Reducing Inequalities in Public Engagement in Myanmar

Lead Research Organisation: School of Oriental and African Studies
Department Name: Anthropology and Sociology

Abstract

Since October 2017, the AHRC-GCRF funded 'Deepening Democracy' programme, run by the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People (GRNPP), has been supporting research into the relationships between Parliaments, politicians and people in Myanmar and Ethiopia, as well as developing a truly global research network in this field.

Within the first year of the programme, two unanticipated developments specific to Myanmar have made it imperative that we take a more active and participatory role in deepening democracy in that country:

1. The Rohingya crisis in Myanmar, which highlights the extent to which the country's transition to democracy remains incomplete. Many areas and ethnic groups have been persistently excluded from economic development and political participation in Myanmar, creating conditions characterised by instability, weak institutions, and developmental deficits. Similar barriers are evident in the case of women. While social, economic and political exclusion based on ethnicity and gender is not itself a new phenomenon, its entrenchment in Myanmar in recent months is undeniable and requires robust, evidence-based, creatively imagined, and committed action.

2. Limited understanding of how arts and humanities can contribute to political change: It has become evident in the course of our grant-making scheme supporting artists, activists and academics to conduct political research that there is a lack of inter-disciplinary capabilities through which to (i) harness deeper understandings of democracy (and its deficits); (ii) communicate research to non-academic audiences; and (iii) shape and influence policy-making towards more inclusive democratic relationships and experiences. Taken together, these represent a threat to the realisation of impactful change through the arts and humanities.

The 'Reducing Inequalities in Public Engagement' (RIPE) project is the outcome of on-going, collaborative, and critical reflection - guided by our partner in Myanmar, the Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation (EMReF) - about how to address these developments and transform them into opportunities for contributing to change in a positive, engaged, and sustained manner.

The RIPE project seeks to achieve impact through a series of strategies including:

1. Strengthening opportunities for civil society communication and engagement by politicians. This will improve the prospects for long-term peace and stability throughout Myanmar. The creation of a multi-stakeholder Alliance for Inclusive Democracy will work to reduce barriers to public engagement. By strengthening connections between those committed to make institutions more inclusive and better at public engagement, the project will achieve tangible and measurable impact, and enhance inclusive democracy.

2. 'Unlocking Creative Potentials in Research'. This training workshop will help develop researchers' capacity to take their findings to public and policy-making audiences in creative and impactful ways that emphasise the role of arts and humanities in understanding, and ultimately reducing, democratic deficits

The RIPE project aims to positively impact ethnic and other under-represented groups in Myanmar who are denied access to, participation in, and representation by Parliament and politicians; and whose lives have become unlivable as a consequence. It will also help establish academics in Myanmar as vital and integral partners in the movement to deepen democracy.

Additionally, the framework of collaborative, collective, and conscientious action by multiple communities of practice in Myanmar - which will underpin the RIPE project - will provide a model for similar processes, practices, and partnerships to evolve in other fragile states, thereby allowing for the transnational flow of key ideas and practices that positively impact inclusive democracy.

Planned Impact

The RIPE project's impact pathway is measurable in terms of three tangible and integrated outcomes which together will contribute to the further realisation and fulfilment of SDG 16 in Myanmar. These are: (i) deepening commitment to more inclusive democracy amongst a range of stakeholders; (ii) embedding the arts and humanities as integral to the achievement of deepen democracy; and (iii) increasing receptivity amongst policy-makers towards more inclusive democracy.

Impact 1 - Establish long-term multi-stakeholder commitment to, planning for, and strategic implementation of, activities that help create and shape political receptivity to more inclusive democracy in Myanmar

Champions for change, identified by members of the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People in partnership with the Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation (EMReF), and drawn from diverse (and often isolated) communities of policy-making and practice such as Parliamentarians, NGOs, CSOs, artists, activists and academics will be brought together to form an 'Alliance for Inclusive Democracy' that will explore and synthesise ways to achieve more inclusive democracy in Myanmar, with particular focus on increasingly marginalised ethnic groups and women.

Impact 2 - Improve understanding and integration of the arts and humanities in deepening non-academic understanding of political research, and contributing to positive, engaged and sustained political change that benefits people in Myanmar

Academics will be trained to unlock the creative potential of their research findings, create communications products that are intelligible and of value to non-academic (and especially policy-making) audiences, and embed themselves as integral members of multi-stakeholder coalitions for change in Myanmar, such as (but not limited to) the 'Alliance for Inclusive Democracy'. In so doing, they will highlight and epitomise the important role that arts and humanities, and inter-disciplinarity, has to play in deepening democracy.

Impact 3 - Facilitate the process and achievement of more inclusive democracy amongst under-represented groups in Myanmar via policy-for-change workshops and meetings that shape and influence the policy-making environment in tangible and measurable ways.

Members of the 'Alliance for Inclusive Democracy' will be assisted in forming action groups to reduce inequalities in public engagement. They will be supported to engage relevant policy-makers in consultations, meetings and briefings to communicate markers and priorities for deepening democracy in Myanmar, and that begin to create conditions for change.

Taken together, these pathways to impact in Myanmar will contribute to the fulfilment of SDG 16. The overall goal of the existing 'Deepening democracy' project and of the proposed RIPE project is oriented around the practical realisation of SDG 16. This calls for democracy to be underpinned by strong political institutions, and strong relationships between politicians and people, in order to achieve stability, peace and the foundation for social, economic and political development. The preceding three outcomes collectively achieve impact in this direction, which in turn provides the framework around which they are each articulated, explored, and achieved.
 
