What Does the Rule of Law Have to do with Democratization (in Myanmar)?

Abstract

Talk of the rule of law is today ubiquitous in Myanmar. But what does the rule of law mean? And what does it have to do with the country's nascent democratization? One way to conceptualize the rule of law is in terms of substantive legal equality. Burmese farmers and activists mobilizing through the lexicon of law to defend agricultural land against intrusive state projects engage with the rule of law in this sense. Another way is as a language of public and state security. Demands for the rule of law in response to violence in Myanmar's west correspond with this usage. Whereas in established democracies the rule of law as equality complements the rule of law as security, in a democratizing state the two are not necessarily compatible. The rule of law as an idea associated with substantive legal equality contributes to Myanmar's democratization, whereas when associated with public and state security it potentially undermines that democratization.

Cascades of Violence: War, Crime and Peacebuilding Across South Asia

“…It remains to be seen whether NLD rule might produce another era of 'disorder with meaning' or settle to 'order with meaning'. (Selth 2013: 16) and by a variety of partial steps towards democratisation this decade (Cheesman 2014;UN Special Rapporteur 2012). Myanmar is a useful puzzle for our consideration of cascades of nonviolence, liberation and demilitarisation in Chapter 11.…”

Negotiating authoritarian law and (dis)order: medicines, drug shops, and regulators in a poor Yangon suburb

“…Myanmar's democratically re-elected government, the National League for Democracy (NLD), has inherited a national territory and state that continues to grapple with the legacies of British colonialism, followed by 50 years of military rule. Many were quick to optimistically laud Myanmar's economic opening up, NLD's 2015 and 2020 election wins, and to support calls for the rule of law as part of democratisation (Cheesman, 2014). As the February 1st military coup demonstrates, the democratisation of Myanmar is fragile.…”

Introduction: Development Challenges in Myanmar: Political Development and Politics of Development Intertwined

“…The role of the state in relation to groups living within its boundaries is important to future development and state building, but leaders' responses have been inconsistent and evasive, speaking about the need for rule of law, security, and keeping peace in the area. Aung San Suu Kyi has described the problem in terms of inefficient policing and lack of the security sector reform rather than in terms of lack of protection of human rights (Cheesman 2014). Representation of ethnic parties in politics is also low, following the 2015 election (Tan and Preece 2020, this special issue).…”