Author: rsbtws

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Sombath is not an isolated case

Please-return-Sombath-Safely…the disappearance of Sombath Somphone is not an isolated case in an otherwise acceptable human rights landscape, but perhaps the most visible manifestation of a broader and deeper malaise.

We ask what potential and resolve exists to address the many other human rights issues given that Lao authorities so steadfastly ignore this one?

From a letter by the Sombath Initiative to those countries making recommendations about enforced disappearance during the Lao PDR’s Universal Periodic Review in February. The Lao government must respond to the UN Human Rights Council regarding these recommendations in the next few days.

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Dear Sombath…from Shui Meng (8)

My dearest Sombath,

books-for-children-2006bToday is Father’s Day. I keep thinking of you on this day. You always say that even though we do not have any children of our own, it really does not matter, because you are always surrounded by children and young people through the Young Volunteers’ program that you started in PADETC. You keep reminding me that the young volunteers are like your children, and since we do not have children of our own, you can spend more time working with other people’s children and help guide them and challenge them to think, and direct their energy and creativity in a productive way.

Sombath, you truly love and relate very well with children. You believe that children and young people are special and that the growing-up years are the most important years of their lives. Those are the years you say are critical for developing their values and their world-view for the future. You also believe that learning in schools and from books alone is not enough; children and young people need to learn also from real life and real experiences outside of the classroom. Continue reading “Dear Sombath…from Shui Meng (8)”

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"Enforced disappearances in the Lao PDR alarming"

afadLaos is a signatory to the main international human rights instruments1 including the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPED); yet, the practice of enforced disappearances in the Lao PDR is alarming.

UN Logo…However, Laos has failed to prove that an impartial investigation had been conducted in regards with Mr. Somphone’s abduction. Only vague official statements have been formulated so far… This on-going situation demonstrates the Government of Laos’ lack of willingness to cooperate with the WGEID.

From a General Allegation made by the Asian Federation against Enforced Disappearance to the UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances.

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Dear Sombath…from Pablo Solón

Logo-Speak OutDear Sombath,

Today, I left Asia. Among all my memories, yours is for sure the most brief but the deepest. We met very shortly in Vientiane during the Asia Europe Peoples Forum in 2012 and we shook hands saying that we would continue chatting. But that never happened. A few months later, you were last seen at a police outpost and since then the authorities of Laos have never given an explanation of what had happened to you.

When I came to Asia, more than three years ago, I had just finished writing the book about my brother José Carlos Trujillo Oroza who was enforced disappeared in 1972 during the dictatorship of Banzer. I was able to finish his book before my mother passed away after searching for him for 40 years.  I must confess that when we presented that book I had the thought that the nightmare of enforced disappearances was something of old dictatorships. I didn’t think that I would face again a situation like that and even less in Asia. Continue reading “Dear Sombath…from Pablo Solón”

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We stand ready to support

We know Mr. Somphone as being highly committed to the development of the people of the Lao PDR, and he is very respected in the Lao and International development communities. His family has reported him missing to the Ministry of Public Security, but has received no news about his whereabouts.

We are very concerned about Mr. Somphone’s safety, and we urge the Lao authorities to use its resources to locate him and bring him home safely.

We stand ready to support in any way we can.

From a December, 2012 letter from 22 INGOs to the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Lao government has not requested any assistance, nor have there been any further letters or offers of support from CSOs operating in the Lao PDR.

Articles addressing the effects of Sombath’s disappearance on Lao civil society include:

Click on the Lao Civil Society tag at the bottom of this page for a listing of these and other related content on this site.

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Dear Sombath…from Hans van Willenswaard

Dear Sombath,

SB-prayerGreetings from the Netherlands. I was asked to write you a letter. That is not easy, I don’t know where you are, how you are; are you still in this world? It is very difficult to imagine that your presence is no longer under your own control. The first time we shared an event was the Gross National Happiness conference in Canada in 2005. We all got absorbed in the joyful style of this conference and the place that was given to spirituality, good food, the First Nation people of Canada, art, the initiators from Bhutan and to young people. You wholeheartedly joined the preparations for the next GNH conference, first in Thailand for partners from the Mekong region, and in 2007 the international event in Nongkhai and Bangkok, Thailand. You had hosted the visit of a delegation from Bhutan to PADETC and several places in Laos in order to familiarize our Bhutanese friends with the way of life in the Mekong region. We discovered a lot of the same intentions across countries: in particular to support young people in their discovery of genuine happiness; and how to integrate this happiness perspective in education.

You presided over the interreligious opening ceremony at Wat Hin Mak Peng, just the opposite bank of the Mae Kong River from Vientiane. You spoke at the provincial hall in Nongkhai and at the main auditorium of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok. The memories come back now as we prepare for the next GNH conference in Thimphu, Bhutan. We all miss you dearly, Sombath.

What I most remember, now, is that we meditated and prayed for the wellbeing of all people at many occasions. You often led us in these meditations. When I go back to these moments of silence I feel united with you, with all the people you prayed and worked so hard for. With effort I feel even united with the people who are responsible for your disappearance. May we all be well and happy and realize the sometimes awful mistakes we made. Let us try to bring back your sincere intentions and your inner strength.

