flag of the pathet lao|thumbnail   the pathet lao (lao: àºàº°à»àºàºàº¥àº²àº§, "lao nation") was a communist political movement and organization in laos, formed in the mid-20th century. the group was ultimately successful in assuming political power after the laotian civil war. the pathet lao were always closely associated with vietnamese communists. during the civil war, it was effectively organized, equipped and even led by the army of north vietnam. they fought against the anti-communist forces in the vietnam war. the pathet lao were the laotian equivalent of south vietnam's viet minh and later viet cong, and cambodia's khmer rouge.pathet lao uprising in laos, 1960s-1970s human security gateway eventually, the term became the generic name for laotian communists. == organisation == the political movement of the pathet lao was called first the lao people's party (1955â1972) and later the lao people's revolutionary party (1972âpresent). key pathet lao leaders include prince souphanouvong, kaysone phomvihane, phoumi vongvichit, nouhak phoumsavanh and khamtay siphandone. the political wing of the pathet lao, called the lao patriotic front () served in multiple coalition governments, starting in 1956. through the 1960s and 1970s the pathet lao battled the royal lao government during the laotian civil war, gaining control of the north and east of laos. the pathet lao gained power throughout the country by the spring of 1975. in may, the us-backed vientiane government fell and the lao people's revolutionary party formed a new government.  ==history==  the organization can trace its roots from the second world war just as the khmer issarak in cambodia and the viet minh & vietnam people's army in vietnam did in the war as well. its original name has been forgotten but in 1950 it was renamed the pathet lao, when it was adopted by lao forces under prince souphanouvong, w
Communism_in_Laos Guerrilla_organizations History_of_Laos Laotian_Civil_War