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PEACE INDEPENDENCE DEMOCRACY UNITY PROSPERITYEMBASSY OF THE LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC2222 S. Street, N. W. Washington, D. C. 20008 Tel: (202) 332-6416 Fax: (202) 332-4923 |
| NEWS BULLETIN |
| March - April, 2003 |
CONTENTS
LAO PM RESPOND THE CLAIM OF AN ARREST OF STUDENTS ON
OCT. 99
Unofficial
translation
Vientiane,
28 March 2003
To Jacquelyn C. Miller, Ph. D Seattle University Department of History 900 Broadway Seattle, WA 98122 I wish to acknowledge receipt of your letter addressed to me in which you have expressed your concern over the arrest of five accused Lao people by the Lao authorities in late October 1999, and your request to the Lao Government for their unconditional release. I would like to take this opportunity to inform you and those having an interest in the background of this issue in details as follows: Around the month of June 1999,
there was a woman whose name is Hongkham, an American citizen of Lao origin
residing in the USA, came to Laos and informed the Lao authorities that she
wanted to visit her long-lost relatives in Laos. In fact, Mrs. Hongkham had
instead tried to lure and hire some local people into being her henchmen. During
her manoeuvre, Mr. Thongpaseuth Keuakoon, one of her relatives, had asked to
borrow money from her in order to pay for his ailing mother's treatment
expenses. In seeing the occasion, Mrs. Hongkham had then bought off Mr.
Thongpaseuth to be one of her associates by offering the latter a monthly
allowance of 200.000 Kip. Due to his meager family's
income, Mr. Thongpaseuth had reluctantly accepted to be her associate. Later on,
Mrs. Hongkham had tasked Mr. Thongpaseuth to recruit more people by offering
each of them the same monthly allowance of 200.000 Kip. As a result, Mr.
Thongpaseuth was able to recruit four more people. The said five people had then
acted accordingly to Mrs. Hongkham's instructions by carrying out spying
activities in search for State's political, economic and defense intelligence
data and other information materials in order to meet her demand. Once their
ill-intentioned activity had been exposed, Mrs. Hongkham fled away to overseas
whereas the other five people had been detained to stand for trial:
The above mentioned five Lao
people, were found guilty of collusion with a foreigner, having the intention to
conduct activities that would undermine independence, sovereignty and
territorial integrity of the Lao PDR and disrupt the peaceful life of the people
and were in breach with the law of the Lao PDR, and therefore should be punished
in accordance with the law. In fact, the court had given the sentence to each
arrested man as follows: Mr. Thongpaseuth, Mr. Khamphouvieng and Mr. Seng-Aloun
were found guilty of treason against the nation and sentenced to 10 year life
imprisonment each. As to Mr. Phavanh and Mr. Khamlane were found guilty of
subversive attempt against the nation and sentenced to 5 year life imprisonment
each. Among the five people, none of
them is a student nor has any contact with the student movement. As to your
allegation in saying that there were many students who took part in the
demonstration against the Government on 26 October 1999 is another flagrant
groundless allegation. From the past till present, students in the Lao PDR have
never staged any demonstration against the Government. Concerning Mr. Keochay,
whom you mentioned as the other accused person in your letter, is totally
untrue. On 26 October 1999, it was the
traditional racing boat festival of Vientiane residents. The place was crowded
with a lot of people. Diplomats, representatives of international organizations,
tourists, Lao and foreign mass media also joined the festival, and none of them
had witnessed any disturbing situation happened on the site. While the Vientiane
capital was filled with an atmosphere of serenity and ecstatic mood during the
festival day, it is hard to understand why Ms. Jacquelyn living in the US could
have slandered the Lao Government with such groundless situation? The arrest of those offenders by
the Lao authorities was fairly justified for the maintenance of national
security and social order so as to enable good citizens to live in peace. The sentence handed down to any
offenders is the legitimate right and an internal affair of each country. It has
been customary for us to respect independence, sovereign and legitimate rights
of other countries, nor have we done anything in the way to interfere in other
countries' internal affairs either. The Lao People's Democratic
Republic has always adhered to its foreign policy based on the principle of
respect for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of each other's
nation, non interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutually
beneficial cooperation. It is our fervent hope that other countries would also
respect the Lao PDR in the same way as we do. If Ms. Jacquelyn has no
animosity toward Laos, we would like to invite you to visit Laos so that you can
indulge in the appealing reality and happy lifestyle of the Lao people. (signed) Bounnhang Vorachith Prime Minister of the Lao PDR
