From conflict to violence : why ethnic conflicts become violent

Ethnic conflict is common in all societies, which possess distinct ethnic groups.In these societies, conflict generally results from competition amongst ethnic groups for scarce resources in political, economic, and social areas.However, not all ethnic conflicts result in violence.In many cases, such as Canada, these conflicts are managed peacefully, even if they are not necessarily resolved.This thesis critically examines the reasons, or factors identified in the literature related to ethnic conflict tuming violent.In so doing, it looks critically at the meaning of conflict, the nature of ethnic conflict and the factors that transform ethnic conflict into a violent form.Specifically, the background or legacy of European colonialism sets the stage for ethnic struggle to tum violent.Although the literature clearly identifies colonialism as a pre-condition for ethnic conflict and violence, the exact linkage to the transition from conflict to violence is poorly articulated.Individuals speaking about ethnic conflicts tend to make three assumptions: first, ethnic identities are ancient; second, these identities motivate people to persecute; third, ethnic diversity leads to violence.These assumptions misrepresent the genesis of ethnic conflicts, because ethnic conflict is a product of modern politics.As a function of colonialism, ethnic segregation or a segmented cultural division creates ethnic boundaries amongst ethnic groups.This situation leads to ethnic polarization that causes the transition from conflict to violence.Ethnic conflict peaks when different ethnic groups compete with each other within the same area.The results or outcomes of ethnic conflict are more important than people thought.Precisely, ethnic conflict is a major threat to the intemational and regional peace and security.Failure to prevent violence results in destructive outcomes such as civil wars and international peace operations (lPOs) are generally too late a response by the intemational community.Hundreds of thousands deaths and deaths are in many cases the result.There is no wonder prevention is much cheaper than peace operations to stop violence.Chapter One provides an explanation and examination of the term conflict.Without knowing the meaning of conflict, the motives of ethnic conflict cannot be understood.This chapter examines various approaches developed by scholars to understand the meaning of conflict and its causes.In this regard, conflict is an unavoidable unpleasant facf of life.People at every level of inter-group relations experience conflicts.For instance, in the work place, a simple disagreement between team members, if unresolved, ffiy escalate into avoidance, inability to work together, verbal assaults, and resentment.In the worst conditions, it may also lead to hostility and eventual separation from the organization.Chapter Two examines core definitions of ethnic conflict.These various definitions demonstrate that ethnic conflicts often result in a higher level of violence than non-ethnic conflicts.This chapter not only concems the precise linkage between the levels of violence and the forms of ethnic conflict, but also focuses on multivariate indices of violence to show the level of violence of ethnic conflict.Chapter Three identif,res the various reasons that ethnic conflicts transform into violence.Among these, one of the most significant factors is European Colonialism.It has had a profound and lasting impact on ethnic conflicts.The colonist legacy in Africa and the Middle East is the main factor that puts ethnic groups into violence.The Colonist Empires drew the borders in Africa and in the Middle East with minimum attention to the ethno-nationalistic structure of the societies.Before the colonial era, ethnic thinking in social life had not caused violent struggles.Competition over sources of water, farmland, or grazing rights was the main source of conflict.Paralleling the formation of colonial empires not only did "ethnic identity" determine one's place within the colony, but also became the source of future ethnic violence.In the post-colonialism era, the policies of successor states continued the politics of "ethnic identity" in political, economic and social fields.Blocked opportunities for equal access to political, economic and social resources made violent ethnic conflicts inevitable.Ethnic conflict is one of the major threats to international peace and security.However, not all ethnic conflicts result in violence.They can be managed peacefully.In this point, preventive diplomacy appears to be the most useful approach to prevent existing disputes from escalating into violence, if applied appropriately.Although preventive diplomacy is not directly addressed in this study, it is clear nonetheless that it deserves closer analytical attention and scrutiny from a practical policy perspective.

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