The Dilemma of Disengagement: Corporate Exit from Myanmar and Implications for Business-for-Peace (B4P) Theory: Building a Framework for Responsible Exit through Ethical Decision-Making and Context-Sensitive Analysis

This thesis examines the ethical dilemmas faced by multinational corporations following the 2021 military coup in Myanmar. The study challenges the “presence assumption” of Business-for-Peace (B4P) theory, which assumes that corporate presence inherently contributes to peace. By integrating Business-for-Peace theory, Jones’s moral intensity model, and responsible exit theory, the research analyzes corporate withdrawal decisions through qualitative document analysis. Data sources include corporate reports, international organization documents, NGO publications, and media sources. The findings demonstrate that corporate exit decisions were shaped by multiple dimensions of moral intensity, particularly magnitude of consequences, social consensus, and proximity. Different withdrawal strategies produced varying consequences for local stakeholders such as workers, suppliers, and communities. Based on these findings, the study proposes a Responsible Exit Framework (REF) designed to guide corporate decision-making in conflict-affected contexts and authoritarian environments. The framework contributes to both business ethics and peace studies by offering a structured approach to ethical corporate disengagement.