AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT 2016/17

BACKGROUND
The ruling Lao People’s Revolutionary Party
appointed a new General Secretary and
Politburo in its internal leadership ballot in
January. National Assembly elections in
March were followed by the appointment of a
President and Prime Minister. Laos remained
a one-party state.
UN Special Procedures expressed serious
concerns about the potential impact of the
Don Sahong Dam on the livelihood of millions
of people in Laos and downstream countries,
including the threat to rights to adequate
food, housing, information and participation
and the rights of Indigenous People.
Laos also held the Chair of the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2016.
ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES
The fate of Sombath Somphone, a prominent
civil society member, remained unclarified
since his abduction in 2012 outside a police
post in the capital, Vientiane. CCTV cameras
captured his being stopped by police and
driven away.
Authorities failed to provide information on
the whereabouts of Kha Yang, a Lao ethnic
Hmong, arrested after his second forced
return from Thailand in 2011. He was also
forcibly returned in 2009, although he had
been granted refugee status by the UNHCR,
the UN refugee agency, and fled back to
Thailand in 2011.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Civil society organizations continued to be
under stringent state control.
In January, a decree restricted the press
activities of international media and other
bodies. Provisions included a requirement to
submit materials for state approval before
publishing. In November the 2008 Media
Law was amended to ensure that the media
strictly adhered to and promoted government
policies.
In line with Decree 327 which prohibits
online criticism of the state, the authorities
continued to monitor internet activity. In
August a Public Security Ministry official
stated that police were monitoring Facebook
for anyone connected to three detained
activists − Lodkham Thammavong,
Somphone Phimmasone and Soukan
Chaithad.
Laos cancelled its hosting of the ASEAN
Civil Society Conference/ASEAN People’s
Forum, citing insufficient funds and the risk
of foreign civil society actors using the event
to criticize ASEAN-member governments.
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
Lodkham Thammavong, Somphone
Phimmasone and Soukan Chaithad were
arrested in March after returning from
Thailand. Reports indicated they were
detained incommunicado for at least six
months and denied legal representation. 1
They were accused of threatening national
security in relation to online criticism of the
Lao government while in Thailand. They had
also participated in a peaceful demonstration
outside the Lao Embassy in Bangkok in
2015. In May, state television showed them
apologizing for their actions and confessing to
protesting against government policies.
Somphone Phimmasone’s family visited him
briefly in jail in September. All three
individuals remained in detention at the end
of the year.
LAND DISPUTES
Reports of land disputes between the state
and individuals continued. Mechanisms for
resolving land complaints were inadequate.
1. Laos: Three Lao activists held incommunicado (ASA 26/4603/2016)
LATVIA
Republic of Latvia
Head of state: Raimonds Vējonis
Head of government: Māris Kučinskis (replaced
Laimdota Straujuma in February)
The Council of Europe and the UN raised
serious concerns about the situation of
children with disabilities. Over 247,000
228 Amnesty International Report 2016/17