The most effective way of bringing about holistic education is the participation of young people in designing the future of our education and pattern of development. Young people themselves are more open-minded to new ideas and behaviors and should take ownership in designing their own future. We, adults, are not their future. We, adults, have broken the world. And we do not know how to fix it. So let the young people work on it. We can use our wisdom, not greed, and compassion to guide and mentor them.
ASEAN’s weak response to the disappearance of Lao community worker Sombath Somphone raises questions about the strength of the institution’s commitment to human rights.
By Kearrin Sims
Nowhere in Asia has seen the formation of stronger regional partnerships than those within ASEAN. In 2015 the institution will attempt to undertake yet another step forward in its impressive history of growing regional connectivity through the beginning of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).
Among other things, the AEC is expected to promote greater regional cooperation around human resource development; enhance consultation on macroeconomic and financial policies; increase infrastructure and communications connectivity; and see ASEAN become a single market and production base. How these arrangements will fit with ASEAN’s non-interference approach to diplomacy remains to be seen, although the region’s history suggests the two will likely find a means of accommodation.
Far more challenging, will be attempts to create an ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC), which is also planned to begin in 2015. Operating parallel to the AEC, the ASCC is designed to promote a spirit of cooperation and collective responsibility, to encourage respect for fundamental freedoms, and to advance social justice and human rights. While the AEC seems achievable, the realisation of the ASCC will face many more challenges. Continue reading “Missing Sombath a test for ASEAN”
The whereabouts of renowned Lao development worker Sombath Somphone remain unknown and the case has become a cause célèbre. Southeast Asia Globe spoke to his wife, Shui Meng, about the man behind the media attention
By Kearrin Sims Illustration by Victor Blanco
Often depicted as an activist, Sombath Somphone is a Lao development worker who worked with communities in sustainable agriculture. A much-respected figure in Southeast Asia and beyond, he was awarded the 2005 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership. While driving home on 15 December 2012, Sombath was stopped at a police checkpoint and abducted. He has not been seen since.
How did growing up in a rural Lao village shape Sombath?
Sombath’s childhood in the village was not that different from many rural kids in Laos, although as the oldest child he did bear the responsibilities of the family more than his siblings. I think that sense of responsibility, of having to take care of the family, had a major impact on his life. He became very close to his mother and came to appreciate how great the burden of caring for the family is on women in Laos. Continue reading “The Disappeared”
Le gouvernement lao doit résoudre de manière urgente la question des droits fonciers et protéger les défenseurs des droits fonciers et droits de l’environnement, ont déclaré la FIDH et son organisation membre, le Mouvement Lao des Droits de l’Homme (MLDH).
« Les graves violations en matière des droits fonciers, la mauvaise gestion du gouvernement laotien et la corruption ont créé une nouvelle classe de pauvres dans les zones rurales. Tant que des lois ne seront pas appliquées correctement, les citoyens laotiens resteront des cibles vulnérables face aux violations des droits fonciers » a indiqué le président de la FIDH, Karim Lahidji. « Il est urgent de mettre en place un cadre juridique cohérent pour l’approbation et la gestion des concessions. Le gouvernement laotien doit réformer la gouvernance des terres afin de garantir une totale transparence et responsabilisation dans le processus de décisions ainsi que la participation des citoyens », a-t-il exhorté. Continue reading “Laos : Le Gouvernement exhorté à régler la question des droits fonciers et à protéger les défenseurs des droits”
The ICJ today called on the Lao PDR government to carry out a thorough and impartial investigation into the ‘disappearance’ of prominent development activist Sombath Somphone to clarify his fate or whereabouts.
It also demanded that authorities ensure that the perpetrators are held to account and that he or his family members are afforded redress.
The ICJ also highlighted Lao PDR’s failure to respect its commitment in its 2010 UPR to “enhance the level of cooperation with treaty bodies and special procedures mandate holders”.
“Despite the passage of more than 18 months since Sombath Somphone’s ‘disappearance,’ the authorities have yet to carry out an effective investigation,” said Sam Zarifi, ICJ Asia-Pacific Regional Director. “They have even declined to seek available international assistance with the examination of CCTV footage showing the abduction, which may lead to the identification of the perpetrators.” Continue reading “Lao PDR: government must tackle enforced disappearance case”
A year and a half later, where is Sombath Somphone? In Laos that simple question has been blocked by a wall of silence.
He was last seen driving home on December 15, 2012, in the capital, Vientiane, before he was forcibly disappeared. Government security video footage clearly shows that he was stopped at a police checkpoint, taken into the office, and then brought out and forced into another vehicle. Credible reports placed him later that night at a police station in Vientiane, and since then he has not been seen or heard from again.
