Polarization and Local Conflicts in Post Decentralization Indonesia

Azis Iwan J. () and Pratama Alvin
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Azis Iwan J.: Cornell University, 7 Lowell Place, Ithaca, NY, USA
Pratama Alvin: Gunadarma University, Depok, Indonesia

Peace Economics, Peace Science, and Public Policy, 2020, vol. 26, issue 2, 28

Abstract: Exploring the hypothesis that socio-economic discrimination contributes to conflict occurrence, we show that the experience of a large country that have gone through a big-bang shift from centralized to decentralized system and introduced direct local elections, confirms the link. Using the case of Indonesia, and by controlling for poverty, demand-induced resource scarcity, and institutional variables, it is revealed that income polarization and inequality at the provincial level explain the occurrence of violent conflict (causing at least 1 death), be it for total or for different types. The results are robust to a series of model specifications. For understanding its impact on conflict, polarization is found more important than income inequality as a measure of socio-economic discrimination.

Keywords: polarization; deadly conflict; local election; inequality; Indonesia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D31 J15 J39 O15 O53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1515/peps-2019-0050

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