Human rights groups have urged the Laotian authorities to launch a probe into the killing of political activist Anousa “Jack” Luangsuphom, who was shot dead by an unidentified assailant on April 29. Luangsuphom was attacked late at night while sitting at a coffee shop in the Chanthabuly district of Vientiane province. The 25-year-old activist was…
Rights Groups Urge Laos Government to Investigate Fatal Shooting of Political Activist
The ‘Forgotten Land’ of Laos: The Mysterious Plain of Jars
Laos became known as the “Forgotten Land” in the years following the Vietnam War. Located between its more popular neighbors—Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia—Laos has been relatively isolated from the West since the war ended and the communist Pathet Lao government took over in 1975. However, the past decade has seen Laos open up to visitors,…
Annual Inflation in Laos Exceeds 30 Percent in August
Inflation in the Southeast Asian nation of Laos spiked to 30.1 percent on an annual basis last month according to the Lao Statistics Bureau. August inflation was roughly five percentage points higher than the 25.6 percent inflation rate posted in July. In August 2021, inflation was only at 3.81 percent. As such, the August 2022…
Laos Limits Foreign Exchange Sales Amid Looming Default Risk
The Lao central bank has imposed a limit on selling foreign currencies as part of a group of measures designed to stabilize the kip, which has plunged to its lowest value in decades. The new rules prohibit currency exchange bureaus from selling foreign currency to legal entities and international organizations, instead permitting only licensed commercial…
Fuel Shortage in Laos Sees People Asked Not to Travel
The Laos government has called on residents to avoid unnecessary travel amid fuel shortages, citing the need to prioritize agriculture and other essential industries, according to local reports. Laos, which imports most of its gasoline from neighboring countries, faces fuel shortages due to soaring fuel prices and a weak currency. Many gas stations have been…
Laos to Target Chinese Tourists Under Green Zone Travel
Laos’ Information, Culture, and Tourism Ministry have outlined plans to reopen the country to domestic and foreign tourists in 2022 under the “Lao Travel Green Zone programme,” reported Vientiane Times on Dec. 8. Deputy Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone said the government would focus its campaign to draw visitors from China and Korea, according to CCP mouthpiece Xinhua….
Laos Reports Seizing Huge Amount of Methamphetamine
BANGKOK—Police in the Southeast Asian nation of Laos have made one of Asia’s biggest-ever drug busts, seizing more than 55.6 million methamphetamine pills in a single raid. The drugs were found in the northern province of Bokeo, the state-run Vientiane Times newspaper reported Thursday. The drugs were found Wednesday in sacks in a house that…
Insider’s Laos: Exploring Luang Prabang
Having landed that morning in Luang Prabang, an almost-mystical city of temples and palaces cradled high in the mountains, I made my way to the night market. Set close to a big bend of the mighty Mekong River, this famous market features hundreds of vendors, a swirl of color and light under red and blue…
Hmong New Year in Luang Prabang: Finding a Wife, and Other Pursuits
The taxi driver is apologetic. “Sir, this is as close I can get,” he tells me, as I climb out more than a mile from my destination. And then, moving in the same direction as everyone else, I join the pilgrimage. The crowd thickens as I get closer. Some travel on foot, others buzz past…
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