy of Forced Population Movements in Modern Turkish Society: Remembrance of the Things Past?” Balkanologie 5 (1-2), pp. 153-179.
2002 "Turkish Nationalism and Ethno-Symbolic Analysis: Costs and Benefits." Nations and Nationalism 8 (2), pp. 1-28.
2002 "Turkish Nationalism and Ethno-Symbolic Analysis: The Rules of Exception." Nations and Nationalism 8 (2), pp. 133-155.
1999 "Cleansing Ethnicity from the [Balkan] Conflict." Times Higher Education Supplement (June 23 1999)
1998 "Citizens versus Permanent Guests: Social and Political Effects of Immigration and Citizenship Laws in a Reunified Germany," Citizenship Studies 2 (3), pp. 519-544.
1994 "The Yugoslavian Puzzle: Which Nation, Whose Nationalism and Other Unsettling Questions," Refuge. (June-July 1994) Special Issue on Yugoslavia.
2006 “Blasphemy or Freedom of Speech? Issues Behind the Protests related to the Caricatures of Prophet Muhammed” Invited speaker at the Osgoode Hall Law School Roundtable on Muslim Minorities in the West, Toronto.
2006 “The Muslims of France, or, Paris is Burning” Invited speaker in the Guest Lecture Series, Canadian Center for German and European Studies, York University, Toronto.
2006 “The Politics of Belonging among the Muslims Diasporas in the Anglo-American World” International Studies Association Annual Meeting, San Diego, USA.
2005 “Diasporas as the new site for Redemption? Hopes Crushed after 9/11” World International Studies Association First Annual Meeting, Istanbul, Turkey.
2005 “Humanitarianism Undefined: Lessons to be Learnt from the faith of minorities in the Balkans.” World International Studies Association First Annual Meeting, Istanbul, Turkey.
2005 “Jewish Enlightenment in the East? Nationalist Aspirations among Sephardic Jews of the Ottoman Empire.” Panel presentation, Jewish Diasporas: Myths and Realities Conference, York University, Toronto, Canada (also the organizer of the conference)
2004 “Diasporas, Transnational identities and the Nation-State: End of Citizenship?” Paper tabled at the Imagining Diasporas: Space, Identity and Social Change Conference, University of Windsor, Canada.
2004 “Diasporas, Transnational Migration and Limits of Citizenship: Points of Anchorage in the European Context.” Paper presented at the Immigration, Multiculturalism and Citizenship in Europe: Inclusion/Exclusion Conference organized by Canadian Centre for German and European Studies, Toronto.
2004 “Dilemmas of identity Formation among Young Canadian Muslims: Tradition, National Belonging and Religious Identity in the Diaspora.” Paper presented at the International Conference on The Making of The Islamic Diaspora. Sponsored by SSHRCC, MCRI, Diaspora, Islam, and Gender Project, York University; The Ford Foundation Educational Project for Palestinians; York Centre for Refugee Studies; York Center for Feminist Research.
2004 “Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention: the Case of Macedonia.” International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Hawai, USA
2004 “Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention: the Long-term Effects of Regional Ethno-Politics.” Workshop participant at the Key Centre for Ethics Workshop (joint Canadian-Australian team), Brisbane, Australia.
2004 “Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention: What Kind of Liberal Justice?” Ethics of Humanitarian Intervention Workshop (joint Canadian-Australian team), York University, Canada.
2004 “Identity, Culture, and Paradigms of Incongruity in International Relations: the Case of Islam.” Paper presented at the Governance and Global (Dis)orders: Trends, Transformations, and Impasses. Eleventh Annual York Centre for International and Security Studies Conference in Conjunction with the Nathanson Centre for the Study of Organised Crime and Corruption.
2004 “Israeli-Palestinian Conflict in Canadian Politics: A Just Third Party?” Halbert Centre for Canadian Studies, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
2004 “Politics and Religion in the Diaspora.” Issues of Social Justice Conference, York University, Canada (organized by Vijay Agnew)
2004 “Religion, Migration and Belonging in a Comparative Context.” Transnational Religion and Migration Workshop, Cape Town, South Africa. Organiser: Social Science Research Council, New York, USA.
