Ethnic groups and political identities

 Ethnic groups - Establishing Political Identities

In this essay we will learn,

• To define ethnicity
• Approaches to mainstream ethnic groups and their effects
• Factors that give rise to identity consciousness and
• Demands of ethnic groups 

The term "ethnic group" is generally used to designate a population which is biologically self-perpetuating, shares fundamental cultural values, realized in overt unity in cultural forms, makes up a field of communication and interaction and has a membership which identifies itself, and is identified by others as constituting a category distinguishable from other categories of the same order. Ethnic group is composed of "primordial affinities and attachments".

In the given social context, groups consciously choose to emphasize their most meaningful primary, extra familial identity on the basis of religious, racial, cultural, linguistic, national characteristics, or a combination of any of them, are referred to as ethnic groups.

Assimilationists suggest two ways of integration -

1. Hegemonic (integration) type recognizes only one primordial identity as legitimate. Assimilation into the main stream culture is considered the authentic measure of nationalism and patriotism.
2. The uniformity pattern assumes that older identities will gradually disappear and new man with an overarching political identity will emerge and all citizens would have the same relationship with the state.

But, "modernization in multi-ethnic states tends to activate assertions for self-determination."

Will Kymlicka, providing example of Canada, which promoted cultural plurality at policy level, stated that immigrants integrate more quickly in Canada today than they did before the adoption of the multi-culturalism policy in 1971. They are more likely to naturalize, to vote, to learn an official language, to inter-marry and have friendships across ethnic lines.

The methods to take their concerns into consideration -

1. Federalism - Historically, the most prominent examples of federalism being used in this way to accommodate national minorities are Canada and Switzerland. Federalism can only serve as a mechanism for self-government if the national minority forms a majority in one of the federal sub-units.
2. Consociationalism - Consociation democracy is based on the idea that identity, not interest is the mainspring of political behavior, that conflict of identities is dangerous, and that therefore it is better to freeze and accommodate differences between groups than to permit their resolution through competition. Practiced in Switzerland, Belgium, Lebanon, the Netherlands and Austria. Basic elements are -
• Coalition of representatives of all the segments and government of the state
• A proportional representation electoral system, and a proportional system for sharing expenditure and public employment amongst the segments according to the size of each.
• A "mutual veto" system whereby a segment can veto government decision
• Autonomy segments like education, self-governance etc.

Identity consciousness resulting from fear of assimilation and homogenisation, emergence of modern big states and loss of autonomy, arbitrary inter-state borders, fear of marginalisation, sense of powerlessness, modernisation.

Features of Identity of Community -

1. Some community identities are natural and cannot be changed. One becomes member of such communities by being born in there.
2. It may be possible that community members have multiple identities, but the importance of anyone depends on the time and situation.
3. Identities are a product of collective consciousness, so they promote contact amongst the members of community and seek isolation from other communities.

The factors that give rise to identity consciousness -

1. Colonialism - During the period of colonialism, policies adopted by colonial masters like divide and rule, and the introduction of census system, led to the identification of various ranked and unranked communities. This led to the rise of identity consciousness and identity conflicts.
2. The role of religious movements - Providing religious consciousness became necessary at a time when external threat is posed by Christian missionaries. During this times some communities adopted different identities to restore the lost honour and dignity of the community.
3. Irrational and Hard Inter-State borders - In the post-colonial era, the new ruling elite adopted the hard borders concept making interaction across the border impossible thus threatening the solidarity and identity of the communities divided by the irrational borders.
4. Emergence of Modern Big State and Loss of Autonomy - The emergence of big state and extension of its authority through the social hierarchy played a havoc to traditional autonomy to native communities. State further imposed majority oriented institutions over the communities at the cost of destruction of their own traditional natural and historical communal institutions.
5. Fear of Assimilation and Homogenisation - To counter assimilation tendencies, communities articulated their demand for territoriality and distinctiveness. For example, Bado Kacharis, an Indo-Mongoloid community got assimilated into the larger Assamese fold over the years.
6. Inferior-Superior Syndrome - Members of inferior communities are dominated, despised, degraded and discriminated against through social behaviour and also through state policies dominated by the superior community.
7. Fear of Marginalisation - An out-community is one which lacks a historical linkage with the territory they inhabit along with the indigenous people but become a part of it due to the voluntary migration or state-sponsored project of demographic engineering. The very policy aims to neutralize the position of indigenous community.
8. Sense of Relative Deprivation and Discrimination - Denial of equality by the state in economic and political fields also creates a sense of discrimination and deprivation among the communities.
9. Sense of powerlessness - In competitive relations, power plays a crucial role. Thus struggle for power between two communities could be seen at national and regional levels. The regional majorities always seek devolution/decentralization of powers whereas regional minorities support centralisation of power and oppose the regional majorities particularly when the regional minority is a national majority. This sense of powerlessness both, in regional as well as national levels, promote the cause of community identity consciousness,
10. Flawed approach at nation formation - Ruling elite adopted assimilation and homogenisation as a pre-condition to ensure unity and integrity of the nation-state.
11. Modernisation - Modernisation sharpens differentiation, articulates group identity consciousness, and produces intra-group and inter-group competition which often degenerates into communal conflict and violence.
12. Role of Community's Leadership -When elite class of a community faces any threat to its interests from another community, in a bid to mobilise the members of its community it articulates that the situation is a threat to the existence of the community. The elite class projects its self-interests as the communal interests and also gives a call for struggle against the real or perceived threat.

