← Back to Vol. 01 Issue No. 01 — September
Abstract
Burma also known as Myanmar is presently best known for political repression and extreme poverty, yet at one point it was a powerful Southeast Asian Kingdom and a thriving part of the British Empire. This chapter interprets Burma’s post-independence history through the lens of the Mode of Harmony through Holistic Engagement and concludes that the model fails to explain the country’s foreign policy. Burma’s foreign policy behavior does not fit the model due to the influence of a virulent type of Nationalism influenced by international ideological trends imposed first by the leaders of the independence movement and later on by military leaders. The chapter concludes that Burma’s best hope for stability and development is a transition to a truly emic form of nationalism that is more attuned to local values and less reliant on sharp dichotomies.