About ethnic conflicts
An ethnic group is a human population whose members self-identify with each other on the basis, real or perceived, of a common descent, culture, faith, or destiny. Such perceptions can alter over time and are highly subjective. It is unsurprising, therefore, that no generally accepted figure for the number of ethnic groups exists, with estimates varying from 10,000 to over 25,000.
What is less in doubt is that when an ethnic group either feels itself under threat, or where it seeks to assert its superiority or dominance over other groups, then violent conflict is frequently the result. Since 1989, religious, linguistic, or racial differences have been a significant element in the majority of wars.
Ethnic conflicts generally fall into three types
- civil rights conflicts
- ethnic rebellions
- inter-communal violence
Civil rights conflicts and ethnic rebellions both focus on applying pressure on governments. The degree of violence may alter during the course of the conflict, with initially peaceful civil rights protests, for example, turning violent and descending into full-scale confrontation. In civil rights conflicts the key demand may be for the government to reform, or become more inclusive. In full-scale rebellions, the objective generally becomes either the wholesale replacement of the government (civil war) or the creation of a separate state for a minority ethnic group (secessionism).
In inter-communal violence, the immediate target for aggression is not directly the government, but members of another ethnic group. In these conflicts, the government may be a neutral bystander, policeman or arbiter, or may be partisan towards one side or the other. Despite its sometimes random-seeming nature, inter-communal violence almost invariably has some underlying political or social agenda.
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