It was built in 1556, when the capital was moved from Luang Prabang to Vientiene, and took 6 years to complete. Since the founding of the Lao PDR in 1975, very few films have been made in Laos. President Biden committed the United States to be the world's arsenal . [155] Government expenditure on health is about four percent of GDP,[155] about US$18 (PPP) in 2006. A second Provisional Government of National Unity formed by Prince Souvanna Phouma in 1962 was unsuccessful, and the situation steadily deteriorated into large scale civil war between the Royal Laotian government and the Pathet Lao. Laos (/los/ (listen)[9][d]), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao: ), is a socialist state and the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. In the late 19th century, Luang Prabang was ransacked by the Chinese Black Flag Army. More than half of the nation's population is ethnic Laothe principal lowland inhabitants, and the politically and culturally dominant people of Laos. [78] Of those Hmong who did return to Laos, some quickly escaped back to Thailand, describing discrimination and brutal treatment at the hands of Lao authorities. Laos was then dependent on military and economic aid from the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991. In 2016, China was the biggest foreign investor in Laos's economy, having invested in US$5.395billion since 1989, according to Laos Ministry of Planning and Investment's 19892014 report. In 1977, a communist newspaper promised the party would hunt down the "American collaborators" and their families "to the last root". However, villages far from major roads can be reached only through unpaved roads that may not be accessible year-round. In an effort to halt the planned repatriation, the Republican-led USSenate and House of Representatives both appropriated funds for the remaining Thailand-based Hmong to be immediately resettled in the United States; Clinton, however, responded by promising a veto of the legislation. The city is the home of the massive gilded stupa, Pha That Luang, a national symbol of Laos. [72], On 17 May 2014, Defence Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Douangchay Phichit was killed in a plane crash, along with other top ranking officials. 3, "Through Chaos to a New Order", in, Sanda Simms, ch. Sticky rice is a staple food and has cultural and religious significance to the Lao people. Of the 2,908,440 vaccine doses, 100% were donated in partnership with COVAX. [9] Durante o quarto milnio a.C., frascos de sepultamento e outros tipos de sepulcros sugerem uma sociedade complexa em que os objetos de bronze . [46], During the First Indochina War, the Indochinese Communist Party formed the Pathet Lao independence organisation. Mapcarta, the open map. "Patuxai is a war monument in the centre of Vientiane, Laos, which was built between 1957 and 1968. Location: Champasak Province, Laos. [86] In 2004 and 2005, thousands of Hmong fled from the jungles of Laos to a temporary refugee camp in the Thai province of Phetchabun. All things considered, it . Of the almost $6 billion cost for the China-Laos railway, the Chinese government will pay 70 percent. [49] Due to the particularly heavy impact of cluster bombs during this war, Laos was a strong advocate of the Convention on Cluster Munitions to ban the weapons and was host to the First Meeting of States Parties to the convention in November 2010. This sector has made significant contributions to the economic condition of Laos. and Yurnaidi, Z., 2020. ", "Evaluation Synthesis of Rice in Lao PDR", "Starting an Asian Cinema: Laos Past and Present", "Good Good Morning, Luang Prabang and hello to Laos's film industry", "Q&A with director Kim Mordaunt (The Rocket)", "A tale of revenge in Laos challenges censors", "Fantastic Fest 2013 Review: Chanthaly is A Haunting Portrait of Modern Day Laos", "Laos Selects 'Dearest Sister' as First Foreign-Language Oscar Submission", "Cannes: Southeast Asia Is Ready for Its Big-Screen Close-up", "Laos: Crony scheme in control of press and civil society", "Social Discrimination in the Lao People's Democratic Republic", "Muay Lao, the forgotten art of kickboxing", "Laos Stumbles on Path to Sporting Glory", Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), ASEANRepublic of Korea Commemorative Summit, Comprehensive Economic Partnership for East Asia, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, ASEANAustralia Development Cooperation Program, Outstanding Scientist and Technologist Award, Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, Assemble parlementaire de la Francophonie, Agence de Coopration Culturelle et Technique, Prix des cinq continents de la francophonie, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Laos&oldid=1142166912, French-speaking countries and territories, Member states of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, States and territories established in 1949, All articles with bare URLs for citations, Articles with bare URLs for citations from March 2022, Articles with PDF format bare URLs for citations, Articles with failed verification from January 2021, Wikipedia indefinitely move-protected pages, Pages using