Is ethnic conflict the most important cause of civil wars Essay

Is ethnic conflict the most important cause of civil wars - Essay Example All governments in the world attempt to attain and maintain a monopoly over organized violence within its borders. When they lose the monopoly to the emergence of a rebel group, a civil war erupts. Reducing global incidence of civil wars is highly feasible and is hugely valuable to international peace and stability in the globe. All in all, ethnic difference has been quoted by many as the most important cause of many civil wars being experienced around the globe. To Collier, P & Hoeffler, A (2005), civil wars are now more common compared to international conflict. According to them, of the 15 main armed conflicts which are listed by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) for 2001, majority are internal conflicts which can be categorized as civil wars. To start with, unequal distribution of government resources forces people to come together once they notice that, the distribution is done in the lines of ethnicity. A saying goes that, if in a seat of power, you should always do well and particularly to your tribes’ men. To Fearon, J. et al. (2006), this is a negative score if a country is to have the required cohesion among the tribes if it is to achieve any thing higher. The neglected tribes often come up to attack the ruling elites together with the tribes were they come from. According to Fearon, J. et al. (2006), this is the starting point. Also, government positions are allocated to the politically correct individuals; from the tribe of the ruling class. This practice of segregating some individuals due to his/her tribe leads to civil war in many instances. Further, in countries which were colonized by foreign powers, the first citizen to rule that country determines the future of the country. When a person ascends to power and starts rewarding his/her ethnic group then a problem crops up. For example in Kenya after the general elections last year, an internal conflict ensued which could have deteriorated into a civil war