Washington, D.C. and Nong Khai, Thailand and July 21, 2009 - Laos troops have gang raped and killed an 18 year old Hmong girl they captured along with four other Laotian and Hmong civilians during recent Lao military attacks. At least 5 civilians died in the most recent Lao military offensive directed against Lao and Hmong dissidents and civilians hiding from the Lao regime in the Phou Bia Mountain area of Laos.

“According to redundant and reliable reports from inside Laos, government soldiers of the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic ( LPDR ) have attacked unarmed Hmong civilians at the Phou Bia mountain area of Laos on July 13-14 killing at least five Hmong villagers at one location in the mountain area, including an 18 year old woman who was captured by Lao Communist soldiers, gang raped and killed after her unfortunate abduction, torture and sexual assault,” said Philip Smith, Executive Director of the Center for Public Policy Analysis ( CPPA ) in Washington, D.C. “The Hmong lady who was captured died a cruel and sad death, evidently similar to those horrific images capture on tape in 2004, when Lao soldiers were secretly videotaped gang raping Lao Hmong women and children prior to their torture and summary execution; Amnesty International issued appeals and statements following these earlier attacks in 2004 and 2007.”
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/aidoc/ai.ns...ENGASA260042004
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA26/003/2007

According to Smith: “Laos, under the LPDR military junta, remains one of the world’s most repressive societies, especially given its intimate working relationship with the dictatorships in North Korea and Burma, two of its closest military and political allies in Asia; We urge Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to raise this issue along with the issue of growing international opposition to the forced repatriation of Hmong refugees with the government of Laos and Thailand at the ASEAN conference she is participating in Phuket, Thailand in the coming days.”

“The LPDR government soldiers had attacked Hmong at Phou Bia,on July 13th and 14th, 2009, four people died immediately and a 18 years old was captured by the Lao soldiers and she was raped and killed afterward,” said Vaughn Vang of the Lao Hmong Human Rights Council in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

In June, thirty-two ( 32 ) Members of the U.S. Congress led by Rep. Dennis Cardoza ( D-CA ) and Rep. Patrick Kennedy ( D-RI ) sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urging the United States and Thailand to intervene to halt the forced repatriation of Hmong refugees from two of the remaining camps at Ban Huay Nam Khao, Pethchabun Province and Nong Khai, Thailand.

“We urge the Lao communist regime to immediately stop its military and security force attacks against unarmed Lao and Hmong civilians and peaceful political and religious dissidents in Laos,” stated Bounthanh Rathigna, President of the United League for Democracy in Laos, Inc. “We call upon the Lao regime, and its military chiefs, to also release the imprisoned Lao student leaders and political dissidents of the October 1999 movement for democracy, who peacefully protested in Vientiane against the current LPDR regime and urged positive change in Laos and a multi-party democracy with human rights and the guarantee of basic human freedoms.”

Freedom House, a non-governmental organization, has recently issued a report detailing human rights abuses in Laos. The communist regime in Laos remains a one-party, military dictatorship closely allied with the military juntas in North Korea and Burma. Laos, under the Stalinist regime, is listed in Freedom House’s “2009 Worst of the Worst” report which describes the most egregious countries in the world involved with violating the human rights of their citizens.
http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?p...3&report=81

Why do Lao misbehave again? LOL!

It's really sad.
I thought, as a nation surrounded by buddhist monuments,
people should at least have morals.

Hmongs are not Laotians...They are not Citizens of Lao PDR. They are like illegal immigrants/ border crossers.

Then how would you explain the term Lao Soung then? It's a term used to refer to highland Laotians. Hmongs and Miens. Did i just blew your whistle?

Watch of some of the blind Lao members come in here and defend their actions by twisting the story around and calling the Hmongs rebels.

doesnt matter if they could be illegal immigrants

i dont think its necessary for anyone too gang rape. anyone..

http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/aidoc/ai.ns...ENGASA260042004
The first article published 13 September 2004, but Modernthai makes it seems it was yesterday.


http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA26/003/2007
The second link is just about someone make a request and asking for amnesty:

http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?p...3&report=81
The third link is a special report of many countries around the world.

Have people noticed that the article started out " According to redundant and reliable reports from inside Laos"

According to whom?

