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Veterans, Organizational Skill and Ethnic Cleansing: Evidence from the Partition of South Asia

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  • Jha, Saumitra

    (Stanford University)

  • Wilkinson, Steven

    (Yale University)

Abstract

Can combat experience foster organizational skills that engender political collective action? We use the arbitrary assignment of troops to frontline combat in World War II to identify the effect of combat experience on two channels that change local ethnic composition and future political control: ethnic cleansing and co-ethnic immigration. During the Partition of South Asia in 1947, an environment where national borders were themselves endogenous to ethnic composition, we find that ethnically mixed districts whose veterans gained more combat experience exhibit greater co-ethnic immigration and ethnic cleansing. However, where ethnic groups had been in complementary economic roles or the minority received greater combat experience, there was relatively less minority ethnic cleansing. We interpret these results as reflecting the substitute roles of ethnic cleansing and co-ethnic immigration in altering local ethnic composition to gain political control and the role of combat experience in enhancing organizational skill that facilitates political collective action.

Suggested Citation

  • Jha, Saumitra & Wilkinson, Steven, 2012. "Veterans, Organizational Skill and Ethnic Cleansing: Evidence from the Partition of South Asia," Research Papers 2092, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
  • Handle: RePEc:ecl:stabus:2092
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    4. Koenig, Christoph, 2023. "Loose Cannons: War Veterans and the Erosion of Democracy in Weimar Germany," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 83(1), pages 167-202, March.
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    9. Maqsood Aslam & Etienne Farvaque & Muhammad Azmat Hayat, 2022. "One partition, many divisions? Ethnicities and education in Pakistan," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 16(2), pages 405-428, May.
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    11. Kıbrıs, Arzu & Cesur, Resul, 2023. "Does War Foster Cooperation or Parochialism? Evidence from a Natural Experiment among Turkish Conscripts," IZA Discussion Papers 15969, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    12. Jamie L Shenk, 2023. "Does conflict experience affect participatory democracy after war? Evidence from Colombia," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 60(6), pages 985-1001, November.
    13. James Lee Ray & Allan Dafoe, 2018. "Democratic peace versus contractualism," Conflict Management and Peace Science, Peace Science Society (International), vol. 35(2), pages 193-203, March.
    14. Devash Kapur, Kishore Gawande, Shanker Satyanath, 2012. "Renewable Resource Shocks and Conflict in India’s Maoist Belt," Working Papers 302, Center for Global Development.
    15. Sergio Galletta & Tommaso Giommoni, 2024. "War Violence Exposure and Tax Compliance," CESifo Working Paper Series 11230, CESifo.
    16. Mukherjee, Shivaji, 2018. "Historical legacies of colonial indirect rule: Princely states and Maoist insurgency in central India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 113-129.
    17. Peveri, Julieta, 2022. "The wise, the politician, and the strongman: Types of national leaders and quality of governance," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(4), pages 849-895.
    18. Prasad S. Bhattacharya & Abhiroop Mukhopadhyay, 2022. "Forced displacement and social capital: long-run impact of the Indian partition," Discussion Papers 22-01, Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi.
    19. PatriÌ cia Justino & Wolfgang Stojetz, 2018. "On the Legacies of Wartime Governance," HiCN Working Papers 263, Households in Conflict Network.
    20. Gaddy, Hampton Gray & Gargiulo, Maria, 2024. "Can we estimate crisis death tolls by subtracting population estimates? A critical review and appraisal," SocArXiv nrpb3, Center for Open Science.
    21. Kai Gehring, 2022. "Can External Threats Foster a European Union Identity? Evidence from Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 132(644), pages 1489-1516.
    22. Bharadwaj, Prashant & Ali Mirza, Rinchan, 2019. "Displacement and development: Long term impacts of population transfer in India," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 1-1.

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