Title 'Collab Cookbook: Stories and Recipes for Meaningful Interdisciplinary Research and Creative Practice.' 
Description Following the success of the 'Pursuing Arts in Research' workshop, which brought together the distinct communities of practice that are researchers and artists in Myanmar and helped them forge connections and partnerships in their shared ambition to advocate for more inclusive democracy, the workshop facilitators developed an artistic resource - a 'cookbook' - to bring to life the methods used in the workshop that led to impactful interdisciplinary creative collaborations, exhibited at a Festival in the Secretariat in Yangon, Mynamar, at the end of 2019. 
Type Of Art Artwork 
Year Produced 2020 
Impact The cookbook on how to foster interdisciplinary connections between artists and researchers is being launched in Spring 2020, and discussions are underway to hold similar workshops (on which it is based) as part of the wider effort to enhance the role of arts (and humanities) in research. 
 
Title Ahnu Thutaythana Exhibition in Yangon, Myanmar, by EMReF and GRNPP 
Description The Exhibition developed out of the partnerships forged between P4P researchers, and artists, across Myanmar during a workshop in mid-2019, which saw them connect, collaborate and co-produce research-based artwork on themes of democracy, political relationships, representation, engagement and exclusion. These were showcased at the exhibition as part of the 'Reducing inequalities in public engagement in Myanmar' project co-led by GRNPP and EMReF, generating public access, engagement, reflection, and support for research-based artwork as a medium for communication, dissemination, and advocacy. 
Type Of Art Artistic/Creative Exhibition 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact The exhibition generated widespread public access, engagement, reflection, and support for research-based artwork as a medium for communication, dissemination, and advocacy. This was all the more poignant given it was held over four days at the Secretariat, in Yangon, Myanmar; the former seat of national politics in the country. 
 
Title Artwork depicting the long journey women still have to make to become political representatives in Myanmar, via the research-based creative collaboration between Nu Nu Hlaing of Tavoyan Womens Union, and artist Min Arkar Htet 
Description Cartoon illustrations developed to depict the realities of women trying to actively participate in politics by becoming politicians, and the challenges they face even when they assume that position. 
Type Of Art Artwork 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact More than 500 visitors to an exhibition that included the research-based artwork reflected on, discussed, and were given greater awareness of the continuing challenges that face women entering politics in Myanmar. 
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Title Artwork produced to illustrate the challenges of democratisation in Kachin and Northern Shan state and freedom of expression in relation to internationally displaced people, a research-based creative collaboration between Danseng Lawn and Cecilia Ja Seng 
Description Researcher Danseng Lawn and artist Cecilia Ja Seng formed a creative collaboration to illustrate and depict the challenges of democratisation and the issue of freedom of expression in three pieces of art, in an effort to help generate awareness, prompt discussion, and impact policy changes.The artwork was displayed at the Ahnu Thutaythana Festival and Exhibition in Yangon. 
Type Of Art Artwork 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact The artwork generated discussion, reflection, and attitudinal changes amongst a variety of visitors - politicians, general public, youth, religious leaders, Myanmar and international CSOs and NGOs, students, researchers and artists - numbering more than 500 in total, about issues relating to freedom of expression about IDPs and the challenges facing democratisation in Kachin state. 
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Title Cartoon illustrations depicting challenges to political representation and participation in Chin state, Myanmar 
Description 5 comic illustrations depicting challenges to political representation and participation in Chin state, Myanmar; developed via a creative collaboration between P4P Grant research team at Chinbridge Institute and artists Cecilia Ja Seng and Rung Cin Thang, in order to render research findings visually accessible, and prompt awareness and discussion about issues affecting effective governance and Chin politics across a variety of stakeholders. 
Type Of Art Artwork 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact More than 500 people - ranging across politicians, general public, national and international CSOs and NGOs, children, and researchers and artists - visited an exhibition at which the research-based artwork depicting the state of political representation, engagement and participation in Chin state, Myanmar was displayed, and were prompted to learn, reflect on, and discuss regional political realities, as well as the integration of arts and research in advocating for sociopolitical change. 
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Title Freedom of Expression in Myanmar Vox-Pop, Ma Thida, PEN Myanmar 
Description PEN Myanmar conducted interviews with people in Yangon on Freedom of Expression - what it means to them and how it affects their lived social experience. Respondents ranged in age, gender (including non-binary people), ethnicity, and profession. The resulting interviews were produced as vox-pops, and the resulting video was shown at the Pursuing Arts in Research (PAIR/Ahnu Thutaythana) Festival in Yangon between 30 November and 3 December 2019, to an audience of a few hundred people. 350 DVD copies are also being produced for distribution by civil society organisations across Myanmar interested in engaging the general public as well as Parliamentarians and policy-makers on the critical issue of freedom of expression in the fragile democracy of Myanmar. The video is also reaching people, and generating engagement and views on social media, particularly on Facebook, with a view to changing people's understanding and encouraging them to reflect on the content of their speech acts towards marginalised others. 
Type Of Art Film/Video/Animation 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact The 'Freedom of Expression' video engages with a topical issue affecting the lives and experiences of many people in Myanmar, and its reception at the 'Pursuing Arts in Research' Festival in Yangon generated discussion and reflection amongst the participants about the kinds of freedoms that they regard as critical to Myanmar's democratic transition. The video is also expected to achieve impact by influencing policy-makers, as it will be shown and distributed via DVD at meetings, workshops and other events in the course of 2020. 
URL https://parliaments4people.com/coalitions/ripe
 
