ABSTRACT
The last decide of the 20th century saw the democratization and liberalization of dozens of nations around the world. Countries that had formerly been controlled by Communist governments became quasidemocracies; military dictatorships in Latin America and Africa gave way to more liberal regimes; and, in Asia, a number of civilian dictatorships were replaced by elected governments seeking to create open societies, The transition was not a smooth one in any of these cases, and it is not yet dear whether democratization will prevail in all of them. Burma presents one of the most obvious exceptions to this trend toward transformation. As the world moved toward the 21st century, not only did Burma - in contrast to all the Other countries of Southeast Asia —remain closed, but its government actually became more despotic.
