Title

Vietnamese Central Highlands' Ethnic Conflicts

Author

Thanh Hoang

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Political Science

Date of Award

Spring 2012

Abstract

The two widespread protests of ethnic groups, the Montagnards, in the Central Highlands (T�y Nguy�n) in 2001 and 2004 respectively, and their aftermath initiate a decade of unrest in the upland region. Although there is a wide literature explaining the causes of these protests, the Vietnamese government keeps perceiving the Central Highlands problems as a security threat rather than as a development issue. My purpose is to examine the reasons for the government suspicions on the indigenous actions. Using the Minorities at Risk model of Ted Robert Gurr, I will analyze the historical context of the problem. To demonstrate how and why the critical element has an impact on government's perspectives, the research will be mainly based on the coding process of public government's documents, reports, and press coverage of the events. The initial analysis reveals that over eighty percent of the public documents of the Vietnamese government relating to the upsurges are concentrated on the historical context instead of the Montagnards' grievances over land and religious issues.

Advisor

JoAnn DiGeorgio-Lutz

Subject Categories

Political Science | Social and Behavioral Sciences

COinS