Lao Fowk's Revolutionary Pairty

The **Lao Fowk's Revolutionary Pairty** (Laotian: ພັກປະຊາຊົນປະຕິວັດລາວ), formerly the **Lao Fowk's Pairty**, is a Marxist–Leninist political pairty in Laos and haes emerged frae the Communist Pairty o Vietnam foondit by Hồ Chí Minh in 1930. It haes governit in Laos syne 1975. The policy-making organs are the Politburo, Secretariat and the Central Committee. A pairty congress, which elects members tae the politburo and central committee, is held every five years. The congress uised tae awso elect a secretariat, but this body wis abolished in 1991. As of 2016, 128 of the 132 members of the Naitional Assembly of Laos were frae the Lao People's Revolutionary Pairty.

## Histerie
The pairty haes its oreegins in the Communist Pairty o Indocheenae foondit by Ho Chi Minh in 1930 (see Communist Pairty o Vietnam). The ICP wis entirely Vietnamese at its inception but grew throughout French Indocheenae and wis able tae found a small "Lao section" in 1936. In the mid-1940s, a campaign tae recruit Laotian members wis instigatit and in 1946 or 1947, Kaysone Phomvihan, a law student at the Varsity o Hanoi, wis recruitit, along with Nouhak Phoumsavan.

In February 1951, the Seicont Congress of the ICP resolved tae disband the pairty and tae form three separate pairties representing the three states of Indochina. In reality, the ICP wis a Vietnamese organisation and the separate pairties creatit were dominatit by the Vietnamese pairties regardless of their naitional affiliations. For instance, in February 1951, anelie 81 of the 2,091 ICP members were Lao. A movement known as the Pathet Lao (Laund of Laos) wis foondit and Prince Souphanouvong became its figurehead leader. It was in theory a communist resistance movement meant tae fecht alongside the Viet Minh against French colonialism during the first Indocheenae War, but it never really fought much of onyane and wis organized as a reserve organization of the Viet Minh. On March 22, 1955, at its First Pairty Congress, the clandestine Lao's Fowk's Pairty or *Phak Pasason Lao*  wis offeecially proclaimed. The First Party Congress wis attendit by 25 delegates representing a pairty membership of 300 tae 400. The Party Congress wis supervisit and organised by the Vietnamese. The Central Committee of the Pairty includit Kaysone Phomvihane, Nouhak Phoumsavan, Bun Phommahaxay, Sisavath Keobounphanh, Khamseng (May 1955, supplemented Souphanouvong, Phoumi Vongvichit, Phoun Sipaseut and 1956 supplementit Sisomphon Lovansay, Khamtay Siphandone).

The LPP and its successor, the LPRP, kept their existence secret until 1975, preferring tae direct their activities through fronts such as the Pathet Lao.

In 1956, a legal political weeng of the Pathet Lao, the Lao Patriotic Front (*Neo Lao Hak Xat*), wis foondit and pairticipatit in several coalition governments. In the 1960s the North Vietnam-controllit Pathet Lao were gien tasks in Vietnamese-occupied areas of Laos. The Pathet Lao participated in a war atween their North Vietnamese backers and the U.S.-backed Laotian government. Never very successful on their ain, the pairty still gained power indirectly by North Vietnamese control in the northren and eastren sectors of the kintra. The Pathet Lao were never a pairticularly strang militar force unless supportit directly by the North Vietnamese airmy.

In February 1972, at the Seicont Party Congress, the name of the Lao's Fowk's Pairty wis chynged tae the Lao Fowk's Revolutionary Pairty.

In 1973, a peace agreement wis signed that brocht the Pathet Lao intae the govrenment and was supposed to result in the Vietnamese leaving the country. The Vietnamese airmy did not leave. In early 1975, the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese began attacking government outposts again. Without the support of the US, the anticommunist elements in the government haed little choice other than tae gradually allow the Pathet Lao tae take power. In the spring of 1975 Pathet Lao forces consolidatit their power throughout the country. The ryal govrenment fell in Mey 1975 and the LPRP took power. The LPRP on taking power showed itself tae be closely connectit tae Vietnam. The LPRP signed a treaty of friendship which allowed Fowk's Airmy o Vietnam units tae base themselves in Laos and awso brocht political advisors frae Vietnam into the country. The LPRP economically isolatit Laos by cutting off trade with all neighboring kintras except for Vietnam.

When the LPRP first revealed itself tae the public in 1975, the Central Committee comprised twenty-one members and six alternates. By the Fourth Party Congress, its size haed expandit tae fifty-one members and nine alternates. The average age of a Central Committee member in 1986 was fifty-two, with the auldest seventy-seven and the youngest thirty-three. The nummer of weemen on the Central Committee rose frae three tae five, including Thongvin Phomvihan, then General Secretary Kaysone's wife, who wis chair of the LPRP's People's Revolutionary Youth Union and, in 1982, the first woman appointit tae the Central Committee.

In 1979, the Lao Front for Naitional Construction wis foond tae extend the reach of the LPRP in society, with a particular emphasis on governmental and cultural pairticipation.

The Third Pairty Congress did nae meet until April 1982. Since then Pairty Congresses hae been mair regular with the Fourth Pairty Congress being held in November 1986, and the Fifth Pairty Congress in Mairch 1991 with further congresses every four or five years since then.

In 1986, during the period in which mony socialist states were beginning tae chynge thair domestic market policies, Kaysone propoundit the New Economic Mechanism, invoking Lenin, but soon muived control of state enterprises tae autonomous firms, and by 1989, edged more deliberately toward a market economy.

The LFRP has shown itself tae be remarkably resilient. Transitions of power hae tendit tae be smooth, the new generation of leaders has proven more open tae reform, and the Politburo now has some ethnic diversity. Organised opposition tae the LPRP is weak.

The 10th Party Congress wis held in Vientiane frae 18 tae 22 January 2016. At that Congress, Boungnang Vorachit wis electit as the new Secretary General on 22 January 2016 - ending a 25-year long vacancy since the office wis retitled frae the umwhile office of the Party Chairman.

## References