infobox country or infobox former country with the symbol caption or type parameters, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2022, Articles containing potentially dated statements from March 2021, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2020, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2011, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2021, Pages using Sister project links with wikidata mismatch, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Articles with MusicBrainz area identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 28 February 2023, at 21:55. Mountain/hill tribes of mixed ethno/cultural-linguistic heritage are found in northern Laos, which include the Lua and Khmu people who are indigenous to Laos. The khaen traditionally accompanied the singer in mor lam, the dominant style of folk music. Laos can be considered to consist of three geographical areas: north, central, and south. The national carrier is Lao Airlines. "[81] Republicans called several Congressional hearings on alleged persecution of the Hmong in Laos in an apparent attempt to generate further support for their opposition to the Hmong's repatriation to Laos. Additionally, the Khao San Pathet Lao, the country's official news agency, publishes English and French versions of its eponymous paper. According to the International Monetary Fund, as of 01.01.2020, they amounted to USD 1.128 million. Laos, landlocked country of northeast-central mainland Southeast Asia. Laos became independent in 1953, with a constitutional monarchy under Sisavang Vong. Take more wonderful experiences in this Mystery . The organisation estimates that there are 173,800 French speakers in Laos (2010 est.). The capital city of Hanoi is ready to further expand friendship and cooperation activities in various fields, including those of people-elected . THE government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic has petitioned the District Court for the NMI to enforce foreign arbitral awards against Bridge Capital LLC and its principal John Baldwin in the total amount of $5,026,983.98. A man who lost land and property to the Laos-China railway project near the capital said he has yet to receive any promised money. Capital: Vientiane. Choose our custom designed, flexible and unique Laos Tour Packages. Laos produced tin, rubber, and coffee, but never accounted for more than one percent of French Indochina's exports. Cities []. Gently cut cilantro resting atop a raging furnace of flavor. Shortly after, the Kingdom of Champasak and the territory of Vientiane were added to the protectorate. Local tradition holds that there are three seasons (rainy, cool and hot) as the latter two months of the climatologically defined dry season are noticeably hotter than the earlier four months. Laos's first French-written and monarchical constitution was promulgated on 11 May 1947, and declared Laos an independent state within the French Union. The constitution also contains provisions for gender equality, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of press and assembly. Population 6.7 million. The national basketball team competed at the 2017 Southeast Asian Games where it beat Myanmar in the eighth place game.[185]. Other terms are Khmu, Khamu (Kammu) or Kha as the Lao Loum refer to them to indicate their Austroasiatic language affiliation. There are some public holidays, festivities and ceremonies in Laos. [125], Laos is rich in mineral resources and imports petroleum and gas. ", Barclay, Adam and Shrestha, Samjhana (AprilJune 2006). This includes 1,900,440 Pfizer and 1,000,800 J&J doses. [109], Laos and Vietnamese (SRV) troops were reported to have raped and killed four Christian Hmong women in Xiangkhouang Province in 2011, according to the US-based non-governmental public policy research organisation The Centre for Public Policy Analysis, which also said other Christian and independent Buddhist and animist believers were being persecuted. Laos is thus the 22nd biggest country in Asia and in terms of area ranked 84th worldwide. Between 20,000 and 62,000 Laotians died during the civil war. Other Buddhist holy places are Wat Ong . [53] In 1979, there were 50,000 PAVN troops stationed in Laos and as many as 6,000 civilian Vietnamese officials including 1,000 directly attached to the ministries in Vientiane. [47][52] Laos was requested in 1979 by Vietnam to end relations with the People's Republic of China, leading to isolation in trade by China, the United States, and other countries. The major roads connecting to urban centres, in particular Route 13, have been significantly upgraded in recent years. [143], The term "Laotian" does not necessarily refer to the Lao language, ethnic Lao people, language or customs. However, only slightly more than half of the population speaks Lao natively. Hanoi shares experience with Lao NA delegation. [96][97] In The Economist's Democracy Index 2016 Laos was classified as an "authoritarian regime", ranking lowest of the nine ASEAN nations included in the study. [129], In 2018, the country ranked 139th on the Human Development Index (HDI), indicating medium development. Area 236,800 sq km (91,400 sq