what do you mean by pluralism?what have been the challenges in managing pluralism in South Asia aswer
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Abstract
This article examines the relationship between religious pluralism and peace in the context of South Asia. It notes that today South Asia is one of the most hostile regions of the world for religious pluralism, owing, in large part, to resurgent religious nationalism. It argues that attempts to establish religious uniformity have worked at cross purposes with the desired goal of cultivating stability and security in Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan.What is the relationship between religious pluralism—respect for and mutual understanding with religious traditions that are not one’s own—and peace? One view holds that a common religious culture decreases grievances among members of the dominant faith tradition and promotes stability and security. According to this logic, religious pluralism, by contrast, breeds conflict along communal lines. Another view holds the opposite: the promotion of a hegemonic religious culture at the expense of religious minorities carries negative security implications, stemming not just from aggrieved minorities but also from empowered religious majorities who use the laws and policies of the state to justify aggression against religious outsiders. Which side is right?
Birthplace to a number of the world’s religious traditions, naturally diverse in religious expression, but also witnessing a growing threat to its pluralist character in the form of resurgent religious nationalism, the region of South Asia provides an ideal location to examine the relationship between pluralism and peace. The two major countries in the region—India and Pakistan—were built on foundations of religious pluralism. Today, though, the region is home to some of the societies most hostile to religious pluralism in the world, despite the presence of reasonably robust democratic institutions and dynamic civil societies. The latest study on global religious restrictions by the Pew Research Center documents that of the seven countries in the region, six (India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Maldives) enforce “high” or “very high” governmental restrictions on religion, and the lone exception, Sri Lanka, is moving in that direction. Six of the seven countries also experience “high” or “very high” social hostilities involving religion (with Bhutan being the exception). This means that every country in South Asia is witnessing, in one form or another, serious threats to religious pluralism. Average levels of government restriction on religion in South Asia are more than twice as high as the global average; average levels of social hostilities involving religion are more than three times higher (Pew Research Center 2018).
Why, despite auspicious conditions a generation ago, is the region of South Asia the most hostile to religious pluralism outside of the Middle East and North Africa today? One of the major reasons concerns how religious majorities in these countries respond to the presence of religious minorities. The dominant response to religious heterogeneity in South Asia has been characterized by resurgent religious nationalism. Religious nationalists in the region see their states inextricably intertwined with the dominant religious traditions of their countries. In this view, religious diversity is perceived as a threat, associated with moral relativism and competition for converts away from the “true faith.” The increasing nationalist sentiments rooted in religion throughout the region have resulted in social fragility and violence, often carried out by members of the dominant faith tradition, supported by the laws and policies of the state, against religious minorities.