Outsourcing the Polity: Non-State Welfare, Inequality, and Resistance in Myanmar

In post-independence Myanmar, the bankrupt post-socialist junta mediated market reform in the 1990s and 2000s, forcing private and non-state actors to take the burden for social welfare. This led to the growth of non-state welfare, which can sustain democratic resistance and undermine social reform over time. Powerful tycoons filled the social gap, using public philanthropy to remake their reputations and defend their expropriation of land and state assets.

Format: Hardback
Length: 282 pages
Publication date: 15 February 2023
Publisher: Cornell University Press

In the aftermath of Myanmar's independence, a novel perspective on social outsourcing emerges through the lens of post-socialist junta mediation. This study reveals how the bankrupt regime, grappling with economic challenges, sought to reform the market in the 1990s and 2000s, inadvertently shifting the burden of social welfare onto private and non-state actors. Drawing from extensive research conducted during Myanmar's decade of partial civilian rule (2011-2021), Gerard McCarthy delves into the intricate dynamics between ideals and practices of non-state welfare, exploring their potential to both sustain democratic resistance and undermine social reform over time.

Rather than relying on government-led social action funded by direct taxation, grassroots activists and democratic leaders emerged after 2011. They framed government social action as ineffective, undesirable, and even corrosive of civic norms. Instead, they encouraged citizens to rely on themselves and support one another, particularly in times of disaster. Powerful tycoons capitalized on this social gap, utilizing public philanthropy to enhance their reputations and safeguard their ongoing expropriation of land and state assets from potential democratic redistribution.

In the context of Myanmar's recent return to dictatorship in 2021, Outsourcing the Polity sheds valuable light on the enduring legacies of outsourcing for distributive politics. It underscores the complex interplay between state and non-state actors, highlighting the challenges and opportunities that arise in a context of political transition and economic uncertainty. This book contributes to our understanding of the dynamics shaping social welfare in post-independence Myanmar and offers valuable insights into the broader implications of outsourcing in contemporary societies.

Weight: 907g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 25 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501767968