Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College 8-2019 Inequality, Patronage, Ethnic Politics and Decentralization in Kenya and Botswana: An Analysis of Factors that Increase the Likelihood of Ethnic Conflict Rei Gordon Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses Part of the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Gordon, Rei, "Inequality, Patronage, Ethnic Politics and Decentralization in Kenya and Botswana: An Analysis of Factors that Increase the Likelihood of Ethnic Conflict" (2019). Master's Theses. 4722. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/4722 This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INEQUALITY, PATRONAGE, ETHNIC POLITICS AND DECENTRALIZATION IN KENYA AND BOTSWANA: AN ANALYSIS OF FACTORS THAT INCREASE THE LIKLIHOOD OF ETHNIC CONFLICT IN DIVERSE SOCIETIES by Rei Gordon A thesis submitted to the Graduate College in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Political Science Western Michigan University August 2019 Thesis Committee: Jim Butterfield, Ph.D., Chair John Clark, Ph.D. Mahendra Lawoti, Ph.D. Copyright by Rei Gordon 2019 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the three members of my committee for their dedication to teaching and to their students. The topic of this thesis is greatly influenced by the courses they have taught and the example they have set as scholars of political science. The subjects of their research and the manner in which they interact with students demonstrates the power of our field to positively impact those around us. I would like to especially thank the committee chair, Dr. Butterfield, for the countless hours spent pouring over this project. His rigorous expectations were only matched by his willingness to read, edit and discuss at all hours of the day and across several time zones. I am grateful for the patience of my family, who not only offered helpful comments, but also suffered my puppy while I wrote. Finally, I am eternally grateful for my dad. While his edits were invaluable, his continual support of my every endeavor is the reason I have come this far in my education. Rei Gordon ii INEQUALITY, PATRONAGE, ETHNIC POLITICS AND DECENTRALIZATION IN KENYA AND BOTSWANA: AN ANALYSIS OF FACTORS THAT INCREASE THE LIKLIHOOD OF ETHNIC CONFLICT IN DIVERSE SOCIETIES Rei Gordon, M.A. Western Michigan University, 2019 Scholars have recommended numerous institutional arrangements for mitigating ethnic conflict in divided societies. Electoral systems are often considered to have an impact on ethnic conflict, and scholars have recommended both proportional representation systems and majoritarian systems for their respective effects on mitigating ethnic tensions. However, in a cross-national analysis of 18 sub- Saharan democracies, I find no impact of electoral systems on ethnic conflict. Countries employing proportional representation systems and majoritarian systems are compared according to three measures of ethnic conflict, yet neither electoral system correlates with higher or lower levels of conflict. In the interest of identifying factors that do impact ethnic conflict, I compare Kenya and Botswana, two sub-Saharan democracies with similar levels of ethnic diversity and vastly differing levels of ethnic conflict. I limit this analysis to factors that are subject to intervention, as these prove most promising in the search for methods by which to mitigate ethnic conflict. I examine inequality, ethnic patronage networks, ethnic politics and decentralization in Kenya and Botswana. My analysis reveals that inequality, ethnic patronage networks, and ethnic politics increase the likelihood of ethnic conflict, while the effects of decentralization on ethnic conflict are inconclusive. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..ii LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………v CHAPTER ONE: THE EFFECTS OF ELECTORAL SYSTEMS ON ETHNIC CONFLICT IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA ... 1 LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................................................................... 2 AFRICAN LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................................ 7 CONSTRUCTED ETHNICITY .............................................................................................................. 9 ETHNIC CONFLICT ........................................................................................................................ 12 CASE SELECTION .......................................................................................................................... 12 CHAPTER TWO: THE HISTORY OF ETHNIC CONFLICT IN KENYA AND BOTSWANA ..................................... 16 SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION AND ETHNIC COMPOSITION ............................................................... 16 Kenya................................................................................................................................................... 16 Botswana ............................................................................................................................................ 18 SECTION 2: HISTORY AND COLONIAL LEGACY ................................................................................ 20 History of Ethnic Relations and Colonial Legacy in Kenya .................................................................. 21 History of Ethnic Relations and Colonial Legacy in Botswana ............................................................ 26 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................... 29 CHAPTER THREE: INEQUALITY AND ETHNIC PATRONAGE NETWORKS ...................................................... 30 SECTION 1: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................... 30 SECTION 2: INEQUALITY AND ETHNIC PATRONAGE NETWORKS IN KENYA ....................................... 34 Ethnic Patronage in Kenya Today ....................................................................................................... 38 SECTION 3: INEQUALITY AND ETHNIC PATRONAGE IN BOTSWANA ................................................. 39 Patronage Networks ........................................................................................................................... 41 SECTION FIVE: CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................... 43 CHAPTER FOUR: ETHNIC POLITICS .............................................................................................................. 48 SECTION ONE: LITERATURE REVIEW .............................................................................................. 48 SECTION TWO: ETHNIC POLITICS IN KENYA .................................................................................... 50 How Ethnic Politics have led to Violence in Kenya ............................................................................. 52 SECTION THREE: ETHNIC POLITICS IN BOTSWANA .......................................................................... 55 SECTION FOUR: CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................... 61 CHAPTER FIVE: DECENTRALIZATION AND ETHNIC CONFLICT ..................................................................... 65 SECTION 1: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................... 65 iii Table of Contents - continued SECTION 2: DECENTRALIZATION IN KENYA..................................................................................... 68 SECTION 3: CENTRALIZATION IN BOTSWANA ................................................................................. 75 Decentralization in Botswana ............................................................................................................. 76 SECTION 4: CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................. 78 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................ 82 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE STUDY OF ETHNIC CONFLICT ................................................................... 85 OTHER POSSIBLE EXPLANATIONS .................................................................................................. 87 FUTURE RESEARCH ...................................................................................................................... 89 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................... 90 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ 92 iv LIST OF TABLES 1. Polity IV Democracies …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………4 2. Freedom House Democracies…………………………………………………………………………………………………..…5 3. Policy IV Majoritarian Democracies……………………………………………………………….………………………….13 4. Freedom House Majoritarian Democracies……………………………………………………………………………….13