To Örebro University

This case study describes the negotiations and processes undertaken by the women who had the foresight and the courage to establish Myanmar’s first multi-ethnic women’s movement. In particular, it details the steps and processes undertaken by the founders of the Burmese Women’s Union (BWU), resulting in the establishment of an umbrella group, the Women’s League of Burma (WLB), under which the women’s movement has since been structured.

By 1988, dissatisfaction with the military regime had reached a tipping point in the general population, culminating in nation-wide demonstrations that were brutally put down by the junta. Following the military crackdown on internal opposition, thousands of Burmese fled to the borders of Myanmar. There, the opposition re-emerged and re-formed, primarily on the borders with Thailand. An increasing number of women began to put forward claims for political recognition.

The BWU was the first multi-ethnic women’s organization to appear on the border. The organization has attempted to promote a collective Burmese identity based on gender rather than on a minority ethnic nationalism. Significantly, the BWU’s staff and members include not only women from different minority ethnic groups, but also women who are Burman (Myanmar’s majority group) and therefore share the same ethnicity of the military regime.

Tensions between Burman and minority groups are high as the military regime promotes a policy of ‘Burmanization’, entailing the oppression of ethnic minority groups and the forced use of the Burmese language, customs and religion. Some even accuse the regime of advocating ethnic cleansing. Despite this, the BWU has, through the consultations and negotiations leading up to the first multi-ethnic women’s movement in contemporary Myanmar’s history, managed to foster a sense of solidarity between women from both Burman and ethnic minority backgrounds, culminating in the establishment of the WLB.