Although campaigning for improvement of living conditions and for democratic change inside the country, the Third Force is seen as distinct from Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy.
Some state that the Third Force consists of liberal elements of the regime, more 'pragmatic' components of the opposition movement and a handful of local and foreign academics who advocated for a change in western policy of sanctions and isolation.
However, Cyclone Nargis in 2008 was seen as a watershed for the local non-governmental scene, as youths became more interested in the affairs of the country, in light of failings by the government in the social sectors.
As the military regime blocked international aid, local non governmental organisations sprouted to fill in the relief gap, mainly drawn from the youth and educated of the country's largest city, Yangon.
[2] Third Force components are seen as fundamentally different from the NLD in two aspects, mainly on the nature of participation in politics and on the statutory and non-statutory sanctions in place against the country.
[4][5] This stance has drawn flak from ardent supporters of Aung San Suu Kyi as lip service to democracy and that the Third Force is an attempt to create a new political elite.