Word: phoumi
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Split Portfolios. What was finally achieved at the house on stilts in the Plaine des Jarres last week was the most shaky of coalition governments. At the last moment, accord nearly broke down when Red Prince Souphanouvong began wrangling with his old enemy, General Phoumi Nosavan, about the division of Cabinet posts. In a rare outburst of anger at his halfbrother, Souvanna shouted at Souphanouvong: "You go sort it out with Phoumi and come back when you agree...
...agree, don't come back." In taking office as Premier. Souvanna will name Red Prince Souphanouvong and General Phoumi as Vice Premiers, and all three have agreed that major issues must be decided by a unanimous vote-a kind of Laotian troika. Four Cabinet posts (including Economics and Information) go to the Communists, and four others (including Finance and Education) to Phoumi's antiCommunists. Phoumi's longtime ally. Prince Boun Oum. will resign as Premier and retire from active politics to his meaningless lifetime post as Inspector General of the realm. The remaining eleven Cabinet posts...
Under U.S. pressure, Boun Oum and General Phoumi agreed at the start to give up the key Defense and Interior ministries in return for Prince Souvanna Phouma's promise that all important decisions in these vital areas be made by mutual consent-although no one was sure how a government could function effectively under such conditions. After an hour's talk, the delegates emerged for a breather and a good cigar. In a surprisingly mellow mood...
...General Phoumi said progress had been made, and "I think in a few days we could have a formal announcement of a coalition government." Beaming Prince Souvanna added: "The conversations were held in an atmosphere tres amiable. It is truly 100% Laotian talking to Laotian." Red Prince Souphanouvong, leader of the Communist Pathet Lao forces, was delighted to face the TV cameras. In adequate English he predicted that the coalition government would mean "peace in Laos, a neutralist peace," and rejected the suggestion that it might lead swiftly to a Red takeover. When asked if he was a Communist, Souphanouvong...
...General Phoumi had agreed to be Finance Minister and Red Prince Souphanouvong to take the Economy and Planning port folio, but Phoumi flatly vetoed Souvan-na's candidate for Foreign Minister, a talkative, leftist bookseller named Quinini Pholsena. At week's end, as the three princes and the general separated, the only solid-seeming agreement was to resume meetings this week...