Measuring Conflicts in South Asian Countries (1945-2002)

Abstract In this contribution I would like to focus on the four countries in South Asia, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh as a region of conflicts, ask questions about the specific conflict constellations existing in the region and by applying indicator oriented empirical research to the four countries I try to explain the political confrontations occurring during the period between 1945 and 2002. This article is structured according to the following logic: First of all, the structural reality of a country’s endangerment/insecurity and support/security as well as - deduced from this - its ability to resolve conflicts are operationalized and put into measurable quantities. In this way we identify the regime’s political management capabilities and, independent of the measurements mentioned before, its character. Then, the variable ‘conflict’, which is to be explained, is presented and the modality of resolving conflicts is considered. Finally, an index of resolution is calculated that shows which states and which regimes can or could respectively best deal with conflicts. At the same time, the index serves to identify specifically endangered states and through pointing out the supporting factors to discuss the possibilities of non-violent ways to resolve conflicts.