Category: Events

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Is International Aid Complicit in the Repression in Laos?

LMHR logoThe Lao Movement for Human Rights has the honor of inviting you to a conference on:

”Is International assistance complicit in the repression in Laos?”

Tuesday, June 14 at 15:00
Regional Council of Ile-de-France, room 100
33 rue Barbet-de-Jouy, 75007 Paris

Speakers:

  • Anne-Sophie Gindroz, author of the book ”Laos: the Silent Repression”
  • Richard Werly, France correspondent of the Swiss newspaper ‘Le Temps’
  • Vanida Thephsouvanh, President of the Lao Movement for Human Rights

For safety reasons, events taking place in the regional council hall, require prior registration.

An ID will be requested at the entrance.

 

Le Mouvement Lao pour les Droits de l’Homme

A l’honneur de vous inviter à la conférence sur le thème

‘’L’aide internationale est-elle complice de la répression au Laos?’’

Mardi 14 juin à 15h00

Conseil régional d’Île-de-France, salle 100

33 rue Barbet-de-Jouy, 75007 Paris

Intervenants :

  • Anne-Sophie Gindroz, Auteur du livre ‘’ Laos : la répression silencieuse’’
  • Richard Werly, correspondant en France du journal suisse  ‘’Le Temps’’
  • Vanida Thephsouvanh, Présidente du Mouvement Lao pour les Droits de l’Homme

Pour des raisons de sécurité, les manifestations qui se déroulent dans les salles du Conseil régional sont sur inscription obligatoire.  

Une pièce d’identité vous sera demandée à l’entrée.

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Humanity and Nature: Traditional, Cultural & Alternative Perspectives

Humanity & Nature Publication CoverAn economy is often defined as “the wealth and resources of a country or region”. Few would contest that the greatest wealth and most fundamental resource for humanity is the earth on which we live; yet most do not see our environment as an economy in itself.  Conversely, nearly all contemporary economic and development models see the natural economy as a resource to be exploited (or at best managed) to serve the needs of the monetized economy.

While this perspective is certainly predominant, it is neither intrinsic nor universal. It is also increasingly proving to be unsustainable.

Focus on the Global South and The Sombath Initiative, in cooperation with the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, held the Sombath Symposium on February 15-17, 2016, to present and discuss knowledge and practice drawn from different cultures and traditions that can serve as an alternative foundation to the predominant growth-driven development model.

This publication, “Humanity and Nature: Traditional, Cultural and Alternative Perspectives”, compiles essays discussing these perspectives, as well as syntheses of the different parts of the symposium.  The Sombath Initiative and Focus on the Global South hope that this publication will serve as resource material, as well as a guide document for the ongoing and future work on alternative perspectives on humanity’s relationship with nature.

A short video of the symposium and videos of each presentation are available to view at The Sombath Initiative YouTube channel.

For more information about The Sombath Initiative and Sombath Somphone, please visit www.sombath.org

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Humanity & Nature: Traditional, Cultural & Alternative Perspectives

Sombath Symposium-2016-02Public Forum

February 17, 2016, 9.30 am–12.30 pm

Ruan Chula Narumit, Chulalongkorn University

This public forum will share the key lessons and conclusions from the Sombath Symposium, a three day event which aims to exchange and explore various traditional, cultural and alternative perspectives on how humans value and interact with nature.

Participants of symposium will come from Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, The Philippines, Indonesia, and India, and represent a wide range of ethnic, cultural, religious and vocational backgrounds and perspectives.

The forum will also be joined by local community and activists from Thailand to contribute to the discussion on their struggles to protect the nature and livelihood.

Organised by Focus on the Global South and the Sombath Initiative, in cooperation with the Heinrich Böll Foundation

English-Thai-English translation will be provided

Lunch will be served at 12:30 at SASA International House

For more information about this event and to confirm attendance please contact Hamdee Tohming at [email protected] or 089-004-4117.

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Event by AFAD on Sombath Somphone

AFAD event 16 Dec 2015The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) together with representatives from human rights organizations in the Philippines gathered today, to commemorate the enforced disappearance of Sombath Somphone. Former Commission on Human Rights Chairperson Ms. Etta Rosales who was also present in the event gave an inspirational message to encourage human rights defenders to not lose hope and to continue the struggle for truth and justice. Shui Meng, the wife of Sombath, sent a video message expressing her thanks to AFAD and human rights networks in the Philippines.

Sketches of the Disappeared, including that of Sombath Somphone, were displayed.  “The sketches all have no eyes”, the artist says, “they will have eyes when they reappear”.

The event was also the launching of the ilitaw.ph – the official campaign website regarding enforced disappearances in the Philippines.

More than 50 people from various human rights organizations and media organizations attended the event.

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Whose Vision? Whose Reality?

