Protest Networks, Communicative Mechanisms and State Responses: Ethnic Mobilization and Violence in Northeast India
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Protest Networks, Communicative Mechanisms and State Responses: Ethnic Mobilization and Violence in Northeast India Pahi Saikia Department of Political Science McGill University, Montreal September 2009 A Thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D) © Pahi Saikia, 2009 1 ABSTRACT Disputes between Georgia and two of its regions, Abkhazia and Ajaria in the 1990s, led to considerably different outcomes---while the Abkhazians became embroiled in a full-blown civil war with the state of Georgia, the Ajarians remained conspicuously calm. Similarly, in 1967-70, while the Igbo and Hausa-Fulani regions engaged in a violent confrontation with the Nigerian state, the adjoining Yoruba territory prevented such hostilities and stayed relatively peaceful. Variations such as these have been a recurring theme in the study of contentious politics along ethnic lines. Despite similarities in historical and structural experiences, some ethnic groups are able to avert violence while others turn to highly disruptive forms of contention to secure their goals related to group rights, cultural recognition, political and territorial autonomy. What accounts for these variations? Why do some ethnic groups seeking cultural and political autonomy engage in extraordinarily high risk violent movements while others respond with relative quiescence? These are some of the important questions, an exploration of which constitutes the central focus of this dissertation. Although a host of explanations exist on the cause of these variations, this study tends to adopt a process-oriented approach while incorporating theoretical perspectives borrowed from contentious politics besides rationalist and social psychological assumptions of ethnic violence. At the most general level, this dissertation makes the fundamental claim that although the desire for material ends does play a crucial role; it is the emotional struggle over the relative status of group identity and core ethnic symbols that affords a group the ultimate mobilizing potential for collective action. Beyond this, a well-crafted analytical framework that includes the mobilizing structure, the organizational resources and state responses is developed to understand the correlation between the mobilizing process and the outcome of ethnic movements. The utility of this framework is demonstrated through a comparison of three tribal minority ethnic groups in the north-eastern part of India, where one group seeks to create a separate ethno-federal territory through high-levels and sustaining violent insurgent actions, another employs relatively low levels of violence for a shorter duration while a third group advances 2 moderate claims and resorts to relatively peaceful contentious actions. Further, the level of ethnic violence is determined by the consistency and extent of state accommodation of ethnic demands, and the nature of state repression. The study indicates that consistent state accommodation is most conducive to the containment of violence and widespread rather than targeted repression produces support for higher levels of anti-state violence. The analysis finds that popular support and participation are crucial to shape the trajectories and strategies of ethnic movements. What leads to variations in the level of popular following across cases, is the availability of vertical networks, the degree of commitment, legitimacy and effective communicative strategies adopted by decentralized activist organizations. This in turn, generates collective mobilization and produces the mechanisms for the sustenance of violent rebellion. Furthermore, the study finds that consistent state accommodation is most conducive to the containment of violence. It indicates that widespread rather than targeted repression produced support for higher levels of anti-state violence. 3 RÉSUMÉ Les disputes entre la Géorgie et ses deux régions, Abkhazia et Ajaria, au cours des années1990, ont méné à des resultants tres differents--pendant que l'Abkhazia est entré dans une guerre civile avec l'état Géorgien, l'Ajaria est resté calme. De même en 1967-70, pendant que les Igbo et les régions Hausa-Fulani se sont engagés dans une confrontation violente avec l'état Nigérian, le territoire Yoruba est resté relativement pacifique. Des telles variations constituent un thème principal dans l'étude de la politique querelleuse ethnique. Malgré des similarités dans les expériences historiques et structurelles, certains groupes ethniques évitent la violence pendant que d'autres l‘emploient de façon extreme pour protéger leurs buts rattachés aux droits de groupe, la reconnaissance culturelle, l'autonomie politique et territoriale. Qu'est-ce qui explique ces variations? Pourquoi certains groupes éthniques cherchent-ils l'autonomie culturelle et politique malgré les risques des mouvements violents pendant que d'autres y répondent plus tranquillement? Ceux-ci sont les questions principales analysées dans cette mémoire à travers un etude de trois cas differents dans le nord-est de l‘Inde ou on voit qu‘un groupe, les Bodos, cherche a créer un térritoire éthnique en utilisant de la violence extreme et soutenue, pendant qu‘un autre groupe, les Dimasas, emploient des niveaux de violence rélativement bas pour des durés plus courtes alors qu‘un tiers groupe, les Misings, expriment des affirmations plus moderées et employant des actions de dissidence plus paisibles. Bien que nombreuses explications existent pour la cause de ces variations, cette étude emploie une approche focalisée vers les processus en incorporant des perspectives théoriques de la politique querelleuse et en plus des hypothèses psychologiques rationalistes et sociales de la violence ethnique. Au niveau général, cette mémoire montre que la structure de mobilisation des ressources d‘une organisation expliquent le niveau de soutien en faveur de la mobilisation ethnique et que les différentes réponses publiques expliquent le niveau de violence. La disponibilité des réseaux fortement « verticales », legitimité du leadership, engagement continu, l‘efficacité de la communication et le niveau de centralization des organizations activists determine le degré de soutien populaire et resources materielles nécessaries pour méner à une mobilization collective et réussi, ce qui est nécessaire pour qu‘un groupe s‘engage dans une mobilization violente et 4 mantient une rebellion. Empiriquement, je fait une analyse des processus de mobilization et rébellion violente chez les Bodos qui montrait clairement ces characteristiques alors que les Dimasas et Misings, qui ne profitait pas de ces avantages, étaient fortement limités dans leurs efforts de transformer leur mouvements dans des rébellions intensifiés et soutenues. En outre, cet étude trouve que la repression generalisée, plutot que la repression selective, produit du soutien pour des niveaux plus hauts de violence contre l‘etat. La repression selective transforme la rebellion violente dans un mouvement plus modéré et de-radicalisé. L‘etude montre en plus que les compromises de la part de l‘etat et le fournissement de certaines motivations sélectives aux chefs des mouvements sont les facons les plus efficaces de contenir la violence. 5 CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................11 LIST OF FIGURES..................................................................................................12 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS......................................................................................13 ABBREVIATIONS...................................................................................................17 CHAPTER ONE.......................................................................................................20 INTRODUCTION..........................................................................................................20 Developing the Argument......................................................................................................................22 General Definitions................................................................................................................................25 Why Assam? Selection Criteria.............................................................................................................27 Specific Case Studies.............................................................................................................................30 Note on Methodology......................................................................................................32 Interviewing Process and Data Collection............................................................................34 Selected Research Locations.............................................................................................38 Layout of the Dissertation.................................................................................................43 CHAPTER TWO......................................................................................................45 THE PROBLEM OF EXPLAINING ETHNIC VIOLENCE: REVIEW OF EXISTING LITERATURE.................................................................................................45 Introduction...................................................................................................................45 Discerning Issues of Violent Contention: Research Question, Variables and Hypotheses.............................................................................................47