Hmmm thats why Hmong people hate Lao.

reasonable

actually Hmong Love Lao ppl, just go to Hmong chat, there is a topic that says, "I love Laos"

Hmong hate Jek they dont hate Lao, lolzzz

Lao ppl are the only ppl that accepted Hmong ppl in our homeland, Most hmong in the US call Laos home.....

i thought it was a fake article, sounds fimiliar

modernthai is trying to be a tricky Ladyboy

Of course modernthai doesn't really care about the victims. He is just using this story to make it seem Laotians are a horrible people. Dang. AF has gone to $hit these days.

ahhh hmmmmm like who cares?? Rape gonna happen everywhere nothing new about it. And those hmong in the jungle they should just join with the rest of the country and move on! And for them to keep on fighting let them die and get rape thats there choice because Laos are not even there country. And I know for the fact that most hmong have nothing for Laos and the country and even the people, there is nothing good about laos for them hmong.

Most hmong and Laos are peacefully co-exist. Laos is Hmong homeland too. Anyway just want to let you know i love Jek garlee too.

I'm hmong and I got a lot of love for Laos. Yeah it's wrong to rape others but $hit like this happen all over the world. Think about it if we hmong control Lao I bet we would be doing the same thing.

^ in otherwords, war crime is inevitable and universal

There are more Lao raping Lao. It's horrible and not ok.

Thailand is lao homeland too. but homeland don't want lao because dirty stupid and poor.

I think Bangkok is jek homeland. Soon jek will take over.

you got that right. I dont want to be a mean @$$ but looking through history. hmongs are just mountain peoples that migrated from southern China illegaly into Lao territory. What gives them da right to try to overthrow da Lao government? speaking of Vang Pao. makes no sense... in the 14th century. there were no such thing as hmongs in southeast asia.

hmmm

dp whatever.

too harsh.

You have to be harsh. Otherwise you will be a minority in your own homeland.

Are you Lao?

Sometimes, I feel like you're only saying the things you want to hear. I'll give you the honest truth. Growing up in a big Hmong community I should know. I hear a lot of positive and negative things about the Lao people. Hmong people don't hate Jek.. at least, I don't think I ever hear about them. Someone else should give their input on this, someone Hmong and not bias.

In my opinion, the most accepting country is not Lao. I would even put America ahead of Laos. If Hmong were really accepting of the Hmong, they wouldn't call us wandering Meos in the jungles. Meaning, we're cats without a home (country).

Only the OGs call Laos home because most of them were born there. You will almost never hear a second generation or beyond call Laos their home. The Hmong born in Thailand (like the newer wave of Hmong in the US) will call Thailand their home. Hmong-Chinese singers sing songs about China being their home. So, it all depends where you were born and where you were raised. But, ALL Hmong recognize China as their original, ancient homeland for thousands of years even though most have never stepped on it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaElIJumUpM
Here Wang Li sings to the Hmong people all over the world to not forget their ethnicity and their homeland -- Tsoob Kuj (Zhongguo/China) no matter where they're currently living now.
You will also hear in ancient Hmong folk songs and stories referring China as the real homeland.

you must be living in a cave, White ppl are the most racist ppl on the planet. Hope you know this.

I dont think there are any bumper stickers in Laos that say, "Save a Deer, shoot a Hmong." and other racial hate that white ppl are well known for. White ppl are openly racist towards minority groups.

The Lao word Miao for Hmong and the Lao word for Cat Meow with a low tone sounds nothing a like, i hope you can educate yourself. Only ignorant ppl who cant tell the difference would say something like what you said. Lao is a tonel language, if you change the tone of the word, the two words have nothing in common whatsoever.

and as for Most Hmong in the US that say Laos as where they are from, Yes, i even said, I based that on the fact that most come from Laos. Then again, you never seem pick up on such detail.

I heard it from OGs that Laos call us cats without a home. Even LIL has heard of this cause we both once talked about the term "Miao."
It seems like the ethnics that get blamed for calling us cats are denying it. So, maybe the Hmong are just looking for trouble and making this up.

There are a bunch of racist stuff everywhere from every ethnicity. How do we measure who's more racist and who's not. I think it's almost impossible.

You seem to be denying the fact that Hmong and Lao are not perfectly okay with each other. It's something that's true whether we want it to exist or not.
Maybe you should pick up a few books and read or ask the OGs. They have a lot to criticize the Laos about especially the things that happened in the past between the two.. but then on the other hand they will have a lot of good things to say about the Laos too (food, clothes, music, especially clothes).



