When Burma moved from its place in corner of the British empire to full state-independence in 1948, the country was widely considered one of the most 'promising' young nations in South East Asia. Geographically and socially diverse and rich in natural resources, Burma seemed a likely candidate for success in the era of the nation-state.

In 1962, a group of Military generals took...
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When Burma moved from its place in corner of the British empire to full state-independence in 1948, the country was widely considered one of the most 'promising' young nations in South East Asia. Geographically and socially diverse and rich in natural resources, Burma seemed a likely candidate for success in the era of the nation-state.

In 1962, a group of Military generals took control of the country, and in the ensuing forty five years the country has been driven by this junta into a severe socio-economic malaise. Productive industries are owned and exploited by the military government and the junta has created a 'state within a state' where members of the armed forces are
given a quality of life unimaginable to most Burmese citizens. Corruption is rife and the economic potential of the country has been squandered. The majority of Burmese live on the periphery of this 'state', living in conditions of severe and worsening poverty.

The sole non-military Burmese social institution that provides any social structure is the Buddhist monkhood.
Buddhist stupas dot every town. Many young Burmese join the movement as novice monks or nuns, a life-choice that not only provides education but also a means of daily life-support for the multitude living below the poverty line. In the late 1980's the junta built up Buddhist infrastructure across Burma in the belief that religion would indeed be the opiate of the Burmese masses. However, the Buddhist monkhood as a social and philosophical 'other' to the military had, by 2006, largely become a focal point for social dissastisfaction and political dissent in one of the now-poorest countries in South East Asia.
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