Sons of the Soil
“Sons-of-the-Soil” and Local Insurgencies
ABSTRACT
One explanation for localized armed conflicts is competition between the original inhabitants of an area and more recent settlers, including both migrants from the same country and from abroad. As of yet, this explanation has not been thoroughly scrutinized, partly due to the lack of disaggregated data on violence needed to properly examine the hypothesis.
Hence, this paper applies the idea of such “sons-of-the-soil” dynamics to an empirical investigation of local insurgency violence in Northeast India
Northeast India has seen multiple insurgencies that fit the typical description of a “sons-ofthe-soil” conflict. T hat larger proportions of people that can be considered as non-indigenous to an area indeed.
Introduction
Migration both within countries and across borders are sometimes claimed to be linked to increased competition at the local level, sometimes turning into violent insurgencies or communal conflicts. Weiner (1978) termed conflicts between the original inhabitants of an area and more recent settlers as “sons-of-the-soil” conflicts. The term suggests that those who are native to a given territory see themselves as prioritized in terms of access to the resources of that territory; thus the competition following from migration, especially if largescale, may create anti-foreigner sentiments among the native population.
Fearon and Laitin
(2011) estimate that as many as one-third of ethnic civil wars can be labeled “sons-of-thesoil” conflicts. The sheer number of such conflicts in combination with a lack of attention in the civil war and ethnic conflict literature strongly motivate further study of the conditions and mechanisms involved. However, with cross-country statistical analysis, the impact of migration and the dynamics involved are difficult to get at. This is not only due to the fact
that
ABSTRACT
One explanation for localized armed conflicts is competition between the original inhabitants of an area and more recent settlers, including both migrants from the same country and from abroad. As of yet, this explanation has not been thoroughly scrutinized, partly due to the lack of disaggregated data on violence needed to properly examine the hypothesis.
Hence, this paper applies the idea of such “sons-of-the-soil” dynamics to an empirical investigation of local insurgency violence in Northeast India
Northeast India has seen multiple insurgencies that fit the typical description of a “sons-ofthe-soil” conflict. T hat larger proportions of people that can be considered as non-indigenous to an area indeed.
Introduction
Migration both within countries and across borders are sometimes claimed to be linked to increased competition at the local level, sometimes turning into violent insurgencies or communal conflicts. Weiner (1978) termed conflicts between the original inhabitants of an area and more recent settlers as “sons-of-the-soil” conflicts. The term suggests that those who are native to a given territory see themselves as prioritized in terms of access to the resources of that territory; thus the competition following from migration, especially if largescale, may create anti-foreigner sentiments among the native population.
Fearon and Laitin
(2011) estimate that as many as one-third of ethnic civil wars can be labeled “sons-of-thesoil” conflicts. The sheer number of such conflicts in combination with a lack of attention in the civil war and ethnic conflict literature strongly motivate further study of the conditions and mechanisms involved. However, with cross-country statistical analysis, the impact of migration and the dynamics involved are difficult to get at. This is not only due to the fact
that