441 HA OF OPIUM POPPY PLOTS DESTROYED IN LUANG PRABANG The provincial Drug Suppression and Control Committee of Luang Prabang earlier this year destroyed 441 ha of opium poppy plantation plots, according to a local news source. In accordance with the strategy of the Government on reducing opium poppy plantation, the province commenced to implement its program at the end of 2002, and by mid-February this year the provincial Drug Suppression and Control Committee was able to destroy 441 ha of opium poppy plantation in 132 villages. The detailed opium poppy plots that were destroyed included the following districts: 85 ha in Ngoy, 72 ha in Luang Prabang, 47 ha in Xieng Ngeun, 45 ha in Nane, 33 ha in Parkseng, and 23 ha in Viengkham.
UXO CLEARED FROM 270 HA IN XIENGKHOUANG LAST YEAR An official of the province's UXO program said that the survey and removal of the war legacy in this province proceeded with great difficulty since Xiengkhouang has suffered the most severe effects of the bombardment in the country. The official continued that the clearance of the 270 ha unearthed more than 18,700 pieces of UXO. On average, the risk rate of hitting an UXO in the area is one UXO per person, said the official.In order to curb the high rate of risks, following the removal, the UXO program also completed an awareness raising campaign about UXO dangers and preventive methods by organizing lectures in 119 villages with the attendance of more than 24,000 villagers. Since early this year, there have been seven accidents of UXO explosion, killing three and injuring seven others, including four children. From its outset in 1994, the UXO program has cleared UXO from 1,140 ha in this northern province, benefiting 55,400 local residents. Since then, the Lao National Unexploded Ordnance Program (UXO LAO) has removed UXO from 3,500 ha in the whole country, allowing more than 1.23 million people to live in safety.
FOREIGN INVESTMENT SURGES IN FIRST HALF-YEAR While many people are concerned about the economic impact of the
Iraq war, foreign investment in Laos is still continuing to increase.
Registration of foreign investment in Laos has increased in the first
half of the financial year compared with the similar period the previous
year. While the statistics for 2001- 2002 were more than ten times higher
than the previous year. The figures for the first half-year working from October 2002 to March
2003 were summarized by the Department for Promotion and Management of
Domestic and Foreign Investment. In the first half of this year, the value of registered foreign
investment reached US$ 283.6 million. There were 64 projects include 47
investment projects and 17 representative offices. In the total of 64
projects, there were 10 big projects. The outstanding sectors were trade, electricity, service, industry and
handicrafts and tourism. Last financial year the registered funds totaled
US$ 492 million with 80 projects for the whole year. "That indicates
that foreign investment this year has increased compared with last
year," said Director General of the Department for Promotion and
Management of Domestic and Foreign Investment Dr Khamlien Pholsena. Dr Khamlien explained the increase came because of continued
improvements in foreign investment regulations in Laos. Many regulations
had been improved to facilitate investment and help investors, such as the
improvement of approval steps, which are clearly defined and based on the
size of the projects. For example, a promotion project with less than US$ 1 million of
registered fund is approved in 15 working days; a promotion project with
US$ 1 million to US$ 5 million will be approved in 45 working days; and
projects with US$ 5 million to US$ 10 million registered funds will be
approved in 60 working days. Very large projects with registered funds of more than US$ 10 million or
projects involving the environment like mining and hydro-electricity would
be discussed in government meetings. Registration fees have also been cancelled. They were previously US$ 100
for small projects and US$ 200 for big projects, now the investors just
pay 5000 kip for a form. Many regulations on tax also have been improved. Promotion of the country also played a part in encouraging the
increase, said the director, with high officials traveling abroad to
promote Laos and learn about foreign investment from countries such as
China, Vietnam, Japan and Korea. The flood of foreign investment in Laos was also one factor, which
attracted more foreign investment into the country. This year, approval has been granted to import US$ 74.5 million
worth of equipment for the first half year, while for the whole of the
last financial year it was only US$ 68.2 million. The Department has also set a target plan for this year of US$ 500
million. The department also will follow up the registered projects and
continue to improve regulations and put them into practice. The next field
on which the government will focus is eco-processing or added-value
agriculture. "The situation being as it is, we are sure that we will reach the
target of US$ 500 million this year," said the directors.
