A Burmese Perspective - Essay Example

Is the human security agenda influenced by nationalist political ideologies based on fear? A Burmese Perspective Burma is one of the few countries in the Southeast Asia region, which regrettably has an unpleasant repute of having the largest number of armed ethnic rebellion, as well as a deep-rooted civil resistance to the ruling military establishment. The ethnic insurgencies commenced in as early as 1948, while the civil conflict has grown more open in the recent years, and more specifically, during the last decade. This state of prolonged conflict and civil mutiny raises several crucial concerns regarding a host of issues, primarily, the ones related to the human security agenda as well as the dominant nationalist political ideologies, which are addressed in the paper in the subsequent sections. In view of this background, and in addition to the vast body of work which focused on the issues of human security, this research revolves around similar issues, fundamentally striving to sustain the hypothesis, whether or not the human security agenda in Burma, is influenced by nationalist political ideologies based on fear. In the process, various aspects concerning the issue of human security in relation to Burma are scrutinized, including, a deep rooted analysis of the persistent violence in the war torn country; the key reasons behind such clashes; the role of nationalist political ideologies in fuelling such persistent hostility as well as the issues and concerns regarding human security. Table of Contents Sr. # Topic Pg. # 1. Introduction 3 1.1. Research Problem/s 3 1.2. Research Hypothesis 4 2. Literature Review 5 3. Methods 13 4. Discussion and Analysis 14 5. Conclusion 16 References 18 Key Concepts / Terms Used: Human Security: Human Security, according to UNDP and World Bank (2004), means "freedom from pervasive threats to peoples rights, safety or lives; embraces the twin objectives of freedom from fear (referring to economic, health, environmental and other threats to peoples well being)."1 Ethnicity Ethnicity is defined as "belief in a punitive descent": membership of a group defined by a common socio-cultural history2. Insurgency Marks (2004) define the term insurgency to mean “guerilla warfare, in support of a political goal”3. Political Economy: Collinson (2003) defines the term political economy as something which is concerned with "the interaction of political and economic processes in a society"4. SLORC: The State Law and Order Restoration Council 1. Introduction “A broken nation A pathological State And isolated peoples Generally acquiescing Occasionally unruly And progressively sick and hungry With their populist minds Shackled in native authoritarianisms Given in to pedantic Liberalism” (Zar Ni, Burma or Myanmar: A Political Primer, 2007)5 The issue of human security is a burgeoning paradigm for comprehending international susceptibilities whose advocates defy the conventional view of national security by contending that the appropriate testimonial for security should be the individual as opposed to the state. The ideology behind human security proposes that a people-centered outlook of security is crucial for ensuring national, regional and global stability. The notion primarily materialized from a post-Cold War, multi-punitive comprehension of security concerning a host of research areas, such as developmental studies, international human relations, tactical studies, as well as human rights. The widespread application of aggression, hostility, enforced labor, forced recruitment of children and forced immigration, acknowledged in large number of studies, conducted by various humanitarian organizations, derives from the nationalism of fear proliferated by the regime as a means of pursuing its own endurance. It is within this context that the issues facing Burma are regarded as associated with social memory and history which act as decisive mechanisms in engendering and enabling violence. Violence in Burma has, off late, emerged as a overall social and cultural understanding which has invaded the daily lives of its citizens. In the name of nation, religion, ethnicity and democracy, aggression, hostility and dejection is imprinted on to the body and soul of the innocent civilians; instilled by means of images and in signs; in all as objective essentials as well as subjective understanding. Nationalism is hence regarded as an indispensable and a predictable remedy to this malevolence6. 1.1. Research Problems This paper seeks to address these questions (related to human security issues) through a comprehensive examination of developments in Burma: Is the human security agenda influenced by nationalist political ideologies based on fear? While analyzing the above mentioned question, the following equally vital issues are addressed in this paper: What contemporary domestic and/or international policy initiatives are or have been undertaken to resolve the human security issue? Why has the conflict been so unrelenting and in what manner is it associated with the authority/ governance in Burma? What are the repercussions of such a conflict on the regional collaboration and stability? 1.2. Research Hypothesis Political reconciliation is a probable solution for ending the persistent conflicts faced by the country The international environment is willingly conducive to drastically redefining the concept of security to address the conflicts faced by the country Democracy and a stable federal system can be effectively applied to free Burma from the confines of decades of conflict and armed violence Political reconciliation cannot be sustained in Burma, in the absence of adequate socio-cultural recompilation. 