Progress for Whom? And for what? A special issue of the journal of Burma studies: Editor's note

Abstract

This issue of the Journal of Burma Studies proudly presents a special collection of papers on the topic of progress and what the term might mean in relation to Burma/Myanmar studies. News reports and scholarly works on Myanmar politics in recent years, particularly following the State Peace and Development Council regime change, the elections, and the electoral wins of the National League for Democracy have used the moniker “transition” or “opening up” to describe the ongoing situation in the country. For this issue, instead, we solicited ideas around the broad—and value-laden—idea of “Progress for Whom? And for What?” This issue offers a variety of considerations of how the concept might be understood or animated at different political, social, and cultural moments.