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Stefan Wolff. Ethnic Conflict: A Global Perspective. Oxford: Oxford University, 2006. ISBN: 0-190280587-8 (Hbk); ISBN: 978-0-19-280587-4 (Pbk). Pp. 220.
Stefan Wolff has taken on the monumental task of attempting to explain and analyze ethnic conflict from root causes to potential solutions. Despite some inevitable gaps, he has succeeded in bringing together an insightful analytical framework and extensive factual data to demonstrate the wide breadth and deep complexity of this type of conflict.
Wolff begins the book by presenting the human dimension, the stories and statistics behind the eruptions of violence in places such as the Balkans and Rwanda. The next chapter provides the general contours of a social scientific understanding of ethnic identity, as well as the interaction of such identities with a more nationalistic perspective. Subsequent chapters explore the causes of ethnic conflict, the strategies used by those engaged in such conflicts, and potential means of managing or settling such conflicts. In his final chapters, Wolff steps back from his intensive analysis to reflect on the long-term prospects for ending ethnic conflicts and on the post-conflict reconstruction challenges that must be addressed if social stability...