3. Literature Review The notion of human security surfaced during the early 1990s. The development of such a concept replicated several major revolutionary aspects. Primarily it signified the conclusion of the Cold War and the disintegration of the Soviet Union. With the conclusion of almost five decades of struggle and rivalry to become a superpower, wherein aspects such as national security, preclusion as well as sustaining of power and authority, were the overriding security measures, the world seemed all set for adopting a novel security concept which emphasized security from intimidation except that which involves hostility and coalitions. Another significant source of human security included aspects such as ideational and normative. Its origins were ingrained in decades of encouragement by both individuals as well as groups, of the need for the international community to sustain human pride, and shift its attention on other grave issues such as the safety of the people, which had been a key victim of Cold War geopolitics. Furthermore, one of the other vital sources of human security lies in the shifting character of argument. Although it had been acknowledged since decades, the conclusion of the Cold War brought home the harsh awareness that the enormous bulk of the world’s disputes are more often than not, triggered off from within the boundaries of its own states, and that their chief fatalities are its innocent residents. This fact has been brought to light in the rather infamous events which took place in several parts of the globe, such as the widespread racial exterminations in Yugoslavia as well as in the Africa’s great lakes regions. It is incidents like these which generated critical condemnation from international communities which finally accepted this gruesome reality7. Fresh spate of violence, as well as challenges to human security in the Southeastern regions of Asia has been characterized by certain universal traits for instance they are intercontinental in nature, meaning thereby that although at first it seems to initiate from within the boundaries of a particular state, they rarely impinge on the safety and welfare of the whole provinces and beyond. The conventional severance between familial and global, or local and extra-regional, becomes relatively less pertinent and constructive in understanding the foundations of these hazards and the ways to restrain the same. Additionally, these pressures disembark abruptly and without warning. This can be substantiated with the fact that, no one envisaged the disintegration of Asian currencies in 1997; the SARS epidemic on the other hand was all the more erratic in nature. The era of absolute horror is also remarkable in terms of a deterioration of the tools of international and provincial supremacy. It is an era where authority and intimidation reigns over morality and affiliation. As a substitute of endorsing lucidity measures, developing confidence and precautionary negotiation, the schedule of security collaboration among the states of the expanse has returned to counter-insurgency measures, mutual aid among intelligence agencies, and new safety measures regulated by the developed countries such as the US, for instance the Container Security Initiative and the Proliferation Security Initiative8. In the interim, the province persists in shortage of a crucial polygonal calamity assistance and humanitarian assistance agency, of the stature which possess the ability and resources to protect thousands of lives in the event of a catastrophe9. In view of such a climate, the idyllic human security notion, as being the overriding agenda of security assistance in the post-Cold War era has withdrawn further. From the perspective of the developed western world, the politics in present-day Burma has undeniably been a heroic fight between the forces of good and evil. Given that the impulsive famous civil unrest engulfed the country’s urban centers in the early 80’s the consecutive unlawful military governments have been at loggerheads with the democratically chosen National League for Democracy (NLD) led by the Nobel Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi. In view of the fact that Burmas independence from Great Britain in 1948, the racial minorities along its boundaries have revolted for establishing governmental sovereignty. The Burmese military conquered the democratic government in 1962 and since then, it has been involved in a vile counterinsurgency operations targeted at disallowing the insurgents access to food, financial support, information as well as workforce. As early as the 1970s, the government has persistently, assaulted the innocent civilian residing in the areas dominated by the ethnic minorities, reestablishing the local inhabitants in other locations, shielded by the Tatmadaw. Ever since the later part of 2005, the military advanced its hostile operations in the region of Karen and Pegu with an intention to overpower the Karen National Liberation Army; during which it expansively excavated the regions bordering eastern parts of the country, thereby escalating the threat of casualty to residents. Contrary to the popular belief, the Burmese government does not target its hostility exclusively against the ethnic minorities in the east. In fact it has persistently targeted a host of other areas dominated by the ethnic minorities such as those situated in the western Arakan and Chin states at the same time coming down heavily against the supporters of a democratic state. As a consequence of such revolts, the government has regularly detained the protesters, activists or supporters; tormented those who were so detained in the process and further abridged the political liberty which is otherwise customarily afforded to the citizens of a country. The government strengthened its lack of compassion for its citizens during its response to Cyclone Nargis, which was hindered by administrative impediments as well as limitations on the provision or supply of any kind of non-governmental assistance. The emblematic segregation in Burma is hence characterized by a profound divide in its political standards which has progressed in diverse communities as well as awareness groups within Burma during the past century. Hence, what emerges to be