One definition of ethnicity reads as followed “identity with or membership in a particular racial, national, or cultural group and observance of that group’s customs, beliefs, or language”. Ethnicity defines many of us but a few want our definition to be “cleansed” and this is when civil conflict arises. Ethnicity is frequently cited as an explanation for conflicts in the post cold war era. Yugoslavia, a prime example of a system that encountered ethnic conflict that led to a violent civil war, consisted of six republics and two autonomous districts. The government at the time wanted control of these republics but the republics wanted to be free from government control. There was a push by several ethnic groups to form their own sovereign …show more content…

War rallied "their" ethnic groups -- the nations of the newly formed nation-states -- behind them. The elites spread their propaganda through the controlled media, manipulating the public and convincing them that they should sacrifice their personal welfare for the sake of their nation's survival. By provoking a conflict, the elites managed to deflect demands for a political change. The opposition was silenced since any attempt to challenge the status quo could be and was described as a threat to the national interests. Now the opposing side would argue that if instrumentalism is used by elites to create conflict then why do people follow along? When people believe they are fighting for their values and that someone/something is attacking it people start fight and on top of that propaganda from the political elites push people to do things they would usually not do.
Theories to explain onset of civil conflict
Civil conflict is when individuals from the same state,culture, nationality or society fight for political power. There are three main theories to explain the onset of a civil conflict, societal grievances (bottom up), Political entrepreneurs, Structural/State based (top down). Bottom up theory is when root civil conflict in issues arise within society which eventually changes the state. Poor miserable people rise up but if you are in massive