ABSTRACT
This chapter attempts to explore ethnic conflict reduction within the context of democracy. It examines the limitations of selected strategies for conflict reduction and analyzes the possibilities that exist for mollifying ethnic clashes within the framework of scholarly works. The chapter critically examines prescriptive arguments by some empirical theorists for the successful operation of democracy. The package presented by Lijphart, Nordlinger and Lewis appears to be a coherent one whose modules fit nicely together. In Ethiopia, years of political instability have given way to the realization by its current leadership that a new federal arrangement fits with the 'realities of the country's ethnic character. Finally, Horowitz's approach defined by the combination of electoral formula and federal arrangements that induce group elites to cooperate across group lines is not without promise in states with multiple ethnicity.