Title Graphically animated report with illustrations on local governance in Mandalay, Myanmar, by Pyae Sone Aung, Sitt Moe Aung, Ye Htet Thu 
Description P4P Grantees Yone Kyi Yar collaborated with an artist and graphic designer to turn their research on local governance in a township in Mandalay into a report that also included illustrations and graphics, in order to make their findings more engaging and accessible to a wide range of stakeholders, and as a mechanism for reaching people's hearts as well as their minds. 
Type Of Art Artwork 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact MPs, citizens and advocacy groups in and around Mandalay have engaged with Yone Kyi Yar's illustrated report on local governance, and its deficits, in a manner that has helped them get beyond technical jargon and political speak, and generate discussion at a more human level that focuses on relationships between people and their political representatives. 
 
Title Hate Speech in Myanmar vox-pop, Ma Thida, PEN Myanmar 
Description The PEN Myanmar team produced a video on Hate Speech in Myanmar in order to generate awareness of the kinds of speech acts that can be construed as hateful and dangerous, and who they tend to be targeted at. The video comprises vox-pops - interviews with people in Yangon ranging in age, gender, religion and ethnicity and profession - and seeks to establish the protocols for tolerant and inclusive speech acts that can help ensure peace in Myanmar. 
Type Of Art Film/Video/Animation 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact The creative approach to the sensitive topic of hate speech in the fragile sociopolitical landscape of Myanmar proved to be challenging to make, due to lack of awareness of what counts as hate speech, and in that very challenge lay its impact - specifically, to call attention to speech acts that people do not recognise as hateful towards others but which are felt and experienced as hateful, and which therefore contribute to people's sense of exclusion in Myanmar based on their ethnicity, religion, and gender among other things. Shown at the 'Pursuing Arts in Research' Festival in Yangon, 30 November to 3 December 2019, the video encountered gasps from the audience, and generated discussion and reflection. The video is also being shown to Parliamentarians in the lead up to the 2020 general election, in order to advocate for policies that are inclusive of all people in the country.The video is also reaching people, and generating engagement and views on social media, particularly on Facebook, with a view to changing people's understanding and encouraging them to reflect on the content of their speech acts towards marginalised others. 
URL https://parliaments4people.com/coalitions/ripe
 
Title White Rose 'Now I can smile' animation 
Description The animation reflects on the May 2019 violence against Muslims in Yangon and other areas in Myanmar, and the resulting so-called 'white rose campaign', which saw religious and civil society organisations, and people, offering white rose to their Muslim neighbours, friends, colleagues, strangers, in a bid to demonstrate compassion and reassure them they belong. The animation, which involves a number of ethnic and Burmese artists, "aims to show that we can live together based on mutual respect and kindness, despite our differences", states Mi Mi Mwin, one of the artists involved. 
Type Of Art Film/Video/Animation 
Year Produced 2019 
Impact Says artist Mi Mi Lwin of the animation: "The outcome is delivering the message to viewers that peace can only take place between two communities that share love kindness and respect. It will impact viewers thinking of their communications and perceptions toward different religions in their daily lives.2 
URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRrBRqFgvoQ
 
Description The Reducing Inequalities in Public Engagement (RIPE) in Myanmar project responds to deepening democratic deficits in a country that has only recently begun opening its borders to the outside world. The project addresses three key issues: (1) the increasing limitations placed on civil society to act and speak truth to power, (2) the deepening Rohingya crisis as well as marginalisation of other groups across the country, and (3) the untapped potential of the arts (and humanities) in pursuing research-based advocacy for change. Together with our project partners, the Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation, we aim to make a meaningful contribution to SDG16. We acknowledge that this is something we share with many other organisations, but our uniqueness lies in the fact that we see Myanmar's troubled transition to inclusive democracy as requiring Myanmar-led processes, outputs and impacts. Therefore, we have instituted an international coalition praxis that prioritises, listens to, and responds to, the voices of Myanmar's civil society, of excluded and marginalised groups, and of artists and researchers.

The key findings of the RIPE project so far have focused on (1) building a civil society alliance, (2) instituting arts-based research as a new paradigm, and (3) rethinking international coalitions:

(1) Myanmar is a richly diverse and often discordant country, but under the auspices of RIPE multiple interest groups have brought their differences into the open, begun to dialogue with each other, and are entering collaborative relationships to strategise and advocate for change. In qualitative terms, the detail of what has been achieved is extraordinary and unprecedented. Distinct communities of interest and practice have coalesced to form a unified civil society, which came together publicly for the first time at the Ahnu Thutaythana Festival at the Secretatiat, Yangon, to discuss and debate the status of political representation and engagement in Myanmar and to bring to public attention to these topics via research-based artistic products. RIPE is regarded by its participants as a critical and timely intervention that will yield meaningful, positive, sustainable change over time. Members of the Alliance of Inclusive Democracy were taking a public stance and seeking to influence Parliamentarians and policy-makers, for example through their contribution to an open letter supporting the International Criminal Justice case on Myanmar's alleged genocide of the Rohingya. This work has been interrupted by the military coup in early 2021 but the networks remain active.

