AN EVALUATION ON THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CITY AND POLITICS

In order to exist, cities need a certain level of population density, technological and economic development, and thus have produced various forms of power relations and administrative organization. The organization of cities as a political and administrative unit dates back to the neolithic age. The highly developed cities in Egypt, Mesopotamia and India, as well as the Greek and Roman city-states, which include a highly developed organization and an independent small administration unit, are examples for this case. Islamic culture also ruled Medina as a state, and built an original city-state model. One of the units in which the relations of cities with politics can be observed most clearly is the medieval communes. After the industrial revolution, cities have undergone a great transformation. The model of nationalization as a result of enlightenment and modernization dominated cities, and destroyed the processes of organization in the city as an autonomous unit. However, as the concepts of localization, fragmentation, interdependence, urban participation and governance gained popularity with the globalization process that had been on the rise since the 1970s, the cities were able to re-exist as political units. One of the most significant foundations for the city to re-exist as a political unit is the politicization of the city population by urban participation. The domination of central political bodies over local administrative units in Turkey was considerably diminished as a result of public administration reforms carried out after 2002. In this way, citizens can participate more actively in decision-making processes through urban participation mechanisms such as public assemblies and city councils