3
Before assessing the prospect for civil society and its impact on
democratization in Burma it is necessary to define civil society for the purposes
of this paper. Some people acknowledge that civil society is not a concept that
travels neatly; in order to apply civil society to Asia, certain concessions must be
acknowledged (Hardacre 1991). For example, for many Asian nations the
concept of civil society is intimately tied to marketization and the economic
sphere, and is rather limited in its political activity (Hardacre 1991). Therefore,
distinctions between economic, civic or political organizations will not be
addressed. A more nuanced description of civil society might be necessary to
address the type of transition or democratization that would transpire, given the
opportunity, but the primary aim here is to explore the prospects for civil society
in general. Also, by applying a broad definition of civil society we can attempt to
escape the conceptual stretching that may hinder a more detailed analysis of civil
society in non-Western environments (Sartori 1970).
The contention of this analysis is that, similar to the post-totalitarian
regimes of Eastern Europe and Russia, Burma has the prospect for a weak civil
society based on extensive social networks. This may not lead to spontaneous
democratization, but it will assist in a liberal transition, given the opportunity.
However, civil society is not a remedy for authoritarianism and will not, in and
of itself, lead to democratization or political liberalization. Only after the proper
opportunities arise will a weak civil society form to maintain or consolidate a
liberal transition. Given the monopoly of force of the Burmese regime, a civil
Convention