Myanmar

By most accounts, 1999 had not been a good year for Myanmar. Politically, the country remained in stasis. The ruling military junta, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), had yet to finish drafting a new constitution and continued to rule by decree. Meanwhile, repression of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) intensified and there were no indica tions that the two sides were closer to dialogue. Several international initiatives that aimed to end the stalemate also failed to bear fruit. While the country's politics remained in limbo, the economy deteriorated. The boom of the mid 1990s turned to bust and there were few signs of an imminent upturn. The day-to-day life of the majority of the country's population continued to de cline, with the World Bank warning of a silent emergency in child malnutri tion. The crisis in education and health services continued. Internationally, Myanmar remained isolated and sanctions were renewed by the United States and the European Union (EU). Myanmar's relations with its immediate neigh bour, Thailand, also deteriorated

Economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Asian Geopolitics and Ethnography · Law