Grievances and Opportunities: Religious Violence across Political Regimes

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 684-705 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Muchlinski
Keyword(s):  
Religious Freedom ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Conventional Wisdom ◽  
Religious Violence ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
National Data ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
The Status ◽  
Religious Actors ◽  
Cross National

AbstractStudies of religious violence have established that when states restrict religious freedom, the probability of religious violence increases. Conventional wisdom holds that religious violence is primarily a result of religious grievances. When religious groups are denied religious freedom, they seek to revise the status quo in their favor though the use of violence. This study challenges this narrative. It finds, rather than being caused only by grievances, religious violence is also fueled by moments of opportunity. Utilizing cross-national data for the years 2008 and 2001–2005, it is found that religious violence occurs most frequently in anocratic regimes marked by weak and decaying state institutions. Hence, the current narrative is incomplete. Studies analyzing religious violence need to consider how various regimes provide or stifle the opportunity for religious actors to engage in violence as well as how those regimes fuel religious violence through restricting religious freedom and increasing religious grievances.

Civic Culture and Democracy: The Question of Causal Relationships

1994 ◽  
Vol 88 (3) ◽  
pp. 635-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward N. Muller ◽  
Mitchell A. Seligson
Keyword(s):  
General Public ◽  
Causal Model ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Civic Culture ◽  
National Data ◽  
Revolutionary Change ◽  
Reciprocal Causation ◽  
The Status ◽  
Cross National

A causal model of relationships between structural properties of states, civic culture attitudes of the general public, and change in level of democracy is tested with cross-national data. The model permits inferences about the possibility of unidirectional or reciprocal causation between civic culture attitudes and democracy, controlling for macrosocietal variables such as economic development, income inequality, and subcultural pluralism. Most civic culture attitudes do not have any significant impact on change in democracy. One of them, interpersonal trust, appears clearly to be an effect rather than a cause of democracy. The exception is the percentage of the general public that prefers gradual reform of society instead of revolutionary change or intransigent defense of the status quo. Support for gradual reform has a positive impact on change in democracy, and it is unrelated to a country's years of continuous democracy—findings that support the hypothesis of a unidirectional civic culture effect on democracy.

The Politics and Effects of Religious Grievance

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Muchlinski
Keyword(s):  
Political Violence ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
Group Identity ◽  
Religious Violence ◽  
Social Stability ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
Positive Correlation ◽  
The World ◽  
Common Group ◽  
Religious Resources

Despite international guarantees to respect religious freedom, governments around the world often impose substantial restrictions on the abilities of some religious groups to openly practice their faith. These regulations on religious freedom are often justified to promote social stability. However, research has demonstrated a positive correlation between restrictions on religious freedom and religious violence. This violence is often thought to be a result of grievances arising from the denial of a religious group’s right to openly practice its faith. These grievances encourage violence by (a) encouraging a sense of common group identity, (b) encouraging feelings of hostility toward groups imposing those regulations, and (c) facilitating the mobilization of religious resources for political violence.

On the Paradox of State Religion and Religious Freedom

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zachary Elkins
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Intergroup Relations ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
National Data ◽  
National Attachment ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Cross National

This essay explores the well-known tension between the commitment to a state religion and expressions of tolerance for other religions. The background question concerns the consequences of state religion, the more suspect of the two commitments, at least with respect to intergroup relations. A useful conception of state religion is as a central part of an identity regime, which can take several forms in national constitutions. It seems likely that state religion—and other exclusive elements of identity regimes—threaten the national attachment of ethnic minorities in ways that unwind many of the benefits of tolerance provisions. A simple typology helps to understand the variation in these provisions across jurisdictions and over time, and original historical cross-national data on national constitutions describes this variation in some detail. The evidence suggests that the world’s constitutions are moving in strikingly divergent directions with respect to their provisions on religion.

A Delicate Balance: Religious Autonomy Rights and lgbti Rights in Australia

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Baines
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
The Other ◽  
Faith Communities ◽  
Human Right ◽  
The Status ◽  
Research Gap ◽  
The One ◽  
The Right

This article addresses a research gap by analysing the way the Australian legal system is balancing the right to religious autonomy of organisations and the right of lgbti individuals not to be discriminated against, and considers what ought to be the case. I argue that the Australian legal system recognises the value of religious freedom on the one hand, and on the other hand, does not place a high priority on protecting it as an existing human right. My findings reveal that the Australian legal system is not always defining the religion and society relationship in ways that reflect the lived reality of religion in society. The issue is compounded by the wording of religious exemptions under anti-discrimination law which is contested within faith communities. As a consequence, religious freedom can be unfairly restricted. I conclude with recommendations to improve the status quo.

