Religious Conflict in Central African Republic

Abstract

One of the challenges facing the world today is the issue of religious conflict. The consequences of the above are unimaginable for a land-locked country like Central African Republic (CAR). Conflicts there have led to the destruction of lives and properties in the last decades of the country's nationhood. There is a strong link between religion and violence, and this link has a long genealogy in Western scholarship. It is against this background that this research addresses the political and economic effects of the religious conflict in CAR. More than half of the respondents in this study agreed that the use of religion as an instrument to acquire political power led to the conflict in CAR. Since religion is a major source of soft power, it is used and misused by religious and governmental organizations to pursue their interests. Religion is not inherently violent; instead, it is how people choose to interpret religion that provides justification for violent actions. The study recommends that the government should emphasize the secularity and supremacy of the constitution and religious leaders should establish inter-faith platforms to curb religious crises.