Every semester, the Asian-American professor at my university will bring up the negative relationship between the Hmong and Lao. He's neither Hmong or Lao, so how does he know about this

I thought Miao means "Young plant"

^In Lao or Mandarin or both?

These are some claims made by people.. These are their words, not mine.
So, if any of you guys like, you can do further research.


Previously, the Hmong in Laos were known as Meo, a term that the Hmong themselves find offensive because in the Lao language a similar-sounding word means 'cat,' and during the last 30 years, the word Hmong has come to be used, particularly in the United States. In China, the Hmong are still generally referred to as Miao.
http://www.cal.org/CO/hmong/hpeop.html


This one is interesting. I too wonder why or how the Hmong in China don't seem to be bothered by the term "Miao" while the Hmong in SEA are offended being called "Meo."

hmongstudies.org/GYLeeHSJ8.pdf

because the when the Hmong entered northern Vietnam, they encountered the Tai Lue. The Hmong and Tai Lue went to war for a very long time in Northern Vietnam, until the Hmong finally killed off many Tai Lue that were sent from their king to kill Hmong people.

When the Hmong entered Laos, they were despised by the Khmu. There, they went to war. The Hmong were able to calm down the hostile Khmu like how they did to the Tai-Lue.

The term Meo in Vietnamese and Laos/Thai have a negative meaning, unlike in Chinese, the word Miao simply means "TEMPLE, YOUNG SEEDLING and DESCENDANTS."

Hmong Americans and SEA don't like the word Miao, because Hmong Americans left China during the Ming and Qing Dynasty when the Chinese were having beef with southern minorities. Remember that SEA Hmong still have that underline tensions and grudges against the Chinese under MING and QING.
The term "Miao" during that time changed to "Min-Man." It was used to degrade and insult the Hmong in southwest China by the Chinese officials and emperor who wanted to oppress the Hmong people.

Today, the wars are over. The Chinese today are no longer the Chinese of yesterday; however, the Hmong today are still the Hmong of yesterday. There is no more monarchy in China.

@koj
After our parents generation, no Hmong would think about Laos anymore. Many Hmong seen the country Laos as a very alien, hostile and strange world. Only our parents still talk about Laos, but other then that, the younger generations are going back to dig their roots in China. The country of Laos is no longer part of the Hmong desire to even visit.

"Similar"-sounding does not mean that they are the same words or have the same meaning. Remember, Lao is a tonal language. Besides, they are not that similar because anyone who understands the Lao language can clearly differentiate between the two words.

Different tones = different words.

Lao words:

Ma (mid tone) = come
Ma (falling tone) = horse
Ma (rising tone) = dog
Ma (low tone) = soak (rice)

^same consonants, but different tones...therefore, four DIFFERENT words.

If you're suggesting that the word Meo for Hmong is the same as the Lao word for Cat, then whenever I tell someone to "come" over or to "soak rice" I guess they should be offended because those words sound "similar" to the Lao word for Dog? Fortunately, it doesn't work that way in our language because Lao language is a tonal language. If the words have different tones, then they are completely different words just like how the English words "sat" and "fat" are two completely different words despite the fact that they rhyme with one another. "Sat" isn't offensive, but "Fat" may be offensive, however they are still two completely different words just like how the difference in tones makes the Lao word for Hmong and the word for Cat as two unrelated words.

Unlike the English language, the Lao language can have two different words based on not just the letters, but also the tone used for that word.

Hmongs in Laos:








^Hmongs in Laos can celebrate Hmong New Year, sing Hmong songs, and there's also many Hmong markets in Laos. Please explain to me why some people are spreading lies about Laos? Those Hmong women sure look happy to me. Hmongs are Lao nationals just like everyone else in Laos.

You don't need to explain tones to us. Most of us Asians all have tonal languages.

Nobody said "MEO" (Hmong) is the same word for "Cat". It does sound similar with just a different tone but it's a fact that, because of that similarity, it has been used in a derogatory manner in the past so that is why Hmong people grew to hate the term MEO.

The Hmong people that lived in Laos prior to coming to America did speak Lao so they knew what was implied when they were being taunted and humiliated whenever they encountered lowlanders.

It's just us youth that have never been there and experienced what they did.


Noone is accusing Laos of genocide. It's political. There are still Hmong factions in the Xaysoumboune area that have been hunted since the war with no chance to surrender and still be alive afterwards. Most of the people that did back then never made it out of the re-education camps.

