Accommodating ethnic diversity in a modernizing democratic state: theory and practice in the case of Mauritius

This article examines the accommodation of diverse ethnic communities in de veloping democratic states. We examine those means of managing or reducing ethnic conflicts identified in the literature that have actually been emplo yed in Mauritius, one of the most successful ethnically-diverse developing states in the world. Our findings suggest that traditional elite-dominated means of regulating conflicts are becoming less effective in an age of grow ing populism and declining deference to elites, and that new means of incor porating ethnic communities into the functioning of the state are required. The key means in the case of Mauritius seem to have been the development o f a competent and representative public service; the incorporation of civic associations, including those with an ethnic character, in the policy proc ess by means of a civic network; and the evolution of political parties int o ethnically diverse organizations. Inclusiveness appears to be more import ant than strict proportionality.