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IRI has supported political leaders, activists and groups who are dedicated to the nonviolent struggle for freedom and democracy in Burma since 1992.  IRI, and the Institute’s partners, conduct programs on a variety of subject matter, including political party organizing, communications and outreach, and issue-based advocacy.  Additionally, IRI works with major ethnic groups both individually and jointly to encourage their mutual cooperation on democratic reforms.

Download Summary (PDF)
IRI has supported political leaders, activists and groups who are dedicated to the nonviolent struggle for freedom and democracy in Burma since 1992.  IRI, and the Institute’s partners, conduct programs on a variety of subject matter, including political party organizing, communications and outreach, and issue-based advocacy.  Additionally, IRI works with major ethnic groups both individually and jointly to encourage their mutual cooperation on democratic reforms.

Political Party Organizing & Issue Advocacy
IRI provides training programs and consultative advice on campaign tactics and strategies to political organizations that conduct work inside the country, as well as from exile.  Topics include strategic planning, volunteer and membership recruitment and local level mobilization using issue-based political platforms.  While in the past IRI worked mainly with opposition groups in exile, due to recent positive developments in the country’s political and security environment IRI is increasingly focusing on work with groups inside Burma.  IRI’s programs enable ordinary citizens, through political parties and civil society organizations, to help shape their political future. 

Much of IRI’s forthcoming work will be based on its comprehensive observation and assessment of the April 2012 by-elections and geared toward preparing interested stakeholders for the next general elections in 2015.

IRI is also conducting training programs in areas such as federalism, comparative democratic systems and grassroots advocacy campaigns for civil society actors and ethnic political organizations at the local level.  Many of the border-based groups and political organizations operating inside the country and organized specifically along ethnic and geographic lines have overlapping interests and activities.  However, in many cases mutual distrust prevents cooperation and the formation of coalitions. 

By providing training and facilitating interaction between these ethnic based groups IRI not only directly addresses the lack of institutional capacity among Burmese pro-democracy organizations, but also encourages cohesion and cooperation among the diverse array of ethnic nationalities organizations and parties in Burma.  By providing ethnic political actors the knowledge and skills to advocate for change, mobilize grassroots support and manage their organizations more efficiently, democracy leaders and civil society activists will be better equipped to anticipate and influence the issues that emerge during Burma’s transition to democracy.

Communication Strategies
IRI has also dedicated great efforts to helping democracy movement activists develop communication skills.  Since 1992, IRI has held training programs to teach activists how to conduct media outreach, increase the flow of communication among activists and their supporters and develop content and messaging for radio and print materials for international and domestic audiences.  In doing this, IRI helped partners to provide more accurate, useful information to international media as well as increase the amount of uncensored information penetrating the country.