Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
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Andrew
Nov 9, 2012, 5:28:56 PM11/9/12
to Lao Cultural Heritage Forum
*The Sleepy Kingdom Comes Alive: Laos Rushes To Modernize*
LE MONDE/Worldcrunch 08 Nov 2012
VIENTIANE - The feeling of lethargy still lingers in the streets of
old Vientiane. Things, however, are beginning to change: the time for
indolence is over.
The capital of Laos, on the banks of the Mekong River, is brushing off
its image as a sleepy, colonial market town by hosting the Asia-Europe
Meeting (ASEM) this week. Vientiane, a city of 500,000 residents, is
now discovering the symptoms of modernization that are recurrent in
the "emerging" economies of Asia: traffic jams, a property boom, the
growth of the middle class and the nouveaux riches who have
unashamedly risen to wealth.
In the suburbs, “new towns” are sprouting up like mushrooms, with
incredible, monstrous houses complete with Doric columns that support
large domes, and where statues of eagles with outstretched wings sit
enthroned. In the streets, it is not uncommon to pass a Porsche or a
Ferrari.
"The Chinese are pouring colossal amounts of money into Laos,"
explains Ravansith Thammarangsy, a French architect originally from
Laos. "Within the government, the pro-Chinese politicians have the
wind in their sails," he says.
"We'll end up being swallowed up by China," fears Viengsanith
Phattanasinh. She has just opened an antiques shop in the center of
Vientiane.
For Laos, a landlocked country of nearly 6.5 million habitants,
geography has never been a straightforward matter: The Lao People's
Revolutionary Party (LPRP), in power since communists overtook the
royalist Lao government in December 1975, relies heavily on its
Vietnamese "brother" to the east. It supported the country, both in
terms of politics and the military, during the Vietnam War with the
U.S. and is still one of the country's biggest investors. To the north
there is China: a monster that carries enormous weight in the country
whilst trying to remodel itself.
Laos' government has based its development strategy on this neighbor:
no political freedom, a closely monitored freedom of expression and
soaring economic liberalization. The figures back up the country's
economic "emergence," with a growth rate expected at 8.3% in 2012 and
an annual GDP of $1,200 dollars per person, compared to $300 some 10
years ago. The country has gone from one of the poorest in the world
to a lower-middle-income country. It is set to join the World Trade
Organization (WTO) at the end of the year, despite the alarming
disparities between Vientiane and the rest of the country -- poor,
mountainous and isolated.
The communist façade
The red flags and their hammers and sickles that adorn every public
building do nothing to hide the fact that communism has been nothing
more than a mere façade for a long time now. However, "the
implementation of a 'new economic mechanism' has reinforced its
influence, rather than being denounced by the ruling elite who have
been brought up on Marxist-Leninist doctrine," say Vanina Bouté and
Vatthana Pholsena in their book Laos: sociétés et pouvoirs (Laos:
Societies and Power).
With their ties to the Party, a new class of entrepreneurs have become
rich, leaving in their wake a Party hierarchy similar to those in
China and Vietnam. However, for the sake of the public, corruption is
denounced by the press and jeered by the members of the Central
Committee.
A certain liberty to criticize the government is now emerging -- on
the condition that it cannot get out of hand. Not long ago, a deputy,
Khampheuy Panemalaythong, dared to appeal against the democratic
reforms during a parliamentary session. Sources indicate that he was a
victim of a government purge.
Modernization has been met with both satisfaction and perplexity:
"Individualism is on the rise; the divorce rate is getting out of
hand," says Douangmala Phommavong, vice-president of the European
Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
"We were lagging behind many other countries in the region," explains
Viengkao Inthavong, a 22-year-old blues singer. "The Internet,
Facebook... modernization is bringing a better quality of life for us
young people."
Unla, a 23-year-old hip-hop dancer and the embodiment of an unseemly
modernization, remains a little skeptical: "I support technology and
modernization, but I get the feeling that things are sometimes
developing too quickly."
Twenty-nine-year-old film director Anysay Keola pointed out some home
truths in his film Plai Tang (On the Horizon), which highlighted some
of the country's problems: the accumulation of wealth and poverty;
power and success; and the spoilt brats of the Party. It is a violent
film noir with an unambiguous message: "My film reflects the reality
of a modern Laos, torn between the people who think of nothing but
money and those who cannot afford to buy themselves the luxury
products that are now advertised everywhere," says Anysay, the
frontrunner of Laos's nouvelle vague. "In terms of politics, the
system makes me think of some sort of monarchy."
LE MONDE/Worldcrunch 08 Nov 2012
VIENTIANE - The feeling of lethargy still lingers in the streets of
old Vientiane. Things, however, are beginning to change: the time for
indolence is over.
The capital of Laos, on the banks of the Mekong River, is brushing off
its image as a sleepy, colonial market town by hosting the Asia-Europe
Meeting (ASEM) this week. Vientiane, a city of 500,000 residents, is
now discovering the symptoms of modernization that are recurrent in
the "emerging" economies of Asia: traffic jams, a property boom, the
growth of the middle class and the nouveaux riches who have
unashamedly risen to wealth.
In the suburbs, “new towns” are sprouting up like mushrooms, with
incredible, monstrous houses complete with Doric columns that support
large domes, and where statues of eagles with outstretched wings sit
enthroned. In the streets, it is not uncommon to pass a Porsche or a
Ferrari.
"The Chinese are pouring colossal amounts of money into Laos,"
explains Ravansith Thammarangsy, a French architect originally from
Laos. "Within the government, the pro-Chinese politicians have the
wind in their sails," he says.