GERMAN GOVERNMENT SUPPORTS RURAL TELEPHONE PROJECT
TO LAOS The German Government provided a grant aid of 4.5 million Euro to the fifth phase of rural telephone project, according to the signing ceremony held here on March 5. The grant aid is to be used for constructing 40 new
radio stations, with a capacity to connect over 700 subscribers in the
northern provinces of Houaphan, Xieng Khouang and other province and The
project, expected to run 18 months, will function after the signing
ceremony.
WORLD BANK EXAMINES IMPACT OF NAM THEUN 2 PROJECTThe Managing Director of World Bank, Sheng Man Zhang, will visit Laos
this week to see the impact of the Nam Theun 2 project. His visit follows
on from important talks on conserving and managing the site held last week
by stakeholders in the project. The protection and management of the 4,000 square km Nakai-Nam Theun
National Biodiversity Conservation Area (NBCA) is a crucial factor in the
World Bank’s decision to support the US$ 1.2 billion Nam Theun 2
hydroelectricity project, according to the project developers. The meeting drew participants from government departments and
representatives from local villages to review issues concerning the
management of the NBCA and to ensure that its long term management would
be effective in terms of conservation, biodiversity management and
appropriate livelihood development of its ethnic groups. They agreed that conservation would be the objective of NBCA management
and villager livelihood and that community development would be an
important way in which to achieve this objective. The Nam Theun Electricity Consortium (NTEC) will provide about US$ 1
million per year for up to 30 years for the conservation task. The meeting also agreed that all development activities should be fully
integrated with conservation. In this respect, NBCA managers and villagers
will clearly specify how each development proposal will benefit the
long-term conservation agenda. The NBCA is an area of natural forest with high biodiversity; it
is also the home of more than 5000 villagers of a range of ethnic groups
living in 30 villages. Mr. Chris Flint of NTEC said that the villagers’ livelihoods
were based mainly on shifting cultivation and forest product collection,
with some paddy rice cultivation. "The management of the area must be based on integration of
conservation and development," he added. By this he means that
curtained areas are zoned as totally protected while other areas in NBCA
are zoned as controlled and managed used areas. However if the population grew it would destroy the forest and Mr. Flint
said development should not encourage a higher population than the
area’s natural resources can sustain. He added that the local people should be presented with development
options, which enabled them to maintain their traditional lifestyles as
long as those did not adversely affect forest and natural resource. "Because of the appropriate development 30 villages would not have
electricity supply from Nam Theun 2 power station," Mr Flint said. The issue of shifting cultivation stabilisation was discussed at length
by the meeting, as the World Bank has suggested that shifting cultivation
may, in some cases, be sustainable. The meeting resolved that if such a culture was demonstrated to be
rotational, then villagers might continue such practices in order to
ensure rice production. But this would be on the understanding that no new
forest would be introduced into the cycle, and that the long-term aim was
still to develop sustainable agriculture. In this respect, the area’s population increase, estimated to be about
2.5 percent per year, suggested that shifting cultivation was not
sustainable, assuming that new families seek to open new forest lands to
produce rice. Thus either shifting cultivation must be controlled, or the
population must be controlled, or a combination of both. Development of access into and out of the NBCA was also discussed
at length. The concern of the environmentalists, and the World Bank, is
that road access would encourage forest product and animal trade, which is
harmful to the conservation area. However, the meeting noted, and villagers requested, that access is
required for a range of socio-economic and conservation reasons, Thus, the
meeting agreed that road access should be studied in detail, that the
development of land and water based access should be appropriate, and
their use managed carefully. The meeting also stressed that officials concerned should continue to
pay attention to wildlife trade, and educate the local people. In a
related discussion, participants agreed that laying down the rules in the
conservation area should start at the village level – although national
and international conservation guidelines and regulations would provide
the overall framework.
