Washington, Mar 23: Ethnic and communal riots in India are primarily witnessed in urban areas, where there is "little interaction among members of different ethnic groups", and can be prevented by stronger inter-ethnic association, according to a new study. Deadly ethnic riots are not random, unpredictable events. They are responses to certain conditions that can be understood, analyzed and prevented, the congressionally-funded US institute of peace said in a report after studying ethnic and communal riots in India, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Malaysia, Indonesia and elsewhere.
Governments that make riots risky for the rioters by strong police measures and institutions which promote interaction among communities can make deadly riots less likely, according to Ashutosh Varshney of the University of Michigan and Donald L Horowitz of Duke University, who contributed to the study.
In India, the study notes, lethal ethnic riots have occurred primarily in urban areas and among communities in which there is little interaction among members of different ethnic groups.
Ethnic riots, it says, are most likely to occur when four elements are present: ethnic antagonism, an emotional response to a precipitating event, a sense on the part of the rioters and the larger social group to which they belong that killing is justifiable, and the assessment by rioters that the risk of response by police is low.
Communities least likely to suffer from ethnic violence are those in which civic associations- ranging from film clubs and trade unions to political parties- are present and provide the basis for sustained interaction across ethnic lines, the study said. Bureau Report