Myanmar Identity in 2015

Abstract

In November 2015, Myanmar conducted its second general elections under the 2008 Constitution. The elections followed four years of celebrated political and economic reforms under President Thein Sein’s administration, surprising many observers who had not taken the former military government’s 2003 “Roadmap to Democracy” very seriously. This blueprint focused on a seven-step plan that called for a gradual, deliberate, and managed political transition that was not centered around Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), the main opposition party who many regarded as the only legitimate agent for political change. Nonetheless, by 2015 President Thein Sein was hailed for laying down the foundations for democratic change, an opening of the country’s economy, and for introducing a range of legislation that loosened the state’s control on the everyday lives of Myanmar’s citizens. The NLD’s overwhelming election victory and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s ascension to power seemed to signal for her supporters the closing of a chapter in Myanmar’s contemporary history that began when citizens took to the streets in 1988.

The elections were commended by international observers as being free and fair, both due to its inclusiveness (over ninety political parties participated), its operational credibility, and perhaps due to its desired result. At the same time, widespread poverty, disagreements with armed ethnic minorities, communal violence in Western Myanmar, internal factionalism amongst political elites, and a lingering constitutional crisis were issues that characterized the political landscape in 2015. While enduring themes of “unity” and “sovereignty” continued to be relevant as expressions of national identity, the increasing use of terms associated with democracy and the broader liberalization process were also sources for articulating belonging and affiliation to the nation.