By Gretchen Kunze

With a single-party government and state-run media, civil society in Laos is one of the most limited in the world. Since the founding of the Lao PDR in 1975, the state has disseminated information and policies, delivered basic social services, and consulted the public through state-funded mass organizations which are part of the communist party structure (such as the Lao Women’s Union, Lao Revolutionary Youth Union, and the Lao Front for National Construction). With hundreds of thousands of members, well-organized communication and outreach structures, high levels of respect, and a presence throughout the country in even the most remote villages, these mass organizations have dominated the space that civil society organizations traditionally occupy in other countries and political contexts.

Laos remains one of the lowest ranked countries in Asia for almost all measures of human development, including living a long and healthy life, having access to education, and access to purified drinking water.

Though little known or utilized, under Article 44 of the Lao Constitution, civil society groups in the official form of “associations” are legally permitted in Laos. The constitution states, “Lao citizens have the right and freedom of speech, press and assembly, and have the right to set up associations and to stage demonstrations which are not contrary to the laws.”
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By V. Bruce J. Tolentino

On Earth Day 2010, Asia has much to be thankful for. While the recent global financial crisis hit Asia hard, most of Asia’s governments acted swiftly and decisively and succeeded, against prevailing expectations, to limit the impact of the financial debacle. They had learned the hard way from the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

Intertwined with the global financial crisis was the food price crisis of 2007-2009: long-term global trends in population growth, rising incomes, competing non-food use of crops, falling investments in agricultural productivity, and lower food stocks were jarred by sudden supply shocks in key producing countries. The panicky procurement and knee-jerk trade bans hurriedly implemented by several governments, particularly India and the Philippines, sparked a food price spiral – that spiraled out of control.
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By Gretchen Kunze

The Mekong River, the longest in Southeast Asia, is at its lowest reported water level in 20 years. The river runs through six countries – China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam – but the highest percentage (35 percent) of the river’s overall water flow runs through Laos. The dramatic effects of the low water level here are palpable. In past weeks, downtown Vientiane businesses and homes have experienced reduced water pressure and even the stoppage of water supply during business hours. Boats in Luang Prabang and northern Laos that daily ferry tourists and cargo along the river and make up a significant part of the economy are currently beached for the first time in memory because it is too dangerous or just impossible to navigate the now-shallow waters. The hospitals in Vientiane are without water supply at peak hours and are busy brainstorming stop-gap solutions such as building larger holding tanks or drilling more artesian wells. The maternity and surgery wards are the biggest users of water, so they are the most affected. Recognizing the severity of the issue, the Prime Minister urged ministries and government offices last week to actively address the impact of this water shortage crisis.

As the country that holds the largest percentage of the Mekong River, Laos' industries, such as fishing, have been dramatically affected by current low water levels.

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By Gretchen Kunze

Vientiane has never looked so good. As host to the 25th Southeast Asian Games, the city has been spruced up and polished. The 10 ASEAN countries, plus Timor-Leste, are competing in 25 sporting events, ranging from soccer, badminton, and taekwondo to more regionally-specific sports such as sepak takraw and poomsae. Vientiane’s charm and beauty are well known, and even contributed to making Laos the number one country to visit on a recent New York Times’ hot destination list. At that time, Vientiane’s somewhat tattered edges – the holes in the sidewalk, crumbling buildings, and riverside food stalls with folding tables and plastic chairs – helped create the image of a sleepy, backwater post-colonial capital. But in preparation for the games, the government and business community have gone all-out to present Vientiane as a modern city on the rise.
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By Carol Mercado

At the 15th ASEAN summit, held this past October, ASEAN inaugurated its Inter-Governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR).  The announcement was met with criticism from some quarters, but ASEAN called it a “historic milestone” in its 42-year history of community-building in the region.

During the summit’s concluding statement, ASEAN said that the AICHR “gives concrete expression to the implementation of Article 14 of the ASEAN Charter and ASEAN’s commitment to pursue forward-looking strategies to strengthen regional cooperation on human rights.” The Commission is mandated to support and protect human rights by promoting public awareness and education, and providing advice and capacity-building to government agencies and ASEAN bodies, among other things.
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By John J. Brandon