(2) Artists have a long and hallowed history of speaking truth to power in Myanmar. They have been joined more recently by researchers, who tend to be based in civil society organisations and have a strong activist base. Despite their shared aims, these powerful communities of practice operate individually. The RIPE project has substantively altered the landscape of activism in Myanmar, and strengthened its potential, by bringing artists and researchers together. According to participants this was a unique initiative in bringing together artists and scholars to have meaningful dialogue. It resulted in the Ahnu Thutaythana (arts and research) Festival and Exhibition some months later, where research-based arts collaborations were on exhibit to the public - on the site of the former national Parliament of Myanmar - in the form of cartoons and illustrations. The general public were overwhelming in their response to these exhibits, citing that they felt more aware and more directly connected to the issue of political exclusion amongst so many groups in the country. The potential for the arts to galvanise change is at an unprecedented level, and there is demonstrable commitment to integrating arts and research for advocacy in Myanmar in the long-term - and forthcoming activities around this will be reported on at the end of the project.

(3) The RIPE project has also afforded us the opportunity to reflect on international coalition praxis, including in the context of contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (specifically, SDG16). Mindful that the well-meaning pursuit of development by the Global North on behalf of the Global South and East is too often framed by technologies and criteria that focus on macro-level changes, we have taken an utterly unique approach. Our project has been conceived, and has evolved, in a deeply iterative way that responds to the complex realities and relationships on the ground in Myanmar. In fact, the entire project premise was developed by the Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation, with ourselves taking the role of useful allies throughout, and providing institutional resources currently sorely lacking in Myanmar as a result of its weak university system. The impact of such an approach in how we think about international coalitions and their praxis cannot be underestimated. We think it provides a sustainable and realistic model moving forward which can help the UK government support deeper democracy abroad in better ways, and through a decolonising lens.
Exploitation Route There are four principal ways in which the outcomes of the Reducing Inequalities in Public Engagement (RIPE) in Myanmar project are being taken forward:
1. Civil society organisations in Myanmar have benefited from our project's engagement with, and efforts to open up, democratic space and voice at this critical moment in the country's history and its Parliamentarians' relationships with excluded and under-represented groups. Participants are continuing this initiative beyond the term of this project, as they see it as a foundation for more long-term civil society advocacy.
2. There is demonstrable evidence of an uptake of the research-based arts paradigm that we have helped initiate in Myanmar through our activities ('Unlocking the creative potential of research' workshop, grants and support for research-artist collaborations on themes of political-public engagement). Artists and researchers are interested in continuing these connections, collaborations, and co-productions for the purpose of strengthening and improving democratic relationships in the country.
3. The UK-based Positive-Negatives has produced a resource about the process of connecting artists and researchers, based on the example of this project, and which they envisage using as a blueprint for forging similar relationships and practices between artists and researchers in other countries.
4. We are hoping to submit an application for further funding that builds on the project aims and activities, and which we hope will allow the Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation to take on the role of Principal Investigators, with ourselves as supporters and allies.
Sectors Creative Economy

