Minority rights and ethnic conflict in assam, india semantic scholar. The article herein is probing into the ethnic conflicts in assam, north eastern state of india. The demands for secession, autonomy and territorial integration of those inhabited areas of ethnic communities to states in the region have also caused conflicts in the region. Prior to the entry of the british in to the territory of present assam the region was ruled by various monarchs belonging to different. Indie od lat zmagaja sie z problemem dzialalnosci ruchow o charakterze separatystycznym. Existing mistrust between the nepalispeaking population and the khasis has widened after the recent ethnic clashes by dinesh wagle wagle street journal meghalaya, india ethnicitybased enmity, said a nepalispeaking assamese coal mine labourer in meghalaya, is the most frightening and unpredictable thing i have ever experienced. Like other subnationalists and ethnic movements the bodo movement in assam has been associated with ideas of autonomy, liberation and revolution. Immigration, ethnic conflict, and political turmoilassam, 19791985 optional message. Three ethnic or religious conflicts have stood out of late. Ethnic and religious conflicts in india cultural survival. The conflict began when the british ruled india and brought adivasis from the chhota nagpur plateau to assam, putting them to work in tea gardens, and. Ethnic conflict and civil society india and beyond by ashutosh varshney much scholarly work has been done on the topics of civil society and ethnic con. In the punjab and kashmir conflicts, along with the transformation of identities and issues, the territorial base of ethnicity is being perfected by driving out punjabi. The assamese people are a socioethnolinguistic identity that has been described at various times as nationalistic or micronationalistic.
For instance, assam is one of the state in india that faced conflict in the name of ethnicity. July 6 four people shot one muslim man, and injured four others. It has also been used retrospectively to the people of assam before the term assamese came into use. View ethnic conflicts in assam research papers on academia. Ethnicitybased movements and states response in assam taylor. Immigration, ethnic conflict, and political turmoilassam. The surrounding countries cultures have influenced assam, creating a patchwork of ethnic, religious, and. In the indian context ethnicity not only remains an important part of the reality but it also. Ethnic conflict in assam 125 two inseparable historical facts the extraordinary role and cultural diversity of the immigrants. Impact of conflict on children in assam and manipur states.
It traces the genesis and evolution of the ethnic and nationalistic politics in the state, and explores how this. A descriptive analysis of the findings has been presented in the report. Pdf ethnic conflict in assam on the backdrop of socioeconomic. Ethnic conflict dbq over the course of the years world history has continued to change. Monojit singha ma, ph d, net research scholar, department of political science, assam university, silchar.
Bodoland, conflict, btad, majoritarianism, ndfb, assam, democracy. Slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. In assam, several cultural markers language, race, tribe, caste, religion and region serve as identity axes for ethnic groups and their mobilization. Uncertainty, each ethnic conflict has its own unique characteristics and, in different contexts, some of these elements will be more prominent than the others, but all of them are the common denominators necessary for ethnic conflict to occur. Here are five things you need to know about the bodomuslim conflict in assam. The report depicts the affect of armed conflict on children in two districts of assam and in two districts of manipur. The conflict that is occurring in the btad and other parts of assam is basically the result of the erroneous policies and inefficient administration.
Ethnic conflict, federalism, and democracy in india. Ethnic conflicts and role of political parties in assam. The reasons behind such ethnic uprising lie in the differentiated socioeconomic and political status between the caste hindus and noncaste people of assam. It uses case studies to illumine conflict dynamics in the two erstwhile princely states of manipur and tripura, along with indepth discussions on assam and nagaland. Khasi nepali ethnic conflict in meghalaya, india united. Thousands of indigenous assamese youth are actively searching for these immigrants to stir up trouble against them. Ethnicity, conflict and population displacement in. Media conflict and peace in northeast india download. Following reclamation of assamese ethnic identity, the movements for making. Assam, particularly the ethnic assamese and the bengalis, are able to dominate certain sectors of the economy, but they do not integrate. Horowitz decades after the recognition that ethnicity is a powerful force in the politics of many countries, with profound effects on prospects for democracy horowitz 1993. Patriotism, parochialism, ethnic conflict, internal displacement of people, development, assam. Even though india and pakistan has signed a truce establishing peace, there is still war going on over jammu kashmir. This group is often associated with the assamese language, though the use of the term precedes the name of the language.
Ethnic clashes in indias northeastern assam province have left 32 dead as of wednesday and sent an estimated 150,000 fleeing their homes to escape the violence. The indonaga conflict which began in the mid1950s, the emergence of the ulfa and the conflicts in manipur are important in this context. A conflict is raging in assam over the influx of people illegally immigrating from bangladesh. Ethnic conflict in assam on the backdrop of socioeconomic insecurity ractim goswami abstract assam has passed through a period of. Violence in assam has deep roots the new york times. The conflict in the state could get worse as the effects of climate change become more drastic. Even without immigration, assams indigenous population is extremely diverse in cultural, linguistic and religious terms.
