Political Science 177
Politics of Peacebuilding
Case: The Ongoing Ethnic Conflict in Myanmar
Conflict Analysis
Background
Brief description of the state Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, is surrounded by India and Bangladesh in the west and
China, Laos and Thailand in the east. It is the largest among the countries in the mainland
Southeast Asia (as can be observed in the map below). According to the CIA World Factbook, it
has a total land and water area of 676, 578 sq. km. and a total population of
56,320,206. And around seventy percent of its population live in the rural areas.
Myanmar is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world with almost one third of its
entire population are ethnic minorities. They are dominated by the Burmans comprising 68% of
the population, followed by Shan with 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon
2% and other groups with 5%. In terms of religion, majority of them practice Buddhism (89%).
Because of this large Buddhist population, Myanmar is often "claimed to be the world’s most
devout Buddhist nation". There are also Christians (4%), Muslims (4%), and other religious
groups (3%) in the population. Most of them are part of ethnic minorities that usually tribe in the
borders of the country.
Brief history of the conflict It was said that the conflict started when a “divide and rule” policy was implemented in Myanmar
during the British rule. It divided Myanmar in two parts: the Burma proper and the periphery. The
former was ruled by the British while the latter was ruled by local rulers. This divide has raised
the ethnic awareness in the country. This situation worsened during Ne Win’s rule wherein he
“attempted to create a homogenous nation through a process of assimilation”. Since then, ethnic
groups started to create armed groups to fight for their rights and freedom.
Parties to the Conflict The main conflict actors are the ethnic armed groups and the government itself.
List of Ethnic Armed Groups
Chin National Front, Democratic Kayin Buddhist Army, Kloh Htoo Baw’ (Golden Drum), Kachin
Independence Organisation, Kayan New Land Party, Karenni National Progressive Party, Karen
National Union, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, National Democratic Alliance
Army, New Mon State Party, Pao National Organisation, Palaung State Liberation Party, Shan
State Army-North, Shan State Army-South, United Wa State Army
List of their Alliances
Committee for the Emergence of a Federal Union, National Council of the Union of Burma,
National Democratic Front, United Nationalities Federal Council
Factors that led to the Conflict
Global Factors Myanmar’s isolation to other countries for decades is treated as a factor that led to the conflict.
Regional Factors The parties to the conflict are particularly the government and the ethnic armed groups, thus, the
isolation only aggravates the civil war since there are no intervention happening for peacemaking
to be successful.
State Factors (social, economic, The state factors that led to the conflict is traceable from the time when the British rules over
political) Myanmar wherein Myanmar was divided into the Burma Proper and the Periphery. Power was
concentrated in the Burma Proper while the Periphery remained underdeveloped. This aggravated
poverty in the among the Shan state, Kannin state and the rest that belongs to the Periphery. Also,
this intensified the ethnic diversity of the states since they were allowed to have their own leaders.
However, at the time of General Ne Win’s rule, he initiated an assimilation of Myanmar and
integrated policies that are discriminatory towards the ethnic groups, for example, the government
denies giving the ethnic minorities identity, thus, they are also denied of the benefits that the state
provides.
Conflict Party The conflict parties are the government versus the ethnic armed groups. The conflict in Myanmar
remains the longest and most protracted civil war in the world since both resists to give the needs
of both parties. The government insists that there be a unified Myanmar and power be centered to
the elites, specifically to the leaders of the military junta which still rule the government. On the
other hand, the ethnic groups want autonomy and the government to remove the discriminatory
policies.
Elite/Individual Level Factors that aggravate the conflict include torture, murder, genocide among the ethnic groups.
Peace Process Analysis
Peacemaking
Negotiations The negotiations involved the government and the ethnic armed groups. There were no mediators
Who were involved in the or third parties.
negotiations? Did it include a
mediator?
