New Mandala

The show goes on. The military has a clear vision of what kind of state Burma should be—and that is not a democracy. It is sometimes argued that the hopes for a more pluralistic society rest on the next generation army officers. Aware of this danger, officers have been given unprecedented privileges and business opportunities [...]

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David Scott Mathieson, the Human Rights Watch “Burma-watcher”, has written an essay on Australian approaches to Burma.  From certain perspectives I expect this would be considered a parochial matter. But my sense is that the current debate here in Australia around, crudely, “sanctions” and “engagement” is one that speaks to the wider yearning for a [...]

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The Asean summit will be the first occasion the Burmese junta’s Prime Minister, Thein Sein, can meet exile Burmese CSOs [Civil Society Organizations]. Thein Sein will meet with nine other Asean leaders on October 23.
Thein Sein threatened to boycott the last Asean meeting if Thailand proposed Burmese exile groups have a representative at the Asean [...]

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Gay people in Burma are resisting homophobia and marginalisation through the creative use of new communication codes. In doing so, they are making a significant contribution to linguistic diversity in Burma and raising the visibility of their community in important ways.
‘It is important to publicise these codes created by gay people to show that we [...]

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The capital’s labour force is still busy constructing the capital’s future – an impressive parliament complex and a presidential house are emerging in anticipation of the 2010 general elections. The total cost of building Naypyidaw remains a mystery, although a local businessman points out that about $2 million has been spent for each high-ranking official’s [...]

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Right at the end of the recent TIME cover-story about Than Shwe I was surprised to learn that “[o]ne man controls everything that happens in Burma.”
While I appreciate the intent of this jab — and recognise the significance of TIME’s biographical article — it strikes me as a big, almost impossible, thesis.  Certainly, Than Shwe [...]

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According to a report in The Sydney Morning Herald, a big Australian fashion company that owns iconic brands including Millers and Katies has stopped sourcing products from Burma in response to Australian Council of Trade Unions/Burma Campaign Australia pressure.  The relevant press release is available here.  Trumpeting this success, Burma Campaign Australia spokesperson, Zetty Brake, argued that, “Corporate Australia [...]

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On Saturday I had an article in The Canberra Times that surveys Burma policy and the ongoing sanctions debate.  A slightly revised version of the article is available here at Inside Story.  One of the key sections argues that:
On the one hand any such change in United States policy will be greeted as a victory [...]

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Should war resume in parts of Burma’s borderlands, the country will simply return to its pre-1989 situation, and the challenges of national reconciliation and local sustainable development will begin again.
- Extracted from David Scott Mathieson, “Peace in name only”, The Irrawaddy, October 2009.

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Adding their voices to the current debate about sanctions against the Burmese government, Alison Vicary and Sean Turnell have used an opinion piece in The Age to argue that “[l]ifting economic sanctions now would not only embolden Burma’s present reform-shy regime, but also greatly deleverage the ability of the US, Australia and like-minded countries to [...]

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