Government

Democracy and Justice
URL https://grnpp.org/ripe/
 
Description The impact of our project has been principally to (1) improve the potential scope and space for Myanmar civil society to engage with questions of deficits in political representation and participation when democracy is restored; (2) encourage inter-disciplinary collaboration in Myanmar, particularly between artists and researchers, and the foundation this provides for more linked-up advocacy; and (3) demonstrate the paramount importance of Global South led partnerships in the international development arena. First, our project placed itself in a position of resistance against Myanmar's ever-restrictive freedoms on civil society before the coup. This was achieved by curating meetings which bring together a broad cohort of civil society members to discuss democratic presents and futures in Myanmar. At each stage - including beyond the life-cycle of the present project - members of the Alliance for Inclusive Democracy (AID) engaged in a process of inclusive and sustained dialogue with one another, acknowledging the (sometimes strong and clearly expressed) differences between them, seeking to understand these better, and find common and shared interests that aid Myanmar's transition to more inclusive democracy. The potential that the Alliance had to enhance civil society's meaningful and positive impact on Myanmar's democracy was unparalleled in the country's history. The RIPE project was critical to this intervention. However, the benefits to Myanmar's political system will be not realised until democracy is restored. Second, SOAS and partners, co-ordinated by the Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation, introduced a completely new paradigm into Myanmar activism in the form of arts-and-research collaboration. This was a significant impact for a country in which diversity is too often seen as shorthand for discordant identities and beliefs, and it demonstrates the power and potential that lie in bringing down disciplinary walls. Myanmar civil society was innovating within inter-disciplinary activism in powerful ways - as examples, through seven arts-and research collaborative projects on topics ranging from women's exclusion from political office and decision-making; ethnic violence and its roots in narratives and policies of exclusion of the 'other'; political corruption; and lack of access to resources. Through RIPE, Myanmar civil societies organisations presented a model of connection and co-production useful for communities of practice and knowledge-making - these findings remain valuable for not only Myanmar institutions but for grant-makers and funders in the Global North to reflect on. Third, RIPE models an innovative form of international coalition praxis. Comprising a coalition of members drawn from Myanmar, the UK, the US and India, it has been predicated on a process of listening and on developing relationships; and in which we have prioritised the experience, knowledge, vision, and voice of our Myanmar partners to brilliant effect. Our aim has been to occupy a role and space as useful allies, thereby overturning pre-existing models and conceptions of what an effective and impactful Global North - Global South international development relationship looks like. This began for the SOAS scholars at the very beginning: it was logical that the Myanmar organisation (Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation) be the primary architects of the project, since it has the potential to directly affect their country and its democratic outcomes; while we drew on the structural and institutional expertise at our disposal to enable and support this approach. We have also focused on making the project iterative and responsive to changing conditions and contexts in Myanmar, enabling our partnership to maximise positive outcomes and impacts when democracy is restored. Although the impact of RIPE has departed from our expectations due to the military coup in February 2021, we continue to support our partners who remain actively involved in politics as they promote the principles and practices of more inclusive democracy in the very long-term. This network of civil society with diverse backgrounds continues to deepen its capacity to challenge injustices and inequalities embedded in Myanmar's society. The first impact of the project remains relevant: in 2021 January 11 members of civil society gathered to produce a Civil Society Charter aimed at setting the firm grounds of civil society based on the values of humanity and democracy. Based on this Charter the group intended to develop a policy framework in relation with the Myanmar State and the international community. However, this was postponed because of the coup staged in the following month. The network became virtual with a pseudonym, established three weeks after the military coup in February 2021. Most of the members of AID were on the network. The new network continues to do collective advocacy towards pro-democratic political institutions such as National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC) and National Unity Government (NUG), with the international community such as EU, UN and ASEAN, and international democratic governments, with the goal of the development of federal democracy in Myanmar. The new network has argued for collective prodemocratic leadership, provided policy advice to the Ministry of Human Rights during the development of Policy Statement of NUG relating to Rohingya people and met with UN and EU officers to guide them on actions for restoring democracy. This new network also occasionally conducts assessments and reflections of the current political situation for international and diaspora organisations. Finally, scholars involved in the AID and now new network are currently planning to start a School of Social Research and Ecology in collaboration with pro-democratic civic institutions in Thailand with the aim of providing post-graduate level education to diaspora youths from Myanmar. All organisations in RIPE continue to advocate for better international partnership. RIPE's PI is on SOAS's International Partnerships Advisory Panel, as the university embarks on an ambition programme of equitable teaching and research partnerships with universities across the globe. Myanmar diaspora colleagues are advising international and European donors on international partnerships, including in a DANIDA funded workshop in March 2023. These findings on partnership have been combined with those gleaned from our main AHRC-funded research programme and written up in a 'learning from practice paper', uploaded to GNRPP (https://grnpp.org/output/managing-international-research-coalitions/), which is now being widely used by other universities. RIPE has also had a profound influence on the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People's subsequent work with partners, who continue to research the relationship between parliaments, politicians and people. In the latest projects visual, creative and collaborative ethnography have become central to: (a) comparative research into parliaments in six countries funded by the European Research Council with a £2m grant, (b) a subsequent follow-on programme funded by the AHRC that put theatre at the central of the research and dissemination into the political marginalisation of a pastoralist group in Ethiopia. The conceptual underpinning of the methodology of both these projects was largely developed during RIPE, as is explained on www.grnpp.org/engagement. We had an academic article about the history of RIPE rejected by a journal on grounds of security but will publish when it is no longer risky for the Myanmar authors.
First Year Of Impact 2020
Sector Creative Economy,Government, Democracy and Justice
Impact Types Cultural

Societal

Policy & public services
 
Description An Audit of Political Engagement: building knowledge and understanding of democracy in Myanmar to support the integration of representative and participatory democracy 
Organisation Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Awarded a large grant
Collaborator Contribution This project undertakes an Audit of Political Engagement (APE) in six states and regions across Myanmar, in order to assess public attitudes to democracy, with a particular focus on sub-national parliaments and the role and work of MPs. Combining a public opinion poll survey with focus group discussions and interviews, its aim is to develop a benchmark that can be utilised in the future to track the emergence, shaping and transformation of democratic political culture over time. Inspired by a similar project in the United Kingdom, the present project is heavily reconfigured to align with the Myanmar context, and has been developed in consultation with local civil society organisations and following a workshop involving researchers, policy advocates and artists. The research process will be documented, and the results disseminated, using film and photography.
Impact Outputs and outcomes have been reported under the relevant sections of Researchfish
Start Year 2019
 
Description Challenges to women's participation in politics, through interviews and life journeys in Mon, Kayin and Thanintharyi Parliaments 
Organisation Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organization
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Small grant awarded; training given to promote creative collaborations
Collaborator Contribution Cherry Soe Mon of Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organization (JCSDO) is collaborating with artists to produce large attention-grabbing images, illustrating her research on women's political participation and stories of their journeys towards becoming parliamentarians, in order to begin conversations with people and politicians about gender-inclusivity
Impact Outputs will be listed upon completion of project
Start Year 2019
 
Description Depicting Reality: Deepening Democracy through Art 
Organisation Chinbridge Institute
Country Myanmar 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Small grant awarded; training given to promote creative collaborations
Collaborator Contribution Chinbridge Institute are working with artists Ja Seng and Rung Cin Thang to communicate their research on Chin political participation through comics and postcards, which they will use to start conversations with their parliamentarians and engage people across the state.
Impact 1. RIPE Festival 'representation' panel participation (ENG) 2. RIPE creative collaboration artwork (ART)
Start Year 2019
 
