ABSTRACT
This chapter explores women’s contributions to peacebuilding in Myanmar through an investigation of the Women’s League of Burma (WLB) as a forum for women-to-women diplomacy, understood as an alternative peace-building strategy based on women’s interaction toward the common goal of achieving equal rights. It focuses on the multiple fronts and strategies that women-to-women diplomacy encompasses, in challenging widespread conflict narratives and fostering inter-ethnic dialogue. The case of Myanmar exemplifies the struggle of women for inclusion and meaningful participation in conflict resolution and peacemaking. The chapter presents a historical analysis of women as political actors and peacemakers in Myanmar, advances the theoretical contribution of women-to-women diplomacy as an alternative peacebuilding strategy and analyzes the women-to-women diplomacy of the WLB and their strategies for influencing the political agenda in Myanmar. It discusses the contributions of the WLB to the transformation of the predominant conflict narratives and the creation of a platform for inter-ethnic cooperation.
