Tag: Sombath’s Family

The Globe: 18 June 2014

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”

Zee News: 30 April 2014

The wife of a missing Laotian activist appealed Tuesday for US assistance in finding him, warning his case has had a chilling effect on civil society in the communist nation.

Sombath Somphone, a US-educated agriculture expert who ran one of Laos’ most prominent development organizations, disappeared in December 2012 as he was driving home. Closed-circuit footage released by the family showed he was taken away at a police post.

His wife, Ng Shui-Meng, said she was meeting with White House and other US officials to urge the United States to keep pressing Laos to investigate. Since his disappearance, she said that non-governmental groups have scaled back activities or encountered greater impediments from authorities.

“It’s clear that civil society space has narrowed,” Ng told reporters in Washington.

Ng said that Sombath had always been careful to seek government authorization for his work so as to avoid controversy. She said she did not wish to challenge the Laotian government’s assertion that authorities were not involved in his disappearance.

“For me, I am not interested as to who has taken Sombath. I am only interested in getting Sombath back,” Ng said. Continue reading “Wife of missing Laos activist appeals for help in US”

Radio Free Asia: 29 April 2014

Five hundred days after Laos civil society leader Sombath Somphone went missing at a police checkpoint, his wife called on the United States Tuesday to press the authorities in the Southeast Asian state for answers over his disappearance.

Ng Shui Meng, Sombath’s Singapore-born wife who is in Washington to highlight her husband’s case, said she hopes in meetings with congressional and White House staffers to “ask for whatever support they can give” to get to the bottom of the issue.

“I believe that Laos wants good relations with the U.S.,” Ng told reporters at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, calling on U.S. leaders to raise Sombath’s case at regional summits.

“A statement from [U.S. President Barack] Obama or from [Secretary of State] John Kerry when they attend critical meetings, ASEAN meetings … would be very good,” Ng said, referring to future gatherings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to which Laos belongs.

“I’m not sure what more can be done,” Ng said. Continue reading “Missing Lao Civil Society Leader’s Wife Urges Action on His Case”

ABC News: 29 April 2014

Five hundred days after Laos’ most prominent civil rights advocate went missing at a traffic police checkpoint in the capital Vientiane, his wife said Tuesday she remains completely in the dark about what happened to him.

Sombath Somphone’s disappearance was recorded on closed circuit television. The footage shows the activist being escorted by two men to a pickup truck and driven away.

But Laos has released scant information, and Sombath’s disappearance has sent a chilling message to civil society in the one-party state.

His Singapore-born wife, Ng Shui-Meng, is visiting Washington to urge the Obama administration and Congress to press the Lao government to resolve the case which she said has hurt the image of the Southeast Asian nation where she’s lived for more than 30 years. Continue reading “Lao Activist Missing 500 Days, Wife Seeks Answers”

The Oregonian: 16 April 2014

By Mike Francis

It’s been 16 months, and Ng Shui-Meng wants to make sure the world remembers that her husband was taken off a public street in Laos and hasn’t been seen since.

Sombath Somphone was a lifelong activist for the poor and disenfranchised of Laos. He worked throughout his adult life on their behalf, advocating for their education, empowerment and happiness. (See his part in the “Happy Laos” video below.)

He was, his wife says, resolutely apolitical. He sought to build consensus, acting as a bridge between the governed of Laos and their governors. On his last major project before he was the victim of what Amnesty International calls an “enforced disappearance,” he co-chaired a key committee for the Asia-Europe Peoples’ Forum with Laos’ minister of foreign affairs.

Yet he evidently troubled some people. Continue reading “"Where is Sombath Somphone?" asks his wife prior to Oregon visit”