Factors responsible for ethnic movements -

1. Modernisation and Ethnicity - In the operational sense, modernisation means the attainment of relatively higher levels of variables, such as education, per-capita income, urbanization, political participation, industrial employment, media participation etc. Modernisation brought in uniformity and it appeared to have led to a personality level void, which is termed by some as alienation. The bureaucratic apparatus of the state stands between the individual citizen and the makers of the decision that govern his life. Walker Connor points out that the material increase in social communication and mobilisation intensifies cultural awareness and exacerbates inter-ethnic conflict. With the expansion of the realm of the secular "Scientific State" and the erosion of the religious coloration of the community people are confronted with the dilemma of rationality versus community, with the consequent necessity of choosing one over the other or somehow managing a satisfactory integration.
2. Political Economy - As the third world economies became increasingly incorporated into, and subordinated to, trans-national capitalism, internal polarisation and inequalities increased between social classes and region. In other words, the promissory note of certainty of satisfying everybody's desires becomes instrumental in escalating individual wants and channelling into political processes excessive demands which it cannot expect  to satisfy.
3. Relative Deprivation - Ted Robert Gurr, emphasizes the psychological aspect of agitations that it is the feeling of being exploited rather than the exploitation itself that makes a person revolutionary. Cultural mode is used for representing the economic and political goals of deprived groups.
4. Ethnicity and Resource Competition - Development leads to a rise rather than a decline in ethnic mobilisation because it provides resources to ethnic groups in the periphery, increasing their bargaining position and organisational capacity for action.
5. Elite Competition - Elite competition, according to Brass is the basic dynamic which precipitates ethnic conflict under specific conditions which arise from the broader political and economic environment rather than from the cultural values of ethnic groups in question. Donald Horowitz points out that by appealing to electorates in ethnic terms, by making ethnic demands on government, and by bolstering the influence of ethnically chauvinist elements within each group, parties that begin by merely mirroring ethnic divisions help to deepen and extend them.
6. Internal Colonialism - The essence states that, the relationship between members of the dominant or core community within a state and members of the minority or peripheral communities, are characterised by exploitation. Hechter suggests that the modern capitalist state is an upholder of a "cultural division of labour" that distributes valued jobs and economic development unevenly in such a way that the core region of the country controls the best jobs while the peripheral regions are dependent upon the core and the ethnic groups that inhabit core regions are confined to the least skilled and prestigious jobs. As a result ethnically distinct and economically disadvantaged peripheral population mobilises itself in reaction to exploitation.
7. Cultural Deprivation - Leo Driedgere points out four types of discrimination by the majority against minorities -

1. Differential treatment
2. Prejudicial treatment
3. Disadvantaging treatment
4. Denial of desire

The modern centralised nation-state, even in formal democracies, thinks of regions and local units as its subordinates and agents.

In general, ethnic demands are of 4 types -

1. For affirmative discrimination
2. For greater autonomy
3. Autonomy demand related to systematic change
4. Secession

Ethnic movements are aimed at Social disruption and property damage - Clashes between civilian crowds is sometimes spontaneous and primitive. Clashes between soldiers or police and civilians of one ethnic community is other type of communal riots.

Political activation of ethnic identity shows spread of education and assertion leads to greater inclusion and representation or negative consequences which can at worst case lead to secession. Fostering stable and inclusive societies should be the core ideal of governance.