Peace Agreement Under President Thein Sein’s leadership, he pledged to make the ethnic issue to be a national
Give a brief background of the priority. The government proposed for a nationwide ceasefire agreement. They created a union-
peace agreement. level peace team which was headed by President Thein Sein himself. It was “made up of a central
What are the key aspects of the committee for making policies and a working committee for implementing policies associated
peace agreement? with ceasefire negotiations”. The peace team created a “Three-Phase Plan”. This includes the
What is the current status of the following:
peace agreement? 1. State level: Ceasefire, set up liaison offices and travel without holding arms to each other's
Were there issues that are territory
connected to the peace 2. Union level: Confidence building, holding political dialogue, implement regional
agreement? development tasks in terms of education, health and communication
3. Sign agreement for eternal peace in the presence of the parliament represented by
nationalities, political parties and different walks of life.
Part of this plan was the creation of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement. This is between the
government of Myanmar and the ethnic armed groups. However, only eight ethnic armed groups
signed the agreement. The other groups, especially the larger ones (e.g. KIO), chose not to
participate.
Issues concerning the peace
making process
Successful or not? Why or why The previous attempts of the government were not successful. That’s why the conflict is still
not? ongoing. Here are some of the possible reasons behind the failures:
1. There is mutual distrust between the conflicting parties. The ethnic armed groups believe
that agreeing to these ceasefire agreements is a “win-lose” situation for them. Only the
government will benefit from these. There is no incentive for them if they surrender their
weapons.
2. There is absence of third party organizations. Thus making the cooperation and dialogue
difficult.
3. From a third party’s perspective, there’s lack of political and military commitment. The
government’s motive behind the ceasefire agreements was to attain economic development
and not to achieve peace.
4. Peace process is not successful because of economic reasons such as poverty. The ethnic
armed groups resort to businesses involving the selling of drugs, weapons, etc to sustain
themselves and also the ethnic groups. Thus, if ceasefires and peace process happen, their
Peacekeeping
Profile of the peacekeepers There are no peacekeeping activities in Myanmar.
(Military/Civilian,
International/Local)
Roles of the peacekeepers
Successful or not? Why or why
not?
Peacebuilding
Mechanisms/Activities Actors
Security The Myanmar Peace Center is a government coordinating body which is Myanmar Peace Center
funded by Norway and Australia. It implements peacebuilding projects (government)
such as:
*Ceasefire Negotitation Implementation – facilitates the government’s
ceasefire initiatives with ethnic armed groups
*Peace Dialogue Program – focuses on undertaking preparatory work
for political dialogue between the government, armed groups, and other
stakeholders
Political Transition *Outreach and Public Diplomacy – established to communicate and Myanmar Peace Center
engage with the public to garner public support and participation in the (government),
peace process International
*Peace Building Operations Cooperation – the program aims to increase Organizations
the confidence of stakeholders in the peace process and democratic
transition by helping to develop strategies for well-coordinated, conflict-
sensitive peace building programs, and development and humanitarian
assistance
*Legal Support Office – provides assistance in the legal aspect of the
peace making process
*The UN Development Programme supports the national and socio-
economic reforms that underpin the country’s transition.
Development *Yangon-based Karen Development Networks CSOs and BSOs,
*Gaia Sustainable Management Institute (GSMI) international
organizations
*The World Bank supports reforms that will benefit all of the people of
Myanmar indcluding the poor and the vulnerable.
Social Rehabilitation *The International Organization for Migration runs programs that International
protect and provide for refugees, engage in counter-trafficking Organizations
operations and help with labor, conflict and border management.
Successful or not? Why or why We assess that these peacebuilding measures are not successful because of the on-going conflicts
not? that are still happening in specific areas or regions. There are also still a lot of torture, genocide
and murder happening among the ethnic groups that causes them to leave and seek refuge to the
neighboring countries.
Suggested Peacebuilding Measures:
• Third-party intervention
• Grassroots decisionmaking
• Removal of discriminatory policies/Constitutional reforms
• Affirmative action
• Power-sharing institutions and federalism (Grofman and Stockwell)
• Listening Project
Note:
1. In assessing whether or not the peace activities are successful, consult the literature but include your group’s own assessment
and identify the gaps. The analysis of the conflict could be helpful in your assessment of the different aspects of the peace
formula.
2. For the peacebuilding part, identify the specific mechanisms/activities that are related to the four general elements of
peacebuilding (i.e., security, political transition, development and social rehabilitation). What are the issues regarding those
specific activities? Identify actors that implemented the mechanisms. Give a brief description of the actors (international, local,
state, non-governmental organization?)