Well apparently I do have to explain tones because ONE Hmong person in here had brought up useless information about how the Lao word for Hmong is somehow associated with the word Cat, which in fact they are pronounced with different tones, which makes them two unrelated words. Since "Most of us Asians all have tonal languages" then what was that Hmong guy/girl's purpose for bringing up the word for Cat?

Using your logic, then I guess Ma (come) and Ma (dog) sound "similar" as well. So should we get rid of the Lao word for "come"? Those words only sound similar if the person doesn't understand the Lao language and our tones. The people who are saying that Hmong and Cat sound the same are just haters who are trying to twist reality to make Lao people look like we're bullies and that we hate Hmong people.

How could you say that the Lao words for Hmong and Cat sound similar, but with a "different tone"? The fact that they have different tones make them SOUND different. Are you sure you don't need Manleow or me to explain tones to you? Comparing Hmong to Cat is like having someone take offense to the English word "Sat" because it sounds "similar" to Fat. Two completely different words. Hmong and Cat in the Lao language don't sound the same and are spelled differently too.

^SIMILAR SIMILAR not the same. I think I did say same or indicated that in one post but the post before this one I corrected myself.
Do you want my dad to come in this forum and type out the whole sentence WANDERING CATS IN THE JUNGLE in Lao for you? (Well, no Lao keyboard here.. so not sure how he's going to type that down).

Thanks for the explanation, but I do know what a tonal language is. If you really don't think I know what tones are and if I'm not wrong, the Hmong language has more tones than Lao. Just because the tone is not precise doesn't mean people can't give it a twist. Sometimes, words can be used as pun too!

If you still don't believe me I dare you to do a project. I'm so sure of this I'll even pay you.

Go to Lao and get the Hmong people's attention by call them MEO. See how they'll react to you.
Do the same thing in China. Get all the Hmong people's attention by calling them Miao. See how they'll react.

I assume the Hmong in Laos would be offended and maybe a fight might break out.
As for the Hmong in China, I'm not so sure if anything will happen because they refer themselves as Miao when speaking Mandarin.

I don't and never have called myself a MEO in front of the older Hmong of SEA origin. As for the Hmong in China, I feel perfectly okay calling myself and them MIAO.

Now, you and those who disagree with us explain to us why Hmong from SEA don't like the term Meo/Miao while the Hmong in China don't seem to care at all?

I'm not saying Hmong and Lao aren't getting along at all. They didn't get along (in general) in the past, there's evidence. There are still some holding bitterness toward them but I AM seeming better relationships between the two groups and hopefully it keeps going this way. I guess, this whole thing is sort of like Asians and Japanese. Some Lao here are trying to sweep TRUE past history under a rug as if everything was okay and the Hmong and Lao were always doing the ring around the rosie dance. Don't be in denial. Don't be like the Japanese.



I don't know any young Hmong here that do.
I have more interest in China than any other Asian countries Hmong have recently lived. It's where our people have lived for thousands of years and it's where we will find most of our answers. If I were to pick a home for the Hmong, it would definitely be China.

It's not okay.

You should thank us Hmong for protecting Laos from the communist.
We as Hmong don't hate Laos. What is there to hate Lao people? We hate the government.

LONGCHENG (the fall of Longcheng) <=== this was PEACE, when the last King of Laos recognized the Hmong and other ethnic people as equal citizens.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7iv1F-fHNA

My parents used to have your last royal king, SiSavang Vatthana's portrait hanged in our house. Now, it's no longer there.
There were peace, harmony and respect during the life of Sisavang. Btw, he appointed Vang Pao as the general, not the CIA.

First of all, your dad is no expert. Second of all, we call you "Miao" because we got it from the Chinese. The term Miao is widely used and accepted by other countries such as Thailand and Vietnam. That's the name your people were called when your ancestors migrated from China around 200-300 years ago.

I'm not going to repeat what other Lao members already stated, but I'll just say this briefly, the word Cat or Meo in Lao and the word Miao in Lao is pronounced using different tones. In no way, shape or form do we refer to your people as "WANDERING CATS IN THE JUNGLE". Why would we?

The majority of Lao people don't come in contact with Hmong. Your people live in the mountains of Laos. It's pretty much been that way since your people migrated to Laos and other countries such as Vietnam. And as far as I know, your people also live in the mountains of China(where your ancestors migrated from).

