Development is a difficult undertaking in any environment, but much more so in places such as Myanmar with its “perfect storm” of extreme poverty, international sanctions, and political repression and human rights violations with concomitant conflicts within development organizations over norms and policies. Context-Sensitive Development examines how to effect successful development interventions in Myanmar. Anthony Ware points out that while practitioners have questioned universal economic prescriptions for development, they have not been as consistent in questioning the normative foundations behind their work. Ware does not argue for a facile moral relativism; he sees Myanmar as an egregious violator of human rights, but he does call for “context sensitivity” to help organizations adapt their values to better meet the needs of client populations.

Political fiction