Paper short abstract:

The paper examines various forms of political violence in South Asia and develops a taxonomy of these violence.

Paper long abstract:

The definition of political violence has remained a contentious issue among the scholars, but a minimalist approach includes both violence against state and those perpetrated by the state. There have been various efforts to develop typologies of extant forms of political violence. This paper intends to contribute to the efforts through an examination of the extant forms of the political violence in South Asia and identifying common factors those would allow to categorize them together. Taking a broad range of collective actions, from insurgency to religion inspired militancy to state sponsored violence, this paper demonstrates that three categories of factors - institutional, ideational and individual - are helpful in understanding the nature of political violence in South Asia.

Paper short abstract:

Focusing on a global factory worker protest in May 2011 in Sri Lanka, this paper argues that one form of political violence is rendering varied groups silent and invisible by using psychological and cultural violence such as threats, and co-option.

Paper long abstract:

Throughout history governments have used violence against their own citizenry. This took many forms—including physical, psychological, and cultural. Focusing on a global factory worker protest in May 2011 in Sri Lanka's Katunayke Free Trade Zone, this paper argues that one form of political violence is rendering varied groups silent and invisible by using underhand methods such as payments, threats, factions and co-option.

In May 2011, global assembly line workers in Katunayake staged a massive political protest against a new pension scheme that sought to curtail their financial independence. The then government reacted by ordering a crackdown that resulted in one death and serious injuries to hundreds of other workers. It thereafter resorted to varied secret ways to silence political protests and demands for justice. The paper analyzes this case and argues that the disappointment and apathy among workers that resulted from such silencing cause workers' political voice just as much scarring as does physical violence or the destruction of property.

Paper short abstract:

This paper seeks to explore the role of the state and the political parties in two major ethnic violence against two major religious minorities in India: Christians in Kandhamal in 2008 and Muslims in Muzaffarnagar in 2013.

Paper long abstract:

This paper seeks to explore the role of the state and the political parties in two major ethnic violence against two major religious minorities in India: Christians in Kandhamal in 2008 and Muslims in Muzaffarnagar in 2013. In both cases, state played rather dubious role not just during the period that led to riot but also in the post-riot period in dealing with victims, bringing perpetrators to justice and facilitating reconciliation. In both instances, political parties also made their contribution during the conflict and after.This paper asks following questions:

a) What are the particular role that state played in these cases?

b) What are the similarities and differences between the anti- Christian violence in Kandhamal and anti- Muslim violence in Muzzafarnagar? How are the discourses on secularism, minority rights and religious freedom are shaped during and after these riots?

c) What are the particular roles that political parties, secular and non- secular(Hindutva parties) play in these cases?

d) Given that India has a long history of riots, in what sense these cases are different and how do they contribute to the riot discourses ? What does it tell us about nature of Indian state?

Paper short abstract:

This paper deals with the nature of the state of violence in the CHT through the lens of everyday forms of suspicion and distrust.

Paper long abstract:

This paper analyses that visible and invisible violence led by army and Bengali settlers made the ecology of fear which leads the distrust and suspicion in the CHT in Bangladesh. Due to the prolonged conflict over 25 years, the CHT became highly politicized and drawn into the armed conflict between Bangladesh army and Shanti Bahini (SB), the armed wing of Parbatya Chattagram Jana Snaghati Samiti (PCJSS) in varied and complex ways. The CHT Accord signed in 1997 between the government of Bangladesh and the regional political Party CHT named as Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Parishad (PCJSS). Therefore, the paper deals with the nature of the state of violence in the CHT through the lens of everyday forms of suspicion and distrust. It discusses about the military intervention in the everyday life of the 'indigenous' people that creates the ecology of fear and suspicion in the CHT. This article also argues that color itself symbolizes the power when it is used by the powerful agent of the state.

However, self-surveillance is analyses in this paper with the lenses of Foucaul t's theory where self-control and being silent were used to avoid further violence. The form of semantic domination also discussed in this paper and this chapter argues that language works as a grammar of domination and resistance simultaneously. It also includes the semantic resistance of the indigenous people towards the fear. It also argues that the culture of distrust and suspicion has become the reality of the regional indigenous politics in the CHT.

Paper short abstract:

The paper seeks to explain the causes undergirding recent anti-Muslim violence by a Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist group in Sri Lanka and what this may mean in an increasingly Islamophobic world.

