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Burma scholars from around the globe gathered in late September at Sweden's Gothenburg University for a conference titled: "Burma-Myanma(r) Research and its Future: Implications for Scholars and Policymakers". Aung Zaw attended the conference and had a chance to interview Daw Khin Mar Mar Kyi who presented a paper concerning the role of Burmese women in society. Daw Khin Mar Mar Kyi's paper provided a historically grounded but contemporary analysis of representations of Burmese women from the colonial period until now, using literature, novels, songs and cartoons. The analysis draws on the way in which colonists, nationalists, feminists and militarists have depicted Burmese women, and used gender and sexuality to strengthen political ideology. "It is the woman who has to manage the household and I cannot accept the fact that a woman leader can't be given the leadership position in a country. That's why I am of the opinion that if a woman rules Burma, there will be progress in all sectors of the country." Q: Could you please tell us more about your paper that you presented at the conference? A: My paper is about the steady decline of the status of Burmese women. I pointed out in the paper that the role of Burmese women that has traditionally been one of glory and always at the forefront [of social and political movements] has been on the decline. I have quoted a number of books, including those written by colonialists, nationalists and by the current Tatmadaw (Burmese Army). I combined all of these and compared them to the different statuses of women in terms of their traditions. Q: Tell us about the past role of Burmese women and what rights they were able to enjoy? A: If we re-examine the stone-engravings of the Pagan Dynasty, we can clearly see the status of women. Just before the end of the Pagan period in 1287, there were more than 13,000 pagodas within an area of 42 square miles. Some of those historical facts were recorded by Saya (Dr.) Than Htun himself. The engravings were donated by women in accordance with their will. They were the prayers of the women, which reflected their genuine desires [at the time]. When the colonialists arrived in Burma in 1824, they were amazed by the high status of Burmese women. This compelled them to record their status. There were many such records. Also when the missionaries arrived in the country, one thing that shocked both the male and female missionaries was that of the status of Burmese women, which was much higher than the rest of the world—even higher than that of the English woman. Q: So how do you see Burmese women who are now under the repressive military government? A: They enjoyed greater freedom before the colonial period. There were not many restrictions. There were no restrictions on how they had to wear clothes, behave or who they had to marry. But nowadays, there are a lot of criterian as to how one should behave in order to be recognized as a good woman. Q: Can you please share more about proverbs referring to Burmese women in our society? You have presented some of them in your paper? For instance, "If a woman has her ways, she can destroy a country". A: As far as I know, the saying "If a woman has her ways, she can destroy a country," did not exist before [the colonial period]. It only began [appearing] during the colonial period. The main reason that I had to write this paper was because I have seen criticism directed at three women—Nanmataw Mae Nu, mother of the Empress of the White Elephant, the Empress herself and Supayalat. In these sorts of literature, criticisms were made towards the kings and king-makers who elevated these women to the throne. Their key argument [in their literature] was that these three women ascended to the throne, despite not having the 68 criteria that were required of the rulers, and that the country was destroyed as a result. In short, the criticism was that the Burmese lost their monarchy and were enslaved because of these three women. This is my impression as to how the saying came about. Q: Burma's military government always played down the role of prominent Burmese women in our society. You cannot write about Indonesian president Megawati Sukarnoputri [in the Burmese press] because she is a woman president. The junta doesn’t want to mention Aung San Suu Kyi in the press either. Did you make any comparisons? A: I don't have those. But I have included some comparisons. As I have explained earlier, there were a great deal of criticisms against Supayalat during the colonial period. She should have known her place, the criticisms went. Colonialists also accused Supayalat of invading their domain, and attempting to wrest power, from man. That was why the Burmese lost their throne, according to the colonialists. Just like the colonial times, I have seen various accusations directed against Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.