Abstract assam has passed through a period of political turmoil since 12th century ad which continues even today. Ethnic conflicts have severely affected the newly emerged nation states. Section 6a of citizenship act, 1955 and assam accord gktoday. The concept of territorial or regional autonomy holds centre stage in the literature on ethnic. The recent violence is just the latest, though, in a long line of deadly incidents, fueled by a volatile mix of politics and ethnic conflict in the area. Assam problem after the largely nonimplemented peace accord of 1985 because it had conceptualized the conflict mainly as a law and order or military problem. Download pdf inter ethnic conflict in northeast india. Two weeks later, two men killed the leaders of the all bodoland student union and all assam student union. This violence is back to year 1952 between bodo tribe and ethnic bengali muslim settlers. Immigration, ethnic conflict, and political turmoil assam, 19791985 optional message. Nonetheless, these steps are necessary if the assamese hope. Ethnic conflict in assam, india by uzo ofili on prezi.
Strife between ethnic and political groups is common in assam and the other states of northeast india. The ongoing ethnic conflict in assam between the boro tribe and illegal immigrants from bangladesh, is exacerbated by the indian governments failure to stop illegal crossing of the international boundary. The immediate cause of the riots was the targeted killings of four bodo men by. The article aims to present the history and characteristics of their conflict with state and central authorities in the context of regional problems. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. Religious and ethnic conflict in pakistan maryam s. Diverging from reductionist studies of northeast india and its multifarious conflicts, this book presents an exclusive and intricate, empirical and theoretical study of assam as a conflict zone. Understanding the historical conflicts behind todays violence in. Kashmir trying to return to india, on the communal strife in the punjab, and even with regard to tamils leaving sri lanka and indians emigrating from east africa. Ethnicity and ethnic conflict in pakistan 53 azerbaijan and tajikistan etc. This book uses empirical evidence from various case studies to examine the relationship between territorial and regional autonomy, the nationstate and ethnic conflict resolution in south and southeast asia. Ethnic groups in conflict in indias manipur south asia. Assam has a highly complex and colorful social mosaic.
The violence in 2012 followed ethnic tensions between the indigenous bodo people and illegal immigrant bengalispeaking muslims. The resolution to the conflict in assams brahmaputra valley will have considerable influence on those persons in pakistaniccupied. The violent conflict in bodo areas started with the bodo movement in 1987. In the 2001 census the bodos made up around 5 percent of assams entire.
The caste hindu became politically powerful, economically dominant and socially advanced in comparison to other ethnic groups of assam. Major components of its social mosaic are hindus 67 percent and muslims 28. Optional message may have a maximum of characters. The bodo tribals have been fighting for a state of their own called bodoland for the past 25 years, which would carve out. Assam is fronting mammoth encounters as to illegal immigration. Drawing upon major policy documents, ontheground experience and rare insight, the book examines centrestate relations, the armed forces, special acts, human rights and larger. In contrast, he offers another way to conceptualize the conflict by applying the theoretical lens of contentious politics doug, tarrow, and tilly, 1996. Abstract the paper analyses movements of different small ethnic groups belonging to both tribal and nontribal communities in the state of assam and attempts to understand. The conflict started in the 1970s 5 following tension between the native indigenous assamese people and the indian government over alleged neglect, domination, subjugation, political, social, cultural, economic exploitation and internal.
I have found the study report titled an explanatory study on impact of conflict on children in assam and manipur states of india very thought provoking. Ethnic conflict affects ministry in assam gospel for asia. Despite the creation of the united nations and the issuance of the universal declaration of. Ethnic clashes in india kill dozens, displace thousands cnn. In order to keep these conflicts under control special foundations and laws such as the united nations and the declaration of human rights have been founded. Khan since the beginning of the war on terror, pakistan has been center stage in the international media for talibanization, jihadists, extremist religious violence, sectarian strife, and deep intolerance against nonmuslim minorities. The ongoing ethniccommunal conflict between the bodo tribes of assam and the muslim community has taken a dangerous turn, with violence spreading to several districts. These conflicts have resulted in a number of flashpoints that have gained both domestic and global attentions. The assam problem is primarily ethnic, the punjab problem is based on both religious and regional conflicts, while the hindumuslim problem is predominantly. Gk, general studies, optional notes for upsc, ias, banking, civil services. The attacks in assam, in the same region where 2012 saw possibly indias worst case of mass human displacement owing to conflict, is only the next phase of violence in a bitter cocktail of ethnic issues and competition for resources that have troubled this region.
Manipur has been witnessing armed conflict between the government and several insurgent groups, and the conflict between ethnic groups over the demand for the creation of new states within indias federalism or independence from india. Pdf on oct 17, 20, uddipana goswami and others published conflict and reconciliation. Image source2 moreover, there is an ethnic conflict within india. Assam separatist movements are insurgency movements operating in northeast indias oilrich state of assam. Authoritarian polities may lock disaffected ethnic groups into long periods of political silence, giving the appearance of a wellgoverned society, but a. Structure and strategy in ethnic conflict donald l. Minority rights and ethnic conflict in assam, india. The section 6a in the citizenship act, 1955 contains the provisions with respect to citizenship of persons covered by the assam accord 1985. Ethnic conflict has manifested in its ugliest form in karachi where killings of innocent people by unidentified killers have become a routine affair. While the bengalispeaking muslims state that they are descendants of east bengali muslims brought to assam during the british raj, local indigenous communities allege that the muslim population has increased, boosted by refugees from the erstwhile east pakistan. The importance of ethnic territory in ethnic conflict is very crucial, as can be gathered from recent developments in the punjab and kashmir and earlier events in assam.