From 2002 to 2006, The Asia Foundation implemented a series of exchanges for 80 promising young professionals from Southeast Asia and the United States to help develop a better understanding of one another’s region. This program was initiated by the Foundation because of concern that fewer Americans had been involved with Southeast Asia since the end of the Vietnam War and subsequently were less familiar with the region’s nuances and complexities. Consequently, a younger generation of Southeast Asians had limited exposure to the United States and their understanding has been limited as well.
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The devastation from two earthquakes near the Indonesian city and West Sumatran capital of Padang continues to mount and the death toll has climbed well past 1,000. The neighboring town of Pariaman was destroyed. On Sunday, Typhoon Ketsana struck the main island of Luzon in the Philippines and caused devastating flooding in Manila, killing hundreds. The Philippines now awaits the arrival of Supertyphoon Parma, expected to hit land October 3. Frustration is mounting among victims competing for food and emergency supplies as the government struggles to help the more than half a million people dislocated by the worst flooding in 40 years. Ketsana wreaked havoc as it swept across Southeast Asia, killing many in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Meanwhile, a deadly tsunami, triggered by an underground earthquake, hit the Samoan islands on Tuesday.

In response, Give2Asia, The Asia Foundation’s affiliate, is working on the ground with its network of local partners across Southeast Asia to identify where donors can best provide relief and recovery assistance through local charitable organizations. They are tracking several disasters in the region. To donate visit Give2Asia’s website.

By Bulbul Gupta

Bulbul Gupta is The Asia Foundation’s Grants Manager for Programs and Private Philanthropy. She can be reached at bgupta@asiafound.org.

We started the drive to Vang Vieng early in the morning. It takes about three or four hours to get there from Vientiane on Highway 13, a long one-lane road that is bumper-to-bumper until you reach the city outskirts. Once out of the Lao capital, it becomes windy as Highway 13 stretches north. As the four of us – all born outside of Laos – drove north, we saw ducks and chickens being carted up country in large wooden baskets strapped to the back of buses. Black smoke wafted out of tailpipes and right onto the ducks and chickens. We made our way further into the lush, green countryside, crossing bridge after bridge, and road signs began to warn of steep turns, as we lurched from side to side. We saw young boys herding water buffalo and a road crew starting repair work to the highway in preparation for the 2009 Southeast Asian Games that the Lao PDR will host this year for the first time.

Ahead of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games, development begins on a riverfront boardwalk along the Mekong River near Vientiane.

During the drive, it was hard to imagine that this was the same country that is known as the most bombed country per capita in history – a tragic legacy of the Vietnam War here in Laos. After communicating with the driver through my co-worker for the first half of the trip, I realized that he understood some basic English, and learned that he had taken English-language classes through the U.S. cultural centers back in the 1960s. Now he runs a rental car business with his sons. His tale reminded me of the generation gap I’d heard about in this country between older men who know some English and their children who were taught anything but. Until recently, some say it was easier to find a Lao adult who speaks Russian than English because of the extensive scholarships awarded to Lao youth to study in the former Soviet Union. These days, English-language training has proven valuable, especially for those wanting to work in the booming tourism industry or in international trade and commerce.
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By Brooke Shull

Brooke Shull is The Asia Foundation’s Environment Program Officer. She can be reached at bshull@asiafound.org.

Only a few hours’ drive from Laos’s capital of Vientiane, Vang Vieng is a small but growing port town, and one of the country’s most popular ecotourism destinations. Here, the Nam Song River is the center of life. People from around the globe travel to Vang Vieng to enjoy kayaking, tubing, fishing, caving, and trekking along the river and its surrounding limestone cliffs. While local tourism and agriculture businesses thrive off the pristine waters of the Nam Song, villagers rely on the river for their main sources of protein: fish and aquatic insects. Local communities’ livelihoods and the success of the ecotourism industry in Vang Vieng are inextricably linked to the river’s health and surrounding ecosystems.
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By Tommy Koh

Tommy Koh is Ambassador-At-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore, and Chairman of the Institute of Policy Studies and the National Heritage Board. He was one of the three Asian co-chairs for the recently released book, America’s Role in Asia: Asian and American Views. Below is an excerpt from his chapter, which provides recommendations for a new U.S.  administration’s foreign policy towards the Southeast Asia region.

The peoples of Southeast Asia are following the 2008 U.S. presidential elections with great attention and admiration, given the open and transparent primary processes. America’s real and vibrant democracy is reflected in the competing candidates’ travels to every corner of the country to win the hearts and minds of voters. This illustrates that the highest office of the land can neither be secured by wealth nor pedigree and, this year especially, neither race nor gender is an insurmountable obstacle. Consequently, in some parts of the world, including Southeast Asia, anti-Americanism has been balanced by a respect for America’s current exercise of democracy.

Thus, every region of the world wants America’s attention; the only question is whether American attention is positive or negative. Washington’s nature is to focus attention on the largest countries, regions, and economies, which can pose a threat to American interest or to international peace and security. By these standards, Southeast Asia ” a region largely at peace ” does not receive the positive attention it deserves. Read More…