Myanmar began a transition in 2011 that ended almost 50 years of military rule. During the transition, a nationalist movement called for protecting Buddhism from an “Islamic threat.” Anti-Islam nationalism was not new in Burmese history, yet the timing of its resurgence deserves attention. I argue that the incumbents’ anticipated electoral weakness in transitional elections was the primary reason for its resurgence. The incumbents sought to maximize societal support, and they faced a strong contender, the National League for Democracy, whose probability of winning was high. Social opposition was also significant by the time military rule ended. In a campaign to pass reforms to better “protect” Buddhism, the incumbents used monks to cast doubt on the NLD’s ability to represent Buddhist interests and to recruit former regime opponents who were nationalists. The incumbents garnered wide support for the reforms, yet it was insufficient for an electoral victory.

中文翻译：

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缅甸的转型与佛教民族主义的复兴

缅甸于 2011 年开始过渡，结束了近 50 年的军事统治。在过渡期间，一场民族主义运动呼吁保护佛教免受“伊斯兰威胁”。反伊斯兰民族主义在缅甸历史上并不新鲜，但其复苏的时机值得关注。我认为，现任者在过渡选举中预期的选举弱点是其死灰复燃的主要原因。现任者寻求最大限度地获得社会支持，他们面临着强大的竞争者全国民主联盟，其获胜的可能性很高。到军事统治结束时，社会反对也很重要。在通过改革以更好地“保护”佛教的运动中，现任者利用僧侣质疑全国民主联盟代表佛教利益和招募民族主义者的前政权反对者的能力。现任者对改革获得了广泛支持，但不足以在选举中获胜。