Hans van Willenswaard, School for Wellbeing Studies and Research

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Sombath Somphone Receives the 2015 Gwangju Special Award for Human Rights

Pressenza: 21 May 2015

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‘I stand before you humble and a little sad that it is I who is here to receive this Special Award for Human Rights’, said Shui Meng Ng, wife of Sombath Somphone upon accepting the 2015 Gwangju Special Award for Human Rights in Gwangju, South Korea last Monday on the 18th May. ‘It would have been such a happy occasion, and such an honour, if Sombath could be here to receive this Award himself. Unfortunately, circumstances do not allow it.’

The Gwangju Prize for Human Rights was established in 2000 to promote the spirit of the May 18 Democratic Uprising. The May 18 Democratic Uprising took place in the city of Gwangju, South Korea from 18-27 May 1980. At the time, Gwangju citizens took up arms after local students, who had been demonstrating peacefully against the Chun Doo-hwan government, were fired upon, killed, and beaten. Estimates suggest up to 606 people died in just a few days. It is deemed one of the turning points in the South Korean democracy movement. Every year, May 18 is commemorated with ceremonies and festivities, including the Gwangju Asia Forum and the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights. Continue reading “Sombath Somphone Receives the 2015 Gwangju Special Award for Human Rights”

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Open Letter to ACSC/APF Steering Committee

22 May 2015ACSC-APF

Dear Members of the ACSC/APF Steering Committee,

It is our understanding that you currently face a decision about whether to hold your 2016 forum in the Lao PDR.  Please allow us to share our experience and concerns in this regard.

In the lead up to the ninth Asia-Europe People’s Forum (AEPF9) held in 2012, there were also many who questioned whether the Lao PDR was a suitable venue. Others, including Sombath Somphone, who was serving as the National Co-organiser, argued that while there may be challenges, it would be a very good opportunity for Lao civil society to develop both internally as well as in its international relations.

AEPF-9

Throughout the planning process, members of the AEPF were repeatedly given assurances by the Lao government there would be no interference.  Indeed, materials shared with participants stated:

The AEPF9 aims to enable a secure environment that encourages learning and reflection and provides space for open, respectful, diverse and constructive debate. We support harmony, compassion and understanding, whilst recognizing the strength of diversity and solidarity for peaceful and sustainable development.

The reality, unfortunately, proved quite different. Government staff were present in virtually every event, often acting in the guise of regular citizens. Lao participants who voiced their opinions were often rebuked or reprimanded and in one case publicly berated and sent threatening text messages. Translation to and from Lao was often truncated or distorted, and the distribution of key documents was banned. Continue reading “Open Letter to ACSC/APF Steering Committee”

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2015 Gwangju Special Award for Sombath

SB in Japan 2008bToday I stand before you humbled and also a little sad that it is I who is here to receive this Special Award for Human Rights on behalf of my husband, Sombath Somphone. It would have been such a happy occasion, and such an honor, if Sombath could be here to receive this award himself. Unfortunately, circumstances do not allow it. Sombath was disappeared…

…Sombath always says that development and progress cannot be guided only by technical knowledge and science alone. Development and progress must be underpinned by spiritual values – values of compassion, kindness, respect of all life (human and animal) and respect for nature.

From remarks by Shui Meng Ng in accepting the 2015 Special Award from the May 15 Memorial Foundation.

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광주인권상 ‘솜폰’ 부인 "실종 남편 구출에 동참해달라"

Yonhap News Agency: 18 May 2015

Shumeng-Gwangju
실종된 ‘솜바스 솜폰’ 구출 서명 동참 호소하는 부인 (광주=연합뉴스) 장아름 기자 = 2015 광주인권상 특별상 수상자인 솜바스 솜폰(Sombath Somphone·라오스)의 부인 수이 멩(Shui Meng)여사가 18일 광주 5·18 기념문화센터에서 열린 기자회견에서 실종 상태인 남편을 구출하기 위한 라오스 정부의 조속한 수사를 촉구하는 청원 운동에 보다 많은 한국인이 동참해줄 것을 호소하고 있다. 2015.5.18 [email protected]

(광주=연합뉴스) 장아름 기자 “실종된 남편 솜바스 솜폰 구출을 위한 라오스 정부의 수사를 촉구하는 서명에 더 많이 참여해 주시길 간절히 호소합니다.”

2015 광주인권상 특별상 수상자인 솜바스 솜폰(Sombath Somphone·라오스)의 부인 수이 멩(Shui Meng)여사는 18일 실종 상태인 남편을 구출하기 위한 라오스 정부의 조속한 수사를 촉구하는 청원 운동에 많은 한국인이 동참해줄 것을 호소했다.

이날 광주인권상 시상식을 앞두고 광주 5·18 기념문화센터에서 열린 기자회견에서 수이 멩 여사는 “누가 솜폰의 유괴에 대한 책임이 있는 지는 모른다”며 “다만 라오스 정부는 자국민이 자국에서 유괴된 데 대해, 무사히 돌아오게 하는데 대해 책임을 느끼고 수사에 착수해야 한다”고 말했다.

수이 멩 여사는 “남편은 수십년간 가난한 지역민을 위해 활동을 해왔다”며 “최근 라오스 정부가 외국자본을 투자해 광산이나 댐 등을 개발하는 사업에 관심을 많이 가지면서 외국 자본과 지역민 간 갈등이 커졌고 남편의 활동도 정부와 갈등을 겪기도 했다”고 설명했다. Continue reading “광주인권상 ‘솜폰’ 부인 "실종 남편 구출에 동참해달라"”