Fragile Democratization When Military Forces Fear Losing Control over Transition: The Cases of Thailand and Myanmar

The journey towards democracy is fraught with fragility and volatility. A comparative analysis of democracy in Thailand and Myanmar was conducted. With an introduction to the basic political realities of the two countries, and figures and tables to compare the seats held by the military and democratic camps in the last few elections, the author demonstrate the evolution of pro-military and pro-democratic parties in both countries. It is found that: first, the politics in both countries historically were heavily influenced by military forces. Second, in the recent past, the military in both countries actually tolerated a certain degree of democratization. Finally, when the military found that the democratization process was beyond their control, or more accurately, when democratic forces in military-controlled parliaments gained a large advantage to the point where they could potentially destabilize the military's substantial power, the military tended to intervene to slow down that democratization process.