ABSTRACT
Myanmar is at last entering a period of democratisation. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi not only won a landslide victory in the elections of 8 November 2015, but within the first week of the new parliament, she successfully managed to choose a well-educated, loyal comrade-in-arms to be President of Myanmar. She outsmarted the military by creating a designation of her role as ‘state counsellor’, to circumvent the much anticipated military restriction in the very Constitution that bars her from the presidency, no doubt causing irritation for the military. This role gives her greater authority to guide both the government and the parliament and cements her influence over the executive and legislative branches. Notwithstanding, it is the first time in the history of Myanmar that a Burmese female politician has managed to lead the country. Males still overwhelmingly dominate parliament, especially compared with other ASEAN member states. This chapter will discuss how women continue to face structural gender-based discrimination and decline of their positions in society as a result of the prolonged period of military rule and its associated militarisation of culture with political ideologies.
