"This report addresses two key questions: How much of a role are organisations not controlled by the state playing, and how much can they play, in restoring democracy in Myanmar? ; and How much of a role are civil society organisations playing, and how much can they play, in promoting understanding of the ethnic issues at the root of many of Myanmar's political problems?...Around the world, much hope has been placed in the prospect that civil society ? the loose groupings of non-government actors in political processes ? would act as a major force to change or remove undemocratic governments. This has particularly been the case in Myanmar where there has been an expectation that students or monks might force the military government from power. This has not been realised; indeed civil society is at its weakest state in decades...Civil society organisations will be important in creating the backing for any solution, and in consolidating the democratisation process once it begins, but are not likely to be crucial players in achieving a momentum for change..."