Democracy, Ethnic Fragmentation, and Internal Conflict: Confused Theories, Faulty Data and the "Crucial Case" of Papua New Guinea

Abstract

Scholars and policymakers have struggled to explain the effect of ethnic fragmentation on political stability and democracy. Many hold that the greater the degree of ethnic diversity, the less likely a state’s prospects for democracy. Benjamin Reilly of Australian National University challenges this assumption. Using the “crucial case” of Papua New Guinea—perhaps the most ethnically fragmented society in the world—Reilly suggests that in some cases ethnic plurality can actually boost the prospects of democratic stability.