Relational(Hybrid) State Formation
Relational(Hybrid) State Formation
This research examines state formation as a relational and historically situated process shaped by a web of authorities in Timor-Leste, where Indigenous cosmologies (lulik), the Church, and the modern state co-produce political order. I trace how the relationships among these authorities have been formed over time and how the state’s core images and governing practices emerge from these historical and ongoing interactions. Through ethnographic and relational approaches, I explore how legitimacy is generated, negotiated, and enacted across these overlapping domains of authority.
Yoo, M. (2025). A web of authorities toward hybrid state formation. Peacebuilding. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/21647259.2025.2465057
This study aims to reveal the possibility of hybrid state formation using a new framework called a web of authorities. Ever since the term ‘hybridity’ emerged in peace and conflict studies, its innate dualism and potential essentialism have attracted much criticism. Departing from this focus, the present study suggests a ‘web of authorities’ framework to outline societies’ characteristics and dynamics, focusing on how the society achieves stateness, based on a case study of Timor- Leste. The results show that three authorities in Timor-Leste – the Catholic Church, lulik (a customary local institution), and the modern state – are intertwined in the country’s liberation history and people’s everyday lives. The study elaborates on how the authorities together express the state’s attributes: ‘images’ and ‘practices’. This study reveals the linearity and conformity of the established state theory, which concentrates on a sole legitimate authority, and highlights diversity in the mode of state formation.
Keywords: Hybridity; web; authority; state formation; Timor-Leste
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Yoo, M. (2023). Unpacking the hidden state via everyday stateness in Timor-Leste. Conflict, Security & Development, 23(3), 267–287. https://doi.org/10.1080/14678802.2023.2231872
This study aimed to discover the sphere of the everyday state by identifying images and practices related to people’s community life in Timor-Leste. This study argues that previous research on the state, including Southeast Asian states, has been built on the power-oriented Weberian notion. Instead of focusing on the cen- tralisation of power at the national level, this study proposes to discover the sphere of the everyday state by emphasising people’s daily experiences, particularly through an analysis of welfare, which is the moral dimension of the state. Based on Timor-Leste’s life in sucos, this study shows the everyday stateness of unveiling the relationship between state images and practices in village life. This study argues that narratives on rewards for ordeals during the Indonesian occupation and elites’ vision for prosperity illustrate what people expect from the state and images of the state at the everyday level. Furthermore, this study emphasises the activities of various public agencies to meet these expectations and indicates the significant role of village councils in managing the level of expectations.
Keywords: Stateness; Everyday politics; Welfare; Timor-Leste; Post-conflict societies
Yoo, M. (2017). Hybrid state formation in Timor-Leste. PhD thesis, University of Manchester.