2004 “Theories of Ethno-nationalism and their Effects in the Middle Eastern Context.” Paper presented at the 14th Annual Conference of ASEN (Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism), The Nationalism Debate, London School of Economics, UK.
2003 “Citizenship, Belonging and New Formulations of Identity in a Transnational Context.” Workshop organiser and presenter, Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey.
2003 “Remembering and Forgetting Izmir/Smyrna.” Paper presented at the Politics of Memory Workshop, Bo?azici University, Istanbul, Turkey.
2003 “The Legacy of Forced Population Exchanges: The Turko-Greek Case.” Paper presented at the Forced Migration Conference, University of Bath, United Kingdom.
2003 “Whose Culture, Which Rights: Thoughts in the aftermath of Anglo-American Invasion of Baghdad.” Paper presented at the Panel Series on Sanat ve Insan Haklari [Art and Human Rights], Istanbul Technical University, Institute of Social Sciences, Istanbul, Turkey.
2002 “Blind Spots in Turkish Migration Research: Refugees, Diaspora and Minorities.” Paper presented at the New Directions in Turkish Studies of Migration Conference, Bo?azici University, Istanbul, Turkey.
2002 “How to Approach Religion in Migration Studies: The Things We Don’t Want to do.” Paper presented at the International Workshop on Transnational Migration and Religion Organised by the American Social Science Research Council, Istanbul, Turkey.
2002 “Muslims in the Balkans: Who Are They Supposed to Be?” paper presented at the British International Studies Association Working Group on Balkan History Workshop, London School of Economics and Political Science.
2002 “Paradoxes of Turkish Nationalism.” Paper presented at the Bilgi University Invited Speaker Series, Istanbul, Turkey.
2001 “Europe in the Eyes of the ‘New’ Radical Turkish Right.” Paper presented in the special panel on Turkey and Europe, Pan-European International Studies Association Meeting, Heidelberg, Germany.
2001 “Ottoman Legacy in Modern Turkish Society: The Issue of Civilisation.” Paper presented at the workshop on Traditions of Liberty in the Balkans, Halkidiki, Greece (organized by Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeastern Europe, Thessaloniki)
2000 "Bi-Communal Relations in the Diaspora: Questions about the Cypriot Case." Paper presented at the Vienna Core Group Meeting, Project on Gender and Conflict Resolution, Bruno Kreisky Forum for International Dialogue, Vienna Austria.
2000 "British Perceptions of the Yugoslav Refugees: Why Will The Kosova Crisis Cost so Dear to the Labour Government?" Paper presented at Bergen Workshop on Refugees and Migrants in Europe, August 2000, International Society for History of European Ideas, Norway.
2000 "Citizenship and Memory in Turkish Cypriot Society." Paper read at History and Memory in Eastern Mediterranean Societies Workshop, Brown University, U.S.A.
2000 "Diasporas and National History: The Case of Turkish Cypriots of London." Paper presented at the History and Memory in Southeast Europe Conference, University of Lampeter, Wales, U.K.
2000 "Extreme Turkish Nationalism and History: Uneasy Alliances." Paper presented at the British Social History Society Conference, Cambridge, U.K.
2000 "History as We Learnt It: The Rediscovery of the Ottoman Civilisation in Turkish Cypriot Society" Paper presented at the Regional Workshop on History and Nationalism, organised by Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeastern Europe, Larnaca, Cyprus.
1999 "Changing Definitions of Race and Ethnicity in Historical Studies: Lessons from Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda." Paper presented at the Anglo-American Historians' Conference, Institute of Historical Research, U.K.
1999 "Communal Memory and History Textbooks in Turkish Cypriot Society: Missing Links." Workshop Presentation at the Meeting on National Memory and History in Southeastern Europe, Halki, Greece
1999 "Divided Memories of a Common History: Renovation of Turkish Cypriot Nicosia." Panel Presentation at the Annual Urban History Conference, Oxford University, U.K.
1999 "Power, Visibility and Belonging in the Turkish Cypriot Diaspora." Paper presented at the Cypriot Society in the New Millennium: Globalisation and Social Change Conference, Greenwich, London
1998 "Area Studies: Could We Write the Historiography of Academic Histories of Europe's Others?" Paper presented at the Social and Political Thought Program, 25th Year Anniversary Celebrations, York University, Canada.
