The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics
A concern with unity has been a consistent theme in modern Burmese politics. This article examines a particularly problematic conception of unity that I argue draws strength from its resonance with Buddhist moral notions of the self and overcoming self-centeredness. As a moral concept, this narrativ...
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| Format: | Journal article |
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Northern Illinois University
2015
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| _version_ | 1797055325173448704 |
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| author | Walton, M |
| author_facet | Walton, M |
| author_sort | Walton, M |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | A concern with unity has been a consistent theme in modern Burmese politics. This article examines a particularly problematic conception of unity that I argue draws strength from its resonance with Buddhist moral notions of the self and overcoming self-centeredness. As a moral concept, this narrative of unity is idealized in devotion to a common purpose and loyalty to a group or community; it requires subsuming one’s own interests for the benefit of the whole, something that encapsulates the Buddhist practice of rejecting atta (ego). Disunity, then, is the result of a group of individuals committed only to their own benefit; it is evidence of moral failure. This discourse of unity has been an effectively anti-democratic disciplining tool (deployed by both governments and opposition groups) for suppressing internal dissent. Despite General Aung San’s oft-quoted slogan of “unity in diversity,” political movements in Myanmar have been more commonly characterized by hegemonic attempts at imposing a top-down unity that labels deviation from or criticism of dominant positions as disloyalty. This article examines the perpetuation of a rigid, unitary understanding of unity and argues that developing a more flexible and accommodating notion of unity will be a necessary step in the process of national reconciliation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-06T19:09:05Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:16279ced-6772-48f4-8f5e-cd5a6db6f256 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-06T19:09:05Z |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publisher | Northern Illinois University |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:16279ced-6772-48f4-8f5e-cd5a6db6f2562022-03-26T10:29:39ZThe disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politicsJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:16279ced-6772-48f4-8f5e-cd5a6db6f256Symplectic Elements at OxfordNorthern Illinois University2015Walton, MA concern with unity has been a consistent theme in modern Burmese politics. This article examines a particularly problematic conception of unity that I argue draws strength from its resonance with Buddhist moral notions of the self and overcoming self-centeredness. As a moral concept, this narrative of unity is idealized in devotion to a common purpose and loyalty to a group or community; it requires subsuming one’s own interests for the benefit of the whole, something that encapsulates the Buddhist practice of rejecting atta (ego). Disunity, then, is the result of a group of individuals committed only to their own benefit; it is evidence of moral failure. This discourse of unity has been an effectively anti-democratic disciplining tool (deployed by both governments and opposition groups) for suppressing internal dissent. Despite General Aung San’s oft-quoted slogan of “unity in diversity,” political movements in Myanmar have been more commonly characterized by hegemonic attempts at imposing a top-down unity that labels deviation from or criticism of dominant positions as disloyalty. This article examines the perpetuation of a rigid, unitary understanding of unity and argues that developing a more flexible and accommodating notion of unity will be a necessary step in the process of national reconciliation. |
| spellingShingle | Walton, M The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics |
| title | The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics |
| title_full | The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics |
| title_fullStr | The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics |
| title_full_unstemmed | The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics |
| title_short | The disciplining discourse of unity in Burmese politics |
| title_sort | disciplining discourse of unity in burmese politics |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT waltonm thediscipliningdiscourseofunityinburmesepolitics AT waltonm discipliningdiscourseofunityinburmesepolitics |