They have met with Myanmar’s President, U Thein Sein and with two key Ministers, U Soe Thein and U Aung Min. This High-level Mission to Myanmar is intended to build trust among Burmese authorities, opposition, civil society, ethnic groups and other relevant stakeholders in order to identify a potential long-term initiative to provide Burmese leadership accompaniment, counsel and support in facing the daunting challenges of democratic transition.
The Club de Madrid’s Shared Societies Project is a global initiative that provides leaders with greater understanding of the benefits of social cohesion, the incentives and means to act to advance it. Through the convening power of its Members, the Project works globally with various governments, institutions and their leaders, advising them on the best approaches to building a shared societ The project can provide valuable ideas and materials for the Burmese experience, such as the 10 Commitments and approaches for Shared Societies and the Economic Argument for Shared Societies.
Given Myanmar’s results-driven commitment to ethnic transition in the country, the initiative aims at specifically focusing on the ethnic strand of the transition to democracy, by assisting the government in building upon successful cease-fires in areas of ethnic strife and by promoting confidence-building dialogue, with the anticipation that these efforts would result in tangible progress for the people of Myanmar.