miles) Major languages Lao, French. Compared to the hectic, bustling capitals in other South . [113] A number of citizens, primarily women and girls from all ethnic groups and foreigners, have been victims of sex trafficking in Laos. Trc , FPT Capital ng k bn 1 triu c phiu TPB tng ng 0,063% vn iu l ngn hng. Amnesty International raised concerns about the ratification record of the Lao government on human rights standards and its lack of co-operation with the UN human rights mechanisms and legislative measuresboth impact negatively upon human rights. Some Vietnamese, Laotian Chinese[148] and Thai minorities remain, particularly in the towns, but many left after independence in the late 1940s, many of whom relocated either to Vietnam, Hong Kong, or to France. At the heart of the Indochinese Peninsula, Laos is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and southwest. [95], Human rights violations remain a significant concern in Laos. Nearly three-quarters of Laos is covered in mountains and forested hills that are too steep to live on. However, historians claim the city was an ancient Khmer settlement that formed around a Hindu temple. The Lao alphabet, which evolved sometime between the 13th and 14th centuries, was derived from the ancient Khmer script and is very similar to Thai script. [38] France rescued King Oun Kham and added Luang Phrabang to the protectorate of French Indochina. [184], Laos has no tradition in other team sports. Thailand (invested US$4.489billion) and Vietnam (invested US$3.108billion) are the second and third largest investors respectively. These include the Presidential Palace and the National Assembly of Laos. The Lao League is the top professional league for association football clubs in the country. "Muay" comes from the Sanskrit term meaning "to box" but is generally used to describe the unarmed martial art found throughout Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Ninety-three percent of households have a telephone, either fixed line or mobile. has been the most successful club with 8 titles, the highest number of championship wins. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions 2023 worldatlas.com. CIA agent Bill Lair met with the young Hmong military . From the river bank inland, the three main roads run parallel to the river, while the . Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}18N 105E / 18N 105E / 18; 105. [77] Pressure to resettle the refugees grew as the Thai government worked to close its remaining refugee camps. Visiting Vientiane, Laos, elicits such a diversity of opinions from travelers, it's often hard . Overall, the country extends about 650 miles (1,050 km) from northwest to southeast. The indigenous Khmers are believed to have been largely displaced or killed during the 11th and 12th centuries, when the Lao people entered the region. A post-independence civil war began, which saw the communist resistance, supported by the Soviet Union, fight against the monarchy that later came under influence of military regimes supported by the United States. The first Lao kingdom, called Lan Xang or "land of the million elephants," was founded by Fa Ngum in 1353. When he died without an heir, the kingdom split into three principalities. [76], In 1989, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with the support of the US government, instituted the Comprehensive Plan of Action, a programme to stem the tide of Indochinese refugees from Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Lao PDR: How to Attract More Investment in Small-Scale Renewable Energy? [144], The people of Laos are often categorised by their distribution by elevation: (lowlands, midlands and upper high lands) as this somewhat correlates with ethnic groupings. In 1960, amidst a series of rebellions in the Kingdom of Laos, fighting broke out between the Royal Lao Army (RLA) and the communist North Vietnamese and Soviet Union-backed Pathet Lao guerillas. Evidence for modern human presence in the northern and central highlands of Indochina, that constitute the territories of the modern Laotian nation-state dates back to the Lower Paleolithic. French is also used in public works in central and southern Laos and Luang Prabang and is a language of diplomacy and of the elite classes, higher professions and elders. The small nation is bordered by China, Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia. Built on three levels, it symbolises the ascent from earth to heaven. [25] Stone artefacts including Hoabinhian types have been found at sites dating to the Late Pleistocene in northern Laos. "Laos agrees to voluntary repatriation of refugees in Thailand", U.P.I., 5 June 1991. ::", "Global Religious Landscape; Table: Religious Composition by Country", "Human Development Report 2009. Laos is a member of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement, the ASEAN, East Asia Summit, and La Francophonie. Settathirath disappeared in the mountains on his way back from a military expedition into Cambodia, and Lan Xang fell into more than seventy years of instability, involving both Burmese invasion and civil war. [127] Of the potential capacity of approximately 18,000 megawatts, around 