Derek Tonkin, Bo Bo Lansin, Jurgen Haacke (chair)
16 November 2010, 6.30pm, CLM.D202
The elections of 7 November 2010, the first in 20 years in the political history of Burma/Myanmar, have resulted in an overwhelming victory by the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party. While the electoral process was flawed from the outset, the scale of manipulation used to achieve this outcome seems to have exceeded even the expectations of pro-establishment parties and their candidates. Governments in London and Washington have predictably renewed their sharp criticisms in relation to the significant shortcomings of the elections and the wider junta-led political process in which the former are embedded. To examine the political situation in Burma/Myanmar following the elections and to assess the regional as well as wider international response the LSE IDEAS Southeast Asia Programme is convening a panel discussion on 16 November 2010.
Speakers
Derek Tonkin served in the UK Diplomatic Service from 1952-1989. In 2007 he helped set up and became Chairman of Network Myanmar, an association dedicated to promoting contact and dialogue with Burmese people and associations.
Bo Bo Lansin is a freelance writer and consultant editor. He has contributed socio-cultural essays to Burmese periodicals for a decade and is currently editing two Burmese news and literature websites.
Dr Jurgen Haacke is Senior Lecturer in International Relations at LSE with expertise in Southeast Asia politics, security and international relations.
Location
D202, 2nd Floor Clement House, London School of Economics. Map.