Laos — Radio Free Asia

Lao workers are shown at a Laos-China Railway work site near the capital Vientiane in a screen grab from video.

Lao Workers on China-Backed Railway Project Go Unpaid for Almost Two Months

Twenty at one work site are paid after they cut off power to the project, but more than a hundred are still waiting for their pay.

Lao Christians evicted from their homes meet in a tent in a file photo.

Lao Christians Formerly Evicted from Their Villages Still Wait For New Homes

2021-09-20

Christians in rural areas of Laos remain subject to discrimination at the hands of local authorities despite protection under national law.

Police set up a roadblock to prevent locals from entering and leaving villages during a government-ordered lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic, in Laos' capital Vientiane, May 2021.

Villagers in Southern Laos Cope With Food Shortages Amid COVID Lockdowns

2021-09-16

Residents say they are subsisting on dry goods to get through lockdowns set to run until the end of September.

Lao Investors in Pyramid Scheme Await Repayment as Government Sells Company Assets

2021-09-15

Four years after company executives were jailed, investors say they still have not received back any of their money.

Buddhist statues face the rising sun at the That Luang Stupa in Vientiane, capital of Laos, in a file photo.

Laotians Oppose Plan to Build Chinese-Style Buddha Statue in SEZ

2021-09-14

Residents and monks say the move will cause Laos to lose its image and identity.

A Chinese worker carries materials for the first rail line linking China to Laos in a photo taken in Luang Prabang, Laos, Feb. 8, 2020.

Chinese Investments in Laos Soar, but Little Wealth is Spread

2021-09-08

Not counted is the cost in damage to the country's environment and Lao citizens' loss of homes and livelihoods, experts say.

The site of the future Luang Prabang Dam shows cleared land and the beginning of construction activity in Laos, Luang Prabang province, May 2021.

Laos Pushes Ahead With Large Dam Projects, Despite Uncertainty of Power Purchases

2021-09-08

Thailand, the major buyer of Lao power, says decision will turn on need, industrial production, and prices.

A frame grab from a video shot by a citizen journalist of the street outside the Savannakhet provincial prison after the reported escape attempt by about 20 inmates in the early morning of Aug. 29, 2021.

Lao Prisoners Who Feared COVID-19 Infection Recaptured After Brief Jailbreak

2021-08-31

The group of around 20 say they feared the spread of COVID-19 in their prison in Savannakhet Province, where two infected prisoners recently died.

This Jan. 2020 file photo shows a Chinese language school in Houeyxay, Bokeo Province, Laos that is supported by the Construction Department of China's Guangdong province.

Laos’ High School Graduates Flocking to Chinese Studies in University

2021-08-30

As Beijing’s investment in Laos increases, more students see the Chinese language as an essential skill.

A farmer works in a paddy field under the power lines near Nam Theun 2 dam in Khammouane province in a file photo.

Farmers in Laos Press Dam Operator to Release Water for Irrigation

2021-08-20

Prior to the dam’s construction, water was abundant in Nam Thea village.

A February 2017 file photo shows luxury cars for sale in Laos.

Laos Says No to Officials Keeping State Cars After Retirement

2021-08-17

Citizens tell RFA that they like efforts to curb wasteful practices.

Lao Prime Minister Phankham Viphavanh addresses a meeting of state officials on July 6, 2021.

Laos Drowning in Debt That Can’t be Repaid: Experts

2021-08-16

Debts are tied mainly to the development of infrastructure projects, with money owed to lenders in China and other nearby countries.

Lao students are shown at a meeting in the capital Vientiane at the end of 2020.

College Graduates in Laos Face Bleak Job Prospects Amid Pandemic Shutdowns

2021-08-12

Many unemployed graduates have turned to selling beauty products online to support themselves.

Hundreds of Myanmar migrant workers are shown protesting in the Golden Triangle SEZ in Laos on Aug. 6, 2021.

Myanmar Workers Stranded by COVID in Lao SEZ Protest to Return Home

2021-08-09

Around 2,000 Myanmar migrant workers have been stranded in a lockdown in the Golden Triangle SEZ in Bokeo province, Laos, without work or money for rent or food.

View more items >>

Lao Villagers Gather at Site of Gold Mine Collapse

Running Dry: Drought And Dams Deplete The Mighty Mekong

Laos and its Dams:
Southeast Asia’s Battery, Built by China

CHINA’S FAST TRACK TO INFLUENCE:
BUILDING A RAILWAY IN LAOS

A River in Peril

Search for Sombath

Vietnamese Civil Groups Raise Freedom of Religion, Expression at ASEAN Forum

Discrimination, Restrictions on Freedom of Expression Cited For Rights Decline in Myanmar

European Parliamentarians Accuse Lao Government of Lying Over Sombath's Case

Lao Activist Sombath May Not Be Alive: Diplomats

Mystery Over Lao Civil Society Leader's Disappearance Deepens

Xayaburi Dam

NGOs Petition Malaysian Human Rights Body Over Laos Dam

Hundreds Protest Lao Dam Project

Cambodia Lodges Dam Protest with Laos

Xayaburi Concerns Mount

International Green Group Calls Attention to Negative Impacts of Dam Projects in Laos