So how could we, who rarely come in contact with your people call you names like Wandering Cats In the Jungle or whatever. It doesn't make sense.

^

First of all, you don't know our ancestors.
Our ancestors were lowland from the beginning.
They were forced to live in the highland because of the Chinese invaders and repeated attacks.

If you don't know anything about us, don't act like you do, because you obviously don't have a clue what you're talking about.

First of all, the Hmong do not live in the in the mountains of laos. They often live below the mountains. People can't live in the mountains. People live between mid-mountains. I hope you know what is a mountain, because looking at Hmong villages in Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and China, Hmong people don't live up in the mountains like how you exaggerate it to be.

@LANXAN:


Expert? In what? A black person gets called a N*gga and he needs to be an expert to... to what?
You're not just talking aobut my dad by the way. You're talking about thousands of HMONG OGs who have lived through that time when Lao people have personally called MEO in a negative, degrogatory way. I'm not making this up. Maybe I should ask you too to go to Lao and call all the Hmong Meo. See what happens and then you'll believe me.

Why would Laos say "wandering cats in the jungle?" Lao people aren't the only one who put us down for not having a country of our own. I can see why people like to pick on us for that.

Rarely made contact... how do all the OGs know how to speak Lao?

And no one has been able to give a good reason why the Hmong in SEA are offended by the word Meo while the Hmong in China aren't?

Just accept that this is true. Stop denying. It won't ruin the Hmong-Lao relationship. Infact, I think Hmong people would be happier if Laos would just be honest.
I think if Japan acknoledges what they've done to Korea, China, and other Asian countries and honestly teach about it in their schools, Asia would be happier with Japan. The fact that they deny it or try to hide it, Asians have very bitter feelings towards Japan.

And just don't be replying to me only as if I'm the only one who believes in this. There are other Hmong who posted in here saying the same thing as me.

Only if those evil Lao didn't kill their king, everything would be good. When the king was in power there was peace, now it's just a broke @$$ country going nowhere, left in the dust by the world.

You gotta be kidding me! Lao people did not invent the word Miao, OK? Why you guys single out only Lao people when the Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese all refer to your people as Miao?

Your dad or the thousands of Hmongs or whatever can believe whatever they want to believe, but it doesn't make them right. Any one or any group of people can take things out of context.

If Laos were so Anti-Hmong as some of you believe, then why would Laos even bother to include the Hmong ethnic on our currency? Why would Laos even bother having the Hmong represented in every Lao festival? Seriously, some of you people just love twisting things around.

I don't think there is nothing wrong with calling a Hmong "Meo" since Laotian tend to pronounce it like that instead of "Miao" in china. And all other ethnic call you hmong Miao anyways so why have an issue about this matter???? For me I call you just hmong, but our old generation some still call you Meo as in Miao in Thailand.

Yes, Lao and Thai call Hmongs "meo".

My dad was a refugee in Thailand and those Thai Issan would make fun of "meo" people by trying to imitate the sound of the cat MEOW.

That's what I'm thinking and these hmong thinking we call them Miao frist and everything negative is blame on us. No wonder they are being slaughtered because they are a terrorist in that country.

Also Chinese,Vietnamese,Cambodian,Burmese and the list goes on! I even ask my Meo friend they even agree they were brought up by the Chinese coming into South East Asia and the name Miao stick with them for a long time since in China.

First of all, you Lao and Thai people do NOT use the mandarin word "miao" but instead, use "meo". Learn the difference before making any racial remarks.

Why do Lao people in Laos refer to Laotian Hmongs as Lao Soung but refer to the Hmongs from America as MEO???? Get it? It clearly carry a negative implication here. Unless... some people are too slow to comprehend this derogatory term. >,<


And now you're concluding and justifying the slaughter of their people by labeling them as "terrorist"? Glad to know your true color. Straight up racist.

I think, miao and Meo are just the way how people spell in English. both pronounce almost the same. Of course different dialect, group might pronounce differently than others.

Lao also pronounce similar to louse. Louse are classified as human disease agents. I guess people can use an a deregotory term. a negative implication or not might lie in your own mind and insecurity.

Name change is nothing new. Siam just changed the name of their country to Thailand little bit over 60 years ago.

I was only stating the situation about the Meo and also those hmong who are killing citizen within the country you moron. And from what I know "Hmong" never existed until the Nam War.