Ethnic Politics in Burma

2008-06-30 Political Science

Author : Ashley South
Release : 2008-06-30
Genre : Political Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 53X/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Ethnic Politics in Burma by : Ashley South

Download or read book Ethnic Politics in Burma written by Ashley South. This book was released on 2008-06-30. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the ideas which have structured half a century of civil war in Burma, and the roles which political elites and foreign networks - from colonial missionaries to aid worker activists - have played in mediating understandings of ethnic conflict in the country. The book includes a brief overview of precolonial and colonial Burma, and the emergence ethnic identity as a politically salient characteristic. It describes the struggle for independence and the parliamentary era (1948-62), and the quarter century of military-socialist rule that followed (1962-88). The book analyses the causes, dynamics and impacts of on-going armed conflict in Burma, since the 1988 'democracy uprising' through to the 2007 'saffron revolution' (when monks and ordinary people took to the streets in protest against the military regime). There is a special focus on the plight of displaced people, and the ways in which local and international agencies have responded. The book also examines one of the most significant, but least well-understood, political developments in Burma over the last twenty years: the series of ceasefires agreed since 1989 between the military government and most armed ethnic groups. The positive and negative impacts of the ceasefires are analysed, including a study of civil society among ethnic nationality communities. This analysis leads to a discussion of the nature of social and political change in Burma, and a re-examination of some commonly held assumptions regarding the country, including issues of ethnicity and federalism. The book concludes with a brief Epilogue, taking account of Cyclone Nargis, which struck Burma on 2 and 3 May 2008, resulting in a massive humanitarian crisis.

Burma

1999-06-15 History

Author : Martin Smith
Release : 1999-06-15
Genre : History
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : /5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Burma by : Martin Smith

Download or read book Burma written by Martin Smith. This book was released on 1999-06-15. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Revised and Updated

Political Authority in Burma's Ethnic Minority States

2007 Social Science

Author : Mary Patricia Callahan
Release : 2007
Genre : Social Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 622/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Political Authority in Burma's Ethnic Minority States by : Mary Patricia Callahan

Download or read book Political Authority in Burma's Ethnic Minority States written by Mary Patricia Callahan. This book was released on 2007. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study examines the enormous variation and complexity that characterize relationships between the national state and locally-based, often non-state actors who negotiate and compete for political authority in Burma’s ethnic minority-dominated states along the borders. Three patterns of relationships are explored: devolution by the national state to warlord-like local authorities; occupation by the Burmese military; and coexistence (with varying degrees of cooperation and understanding) among actors from the national state and local stakeholders. Throughout these border states, leaders of the Burmese government’s armed forces and of past and currently-active armed opposition forces operate within a context that is neither war nor peace, but instead a kind of post-civil-war, not-quite-peace environment. To understand the complex political arrangements that have arisen in this environment, this monograph employs the concept of “emerging political complex” — a set of adaptive networks that link state and other political authorities to domestic and foreign business concerns (some legal, others illegal), traditional indigenous leaders, religious authorities, overseas refugee and diaspora communities, political party leaders, and nongovernmental organizations. All of these players make rules, extract resources, provide protection, and try to order a moral universe, but none of them are able, or even inclined, to trump the others for monolithic national supremacy. Conflict resolution strategies have to recognize that these emerging political complexes are not simply unfortunate bumps in the road to peace but instead constitute intricate and evolving social systems that may continue to be adapted and sustained.

Beyond Armed Resistance

2011 Political Science

Author : Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung
Release : 2011
Genre : Political Science
Kind : eBook
Book Rating : 989/5 ( reviews)

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Book Synopsis Beyond Armed Resistance by : Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung

Download or read book Beyond Armed Resistance written by Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung. This book was released on 2011. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper sheds light on the activities of non-armed members of ethnic minorities in Burma, insufficiently studied actors in the conventional study of ethnic politics in Burma that has long been dominated by a focus on ethnonational armed resistance groups and ceasefire groups. Focusing on the Kachin, Karen, Mon, and Shan ethnic groups, the study describes nine major economic, political, and geographical categories of civilian experience, followed by four contributions that non-armed members of ethnic minority groups may make to the political system: (1) supporting the status quo, (2) transforming or undermining the status quo, (3) promoting collective identity and culture and addressing humanitarian needs, and (4) helping to mediate ceasefire agreements. The study demonstrates the need to be aware of the full range of nonviolent political actions that exist among ethnic minority populations and argues that policy responses must look beyond the role of armed groups and become more sensitive to the needs of the diverse members of ethnic communities.

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