1998 "One Cyprus of Many? The Critical Relationship between Demography and History in Cyprus." Panel Presentation at the Pan-European International Relations Conference, Vienna, Austria.
1998 "Remaking Cyprus: Long-term Effects of Population Displacements" Paper presented at the International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Minneapolis USA
1997 "Citizens versus Permanent Guests: Cultural Memory and Citizenship Laws in a Reunified Germany" Paper Presented at the Conference on Inclusion and Exclusion: International Migrants and Refugees in Europe and North America, New School for Social Research, New York, USA.
1997 "Feminism, Refugees and Constructions of Otherhood: A Critical Approach" paper read and tabled at the 1997 Canadian Learneds Conference, Canadian Association of Socialist Studies Panel on Citizenship organized by Sedef Arat-Koc, St. Johns, Newfoundland.
1997 "Genocidal Tendencies in Modern Turkish Ultranationalist Politics: The Alevi Massacres" paper read and tabled at the Second Meeting of the Association of Genocide Scholars, Montreal, Canada.
1997 "Return of Utopia in Extremist Identity Politics" Paper presented at the 51st Annual Conference of New York State Political Science Association, New York, USA.
1997 "The Construction of the Kurdish Problem in the Middle East as a Security Issue" Paper presented at the International Studies Association Annual Meeting, Toronto, Canada
1996 "A Comparative Analysis of Population-Exchange Policies as a Remedy for Minority-Related Problems.” Paper presented at Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada.
1996 "Democratic Liberalism and Changing Definitions of Ethnicity" paper tabled at the International Studies Association-North East Division Annual Meeting, Boston, USA
1996 "Minorities versus the Middle East: Is the 'Kurdish Problem' Unique?" Paper presented at the Women in International Security Annual Workshop "Security Policy at Crossroads," Annapolis, USA
1996 "Radical Marxism, Liberation Struggles and Languages of Descent" paper tabled at the 3rd Rethinking Marxism Conference, University of Massachusetts, USA.
1996 "The Sovereign Nation-State and Minority Rights: Critical Approaches" Paper presented at the Special Workshop on Sovereignty and Human Rights, International Political Science Association, University of Essex, England.
1996 "What is a 'National Minority'? Questions and Answers in the Context of Greek-Turkish Relations since the Lausanne Treaty" Paper presented at the Canadian Association of Studies in International Development, 1996 Canadian Learneds Meeting, Brock University, Canada
1995 "A Critique of the Liberal Underpinnings of the International Human Rights Regime" Paper presented at the International Workshop on Women's Rights are Human Rights, York University, Toronto, Canada
1995 "From margins to the Core: Minority Related Refugee Problems in Balkan States.” Paper presented at Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada
1995 "Membership versus Justice: The Bridges Between Habermas and Rawls" Paper presented at the Canadian Society of Political Science, 1995 Canadian Learneds Conference, Montreal, Canada
1995 “Regional Responses to Ethno-Nationalist Secessionism: A Comparative Reading of Cyprus and Yugoslavia.” Paper presented at the Annual International Studies Association Conference, Chicago, USA
1995 "The 'Others' of the Yugoslavian Civil War: The Future of the Muslim Communities in the Balkans" Paper presented at the First Bi-Annual Conference of International Society of Genocide Scholars, Williamsburg, College of William and Mary, Virginia, USA
1995 "The Enigmatic Revival of Utopia in Identity Politics" Paper presented at the Annual Conference of Society for Utopian Studies, Toronto, Canada.