8,000 megawatts have been committed for export to Thailand and Vietnam. It is stretched out on the north-eastern bank of a bend in the Mekong River. [33], In 1637, when Sourigna Vongsa ascended the throne, Lan Xang further expanded its frontiers. Situated on a curve of the Mekong River, Laos's Capital has a recorded history that stretches back to around 1,000 AD. Laos Local Tour Company offers Laos tours, tailor made vacation packages travel services. [175] Lao citizens who have criticised the government have been subjected to enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and torture. Pakxe has also experienced growth based on cross-border trade with Thailand and Vietnam. English, the language of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), has become increasingly studied in recent years. After the Pathet Lao took over the country in 1975, the conflict continued in isolated pockets. [69] Trade relations with the United States were normalised in November 2004 through Congress approved legislation. [179] Only 3.5% of women and 2.1% of men between the ages of 1549 were in a polygamous union as of 2017. After the Vietnam War ended in 1975, the communist Pathet Lao came to power, ending the civil war. [19][20][21][22][23] In the Lao language, the country's name is Muang Lao () or Pathet Lao (), both of which literally mean 'Lao Country'. [58] Laos had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 5.59/10, ranking it 98th globally out of 172 countries. His ministers, unable to tolerate his ruthlessness, forced him into exile to the present-day Thai province of Nan in 1373,[31] where he died. [14] It is a one-party socialist republic, espousing MarxismLeninism and governed by the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, under which non-governmental organisations have routinely characterised the country's human rights record as poor, citing repeated abuses such as torture, restrictions on civil liberties and persecution of minorities. In 1893, the three territories came under a French protectorate and were united to form what is now known as Laos. Laos applied for membership of the World Trade Organization in 1997; on 2 February 2013, it was granted full membership. [79], In 1993, Vue Mai, a former Hmong soldier and leader of the largest Hmong refugee camp in Thailand, who had been recruited by the USEmbassy in Bangkok to return to Laos as proof of the repatriation programme's success, disappeared in Vientiane. 3,920 square kilometres and is located on the banks of the Mekong, close to the Thai border.Vientiane was the administrative capital . Laos is landlocked (it does not have a coast on a sea or ocean). [139]:3940, In 2004 the net primary enrollment rate was 84%. [45] The Japanese attempted to force Sisavang Vong (the King of Luang Phrabang) to declare Laotian independence, but on 8 April he instead simply declared an end to Laos's status as a French protectorate. Most of these projects will be carried out through public-private partnerships under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model as the government is encouraging the private sector . The 1957 document was abrogated in December 1975, when a communist people's republic was proclaimed. [24], An ancient human skull was recovered in 2009 from the Tam Pa Ling Cave in the Annamite Mountains in northern Laos; the skull is at least 46,000 years old, making it the oldest modern human fossil found to date in Southeast Asia. [141] Laos's progress is notable in comparison to similar developing countries. These dishes always contain chili peppers, and usually some type of grilled vegetable, giving them a distinct smoky flavor, and sometimes fermented fish. 6, "Seventy Years of Anarchy", in. [140], Laos has made particularly noteworthy progress increasing access to sanitation. As a low-income country, Laos faces a brain-drain problem as many educated people migrate to developed countries. Laos Laos is the only . [50], In 1975 the Pathet Lao overthrew the royalist government, forcing King Savang Vatthana to abdicate on 2 December 1975. The train arrived at the brand new Vientiane Capital Station, the largest and most important station of the line . Laos Capital City, Vientiane. Under the plan, refugee status was evaluated through a screening process. Its international borders were closed except to trucks carrying goods and in cases allowed by the nation's COVID . The constitution and Family Code bar the legal recognition of polygamous marriages, stipulating that monogamy is the principal form of marriage in the country. 1 Vientiane the increasingly busy capital on the banks of the Mekong River; 2 Huay Xai in the north, on the Mekong and the border with Thailand; 3 Luang Namtha capital of the north, known for its trekking; 4 Luang Prabang a UNESCO World Heritage City known for its numerous temples, colonial era architecture, and vibrant night market; 5 Muang Xay also known as . Its International borders were closed except to trucks carrying goods and in terms of area 84th. Historians claim the city was an ancient Khmer settlement that formed around a Hindu temple major Lao! 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