| ID | 181163 |
| Title Proper | Genocide, Politicide, and the Prospects of Democratization since 1900 |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Uzonyi, Gary ; Kim, Nam Kyu |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Why do some autocracies democratize? A country’s violent past has received little attention. We argue that genocide and politicide undermine democratization by binding the elites’ supporters more tightly to the governing power, while cementing in-group/out-group animosities, and helping preserve the elites’ status quo position within the state. We test this argument on a new dataset of government atrocity and democratization since 1900. These novel data allow us to capture many important instances of atrocity missed by others, and thus take a longer look at democratization and violence throughout history. We find that episodes of genocide and politicide are associated with a lower likelihood of democratization in both the short and long run. These effects are larger and more consistent than other common explanations for democratization. They also differ from the effects of non-genocidal civil war violence. |
| `In' analytical Note | Journal of Conflict Resolution Vol. 65, No.9; Oct 2021: p.1521-1550 |
| Journal Source | Journal of Conflict Resolution Vol: 65 No 9 |
| Key Words | Civil Wars ; Political Leadership ; Polarization ; Genocide ; Democratization |