Sombath Somphone is an internationally acclaimed civil society leader and 2005 Magsaysay Award winner who concentrated his life’s efforts on agricultural development in Laos. Hailing from a modest rural background, he possessed an acute understanding of rural poverty and the need to improve agricultural productivity and sustainability in ways that would positively impact the lives of Laos’ farming communities.
Yesterday marked a dark mid-term anniversary: exactly a year and a half since Sombath’s “disappearance”. Since then, the Laos government has repeatedly failed to conduct a serious investigation, much less push for accountability and provide answers. Offers by governments such as United States and others to provide technical assistance to the Lao authorities to analyse the video showing Sombath’s arrest have been repeatedly turned down. At one point, one of the investigating police officers publicly stated that the investigation had been halted, only to be contradicted by a more senior officer following international outcry. Continue reading “Wall of silence around activist's disappearance”
I write with great sadness to let you know that your beloved mother passed away this morning. Her health started failing about 6 months ago. Although she was very weak, she held on, pining to see you one last time.
Your mother is one of the kindest and gentlest souls I have ever known; and it is so clear to me that she and you had a special bond. I often see how your faces light up whenever you see each other. As her first born, you definitely had a special spot in her heart; and you, as her eldest son, you saw it your duty to lighten her burden as a parent as much as you could. You often told me how hard your mother had to work on the farm, as well as take care of all of you. You spoke of her with such love and respect, telling me often about how she never complained even though life was tough. Looking back, you must have inherited many of her traits – her kindness, gentleness, patience, and how to work hard.
Sombath, your mother has to be the best mother-in-law one can ever wish for. She was a woman of few words, and it seemed that she did not even like talking very much. I have never, in all these years, heard her speak ill of anybody. Continue reading “Dear Sombath…from Shui Meng (3)”
The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) calls on the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to ACT NOW against increasing human rights violations in the region.
In Lao, the government remains calloused to calls from the international community to surface Sombath Somphone, a 2005 Ramon Magsaysay awardee for Community Leadership who disappeared on 15 December 2012, exactly 18 months today. The Lao People’s Democratic Republic signed the Convention Against Enforced Disappearance (CED) on 29 September 2008. It also ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) on 25 September 2009.
Le militant des droits de l’home Sombath Somphone est porté disparu depuis décembre 2012
Un rapport présenté le 10 juin dernier aux Nations Unies dénonce les violations persistantes des droits de l’homme au Laos. Parmi les nombreux exemples cités par l’organisation Human Rights Watch, la disparition du militant Sombath Somphone a été qualifiée de « particulièrement inquiétante ».
Le Laos, loin d’avoir progressé dans le domaine des droits de l’homme, a encore reculé, uge dans un rapport très critique Human Rights Watch (HRW). Le gouvernement poursuit ses restrictions des libertés fondamentales d’une façon drastique, justifiant l’attention de la communauté internationale.
Parmi les « faits particulièrement inquiétants », soulignés par Phil Robertson, directeur pour l’Asie de HRW, restent les disparitions inexpliquées de Sombath Somphone en décembre 2012 et de l’écologiste Sompawn Khantisouk, porté disparu depuis sa convocation au poste de police en janvier 2007. Sur ces points, comme sur toutes les questions touchant les droits de l’homme, « les autorités laotiennes défient la communauté internationale en refusant de répondre à ses inquiétudes légitimes concernant les nombreuses disparitions inexpliquées et autres abus qui se multiplient dans le pays ».
Le Laos sera pour la seconde fois sur la sellette lors de l’examen périodique universel (EPU) (1) qui se tiendra en octobre prochain devant le Conseil des droits de l’homme des Nations Unies à Genève. Selon l’ONU, le gouvernement laotien n’a pas respecté les engagements pris lors de la précédente session de l’EPU en 2010. Le pays devait, entre autres, ratifier les conventions internationales concernant les droits de l’homme, mettre fin aux restrictions concernant la liberté d’expression, d’association et de réunion, garantir la liberté de la presse et mettre en conformité sa législation du travail avec les standards de l’Organisation internationale du travail (OIT). Continue reading “Le gouvernement accusé de bafouer les droits de l’homme”
The most effective way of bringing about holistic education is the participation of young people in designing the future of our education and pattern of development. Young people themselves are more open-minded to new ideas and behaviors and should take ownership in designing their own future. We, adults, are not their future. We, adults, have broken the world. And we do not know how to fix it. So let the young people work on it. We can use our wisdom, not greed, and compassion to guide and mentor them.
