The upper hand
Myanmar is now a Presidential, constitutional republic, with a legislature elected to support the law-making of a
strong executive. This system has evolved from what was a series of military dictatorships that ruled the country
from 1962. Adequately characterizing the current system of government is difficult because the military continues
to influence many of the key decisions in Naypyitaw even though its official role has been greatly reduced.
The country therefore sits in an awkward position of semi-democracy that frustrates those who wished that faster
progress had been made towards a genuinely participatory political system. The transition will be tested by the
proposed elections in 2015, which will likely bring about more sustained changes to the overall political climate.
In a rapidly changing political context, while there is not a long history of broad-based social participation, there
is a growing awareness that such participation will not pose an unreasonable threat to the transitional system.
Media organizations that were previously allowed only to operate in exile, and often in secret, have been
recently welcomed back to Myanmar. They continue to attack the government and its policies, but do so from
the advantageous positions they now enjoy inside the country. There are still, however, those who struggle to find
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support for their approach to confrontation with the government. In the past year some journalists and activists
have been prosecuted for their work, although such cases are much less frequent than they were under military
rule.
While even in 2014 Internet usage in Myanmar remains low, a rambunctious culture of online discussion has
emerged. Myanmar’s Internet has become an unruly forum for the distribution of provocative anti-Muslim material
fanning hatred among those who are already inclined to chauvinist attitudes. The censorship that limited the utility
of the Internet in earlier years has been replaced by free-wheeling discussions, including of sensitive political
topics. During periods of inter-communal tension the government has allegedly sought to control Internet usage as
a means of disrupting the flow of potentially explosive material.