Description Freedom of expression in relation to the issue of internally displaced peoples 
Organisation Kachinland Research Centre
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Awarded small grant; provided training in creative collaborations
Collaborator Contribution Kachinland Research Centre are collaborating with artist Ms Ja Seng to depict issues relating to freedom of expression through acrylic and water colour paintings; these will be displayed in public and political spaces in order to generate engagement and reflection by politicians and people
Impact Outputs will be listed upon completion of this project
Start Year 2019
 
Description Illustrating Barriers to Women's Participation in Politics in Tanintharyi Region 
Organisation Tavoyan Women's Union
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Small grant awarded; training given to promote creative collaborations
Collaborator Contribution Tavoyan Women's Union are collaborating with the cartoonist Min Ar Kar Htet to illustrate their research on barriers to women's participation in politics, for use in outreach and awareness programs in Dawei and via social media
Impact 1. RIPE Festival 'representation' panel participation (ENG) 2. RIPE creative collaboration artwork (ART)
Start Year 2019
 
Description Promoting Ahnu Thu Tay Tha Na (Pursuing Arts in Research) Through Books and short Films 
Organisation Enlightened Myanmar Research Foundation
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Small grant awarded; training given to promote creative collaborations
Collaborator Contribution Filmmaker Mi Mi Lwin and graphic artist Min Ar Kar Htet collaborated on a film about the 2019 White Rose Campaign - a CSO-led peace initiative in the wake of violence against Myanmar's Muslims during the year's Eid celebrations. A book and film were also produced to promoted the Ahnu Thu Tay Tha Na Festival
Impact Outputs include: 1 RIPE Festival 'Peace' panel participation 2 RIPE creative collaboration - white rose animation 3. RIPE book chapter (PUB)
Start Year 2019
 
Description State of Local Governance at Ward Level of Administration in Myanmar: seeing through the eyes of the people 
Organisation Knowledge Propagation Society
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution Small grant awarded; training given to promote creative collaborations
Collaborator Contribution Dr Pyae Sone Aung is collaborating with artists Sin Moe Aung and Ye Htet Thu to produce cartoons and graphically animated reports on the state of local governance that are easily accessible to citizens as well as parliamentarians
Impact 1. RIPE Festival 'repesentation' panel participation (ENG) 2. RIPE creative collaboration artwork (ART) 3. Pyae chapter in RIPE book (PUB) 4. Booklet on local governance in Mandalay (PUB) 5. Launch event of booklet on governance in Mandalay (ENG)
Start Year 2019
 
Description Words that create hate speech 
Organisation PEN International
Department PEN Myanmar
Country Myanmar 
Sector Charity/Non Profit 
PI Contribution PEN Myanmar are collaborating with artists Dr Ma Thida, Mr Thura Tha Wah and Ms Htet Naing Zin to produce vox-pops on freedom of expression and hate speech, in order to start conversations and raise awareness about these issues on social media
Collaborator Contribution Small grant awarded; training given to promote creative collaborations
Impact Outputs will be listed upon project completion
Start Year 2019
 
Description 'Representation' panel discussion involving Cherry Soe Mon, Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organisation 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 101 people attended a panel discussion on pursuing arts in research at the festival of the same name, in which Cherry Soe Mon of Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organisation shared her insights and experiences of integrating artistic products into her P4P research on women's participation in politics in three states/regions in Myanmar, and using these to communicate and influence policy-makers to redress political gender imbalances via illustrations and research, including the erection of billboard sized illustrations near Mon state parliament. This sparked new appreciation of the combined strength of arts and research in advocating for change amongst a range of audiences that included politicians of the Upper House of Parliament in Myanmar, artists, researchers, CSOs and NGOs, development workers, students and members of the general public.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Description 'Representation' panel discussion involving Ram Hlei Thang of Chinbridge Institute, Chin state, Myanmar 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 101 people attended a panel discussion on political representation, in which Ram Hlei Thang of Chinbridge Institute shared findings from the P4P Grant research project on political engagement and representation amongst the people of Chin state, in Myanmar; and discussed the role of arts in helping disseminate these findings across a broad range of audiences.This sparked new appreciation of the combined strength of arts and research in advocating for greater representation, as well as generating better understanding of the barriers to political representation that people across Myanmar face.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Description A talk by Cherry Soe Mon 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact From 7-9 September 2020 the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People held a symposium about democracy in Myanmar and Ethiopia. In this webinar presentation Mi Cherry Soe Mon, Director of Jeepyah Civil society Development Organisation, reports on her GRNPP-funded research project. She examined the barriers and opportunities for women's engagement in politics in Mon, Kayin and Thanintharyi regions of Myanmar. The obstacles faced by women politicians were explained by Mi Cherry Soe Mon and represented in beautiful artwork created by Min Arkar Htet.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://grnpp.org/output/womens-involvement-in-politics-in-southern-myanmar-2/
 
