The very word “Burma” was once shorthand for a brutal military dictatorship, but things have now changed dramatically. Burma (or Myanmar) has come to be viewed as a country firmly committed to the establishment of a new reality, founded upon respect for human rights and the rule of law.
Behind this changing perception are a series of planned government reforms and gestures. In 2010, under the auspices of the so-called “seven stage road map to democracy,” Burma’s government ended the 15-yearslong house arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi. A further 2,000 political prisoners were subsequently released, many of whom had languished in the aptly named Insein Prison.
Given a series of recent events and one longstanding problem, Burma's reform process is in serious danger of collapse.