Civil Society amid Civil War: Political Violence and Non-violence in the Burmese Democracy Movement

Research in the areas of global civil society and political violence has tended to reinforce a dichotomy between the two in normative and descriptive terms. This paper uses a qualitative analysis of interviews with participants in both armed and non-armed groups in the Burmese opposition movement to understand how armed struggle and non-violent action operate in this context. In discussing the needs and strategies of their groups and communities, participants demonstrated that armed and non-armed groups often had more in common than is sometimes assumed. A range of viewpoints on political violence existed across the groups, with many armed group members supporting peaceful solutions and many members of non-violent organisations defending aspects of the armed struggle. This paper argues that in view of the degree of overlap in the political attitudes and experiences of armed and non-armed groups in the case study, both categories of organisation should be considered as elements of global civil society.