Introduction
Two world wars have resulted in numerous material and human losses. Therefore, such an organization as the United Nations was established to regulate and protect basic human rights all over the world. It has also provided classification describing which countries are developed and which are referred to as the third world. This breakdown considers major political and social aspects into considerations.
In some cases, those states that show stable economic development may suffer from social inequality. Such countries as India, Myanmar, Nepal, and the Maldives are widely recognized primarily owing to famous tourist destinations, but each of them has numerous domestic problems associated with the autocratic military regime and severe violation of basic human rights.
Human Rights in Myanmar
The movement for human rights in Myanmar has recently emerged because of constant violations. In order to fully understand the essence of this initiative, it is necessary to take an insight into the history of Burma. In particular, the year 1948 marked the Civil War with the confrontation of communist and socialist powers. While the former was widely supported by indigenous Burmese, the latter was associated with ethnic minorities residing in the territory of Burma.
This war was long-lasting, but the democratic powers prevailed in the election of 1989 (“Burma 2018”). Despite this, the country was far from complying with the democratic principles because human rights were constantly violated because of women’s abuse and utilization of child labor. Furthermore, many political activists were imprisoned at the turn of the twenty-first century. Basic human freedoms were also undermined because phone conversations were monitored and strict control over media was evident by the implementation of heavy censorship.
Even though the overall situation in the country has been gradually improving, the most urgent problem of Myanmar is the conflict with Rohingya people at present. The government is not willing to acknowledge this Muslim ethnic minority because of some former conflicts. Therefore, Rohingya people are constantly persecuted because they do not belong to the so-called taingyintha. According to this concept, people inhabiting Myanmar are considered as national races in case they are not European, Chinese, or Indian. Cheesman adopted a genealogical method to study taingyintha to point ambiguity, contingency, and uncertainty related to the interpretation of various peoples, denoting various linguistic and cultural differences (463).
Even though Rohingya people originate in other lands, the military regime of Burma has no legal rights to discriminate against them. Recently, there was another crisis related to the ethnic cleansing in the country, so that about a half of Rohingya people were exiled to the neighboring countries (“Rohingya”). However, under the pressure of the United Nations, the Myanmar government was forced to stick to democratic principles and return the Rohingya refugees back because of multiple restrictions imposed on the country.
LGBT Rights in Nepal
Similar to Myanmar, Nepal evidenced the Civil War but at a different historical period. The confrontation was evident between the royal powers and the Maoists. At the end of the twentieth century, the country experienced numerous crises related to destabilized political and social situations, including the famine in distant regions of Nepal. Apparently, people required changes so that there was a transition from the Kingdom of Nepal to a democratic state. Taking advantage of such major political changes, the activists of the gay and lesbian community started to claim their legal rights for homosexual relations. They claimed for the full acknowledgment of their freedom of choice supported by legal acts and laws as previously people of non-traditional sexual orientation were persecuted.
The first demonstrations of the LGBTI rights groups were in 2007, but they were mostly ignored by the newly established democratic government. However, later they attained their objectives as the Supreme Court affirmed that citizens could select their gender identity based on self-feeling (Young).
LGBTI community also claimed for the country with modern standards aligned with the international trends, assuming that sexual minorities cannot be discriminated against and persecuted but rather allowed to participate in political, social, and legal practices of Nepal. The progress of LGBTI representatives in Nepal is immense because the constitution was changed by substituting the gender-biased words with neutral ones (“Nepal democratizing state”). Moreover, LGBTI members from all over the world are welcome in Nepal.
Establishing Democracy in the Maldives
The Maldives constitutes one of the most popular and attractive tourist destinations in the world. However, the peaceful image of blue water and bright sunshine conceals many secrets unknown to visitors. Starting from 1978, the Maldives was governed by the self-perpetuating Maumoon Abdul Gayoom for more than thirty years. In fact, the country was under an autocratic regime with strict regulations and high corruption level. Similar to Myanmar, the Maldives also experienced multiple manifestations of human rights abuse and violation of freedoms. Gayoom was accused of such illegitimate actions as torture, unreasonable trials and imprisonments, and killings.
He was concerned about the opposing points of view, that is why any contradictory ideas or actions were persecuted. However, Gayoon convinced the population that he would adopt new democratic reforms that correlate with the core principles of human rights. Despite his autocratic style in social and political spheres, this president invested much in the reconstruction of tourism in the Maldives after a devastating ecological catastrophe caused by El Nino in 1998.
Even though Maumoon Abdul Gayoom promised to deploy democratic reforms in the Maldives, he did not approach this initiative. On the contrary, he blocked the activity of democratic parties and representatives. Mohammad Nasheed shared the story of how he was exiled to Sri Lanka resulted of the unsuccessful attempt to promote the Maldivian Democratic Party (Khan). Moreover, he reported that the country was attractive for ISIS that recruited most of its people from there. In 2008, Nasheed won the presidential elections and introduced his innovative program about the preservation of Maldives.
This plan included the implementation of alternative energy resources in the country and the reduction of greenhouse gases. Thus wind and solar energy utilization could benefit the preservation of natural conditions in the Maldives and make it less vulnerable to global warming. However, in 2012, the crisis in the country caused mass demonstrations and protests that led to Nasheed’s resignation (“Maldives”). Thus Abdulla Yameed, brother of Gayoom, became the next president who prefers an autocratic leadership style. That is why, the Maldives has returned to the same governmental regime as previously, neglecting democratic principles.
Conclusion
While many countries deploy democratic principles within a political and social environment, such states as Myanmar, Nepal, and the Maldives neglect the importance of human rights and freedoms. Myanmar is widely known for its ethnic cleansing which assumes that taingyintha people possess legal rights and have access to social benefits, while Rohingya representatives are exiled. Nepal authorities also oppressed the freedoms of its citizens, so the LGBT community was guaranteed protection only in 2007. Similar to Myanmar and Nepal, the Maldives was long under the autocratic regime which prohibited any democratic manifestations but imprisoned innocent people.
Works Cited
Khan, Aaquib. “Mohamed Nasheed on the Maldives Crisis.” The Diplomat. 2018. Web.
Cheesman, Nick. “How in Myanmar “National Races” Came to Surpass Citizenship and Exclude Rohingya.” Journal of Contemporary Asia, vol. 47, no. 3, 2017, pp. 461-483.
Young, Holly. “Trans Rights: Meet the Face of Nepal’s Progressive ‘Third Gender’ Movement.” The Guardian. 2016. Web.