Assessing Burma's Ceasefire Accords / / Zaw Oo, Win Min.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter ISEAS Backlist eBook-Package 2000-2013
• VerfasserIn: Oo, Zaw,; Min, Win,
• Place / Publishing House: Singapore : : ISEAS Publishing, , [2007]; ©2007
• Year of Publication: 2007
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (106 p.)

The Burmese military government and numerous ethnic minority armed groups have entered a series of ceasefires since 1989 in spite of the fact that most previous talks between 1949 and 1983 failed. Why did the parties enter into ceasefire accords? What is the nature of the accords? What have been the consequences? What are the future scenarios? Written by two Burmese researchers, this study investigates the underlying factors behind the ceasefires, explores the nature of the secretive agreements, and identifies the consequences affecting stakeholders in the larger context of peacebuilding, political settlement, democratization, and the state-building process. The study concludes that recent ceasefires present a significant first step in solving the sixty-year old civil war. However after more than 17 years, they have not brought about peace or political settlement. The government-initiated ceasefires carry a heavy military focus, primarily seeking to reduce military threats and gain better control over the borderlands while placing greater emphasis on state building than on peacebuilding. Nevertheless, the accords have allowed many ceasefire groups to maintain or increase their strength, develop their areas, and more importantly, ceasefires have resulted in the local ethnic population having relatively better lives. Many ethnic armed groups will continue to pursue their goals through political means, but if at least some of their objectives are not met, a resumption of violence cannot be ruled out.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- List of Acronyms -- Executive Summary -- Introduction -- Background of Ethnic Conflicts in Burma -- Past Peace Talks: Managing Ethnic Conflicts before 1988 -- Brief Background of the Current Ceasefire Agreements -- Factors Influencing the Contemporary Ceasefires -- Nature of the Ceasefires -- Consequences of the Ceasefires -- Conclusion -- Endnotes -- Bibliography -- Project Information: Internal Conflicts and State-Building Challenges in Asia -- List of Reviewers 2006–07 -- Policy Studies: Previous Publications