December 17th, 2015
Time: 14:00-17:00
DIPAK C.JAIN room, SASA International House, Chulalongkorn University

15-12-17-SI Panel2016 will be an important year for ASEAN, as it promises to turn its “vision” into a “reality”. Its chairmanship will be with the Lao PDR, where civil society organizations in the recent ACSC/APF agreed they will not hold their 2016 gathering. This forum aims to draw attention and give different perspectives to this so-called ASEAN “Reality” and “Vision” of a “Dynamic Community”.

Panelists:

  • Angkhana Neelapaijit, National Human Rights Commission of Thailand
  • Kraisak Choonhavan, ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights
  • Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch
  • Supalak Ganjanakhundee, the Nation

Moderator: Shalmali Guttal, Focus on the Global South
For more information: Hamdee, 0890044117, [email protected]

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Disappearance: Mystery of Laos

A commemoration on the third year of Sombath’s Enforced Disappearance

15-12-15-SSBP

Bridi Banomyong International College, Thammasart University, Bangkok

15 December 2015

  • 14:00-14:45: Exhibition on enforced disappearance
  • 14:45-15:00: Talk about Sombath
  • 15:00-16:00: Music for Peace
  • 16:00-17:00: Ted Talk by Mekong Youth
  • 17:00-18:00: “Laos Today” with video clips
  • 18:00-18:30: Open Letter from Amnesty International Thailand
  • 18:30-19:00: Message from Thai to Lao Friends by SSBP
  • 19:00-19:30: Drama for peace
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The Man, His Work and His Dream for Laos

2015-12-11-PADETC-02The Participatory Development and Training Center (PADETC), founded by Sombath, held its 2015 fair under the banner of “The Man, HIs Work, and His Dream for Laos,” on Friday, December 11th.

Approximatley one hundred friends, colleagues, CSO staff and diplomats attended the event, which included Buddhist prayers for Sombath, and comments from his spouse and colleagues.

2015-12-11-PADETC-01Some likened Sombath to a farmer nurturing a fruit tree. But rather than keeping the fruit for himself, he would spread it around so more trees would grow, and produce more fruit.

May the fruits of his vision continue to grow.

A Thai PBS report on the event.

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Three Years On: Demanding Answers for the Enforced Disappearance of Sombath Somphone in Laos

10:30 am, Monday, December 14, 2015

Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT)

Three years ago, on December 15, Magsaysay award winner and acclaimed community development leader Sombath Somphone was detained at a police checkpoint in Vientiane, Laos, and then disappeared by state authorities. Since then, the Lao police and government authorities have consistently failed to seriously investigate the case, and continue to unpersuasively claim ignorance of Sombath’s whereabouts.

Yet evidence is still being uncovered, and on the 3rd anniversary of his enforced disappearance, new CCTV camera footage — obtained from the area where Sombath was abducted on the day that Sombath vanished into state custody – will be made public.

A panel of speakers will also provide the latest updates on Sombath’s case and the international campaign to demand answers from the Lao PDR government.

Speakers include:

  • Angkhana Neelaipaijit,Thai National Human Rights Commissioner, Justice for Peace Foundation and Sombath Initiative
  • Sam Zarifi, International Commission of Jurists
  • Laurent Meillan, UN Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights
  • Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch

For more information, please call +66-85-060-8406, or email: [email protected]

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Rotary participants speak out for Sombath

15-11-26-Rotary-ChulaParticipants of the 10th anniversary of the Rotary Peace Centre in Chulalongkhorn University in Bangkok Thailand, expressed support for Sombath. The two-day event was entitled “Innovative Global Peace-building.” Opening remarks by Ng Shui Meng are available here.

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1,000 Days without Justice

Press conference and panel discussion

10:30 am, Friday September 11, 2015

Note: This event will be streamed live on: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/fcct-live

FIDH-LogoOn the evening of December 15, 2015, police stopped prominent Lao civil society leader Sombath Somphone at a police checkpoint on a busy street of Vientiane. Shortly after being stopped, CCTV footage showed that unknown individuals forced Sombath into another vehicle and drove away while police looked on. Sombath was never seen again. His fate or whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

September 11, 2015, marks 1,000 days since Sombath disappeared. During these 1,000 days, what has been done to safely return Sombath? What have been the domestic and regLogo-Sombath Initiativeional implications of his disappearance? What are the next steps?

A panel of four distinguished speakers will answer these questions and provide an update on the quest for truth and justice for Sombath Somphone’s disappearance.

Ms. Shui-Meng Ng is the spouse of Sombath Somphone and a member of the Advisory Board of the Sombath Initiative.

Mr. Kingsley Abbott is the International Legal Advisor for Southeast Asia for the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and a former Senior Legal Officer with the United Nations at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia.

Ms. Angkhana Neelapaijit is the founder and President of the Justice for Peace Foundation (JPF), a member of the Advisory Board of the Sombath Initiative, and a nominee to the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand (NHRCT).

Ms. Debbie Stothard is the Secretary-General of FIDH, the Coordinator of ALTSEAN-Burma, and the Co-Chair of the ASEAN Peoples’ Forum/ASEAN Civil Society Conference (APF/ACSC) Media Committee.