This is the second part of a three-part blog-series based on A Savage Order by Dr. Rachel Kleinfeld. I don’t claim an original work here; most of the idea are from the book, with some my observations from the Indian subcontinent added for context.
Background
In the previous article I talked about how states are deliberately made and kept weak by corrupt politicians, for their personal benefit. A weak state cannot provide adequate protection and services to its citizens. Unable to get protection from the state the society gradually becomes decivilized. People who can afford it, build private militia for their protection, while the rest of the society starts normalizing violence.
An Unlikely Hero - A Crooked Politician
Dr. Kleinfeld talk about how an idealist might sound like a perfect solution, but often fails at the job. The state is still run by corrupt people and shady deals, which idealists have a hard time getting around. What’s really needed, instead, is a skilled politician with the astuteness to make dirty-deals, grease palms, and find a way to rebuild a functional government.
Another factor that’s found to be useful has been the centralization of power. A state beset with violence has to get back the monopoly on violence for the citizens to start trusting it again. This doesn’t mean that the state needs to be repressive; rather the understanding that the rule of law, and punishment, are purviews of the state alone. Vigilante justice, paramilitaries, and use of force is not allowed.
Dirty Deals
A state suffering from corruption, privilege violence, and a decivilized society cannot be normalized overnight. A politician has to do the balancing act between navigating around the existing corrupt system in place, and trying to rebuild the government and bureaucracy. For this he’ll need to work alongside the corrupt machinery and make dirty deals. Making these deals could provide a temporary respite in violence, which could be used to strengthen the state.
Take the case of Nitish Kumar, who became the Chief Minister of Bihar, India in 2005. For perspective, Bihar has a population greater than that of Germany, but was one of the poorest states in India. Nitish Kumar inherited a state beset by privilege violence: kidnapping was one of the “growth industries”; shotgun weddings were the order of the day; often times a state legislator with a criminal record used to win elections as people considered him to a strongman who could protect them from opposing factions.
Nitish Kumar, when he won his first election, had around 22% of his legislators with a criminal record. Once getting into power he moved swiftly to make sure the criminal legislators stopped their illegal activities. This carrot-and-stick approach gave Nitish Kumar time to repair the broken government machinery. He strengthened the bureaucracy and the security forces by appointing competent people and giving them freedom to do their job. His police chief seized assets of the criminal strongmen leaving them without the finances to maintain a private militia. He also implemented populist policies which were useful in the citizens affirming their trust in the government. Gradually Bihar staggered out of a state of decivilization and crime dropped.
Dr. Kleinfeld also talks about similar dirty deals the government in Colombia had to make with the FARC gurrillas, to decrease violence and get some breathing space.
In Kashmir, the Indian government used a carrot-and-stick approach while dealing with the terrorists - increasing the cost of waging warfare against the state by using military on one hand, and forcing the less violent groups to the negotiating table for political dialogue or surrender.
A Slippery Slope
As discussed, the politicians leading the change in violent societies need to walk a fine line making seemingly questionable deals with the corrupt and the powerful, and becoming repressive themselves.
While centralizing power and enacting laws to rein in corruption and rot, the leader needs to be autocratic at times. This helps them usher in changes quickly and make use of the limited time of peace their dirty deals have provided them. This time of unilateral decision making and autocracy needs to be used very carefully, with the idea that the state needs to get back to the democratic institutions soon. Sometimes this situation might make the state more repressive and make it slide back into chaos and violence.
To bring violence under control, government must wield tools of a strong state… Breaking criminal conspiracies and insurgencies requires surveillance, informants, and asset seizure. But these are dangerous tools. Politicians convinced that they are saving their countries can end up building a more repressive state. Thus, the leaders who pull their countries out of violence often become reformers and transgressors, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. A Savage Order, Dr Rachel Kleinfeld