Description A talk by Myat Thet Thitsar 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact From 7-9 September 2020 the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People held asymposium about democracy in Myanmar and Ethiopia. In this webinar presentation EMReF director Myat Thet Thitsar explains how creative collaborations open up new spaces in which democracy can be understood, scrutinised, debated and communicated. The Ahnu Thutaythana Festival (funded through the RIPE programme) was used as a example of what can be achieved by brining arts, research, and advocacy to public and political attention.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description A talk by Nu Nu Hlaing 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact From 7-9 September 2020 the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People held a symposium about democracy in Myanmar and Ethiopia. In this webinar presentation Nu Nu Hlaing explains how her organisation, Tavoyan Women's Union, explored the barriers to women's leadership in Myanmar's Tanintharyi region, in their GRNPP-funded project. Using a mixed methods approach to do the research, they disseminated their findings in accessible ways - working with artist Min Arkar Htet to produce cartoons as well as making a short film.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://grnpp.org/output/barriers-to-womens-political-participation-in-myanmar/
 
Description A talk by Pyae Son Aung (Yone Kyi Yar) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact From 7-9 September 2020 the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People held a symposium about democracy in Myanmar and Ethiopia. In this webinar presentation Pyae Sone Aung, Research Director at Yone Kyi Yar, explains this how this GRNPP-funded project looked at local governance in Sagaing Township in Mandalay.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://grnpp.org/output/creative-collaboration-about-local-democracy-in-mandalay/
 
Description Ahnu Thutaythana (arts and research) Festival, by EMReF and GRNPP 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact The Ahnu Thutaythana (arts and research) Festival evolved from the 'Reducing Inequalities in Public Engagement in Myanmar' project co-led by GRNPP and EMReF, in order to demonstrate the integral role that arts (and humanities) have to play in research and advocacy around deeper and more inclusive democracy. The Festival was attended by the broadest range of civil society members imaginable, from across Myanmar as well as internationally - numbering in the mid-hundreds, and took place over four days at the end of 2019. It provided space for mutual engagement, sharing, debate, discussion on issues of political representation and exclusion affecting marginalised groups based on ethnicity, gender, region, religion, socioeconomic status, and age.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Ahnu Thutaythana Festival 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Public/other audiences
Results and Impact The purpose was to communicate issues around political engagement in Chin state, Myanmar through the creative collaboration between researchers and artists, in order to make the research more accessible and to deepen its impact and encourage dialogue and reflection, and change in parliamentary-public engagement
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Billboard illustrations conveying barriers to women's participation in politics in Myanmar, by Cherry Soe Mon and Min Arkar Htet, Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organisation 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact 66,000 people drive by a billboard situated in Mawlamyine, close to the Mon regional parliament, Myanmar, every day. The aim of displaying illustrations advocating for greater inclusion of women in politics on this billboard, the Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organisation P4P project team was "to get lots of attention to the issue of how few women MPs there are. This billboard was to raise awareness." This mechanism of communication also helped galvanise other activists in thinking about "how to use public spaces like billboards to raise awareness and reach the public." Furthermore, "the MP leader of the women and child committee commented that the billboard was an effective tool to raise awareness. This particular woman MP who was also interviewed in our original research project told us that although many days she feels frustrated and burned out, seeing that billboard inspired and encouraged her to keep pushing for gender equality in parliament and in her work. And a female member of the Mon Unity Party reported to us that there is increasing understanding and acceptance of the importance of making spaces for women's participation within the party, and she suggested that our work and awareness raising had in some part influenced it."
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Comic illustration display about Chin political representation, in Chin state hluttaw, by Chinbridge 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact Parliamentarians, and the general public, can engage with a comic illustration depicting challenges around political representation in Chin state, which has been presented for display in the Chin regional parliament library. The comic episode is the result of a research-based creative collaboration between Chinbridge and creative artists, working together to advocate for greater awareness and to influence changes in public-politician relationships.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Docu-animation film screening by Yangon Film School, at Ahnu Thutaythana Festival, Yangon 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 60 people across CSOs, NGOs, the general public, policy-makers, students and religious adherents attended a screening of the docu-animation LIMBO made by Yangon Film School students whose training was supported by a P4P Grant.The purpose of the screening was to inform and engage a primarily local Myanmar audience on the topic of gender-based violence in areas of Myanmar affected by conflict and the use of animated documentary by young Myanmar filmmakers to broach sensitive topics. The screening was successful in disseminating the power and effectiveness of animated documentary as a tool with which to raise awareness for gender-based violence, esp. in conflict-affected areas in Myanmar and also the potential for young people to engage with such topics on an artistic level
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description International symposium series on Parliament and People 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact This series of online symposia - hosted by SOAS over three days - showcased new interdisciplinary research on the relationship between parliaments and Peoples in Ethiopia and Myanmar. Bringing together researchers from Myanmar and Ethiopia the event offer a chance to consider three key themes that have arisen from the p4p project: exclusion/inclusion; gender and representation; creative collaboration and the arts. This was an opportunity to showcase the achievements of our Deepening Democracy programme and our partners' and grantees' outputs, and to facilitate communication between a range of academics, university research professionals and civil society activists.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Keynote address 'Arts: Search for Truth; and Research: Arts of Search for Truth', by Ma Thida San Chaung, PEN Myanmar 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact More than 101 people ranging from policy-makers, researchers, artists, CSO and NGO leaders, attended a workshop on 'Pursuing Arts in Research' at which Ma Thida San Chaung, of PEN Myanmar gave a keynote address on the integration of arts and research, and their combined search for truth; which sparked interest in researchers and artists about the possibilities of collaborating on projects relating to Myanmar's social and political landscape.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Launch event of illustrated report on local governance in Mandalay, by Pyae Sone Aung of Yone Kyi Yar 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Regional
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact 32 parliamentarians, students, CSOs, NGOs, and ward administrators attended the launch of an illustrated report on local governance in a Mandalay township, which contained watercolour paintings depicting significant research findings and were the product of a creative collaboration P4P grant. 240 copies of the booklet were distributed to regional MPs. and a further 160 were distributed to a range of local citizens.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Participation in panel discussion on 'Freedom of Expression', by Danseng Lawn of Kachinland Research Centre 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 101 people from across policy-makers, the general public, researchers, artists, religious leaders, NGOs and CSOs inside and outside Myanmar, attended a panel discussion on freedom of expression at the Ahnu Thutaythana Festival, at which Danseng Lawn of the Kachinland Research Centre talked about the issue and how it affects the Kachin people and inclusiveness more generally in the country of Myanmar.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Description Participation in panel discussion on 'Peace', by Mi Mi Lwin (P4P Grantee) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 101 people attended a panel discussion on peace at the Ahnu Thutaythana Festival in Yangon on 1st December 2019, at which Mi Mi Lwin discussed the outbreak of violence against Muslims in the country during Eid (May 2019) and the emergence of the White Rose campaign in response to this, in which non-Muslim Myanmar citizens sought to extend the hand of friendship, inclusion and peace to the Muslims in their midst; and which Mi Mi and other artistic collaborators explored and represented in an animated film.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Description Participation in panel discussion on 'Pursuing Arts in Research', by Cherry Soe Mon of Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organisation 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact More than 101 people ranging from policy-makers, researchers, artists, CSO and NGO leaders, attended a workshop on 'Pursuing Arts in Research' at which Cherry Soe Mon, Executive Director of Jeepyah Civil Society Development Organisation participated in a debate on the topic; and which sparked interest in researchers and artists about the possibilities of collaborating on projects relating to Myanmar's social and political landscape.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Participation in panel discussion on 'Pursuing Arts in Research', by Danseng Lawn of Kachinland Research Centre 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact More than 101 people ranging from policy-makers, researchers, artists, CSO and NGO leaders attended a workshop on 'Pursuing Arts in Research' at which Danseng Lawn of the Kachinland Research Centre participated in a panel discussion on the topic; and which sparked interest in researchers and artists about the possibilities of collaborating on projects relating to Myanmar's social and political landscape.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
 