"We'll end up being swallowed up by China," fears Viengsanith
Phattanasinh. She has just opened an antiques shop in the center of
Vientiane.
For Laos, a landlocked country of nearly 6.5 million habitants,
geography has never been a straightforward matter: The Lao People's
Revolutionary Party (LPRP), in power since communists overtook the
royalist Lao government in December 1975, relies heavily on its
Vietnamese "brother" to the east. It supported the country, both in
terms of politics and the military, during the Vietnam War with the
U.S. and is still one of the country's biggest investors. To the north
there is China: a monster that carries enormous weight in the country
whilst trying to remodel itself.
Laos' government has based its development strategy on this neighbor:
no political freedom, a closely monitored freedom of expression and
soaring economic liberalization. The figures back up the country's
economic "emergence," with a growth rate expected at 8.3% in 2012 and
an annual GDP of $1,200 dollars per person, compared to $300 some 10
years ago. The country has gone from one of the poorest in the world
to a lower-middle-income country. It is set to join the World Trade
Organization (WTO) at the end of the year, despite the alarming
disparities between Vientiane and the rest of the country -- poor,
mountainous and isolated.
The communist façade
The red flags and their hammers and sickles that adorn every public
building do nothing to hide the fact that communism has been nothing
more than a mere façade for a long time now. However, "the
implementation of a 'new economic mechanism' has reinforced its
influence, rather than being denounced by the ruling elite who have
been brought up on Marxist-Leninist doctrine," say Vanina Bouté and
Vatthana Pholsena in their book Laos: sociétés et pouvoirs (Laos:
Societies and Power).
With their ties to the Party, a new class of entrepreneurs have become
rich, leaving in their wake a Party hierarchy similar to those in
China and Vietnam. However, for the sake of the public, corruption is
denounced by the press and jeered by the members of the Central
Committee.
A certain liberty to criticize the government is now emerging -- on
the condition that it cannot get out of hand. Not long ago, a deputy,
Khampheuy Panemalaythong, dared to appeal against the democratic
reforms during a parliamentary session. Sources indicate that he was a
victim of a government purge.
Modernization has been met with both satisfaction and perplexity:
"Individualism is on the rise; the divorce rate is getting out of
hand," says Douangmala Phommavong, vice-president of the European
Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
"We were lagging behind many other countries in the region," explains
Viengkao Inthavong, a 22-year-old blues singer. "The Internet,
Facebook... modernization is bringing a better quality of life for us
young people."
Unla, a 23-year-old hip-hop dancer and the embodiment of an unseemly
modernization, remains a little skeptical: "I support technology and
modernization, but I get the feeling that things are sometimes
developing too quickly."
Twenty-nine-year-old film director Anysay Keola pointed out some home
truths in his film Plai Tang (On the Horizon), which highlighted some
of the country's problems: the accumulation of wealth and poverty;
power and success; and the spoilt brats of the Party. It is a violent
film noir with an unambiguous message: "My film reflects the reality
of a modern Laos, torn between the people who think of nothing but
money and those who cannot afford to buy themselves the luxury
products that are now advertised everywhere," says Anysay, the
frontrunner of Laos's nouvelle vague. "In terms of politics, the
system makes me think of some sort of monarchy."
marion ravenscroft
Nov 9, 2012, 10:59:15 PM11/9/12
to lao...@googlegroups.com
Nouvelle vague ?? Typo ?
From: Andrew <lao...@gmail.com>
To: Lao Cultural Heritage Forum <lao...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, 10 November 2012 5:28 AM
Subject: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
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Ruth Foster
Nov 10, 2012, 8:30:26 AM11/10/12
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Hi Marion
No not a typo. You have to read "vague" in french, not in english. "Nouvelle vague" is "new wave" a cinematic movement - Truffaut, Godard etc.
Ruth
Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2012 19:59:15 -0800
From: marion_ra...@yahoo.com.au
Subject: Re: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
To: lao...@googlegroups.com
No not a typo. You have to read "vague" in french, not in english. "Nouvelle vague" is "new wave" a cinematic movement - Truffaut, Godard etc.
Ruth
Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2012 19:59:15 -0800
From: marion_ra...@yahoo.com.au
Subject: Re: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
To: lao...@googlegroups.com
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to laochf+un...@googlegroups.com.
marion ravenscroft
Nov 11, 2012, 11:45:14 PM11/11/12
to lao...@googlegroups.com
Ha Ha Ha yes, but thought in the english context it was a satirical statement
Cheers
marion
From: Ruth Foster <ruth...@hotmail.com>
To: lao...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Saturday, 10 November 2012 8:30 PM
Subject: RE: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
To: lao...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Saturday, 10 November 2012 8:30 PM
Subject: RE: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
Hi Marion
No not a typo. You have to read "vague" in french, not in english. "Nouvelle vague" is "new wave" a cinematic movement - Truffaut, Godard etc.
Ruth
No not a typo. You have to read "vague" in french, not in english. "Nouvelle vague" is "new wave" a cinematic movement - Truffaut, Godard etc.
Ruth
Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2012 19:59:15 -0800
From: marion_ra...@yahoo.com.au
Subject: Re: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
To: lao...@googlegroups.com
From: marion_ra...@yahoo.com.au
Subject: Re: [LaoCHF] Le Monde looks at the modernization of Vientiane
To: lao...@googlegroups.com
Nouvelle vague ?? Typo ?
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