fundamentally a modern-day political conflict between the armed forces and the pro democracy supporters can be uniformly construed as a conflict between the ideals of an purportedly conventional home-grown communalism against the ideals of a contemporary and western individualism10. The military in Burma has constantly chased a constricted nationalist agenda albeit its express views concerning such a policy as being a crucial element of a wide range of political ideologies, including fascism, socialism and the present religion-based nationalism. The key reasons which triggered off this movement for independence lies in the period of its military rule which when established developed on the basis of ethnicity and racial proliferation. Pursuant to the arms for peace initiative led by the then government in the year 1958, for the benefit of the racial rebels, the army designed a prolonged top priority military concierge administration. The subsequent governmental authorities who assumed power during that period, offered several peace negotiations, with the alternative that those belonging to the racial minorities or pro federalism supporters would be afforded equal rights. Even when the affiliates within the military organization have displayed indications of probable negotiations with the non-Burmese elements, such initiatives have been proved to be futile. One such case in point is the mandatory sequestration of the country’s former prime minister and its head of intelligence in the year 2004 who had been implicated in settling numerous cessations of hostilities with ethnic minorities11. A nation and its individuality are the outcomes of a practice which includes historical reminiscence, literary and belief-oriented dialogues, ontological understanding and reorganized measures; they are not accepted possessions prehistoricized in clusters and persons, even though such assertions of primeval attachment more often than not are politically significant. Their depiction is the consequence of political concurrences and the allocation of authority and control and their categorizations are at all times challenged and redefined. It has been observed in the history of the country that nationalism exemplifies this development and its intricacy. In modern day Burma the progression is experiencing both an obligatory loss of shared memory and a scrutiny of the history and of individuality. When social memory is deprived of a civil freedom and is crippled by fear, subjugation and oppression; when it is downgraded to the personal area, then the history converts into an explosive minefield. Individuality and its establishment are intimately associated to the past as well as to the societal recollection. And as this development becomes embedded with aggression and apprehension, then submitting to the unpretentious patriotic mold of the administration may well emerge as a practical resistance and the smaller sin. Nevertheless it does not indicate conformity with that particular framework and its description of a communal and civilizing categorization12. Non violent pro democratic demonstrations in the past, by civilians as well as monks against the reigning administration were held as recently as 2007, with an intention to display their disapproval and discontentment with the military supremacy in the country. But all such demonstrations were dispersed off by the reigning administration through violent means. Furthermore, the media coverage was blocked and prohibited and so were the news sites. In short, all sorts of communication were completely shut off. The ethnic minorities in the country lived in constant fear after the army burnt down their villages - a further proof of the dominant nationalist ideology of the country that thrived solely on the politics of fear and suppression of the minorities. Incidents such as these raised severe public outcry in the international arena, and caught the attention of the world that sat up and took notice of the ongoing strife in the Southeast Asian region. This led to widespread protests at international level which appealed for addressing the issue of human right abuses persistent in Burma and called for the establishment of a fair democratic state13. 4. Methods For the purpose of this research an extensive study of the available qualitative data on the issue is proposed to be thoroughly analyzed. It includes primary as well as secondary data, derived from relevant online sources such as government websites, as well as websites of relevant international organizations. The secondary data is mostly derived from books and research reports. The extent and scope of this research topic warrants a detailed study of the various issues being addressed therein and hence the qualitative method of data collection was chosen. Disclaimer: The views presented in this study are largely based on previous studies and past researchers as well as includes views of other researchers and theorists alike. It also includes first hand data collected from governmental websites as well as websites of other equally significant international organizations. The validity of the data presented in this study can be vouched for on the basis of the credibility of the sources it is so derived, which are incidentally appropriately referenced in this study. 