1995 "The insiders and outsiders of German Nationalism after Re-unification" Paper presented at the Canada-Europe: Ethics and Migration Conference, The Hague, Netherlands
1995 "The pan-Nationalist Element in Early Greek and Turkish Histories and Its Ramifications" Paper presented at the Modern Greek Studies Association Annual Meeting, Harvard University, Boston
1994 "A Preliminary Analysis of the Minority-Related Problems in the Middle East.” Paper presented at Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada
1994 "Canonisation of National Narratives: A Critical Approach" Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Canadian Society of Cultural Studies, University of Toronto, Canada
1994 “Minorities in the Middle East: Historical Anomaly or Theoretical Impasse?” paper tabled at the Fourth International Research and Advisory Panel Conference on Refugees, Somerville College, Oxford, England (5-9 January 1994)
1994 “Nationalism, Ethno-nationalism and the New World Order.” Paper presented at the Academic Council for the United Nations Annual Summer Workshop, Brown University, USA
1993 "Death of Art-End of Tradition: The Riddle of an Emancipatory Recapturing of the Work of Art in Early and Late Frankfurt School" Paper presented at the Annual Philosophy, Interpretation and Culture Conference, State University of New York, Binghamton, U.S.A
1993 "Feminism, Membership, and Theories of Justice: Critical Readings", Paper presented at the Conference on Gender Issues and Refugees: Development Implications, York University, Canada
1993 “Possibilities of Repatriation: The Kurdish Case.” Paper presented at the Repatriation and Development Workshop I, Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada
1992 “The Kurdish Enigma in the Middle East.” Paper presented at the Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada
2006 “Muslims in Canada: Minority or Diaspora?” Guest Lecturer, Brown Bag Series, Center for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada.
2005 “Internally Displaced People in International Humanitarian Law.” Faculty Lecturer, Centre for Refugee Studies Summer School, York University, Canada.
2005 “Liberalism versus Citizenship? Freedoms of Speech on Canadian Campuses.” Guest lecturer at the UCLA (Los Angeles, USA) Muslim Diasporas in the West Series.
2004 “Jewish Enlightenment Amiss? Histories of Sephardic Jews in the Ottoman Empire”, Truman Centre, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
2002 Invited participant and discussant, Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeastern Europe Workshop on History Textbooks in Cyprus, London, U.K.
2001 “Kemalism Old and New: Transmutations of Turkish Nationalism.” Invited speaker for the LSE Association for the Study of Nationalism and Ethnicity Seminar Series.
2000 “The Historical Pedigree of the Ottoman Legacy: Revisiting Truisms.” Invited Speaker for the History Workshop Seminars, London.
2000 "The Turkish Nationalist Right: Old Wine in New Bottles?" Invited speaker for the SOAS Turkish Studies Seminar Series.
1999 "Religion versus Nationalism in Republican Turkish History: The Case of Christian Minorities." Invited speaker at the Balkan History Seminar, Institute of Historical Research, University of London.
1999 "The Missing 'Ottomans' in Balkan National Histories: Lessons Learnt from the Turkish Case." Guest speaker at SSEES/CSEES seminars, University of London.
1997 "The Legacy of Greek-Turkish Population Exchanges: Critical Thoughts." Guest lecturer, Refugee Studies Program, Oxford University, UK.
1995 "German Romanticism Unbound: Greek and Turkish Early Nationalist Narratives Compared," Guest Lecturer Series, Department of Classical Studies, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, USA.
1995 "The Turkish State versus Minority Rights." Symposium on Minority Rights in Turkey: Remembrance of the Events of September 6-7, 1955, Greek Canadian Association of Constantinople, Toronto, Canada.
Approach to Teaching
I teach in the areas of Human Rights Law/Critical Perspectives, Comparative Minority Rights Law, War Crimes, Public Administrative Law, Politics of Utopia, Critical Perspectives on Socio-Legal Studies, and, Politics of International Law.
Current Courses
| Term | Course Number | Section | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6200 6.0 | A | Adv. Study In International Relations | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6410 6.0 | A | The Study Of Comparative Politics | SEMR |
Upcoming Courses
| Term | Course Number | Section | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2025 | AP/POLS3110 3.0 | M | The Process of Urban Politics I | LECT |
| Winter 2025 | GS/SOCI6542 3.0 | M | Violence, Identity and Subjectivity | SEMR |
| Winter 2025 | GS/PPAL6120 3.0 | M | Administrative Law and Ethics | SEMR |
| Winter 2025 | GS/PPAL6120 3.0 | N | Administrative Law and Ethics | SEMR |
| Winter 2025 | GS/SLST6000 3.0 | M | Law and Social Theory | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6200 6.0 | A | Adv. Study In International Relations | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/POLS6410 6.0 | A | The Study Of Comparative Politics | SEMR |