Paper long abstract:

The rise in Islamophobia over the past decade has led to anti-Muslim incidents in many parts of the world. Predominantly Buddhist societies such as Burma-Myanmar and Sri Lanka, notwithstanding Buddhism being associated with nonviolence, are among states that have seen the most brazen and deplorable anti-Muslim attacks. The proposed project pertains to Sri Lanka and analyzes Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism with a special focus on an extremist Buddhist organization called the Bodu Bala Sena's (Buddhist Power Force, BBS). Organizations like the BBS, despite having temporarily retreated from their vociferous anti-Muslim agenda following pivotal presidential and parliamentary elections in 2015, tap into Islamophobic narratives to promote anti-Muslim (and also anti-Christian) violence while claiming to be defenders of the predominant Sinhalese Buddhist community. And they increasingly do so by collaborating with groups espousing similar ideology in other countries. At a general level, how does such interaction in a globalized world complicate nationalist projects that typically legitimated and grounded around local grievances? And specifically with regard to Sri Lanka, what are the implications of groups like the BBS for interethnic and interreligious relations in a polyethnic society that is still grappling with the fallout of a nearly three decade long civil war?

Paper short abstract:

The long history of the women's movement in India has seen regular engagement with various forms of violence against women as well as other minority groups. This paper attempts to look at how the women's movement in India has responded to various forms of political violence experienced in Kashmir.

Paper long abstract:

This paper investigates the various modes of involvement of the Indian women's movement with the Kashmir issue. In doing this, mainly two aspects of the movements involvement will be examined: the broad condemnation of the state sponsored gendered violence, as in Kunan Poshpora, and the dilemma related to the use of 'resistant violence', as Srila Roy puts it, in countering a state narrative. The ambiguous position of the Indian women's movement is thus reflected in its focus and condemnation of particular incidents but at the same time, a lack of sustained engagement in the region.

This paper will focus on the time period since the early 1990s due to two significant factors: the increased use of violence in this region during this period, and the women's movements evolution post neoliberalisation. The role of state sponsored violence in India-controlled Kashmir, the movement's official response to it and the prioritisation of the 'military occupation' over the 'gender' issues are some of the prominent features of the movement's response to this issue. Examining this response is crucial in understanding the shift of focus from 'gender' to 'political violence' in relation to Kashmir.

Paper short abstract:

Youth perceptions represent a significant indicator for the general condition of a society. Thus, this paper seeks to shed light on the dynamics of collective identity of Sinhala youth, its implications for intergroup relations and the building of lasting and stable peace in post-war Sri Lanka.

Paper long abstract:

Sinhala and Tamil youth have figured prominently in Sri Lanka's post-independence politics and violent conflicts. Not only originated the LTTE from the student movements in Jaffna, also the Sinhala South has seen two violent Marxist youth uprisings in the 70s and 80s. In light of the significance of youth in Sri Lanka and the end of the civil war between the government forces and the LTTE, this paper seeks to shed light on the collective identity of Sinhala youth, and its implications for peacebuilding in post-war Sri Lanka. Youth can play a pivotal role in post-war societies, both as drivers of conflict, or potential peace constituencies. In the Sri Lankan context it is generally taken for granted that mostly the ethno-political conflict and the three-decade long civil war have shaped the collective identity of Sinhala youth in an exclusivist and conflictive manner vis-à-vie the Tamil minority. Recent developments in Sri Lanka and the emergence of new lines of conflict between the Sinhala majority and the Muslim minority point in a different direction. This paper is based on a systematic study of collective identity among Sinhala youth from different social backgrounds using Social Identity Theory. How Sinhala youth cognitively structure their social environment (value system, ideology, attitudes, prejudice and stereotypes) bears not only important implications for intergroup relations in post-war Sri Lanka. Moreover youth perceptions represent a significant indicator for the general social condition and can be indicative for the possibility of stable and lasting peace in Sri Lanka.

Paper short abstract:

The failure of the state to mediate the competing interests of different demand groups fairly creates a vacuum wherein anarchic tendencies grow, giving rise to partisan politics, corruption and violence, which destroy trust and confidence in inclusive political development.

Paper long abstract:

Political violence is often the result of competition over scarce resources among a population with limited opportunities for advancement on the basis of merit. I have argued elsewhere that political violence in the 1970s and 80s in Bangladesh was the result of competition by political cadres for the control of university campuses and streets as well as to have access to state patronage such as trade licenses and tenders. Further inroad of money into politics gained ground with the increasing political participation of business interests noticeable from the 1990s with the restoration of democracy, although the trend had developed earlier under the military rule of General Ershad. This is reflected in the changing social origins of elected representatives and in the rise of antagonistic communities. A study in 2007 found that certain streets were separated along political lines and a culture of apartheid based on political affiliations divided entire communities, marked by fear, intimidation and corruption. Successive regimes have faced similar problems, which have escalated over time. The rising corruption and the inability of the state to mediate between competing interests created a vacuum within which anarchic tendencies have gained ground. The values of liberalism, secularism and pluralism endorsed by the founding fathers are thus deeply compromised. The state must reject a monolithic partisan approach to governance in order to restore trust and confidence in inclusive development and in the rule of law. Some compromise may be necessary to create such an enabling environment.

