Abstract :
The civil war literature considers violence as a decay of the state since it destroys life,
infrastructure, and the economy. This article argues that civil war is not only a process of state
decay, but also a process of state formation. The article examines when and what kinds of
variables of civil war can create a new state. Presenting a successful secessionist war, the
liberation war of Bangladesh, the article argues that three factors such as capability of political
mobilization, international/regional military intervention, and geography mutually determine
whether war will create a state or not. Bengali rebels, known as „Muktibahini?- Liberation Force,
carried out a successful secessionist war because these three conditions mutually helped them. It
concluded that if the war gets an optimum result within a relatively short time, war might be a
process for the beginning of state-building.
Keyword :
Civil War, State’s Decay, Bengali Rebels, State Building, Secessionist war