Democracy Assistance for Botswana: Maintaining the Status Quo in a Peripheral Capitalist Country

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-229
Author(s):  
Kebapetse Lotshwao ◽  
Robert Imre ◽  
Jim Jose
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Political Regime ◽  
Democratic Institutions ◽  
Capitalist Country ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Democracy Assistance ◽  
Multilateral Institutions ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Cost

Given that Botswana is considered a stable democracy, the need for democracy assistance does not at first glance seem necessary. Yet, democracy assistance is an important feature of Botswana’s political regime. The rationale for democracy assistance is couched in terms of strengthening the country’s democratic institutions, enhancing the state’s capacity, and bolstering Botswana’s civil society. However, contrary to these stated objectives, this article reveals that democracy assistance serves the agenda of Western donor countries and certain multilateral institutions—an agenda concerned with keeping Botswana politically stable and its state institutions efficient so that the country is attractive to investors. This agenda is pursued at the cost of not making certain long overdue political reforms.

scholarly journals DEFINITIONS AND PRACTICES OF RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PORTUGUESE STATE: WAYS OF INSTRUMENTALIZATION BY THE MAJORITY

Último Andar ◽  
2017 ◽  
pp. 332
Author(s):  
Paulo Mendes Pinto
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Public Television ◽  
Democratic Regime ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Religious Minorities ◽  
Political Forces ◽  
The Status

Over the last quarter of the 20th century, the newborn democratic regime of Portugal sought not to antagonize the Catholic hierarchy. Aware of the clerical weakened position (after the April Revolution in 1974), the left-wing political forces that gained power after 1974, subtracted little from the church's institutions's public domain.Far from withdrawing those acquired rights, it was given a place to a system where minorities were given the opportunity to rise to the same level of respect that the state granted to the dominant religion. For example, through airtime on radio and public television and confessional space of schools. Because of the value  and the respect that are gained, minorities adhered and still adhere to these models defending it as the most perfect realization - as the redaction of the Religious Freedom Act of 2001 reflects perfectly. Today, we have minorities supporting the status quo, defending the place and position of the Catholic church for fear of losing their rights by, in practice, decreasing  the power of the majority.

‘Not in My Backyard’: The Local Planning Process in Australia and its Impact on Minority Places of Worship

2012 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 215-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noel G. Villaroman
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Collective Identity ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Local Planning ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
The Public ◽  
Australian State ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Public Sphere

Abstract This article analyses the engagement of minority religious groups with the local planning process in Australia as they try to build places of worship. Such groups oftentimes encounter opposition from local residents who are reluctant to share the public sphere with the newly arrived and less known ‘other.’ The public sphere has become a contested terrain between those who desire to preserve the status quo of the built environment and those who desire to affirm their collective identity through new religious structures. The Australian state, acting through local councils, finds itself in the middle of this contest and is tasked to resolve it. This article offers illustrative snapshots of how Australia promotes, respects and protects religious freedom, particularly its aspect concerning the ability of minority religious groups to build their own places of worship. Through case studies, this article assesses, albeit with respect to such cases only, how religious freedom is being concretised in the ‘religious’ physical landscape of Australia—that is its temples, mosques, churches, gurdwaras, mandirs and other minority places of worship.

Civil–Military Relations and Civil War Recurrence: Security Forces in Postwar Politics

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 1307-1334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis-Alexandre Berg
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Civil Wars ◽  
National Data ◽  
Security Forces ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
Commitment Problems ◽  
Cross National

Does restructuring security forces reduce the risk of civil war recurrence? Prior research has examined effects of military integration in alleviating commitment problems, but the evidence has been inconclusive. Other aspects of civil–military relations have received less attention. This article examines the effects of civil–military relations in the context of postwar struggles to consolidate authority. It outlines three pathways through which security forces contribute to renewed civil war: by excluding rival factions and facilitating insurgent mobilization, by exploiting control over resources to challenge the regime, or by escalating incipient insurgency through repression. Analysis of original, cross-national data on postwar civil–military relations shows that reducing the potential for exclusion and exploitation through diverse officer appointments and robust civilian oversight lowers the risk of civil war. These findings emphasize the distributive effects of restructuring security forces and highlight the value of examining political contests around state institutions to understand why civil wars restart.

Collective Action with Uncertain Payoffs: Coordination, Public Signals, and Punishment Dilemmas

2011 ◽  
Vol 105 (4) ◽  
pp. 829-851 ◽  
Author(s):  
MEHDI SHADMEHR ◽  
DAN BERNHARDT
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Conventional Wisdom ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Public Signals ◽  
The Status ◽  
Uncertain Payoffs ◽  
Payoff Uncertainty

How can one analyze collective action in protests or revolutions when individuals are uncertain about the relative payoffs of the status quo and revolution? We model a “calculus of protest” of individuals who must either submit to the status quo or support revolt based only on personal information about their payoffs. In deciding whether to revolt, the citizen must infer both the benefit of successful revolution and the likely actions of other citizens. We characterize conditions under which payoff uncertainty overturns conventional wisdom: (a) when a citizen is too willing to revolt, he reduces the incentives of others to revolt; (b) less accurate information about the value of revolution can make revolt more likely; (c) public signals from other citizens can reduce the likelihood of revolt; (d) harsher punishment can increase the incidence of punishment; and (e) the incidence of protest can be positively correlated with that of repression.

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