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Fall 2010
Political Science 98/198
2 Unit(s)

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About the Course:

[UPDATE: As of September 7th, the decal's 30 available seats have been fully enrolled. However, we will do our best to accommodate if you are serious about enrolling. If none of the students currently enrolled drops, we will request a bigger room if need be, depending on how many more students show up. So go ahead and waitlist if possible but even if you can't, be sure to show up on the first week of class (Sept 13) so we know whether you can get in from no-shows or how many additional spots we may need to open up.]  

To many, Burma is relatively unknown. To the familiar few, Burma is often infamous for its political instability, iron-fist rule of the military dictatorship, largest concentration of child soldiers in the world, and various human rights abuses, despite its rich culture and heritage in Southeast Asia. 

This DECAL is a 2-unit introductory course that will explore relevant aspects of Burma's culture, politics, and other topics that are significant to the discussion of the country both independently, as well as in relations to its destabilizing role in Southeast Asia. The first few weeks of the 12 week course will establish a basic framework of relevant facts and a brief history that will provide the necessary context in the discussion of more analytical, theoretical, and contentious topics. Topics will include analysis of Burma's recently amended constitution to explore the possibility of structural constraints, human rights and international law, comparative dictatorship, revolutionary movements, and role of religion in Burmese politics, among other topics. 

The course will feature 2 weeks of guest lecturers, including a journalist in political exile for his involvement in Burmese politics and the president of a national grass-roots political advocacy organization. The course will also integrate two weeks of movies -- Beyond Rangoon & Burma V.J (Academy Award Nominee). 

Attendance is crucial. We prefer enrollment to begin early and we expect the class to fill up to its capacity within the first few weeks. A short essay and attendance will compromise the majority of the grade for the course. Course may be taken as a pass/ no-pass only.

For any questions, please -email me directly at michaelgaw@berkeley.edu. For more updates, please join our Facebook group by searching "Burmese Decal @ Berkeley". 

See you soon! 

How to Enroll:

COURSE WILL BE HELD MONDAYS FROM 6:00PM TO 8:00PM AT 122 BARROWS. 

FIRST CLASS MEETING: MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13TH, 6 - 8 PM AT 122 BARROWS 

CCN# FOR PS 98 IS 71492

CCN# FOR PS 198 IS 71897

Enrollment is first come first served. 

The course can be taken for either 2-units of lower division (PS 98) or upper division (PS 198) credits on a pass/no-pass basis. 

We expect the class to fill to capacity within the first few weeks so enroll as soon as possible.