How Might Religion Help, Hinder People During Times of Civil Unrest - Essay Example

In the light of the dynamicity of the modern world, typical forms of civil disturbances such as protests against major socio-political problems are presented. Often the media fails to identify the ideal causes of various conflicts across the world. Clashes have been frequently described to be ethnic in origin despite the fact that religions play a critical role. However, the true causes of civil unrest are occasionally difficult to underpin. At most times, clashes have been speculated to be triggered by a mixture of ethnic feuds, economic and religious differences as well as political alliances among many other factors. The paper will primarily address the role of religion as a mitigative measure or hindrance to the people during times of civil unrests in particular India and Pakistan civil unrests.

In reference to an exotic religion typically acknowledged as being at the top of the world, there is lurking of nuclear danger. Two on the world novel atomic powers, Pakistan and India have confronted each other over the Kashmir territory. The conflict is speculated to have resulted from ethnic concerns, religion (Hindu and Muslim), cultural identity and nationalism (Javaid & Sahrai 32). As a consequence, a new poignancy has been assumed within the volatile religion. The conflict is rooted back in 1947 as a result of pulling out of India by the British following two centuries of a colonial rule (Javaid & Sahrai 41). This established two new independent states separated based on religious and ethnic lines with India being the centre of the Hindu populations and the Muslims inclined to Pakistan territorial.

According to the Pakistan information minister Mushahid Hussein The divide was on the bases of religion, Hindus in India and the Muslim in Pakistan. Ten million people swapped homes, across border it was a very traumatic experience (Williams 32). This was in reference with the tragic happening that took place in which more than a million people lost their lives during the ethnic religion conflicts during the migration approximately 12 million people. In another incidence regarding the Islamic religion bomb, which dates back in the 1970s. Ali Bhutto who was the then Pakistan prime minister mused, We know that South Africa and Israel have full nuclear capabilities A Christina, Jewish, and Hindu civilization have this capability The Islamic religion is without it, but the situation (is) about to Change (Bhatti 16).This steamed up and deepened the warfare after the implementation of the nuclear weapons. As a result, it prompted Kashmir a chronologically unstable religion across the globe claimed by both Indian and Pakistan as the introduction of the nuclear weapons by both the Muslims and Hindus further paralyzed the religion.

During one of the World Evangelical Fellowships (WEF) conducted on 4th May 2001, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamed once said that that, "Once started, religious strife has a tendency to go on and on, to become permanent feuds. Today we see such intractable inter-religious wars in Northern Ireland, between Jews and Muslims and Christians in Palestine, Hindus, and Muslims in South Asia and in many other places. Attempts to bring about peace have failed again and again (Bhatti 22). Always the extremist elements invoking past injustices imagined or real, will succeed in torpedoing the peace efforts and bringing about another bout of hostility.

Nevertheless, the conflict between Pakistan and India proves to be more explosive as a result factors such as the enthusiasm for tactical as well as conventional nuclear war intensification in both sides (AGGARWAL & MONA 54). The presence of limited diplomatic contacts. The formation of hotbeds as a result of the emergent Islamic fundamentalism of the neighboring Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as "Culture corruption" among others and broadly all these aspects have their basis on the two giant religions (AGGARWAL & MONA 59).

In conclusion, religion is a two-way traffic aspect in regard to civil unrest. It may potentially serve as a source of civil unrest as well as mitigate the problem to some extent. However, as observed throughout the essay, religion is the major player in the generation of conflict between Islamic and Hindu religions in Pakistan and India.

Works Cited

AGGARWAL, RAVINA, and MONA BHAN. "In the aftermath of the 1999 war fought between India and Pakistan in the high-altitude district of Kargil, Lieutenant General Arjun Ray laid out his."

Bhatti, Haseeb Ahmed. Development and conflict: The economic impacts of civil war in Swat: Pakistan. Diss. University of Waikato, 2015.

Javaid, Umbreen, and Naseem Sahrai. "Conflict Management between Pakistan and India: Challenges and Failures." South Asian Studies 31.1 (2016): 245.

Williams, Brent. India and Pakistan Civil-Military Relations. US Army School of Advanced Military Studies Fort Leavenworth United States, 2015.