ABSTRACT
The case study analysis of the Saffron Uprising 2007 in Burma/Myanmar shows how the mass mobilisation of power breaking resistance unfolded and contributed to push the militarised autocracy into democratising reforms. The uprising was not solely a sudden spontaneous reaction to decades of suppression, triggered by socio-economic strain on ordinary people, but was pre-organised underground and facilitated through various forms of avoidance resistance. The involvement of various sectors of societies, including the monks, contributed to delegitimise the grip of the military over the people’s lives, forcing the regime to combine brutal force with political reforms. This paved the way for the gradual and slow shift to civilian rule in 2010, and eventually the election victory for the opposition NLD in 2015. The chapter ends with a brief discussion on the consequences of the military’s coup d’état, once again, in 2021, and its negative impact on democracy in Myanmar.
