8 - Party Violence in Comparative Perspective

Summary

In Chapter 8, I look beyond the four parties thus far discussed to see what we can learn about other cases through the lens of their experience. First, I look at an out-of-sample Pakistan case, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), a party that was beginning to succeed electorally during the years I was conducting research. I show how the PTI fits my definition of an organizationally weak party lacking a captive support base and engages in violence accordingly. I then provide more detailed explanations of party violence in two countries other than Pakistan – Nigeria and the Philippines – to establish it as a widespread phenomenon. Finally, I examine an organizationally strong, ethnic party, the Shiv Sena in India, and assess why and how it engages in violence in Mumbai. In each case, my party-centric variables of organizational structure and party support base are effective in explaining much of the variation that we see in these cases, helping demonstrate external validity beyond Pakistan.