Sources of Conflict

Sources of Conflict
Conflict occurs between people in all kinds of human relationships and in all social settings. Conflict by itself is neither good nor bad. However, the manner in which conflict is handled determines whether it is constructive or destructive. When some people are treated unequally and unjustly it is likely to erupt into conflict, especially if its leaders don't represent all the members of that society. Pakistan faces multiple domestic conflicts that weaken Pakistan as a nation-state and effecting its capacity to function effectively within its territorial limits and making it difficult to project itself positively at the global level. It is becoming increasing problematic for Pakistani state and society to fulfil its obligations towards its citizenry and the international community. Pakistan is prone to various diseases such as terrorism, poverty, corruption, mismanagement of resources, no educational uniformity and unequal sharing of power. All these conflicts have their roots in the five broad sources of conflicts: power, resources, social identity, values and ideas.
Power is the authority to influence others. Power enables one to dominate others and throughout history it can be seen that power has always been in the hands of few. The concept of shared powers are mere concepts with no real implementation. Power in the hands of few always leads to resentment among the others, the power deprived groups. Power, if not shared, on equity basis always leads to conflict in the society. The power deprived groups then come in conflict with the powerful. In the case of Pakistan, the biggest example of conflict over power is the case of Bangladesh(Editorial, 2011). Bangladesh was a part of Pakistan but however the unfair power distribution between the two wings created resentment in East Pakistan. The western part of the country enjoyed the most power and resources. The resentment escalated when the west didn’t accept results of elections of 1970...