Word: lao
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...true Laotian style, last week's coup by the Communist Pathet Lao was a well-mannered affair, allowing for some touches of face-saving grace. It began with a series of "popular" demonstrations, some of them so tamely orchestrated that bored crowds began to wander away before the big finale. Then it was announced that a two-day Congress of 265 People's delegates had taken place in Vientiane, although no one in the capital had seen or heard of it. At each event, figurehead King Savang Vatthana, 68, and his 18-month-old coalition were thanked...
...just like a play on a stage," mourned one young Lao last week. "It's democratic in the Pathet Lao way, not our way. But it is useless to resist." In fact, despite the regime's direct impact on their lives, the 3 million Laotians remain among the world's most apolitical people. The Pathet Lao is neither as ruthless as Cambodia's Khmer Rouge nor as disciplined as the Vietnamese. In gradually seizing control of the country since mid-April, the Communists have managed to stay popular with their subjects by emphasizing such mass themes...
Communist Liechtenstein. Little is known inside or outside Laos about the country's new rulers. "Red Prince" Souphanouvong, half-brother of the ousted Premier, Prince Souvanna Phouma, will probably stay on as the republic's figurehead President. The new Premier and secretary-general of the party is Kaysone Phomvihan; his principal deputy is Nouhak Phoumsavan, a senior member of the Pathet Lao central committee. Both men have strong loyalties to Hanoi: Kaysone's father was Vietnamese, while Nouhak is reportedly a protege of Ho Chi Minh's. It remains to be seen whether they will...
...Vientiane, the administrative capital, Russian is now heard almost as much as French, the language of the country's colonial rulers for 60 years. Soviet advisers are often seen riding side by side with Communist Pathet Lao officials, looking even bulkier than usual beside the slight Laotians...
...rebuild Phonesavang on the Plain of Jars. Phonesavang, once considered a strategic village, was destroyed by U.S. Air Force bombing raids. Just as U.S. pilots and planes used to ferry non-Communist troops and officials to trouble spots around the country. Soviet pilots and planes now transport the Pathet Lao. The Russians currently have about 500 to 800 diplomats and technical experts in Laos, and reinforcements are arriving every month...