Dynamics of institutionalized competition in the geography of inter-ethnic rivalry: The case of the Jarso and the Girhi in Eastern Ethiopia

This article analyses the dynamics of institutionalized competition in the geography of inter-ethnic rivalry between the Jarso and Girhi ethnic clans. The data required for the study was obtained from the retrospective reflections of the research participants regarding the origins, dynamics and outcomes of the local October 2004 referendum conducted to settle disputes over territorial and administrative issues. The perspectives used to analyse the processes and dynamics of inter-group competition were drawn mainly from social movement theories. To increase the methodological robustness of the analysis, we blend the political analysis of inter-group competition with the sociological dimension of identity framing and processes. We trace identity issues and processes as they occurred in concrete socio-political settings that influenced the shapes identities took and their concrete picture in inter-group competitions. We try also to identify and reconstruct causal patterns and processes of the competitions and their dynamics. We give due attention to the interactive dynamics of these conditions in shaping the social-psychological processes of competition and movement participation. We attempt to show how interaction between historical-political and contextual factors affected the energy of the mobilizing structures and their contested legitimizing narratives. Finally, we indicate the implications of the analysis for understanding and managing ethnic or identity politics of social movements.