ABSTRACT

A reform process initiated in 2011 in Myanmar brought hope to end decades of civil war and ethnic conflict. But new ceasefires have not moved into real political dialogue, the ‘peace process’ has stalled, and fighting continues in parts of the country. Economic reforms have favoured foreign investment and local elites, and have had detrimental impacts on communities in ethnic borderlands. The new ceasefires facilitated this, and coupled with economic reforms brought loss of land and related natural resources, and strengthened the central government and the military’s political and economic control over ethnic borderlands. This article argues that this is a continuation of the ‘neither war nor peace’ policy of a previous round of ceasefires in the 1990s, but by different means. In the past this focused on coercion and military pressure, but now these military tactics have been complemented with the use of the new legal framework.

摘要

2011年在缅甸启动的改革进程为结束数十年的内战和种族冲突带来了希望。但是新的停火尚未进入真正的政治对话，“和平进程”停滞不前，该国部分地区的战斗仍在继续。经济改革有利于外国投资和地方精英，并对族裔边境地区的社区产生了不利影响。新的停火促进了这一点，再加上经济改革造成土地和相关自然资源的损失，并加强了中央政府和军方对少数民族边境地区的政治和经济控制。本文认为，这是1990年代前一轮停火的“既不战争又不和平”政策的延续，只是采取了不同的手段。过去，这主要集中在强制和军事压力上，