Paper short abstract:

Focusing on the parliamentary elections in January 2014 in Bangladesh, this paper analyses different pre-election dynamics, particularly the causes and triggers, the actors, and the manifestations and consequences.

Paper long abstract:

Bangladesh came into existence through a violent war in 1971. Since then, ten National Parliamentary Elections held, Bangladesh has experienced a shift of single party rule, two military backed governments. It has been found that each and every election was marred by violence. Among these violent elections the January 2014 election was more violent. In this backdrop, this paper gives an overview why and how pre-election violence occurs in Bangladesh. Focusing on the parliamentary elections in January 2014, this paper analyses different pre-election dynamics, particularly the causes and triggers, the actors, and the manifestations and consequences. The paper shows that violence is closely associated with elections in Bangladesh. Political leaders, activists, contestant candidates use violence as a strategy in pre-election days. We have found that the intensity of violence increases when the Election Day gets closer. Pre-election violence occurs both in urban and rural areas. Activists, political leaders in local and nation levels, mastans, police, etc. are involved as perpetrators. Hartal violence, arson, vandalism, looting, killing, beating etc. are important manifestations of pre-electoral violence. The paper further investigates the targeted arrests, political killings, counter-campaign, etc. as crucial triggers in pre-election violence. The massive pre-election violence has resulted in low voter turnout.

Paper short abstract:

This paper deals with cases of "forced conversion" of Hindu women in Pakistan and aims to disentangle this complex phenomena.

Paper long abstract:

In this paper I focus on cases of alleged forced marriage (Urd. jabrī śādī) or forced conversion (Urd. jabrān maẓhab tabdīlī; Sin. d̤āḍh je bunyād te maẓhab jī tabdīlī) and the roles of Hindu women in Pakistan's society. Often such incidents follow a similar scenario: A young Hindu woman disappears from her house or place of work for some days and reappears again as a married and newly converted Muslim. Since changing ones religion from Islam to any other faith would mean to deny the Prophet Mohammad, apostasy in Pakistan is mutatis mutandis an illegal act covered by the blasphemy laws (§295 Pakistan Penal Code). Beyond such legal issues the street power of extreme religious groups in Pakistan is a significant factor. Once a conversion has taken place and is publicized it is almost impossible for the newly converted to go back to ones former place in life - the acceptance of Islam in Pakistan is a one-way street, which, unfortunately, can be utilized to conceal criminal acts, such as kidnapping, human trafficking, and rape. Such cases carry implications not only for non-Muslim women in Pakistan, but also open the door to "patriarchal opportunism" (TOOR 2011), whereby religious sentiments are triggered as a means of controlling female sexuality and rejecting women's ability to chose a spouse. The following aims to depict the complexities behind such alleged forced conversions in today's Pakistan and seek to disentangle them from a mere religious movens.

Paper short abstract:

This paper explains how the structural violence of governing elites in everyday life transforms into a systematic violence during the Maoist rebellion in Nepal.

Paper long abstract:

Despite the common depiction of Nepal as an earthly paradise 'sheltered' from the touch of 'modernity', for nearly two millennia Himalaya harbors complex societies and polities that are engaged in commerce, experience foreign military adventures and serve as the recruiting zone of modern globally deployed imperial armies. Indeed, the gap between the promises of modernity and the stark reality of deprivation and environmental degradation led to the de-legitimization of non-democratic forms of governance in Nepal. Between 1996 and 2006 Nepal experienced massive civil war between the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and the patrimonial quasi-monarchical regime. The civil war also ended nearly two hundred years old dynastic regime and the post-civil war negotiations led to the installation of a secular republican democratic state.

This paper explains how the structural violence of governing elites in everyday life transforms into a systematic violence during the Maoist rebellion. Maoists inflicted selective violence against rural elites and police officials to compel the state to retreat from the rural areas. In retaliation the army indulged in random violence in rebel areas to deny rebels of psychological advantage. This systematic violence actually created an environment of terror and violence induced migration and even palace massacre and royal coup. The endemic violence thus caused a crisis of governance and paved the way for mass movement for the reinstallation of democracy.