5. Analysis and Discussion Human security can be regarded as an exemplar, for ascertaining an enhanced understanding of the swiftly developing large scale hazards and intimidation which has the ability to have a significant impact on individuals as well as entire populations, and a reinforced recruitment of the extensive assortment of elements essentially involved in participatory strategy development in the diverse areas it includes. Furthermore, it is an appropriate structure for fuelling the changeover from historic preventive concept of security, inclined to recognize it exclusively with security concerns, to a much more complete multidimensional perception of security, based on the admiration for all individual rights and autonomous doctrine; ultimately leading to sustainable growth and particularly to the abolition of acute paucity, which is a refutation of all human rights; emphasizing the avoidance at the origin of the diverse types of aggression, prejudice, disagreement and domestic discord which are taking a heavy toll on primarily civilian populations in all areas of the world devoid of any single omission; offering a combined premise for mutual accomplishment to the advantage of the populations which are most severely affected by fractional and / or interconnected uncertainties. The enduring process of globalization and industrialization provides novel prospects for the intensification of large groups or associations striving to speed up the cause of human security, at the multilateral and national levels, and more specifically at the regional levels concerning all elements of the general public. This in turn necessitates a relatively stronger involvement of peace research and training institutions, institutes for security studies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as other similar organizations which are committed towards the endorsement of harmony and protection of human security with the sole objective of improving the association of the general public in all the key aspects of strategy development and implementation of policies framed for their benefit and well being. Contemporary domestic and / or international policy initiatives The international community across the globe has actively participated in addressing the issue of human rights and resolving the human security concerns that has gripped the nation. For instance, the Austrian Burma Center, Finlands "Campaign for Democracy in Burma", Germanys Burma Initiative, Indonesias "Democracy for Burma", Philippine’s "Initiatives for International Dialogue" as well as UKs Burma Campaign to name a few, have undertaken fundamental policy initiatives to free the conflict gripped state and guide it towards a more politically stable economy. The various activities undertaken by such international organizations range from initiatives directed towards raising awareness about Burma, striving to end the military dictatorship in the country, ensure establishment of a democratic government, as well as co-operate with the countrys key pressure groups and coordinate them at the international platform14. The key reasons for the issue being so unrelenting include the fact that there exist two widely different sets of groups with drastically opposite ideologies, which is responsible for the ongoing civil unrest in the country. The pro democracy supporters are time and again oppressed by the dictatorial military regime and the military might which has been often used to suppress such silent protests have instilled fear among the ethnic minorities hence preventing them from bringing about a major political transformation. This state of the nation has some serious repercussions on the country’s social, political as well as economic well being. The constant state of chaos and the persistent clashes has prevented the nation from arriving at a common consensus which may help in steering the nation towards progress and growth. On the contrary, the ongoing civil unrest has led to a steady deterioration of Burma, which in turn has led to other greater evils such as wide spread poverty, illiteracy, and unemployment. Besides the issue of forced labor which is rampant in the area, has raised several grave concerns regarding human rights abuses, garnering international attention. 6. Conclusion Post the commencement of the military rebellion in 1998, several spectators formed a widespread belief that believed Burma had the potential of becoming the next big thing in Asia region. But, after the military administration annulled the outcomes of the general election held in the country, the individuals begin to grow a strong dislike towards the military dictatorship regime. Such a reaction from the civilian population was quite expected, since a dictatorship regime is hardly favored by the masses. Moreover, in such regimes where the national administration is in the hands of the armed forces, it is but natural that the government is highly likely to apply aggression to suppress all those who dare to protest against it15. However, irrespective of the widespread public protest against the dictatorship regime in the country, the system is still found to be largely divided on the basis of ethnicity comprising of provinces which are still under the control of the military while yet other areas which are under the control of the protestors who have now entered into cease fire agreements. The suppression of armed conflict has led to a recommencement of all the economic activities including unlawful and prohibited ones, in the country, even if such commencement of economic activities might not be at par with those which existed prior to such cease fire. Despite the cease fire, the mistreatment of the local ethnic minorities continues to exist at the hands of the military regime, who often employ the ethnic minorities as forced labor, compelling them to work in inhuman conditions, thus leading to human rights abuse. The ethnic minorities on the other hand are compelled to submit to the whims of the military authorities for want of strength or the power to object to such atrocities. Thus an entire generation of population lives in fear, while the exploitation continues to grow. The enduring existence of the Burmese military signifies the persistent exploitation of the local communities. Even though conflicts have died down, local communities continue to be soft targets for the military mafia. The major challenge hence will be to assuage the anguish of the national racial communities who are at present exposed to the methodical assaults of the military rulers under the pretext of progress and growth16. References: Chaudhury, S. 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