Description Participation in panel discussion on 'Representation' by Pyae Sone Aung of Yone Kyi Yar 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 101 people attended a panel discussion on representation at the Ahnu Thutaythana Festival, in which Paye Sone Aung of Yone Kyi Yar shared findings from the P4P Grant research project on political engagement and representation in Sagaing township in Mandalay, in Myanmar; and discussed the role of arts in helping disseminate these findings across a broad range of audiences.This sparked new appreciation of the combined strength of arts and research in advocating for greater representation, as well as generating better understanding of the barriers to political representation that people across Myanmar face.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Description Participation in panel discussion on 'Representation', Nu Nu Hlaing of Tavoyan Women's Union 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Policymakers/politicians
Results and Impact More than 101 people drawn from across policy-makers, students, CSOs, NGOs, media, general public, researchers, artists, religious leaders attended a panel on political engagement and representation across Myanmar, at which Nu Nu Hlaing of Tavoyan Women's Union shared her research on barriers to women's participation in politics in Tanintharyi region and the use of arts to help disseminate findings and communicate and influence policy-makers as well as members of the general public. This generated greater awareness of issues around political representation amongst the audience, as well as appreciation for the integration of arts and research in advocating for change.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://www.emref.org/en/multimedia
 
Description Series of meetings to create an alliance for deeper democracy amongst civil society groups in Myanmar 
Form Of Engagement Activity A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Other audiences
Results and Impact EMReF are convening a series of meetings involving a broad range of civil society members - from across a range of ethnic, religious, regional, gender, age groups, as well as politicians, CSOs, researchers, and artists - to reflect on democracy in Myanmar.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019,2020
 
Description Talk by Van Cung Lian of Chinbridge Institute 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact From 7-9 September 2020 the Global Research Network on Parliaments and People held a symposium about democracy in Myanmar and Ethiopia. In this webinar presentation Van Cung Lian, founder director of Chinbridge Research Institute, reports on the first comprehensive study on how people and politicians perceive democracy in Chin State.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://grnpp.org/output/understanding-political-representation-in-chin-state/
 
Description Van Cung Lian delivers seminar on Youth and Politics for Hakha University Student Organisation 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Undergraduate students
Results and Impact In the seminar, Salai Van Cung Lian delivered a training on "Youth and Politics" in Chin State. Chinbrige research on "Understanding Political Participation and Representation in Chin State" was utilized and RIPE cartoons showcased.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
URL https://www.facebook.com/hakhasianghleiruun/posts/971450786534924?_rdc=1&_rdr
 
Description Workshop on pursuing arts in research, Yangon, facilitated by Akhila Krishnan and Sara Wong 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact Myanmar-based P4P Grant recipients, and invited artists, attended a workshop facilitated by Akhila Krishnan and Sara Wong on forging connections between these distinct communities of practice, for the purpose of collaborating and co-producing research-based art and creative outputs to drive advocacy around more inclusive democracy in Myanmar, and to help make research more accessible.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://parliaments4people.com/coalitions/ripe