Communist-run Laos is stuck in a political rut but it has seen a physical and economic transformation since Radio Free Asia first went on air nearly three decades ago.
RFA Lao has covered the plight of dissidents and the rural poor, and the country’s embrace of hydropower and other mega-projects that have brought new infrastructure to one of Southeast Asia’s poorest countries, and with it a growing national debt.
RFA has also covered human interest stories, including migrant workers who travel to neighboring countries to make a living, and those who are vulnerable to human traffickers and scams.
Environmental destruction on the Mekong
RFA Lao has reported on the headlong rush to dam one of Asia’s greatest waterways, the Mekong River, a move decried by environmentalists and many Lao people who are negatively impacted by such mega-projects. Among the most controversial of these is a major dam near the historic city of Luang Prabang, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. RFA has reported on the project since its inception and obtained exclusive footage of the dam construction site.
Scamming in the Golden Triangle
Before the explosion of cyber scams in Southeast Asia gained wide public attention, RFA Lao was reporting on how young women were being trafficked into the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone on the banks of the Mekong in Bokeo province. When women failed to meet call center quotas, they told RFA of how they were forced to sell their bodies for sex. Some sought help in alerting authorities so they could escape. The SEZ run by U.S.-sanctioned tycoon Zhao Wei appeared beyond the control of the Lao government.
Birth surrogacy
Many young Lao people turn to neighboring countries to make a living. Usually that means migratory labor – typically traveling to Thailand to find work in construction or hospitality. But other opportunities may skirt the law. RFA Lao interviewed a Lao woman who had acted as a birth surrogate for a Chinese couple at the Lao-China border, providing a rare insight into an illegal industry that continues to thrive.
Where is Sombath Somphone?
The 2012 disappearance of civil society activist Sombath Somphone has been the single most enduring human rights case against the communist government in Laos. RFA Lao has reported on the case since Sombath’s apparent abduction after he was stopped at a police checkpoint on a Vientiane street, and the subsequent appeals from his wife, supporters and foreign governments over the years for information about what happened to him.
Young migrant workers returning home
Job opportunities are few inside Laos, and many migrate to find work. The migration reverses when Lao workers head home from Thailand each April to celebrate Pii Mai, the Lao New Year. It’s a time for family reunions, temple visits, and festive water celebrations. RFA Lao reported on how workers mark this special return after months – or even years – away.
Xe Pian Xe Namnoy dam collapse
The collapse of a feeder dam for the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy hydropower project was the worst disaster suffered by Laos as it accelerated its push to become the battery of Southeast Asia. The nighttime disaster on July 24, 2018, claimed dozens of lives in southern Attapeu province, and caused the displacement of thousands more. RFA Lao has tracked the plight of the displaced in the subsequent years as they battled for proper compensation and a new place to live in the face of official corruption.
Edited by RFA staff.