EU LAUNCHES MULTI-MILLION EURO AID PACKAGE FOR PRIMARY EDUCATION The European Union (EU) is to provide financial assistance, worth
1,130,000 euro to the basic education sector in Laos and trade-related
technical assistance to help Laos. The fund would benefit over 40,000 students in 500 schools. In the same
day the EU signaled its intent to back Laos bid to join the World Trade
Organization with the signing of an agreement to provide trade-related
technical assistance worth 1,080,000 euros. The signing ceremony was held in Vientiane between Klauspeter Schmallenbach, Ambassador-Head of the Delegation of the European Commission to Laos and Mrs. Khempeng Polsena, Vice President of the State Planning Committee and Cooperation. Under the agreement the EU will support a basic education program for
six years, including in impoverished and ethnic minority areas of
Phongsaly, Luang Namtha and Luang Prabang provinces. The initiative sets
out to boost access to quality primary schooling, improve basic literacy
and support decentralized management of education. Ambassador Schmallenbach said "Education for all is the key to
ensuring the development of any nation. This initiative will make a major
contribution in getting girls and ethnic minorities into school. However,
that is just the first step. Standards of education will be improved,
teachers trained and adults who have never had the chance of a proper
education taught how to read and write." Access to education will be improved through the competition of
approximately 100 incomplete schools by providing toilets, water supply,
teachers’ room, furniture and dormitories. The quality of education will improve in 430 target schools and will
raise the standards of education for an estimated 33,000 students,
including at least 14,500 girls. To support this, some 1,200 teachers will
be trained annually. Teaching materials adapted to local educational, social and
environmental needs will be developed. Local communities will also be
encouraged to play an active role in schools, taking part in maintenance
and other activities. Furthermore, the initiative will set out to improve the capacity of
provincial and district level education management. Local authority
offices in target districts will be constructed or rehabilitated and staff
trained in planning, management, monitoring and evolution techniques. The EU is one of the most active donors of development, humanitarian and
trade assistance to Laos. Development aid takes place in fields including
rural development, healthcare, education and environment. Laos also
benefits from a number of trade facilitation initiatives aimed at boosting
the access of Laos exports to EU market, particularly through the EU-Lao
PDR trade in textiles agreement and everything but arms initiative. Mr. Schmallenbach said, "Laos has the EU’s full support in its
bid to join the WTO, the benefits of which will be numerous. WTO
membership will encourage Laos to continue the structural and economic
reforms necessary to attract foreign investment. It will also give Lao
exports more open and predictable access to markets of WTO members while
providing guarantees that Laos’ rights in the international trade arena
are respected." The overall objective of the assistance program is to help Laos basic
conditions for sustained and stable economic growth. In general, actions
will include measures to determine the areas of the economy that should be
liberalized at a slower pace. Local expertise in WTO provisions, rules and
disciplines will be reinforced and the legal and regulatory frameworks as
well as administrative capacities to comply with WTO requirements
improved. Furthermore, action will be taken to broaden the sector base for
export development.
LAO PDR REELECTED AS CND' S MEMBERThe United Nations'
Economic and Social Council on April 29 re-elected Lao PDR as one of the
33 members of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), according to a
press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. LAOS AFFIRMS COOPERATION IN SEARCHING US MIAS
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