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Sāsana Over Secularity Sāsana Over Secularity A Discourse Analysis of the Role of Religion for the National League for Democracy in Transitional Myanmar Figure 1. Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. Source: Author's own. Hanna Laird Supervisor Dr. Iselin Frydenlund, Professor of Religious Studies MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society, AVH5035: Thesis for Master in Religion, Society and Global Issues (60 ECTS), Spring 2020 Word count: 41 296 ii Acknowledgements The experience of writing this thesis was both challenging and rewarding. I am extremely grateful to everyone who contributed. Thank you to the informants in Myanmar who were willing to share their experiences with me. A special thanks to my research assistant, without whom my fieldwork would not have been possible. You were an invaluable resource and I truly appreciate the friendship we developed. I also want to thank NORPART for supporting my fieldwork which provided me with a unique opportunity to conduct this study. This work reaffirmed my interest in pursuing a career in research. My family and friends have been critical in this process. Thank you - Fanny, Stian, Maud, Linn, Kristin and Petter. I am touched by your interest in my work, your ongoing support and your ability to provide distraction when necessary. I am also so lucky to have such a wonderful family who provided constant encouragement. Finally, I am extremely grateful for the guidance and advice I got through this entire experience from my advisor. Iselin, thank you for introducing me to this topic, for challenging me and most of all - for inspiring me. iii Abstract The study of religion within the field of political science is growing. This thesis aims to contribute by studying religion and Myanmar’s leading (and currently governing) pro- democracy party, the National League for Democracy (NLD). The NLD is a valuable case, as Buddhism has played an important role in Burmese politics, including in the democratization efforts. Religious minorities have suffered the consequences of this - as seen in the ‘Rohingya crisis’. Furthermore, little research has been done on the NLD since Myanmar began to transition to democracy in 2011. This thesis addresses the research question: What is the role of religion for the NLD in transitional Myanmar? The two sub-research questions are: 1. What is the NLD’s official stance on religion? 2. How does religion impact the NLD’s policy choices? This thesis is based on empirical evidence gathered through fieldwork in Myanmar. A discourse analysis of twelve in-depth interviews with Burmese politicians, political activists and monks leads to three hypotheses: 1. The NLD does not have a meaningful formal stance on religion. It envisions itself as a party adhering to 'liberal' democratic values, including being ‘secular’. 2. Buddhism has an unofficially privileged position in the NLD. The NLD engages with Buddhist sources of legitimacy and actively defends its relationship to Buddhism – as seen by the removal of its Muslim candidates in the 2015 election. 3. The NLD’s relationship with religion is largely contextual. The unofficial privileging of Buddhism appears when political adversaries accuse the NLD of not being able to protect Buddhism. These findings have theoretical implications and demonstrate that studies of politics in Buddhist contexts must be cognizant of the continued importance of the state being seen as a protector of Buddhism, and that Western political conceptions (such as secularity) cannot neatly be applied to Buddhist contexts. iv Abbreviations CEC Central Executive Committee EC Election Committee MaBaTha Association for the Protection of Race and Religion MaHaNa State Sangha Mahā Nāyaka Committee MP Member of Parliament NLD National League for Democracy SLORC State Law and Order Restoration Council SPDC State Peace and Development Council USDP Union Solidarity and Development Party YSPS Yangon School of Political Science v Table of Contents 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Background ................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 Academic Context ...................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Research Aims ............................................................................................................ 4 1.4 Research Questions .................................................................................................... 5 1.5 Methodology .............................................................................................................. 6 1.6 Thesis Organization .................................................................................................... 6 2 Theoretical Framework ...................................................................................................... 8 2.1 Religion and Political Science .................................................................................... 8 2.2 The Distinction between Religion and Politics ........................................................ 10 2.3 Religion as an Analytical Category .......................................................................... 11 2.3.1 Contextual Perspectives on Religion ................................................................ 13 2.4 Politics as an Analytical Category ........................................................................... 15 2.4.1 Contextual Perspectives on Politics ................................................................. 16 3 Methodology .................................................................................................................... 18 3.1 Case Study Research ................................................................................................ 18 3.2 Research Methods .................................................................................................... 19 4 Background: Buddhism and Politics ................................................................................ 22 4.1 Politics and Scripture in Early Buddhism ................................................................ 23 4.1.1 Three Political Paradigms ................................................................................ 23 4.2 Buddhism and the Modern State .............................................................................. 26 5 Historical Overview: Religion and the Burmese State ..................................................... 30 5.1 The Pre-Colonial Period ........................................................................................... 30 5.2 Colonialism .............................................................................................................. 31 5.3 Independence ............................................................................................................ 32 5.4 Religion in the Democratic Union of Burma (1948-1962) ...................................... 33 5.5 Military Rule (1962-2011) ....................................................................................... 34 5.6 Transitional Myanmar (2011-) ................................................................................. 39 6 Fieldwork ......................................................................................................................... 43 6.1 Conducting the Fieldwork ........................................................................................ 43 vi 6.1.1 The Informants ................................................................................................. 45 6.1.2 Language .......................................................................................................... 46 6.2 Methodological Reflections ..................................................................................... 46 6.2.1 Nationality ........................................................................................................ 47 6.2.2 Gender .............................................................................................................. 48 6.2.3 Sensitivity in the Field ...................................................................................... 49 6.2.4 Risk of Accusations .......................................................................................... 50 6.2.5 Location of the Interviews ................................................................................ 51 6.2.6 Research Ethics ................................................................................................ 52 6.2.7 Informal Interviews .......................................................................................... 53 7 Presentation and Analysis of the Findings ....................................................................... 54 7.1 Chapter Approach: Integrated Data Presentation and Analysis ............................... 54 7.1.1 Potential Limitations ........................................................................................ 56 7.2 Understanding the NLD Through the 2015 Election ............................................... 58 7.2.1 Electoral Approach ........................................................................................... 58 7.2.2 Party Structure .................................................................................................. 60 7.3 An Official Party Stance on Religion ......................................................................
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