Towards democracy : How can we explain the democratisation process in Myanmar?

Myanmar (former Burma) has not had an easy path towards democracy. Once a British colony, the country has struggled with the violent military junta for several decades. The international community has been said to have failed in trying to stabilise Myanmar, in spite of good intentions. Although Myanmar is still far from being a consolidated country, there has, however, been some progress with democratisation. This research will study how we can explain the democratisation process in Myanmar. It will concentrate on three key events which are analysed within a framework of two theories: Joseph S. Nye’s soft power, and realism. This study is conducted as a theory testing case study and is therefore using a qualitative method. Previous research in the form of democratisation theories from Diamond and Linz & Stepan are discussed as well. With the help of the theoretical framework, the study aims to discover whether the democratisation process can be explained with the help of those theories.