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Abstract

The military coup in Myanmar on February 1, 2021, carried out by the Tatmadaw against top officials from the newly elected-government–in which National League for Democracy (NLD) Party made the majority–brought strong backlashes from civil society, one of which was the Milk Tea Alliance. This paper discusses the activism of Milk Tea Alliance Indonesia in pressuring the Indonesian government and ASEAN, especially during the ASEAN Special Summit. This paper is based on qualitative method using literature review on the case study of Milk Tea Alliance activism in Indonesia. By referring to the ‘Boomerang pattern’ framework on transnational advocacy network, this paper argues that the Milk Tea Alliance represents a valuable model in South-South civil society cooperation due to the multiplicity of channels, actor form, and issues. Therefore, it plays an essential role in decolonizing the unequal North-South relations in the initial concept of Keck & Sikkink. Furthermore, this article also exposes the role of regional norms in influencing the ‘boomerang pattern,’ making it difficult for the solidarity to push ASEAN & Indonesian government as the de-facto leader of ASEAN to act stricter on Tatmadaw.

Bahasa Abstract

Kudeta militer di Myanmar pada 1 Februari 2021 yang dilakukan oleh Tatmadaw terhadap petinggi-petinggi pemerintahan yang baru terpilih–di mana Partai National League for Democracy (NLD) menjadi mayoritas–mengundang reaksi keras dari masyarakat sipil, salah satunya ialah jejaring masyarakat sipil Milk Tea Alliance (MTA). Tulisan ini membahas mengenai solidaritas jejaring MTA Indonesia dalam menekan Pemerintah Indonesia dan ASEAN, khususnya pada Konferensi Tingkat Tinggi (KTT) Khusus ASEAN. Tulisan ini mendasarkan pada metode kualitatif dengan menggunakan kajian literatur terhadap studi kasus, khususnya terhadap aktivisme Milk Tea Alliance di Indonesia. Berdasarkan pada kerangka konseptual ‘Pola bumerang’ mengenai jejaring advokasi transnasional, tulisan ini berargumentasi bahwa aktivisme Milk Tea Alliance merepresentasikan model yang berharga dalam kerjasama masyarakat sipil Selatan-Selatan melalui keberagaman kanal, bentuk aktor, dan isu. Sehingga, jejaring ini berperan penting dalam mendekolonisasi relasi tidak setara negara Utara-Selatan dalam konsep awal Keck & Sikkink. Lebih jauh, tulisan ini juga memaparkan peran norma di level regional dalam memengaruhi ‘pola bumerang’ yang membuat lebih sulit bagi solidaritas ini untuk menekan ASEAN dan Pemerintah Indonesia sebagai pemimpin de-facto ASEAN untuk bertindak tegas terhadap Tatmadaw.

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