shocking video!!!

[Shuee]

be careful when visiting neighbouring countrys of los, shocking video;

http://youtube.com/watch?v=LmSWXk1nFRc& ... ed&search= (http://youtube.com/watch?v=LmSWXk1nFRc&mode=related&search=)youtube.com/watch?v=LmSWXk1nFRc&mode=related&search= (http://youtube.com/watch?v=LmSWXk1nFRc&mode=related&search=)

hope the link works
?

[Aunty]

Oh well, it looks like Laos is off my list of contries to visit.

[Hmmm]

And the Thai military government is just about to send 8000 Hmong refugees who have suffered such brutal mistreatment back to Laos ...
http://www.bangkokpost.net/topstories/t ... ?id=120693 (http://www.bangkokpost.net/topstories/topstories.php?id=120693)

Since YouTube is still banned in Thailand, can anybody clue me in on what that shocking video is about?

[Hmmm]

According to the attribution on youtube ...

"Director: Rebcca Sommer ┬й HUNTED LIKE ANIMALS http://www.rebeccasommer.org/
This is an excerpt of a 715 minute long documentary: This clip is especially sad- a little Hmong Lao boy, tortured by soldiers - inside of LAOS, among testimonies made by the refugees."

[Wesley]

CNN did a special on this just last week, it also took me off countries I wanted to visit; Burma is no better than Laos or Myanmar as they call it now.

Wesley

[Shuee]

the clip we are viewing is shocking because a little lad says after the soldiers have paid him a visit, & he tells his mama (still in shock) that his stomach hurts, when you can clearly see why - theres a big hole in it where all his intestines are hanging out!!

maybe the only country ok near by is cambodia, but i'm gueshing?

Burma is no better than Laos or Myanmar as they call it now.Laos is now called Myanmar? :bounce:

[cuteboy]

The video is shocking, but I think that there is a bit more to this.
A significant proportion of the people of Laos are ethnic Hmong and they live happily and peacefully in the country. I have visited Laos several times and visited Hmong villagers who are happy in Laos. Luang Prabang has a large Hmong market.
There is a group whom the Lao govenment consider to be rebels, and indeed there are ocassional terrorist attacks by some Hmong groups. Theyt live in hiding in the jungles and are dealt with harshly when caught. The origin of these 'rebel' groups dates, as I understand it, from the War in Vietnam where many Hmong sided and fought with the Americans, who left them high and dry when the war was won by the communists, both in Vietnam and Laos.
America no longer supports these groups, recognises the present legitimate Lao government, and encourages them to reintegrate with Lao society and to stop terrorist activity.
Lao is now a very beautiful place to visit, with lovely people. It is safe, but if you are unlucky enough to be attacked, as some tourists were a few years ago on the road near Vang Vieng, a noted tourist vilage, it will be by Hmong, not by Lao soldiers.
But the central point of the video, that the Hmong people are terrorised in Laos by the government, is quite untrue.

[Aunty]

But the central point of the video, that the Hmong people are terrorised in Laos by the government, is quite untrue.

Doesn't matter whether it is (your claim) true or not. There is still something sick about a society and a country that allows its own soldiers to shoot its own children. I won't go to a country that does that.

[sjaak327]

But the central point of the video, that the Hmong people are terrorised in Laos by the government, is quite untrue.

Doesn't matter whether it is (your claim) true or not. There is still something sick about a society and a country that allows its own soldiers to shoot its own children. I won't go to a country that does that.

Yet you do go to Thailand, where under Thaskin approximately 2500 people where murdered all in the name of the war against drugs.

Not that I agreee with the treatment of the Hmong in Laos, but as pointed out by Cuteboy, there is some ancient history involved.

[Wesley]

Burma is no better than Laos or Myanmar as they call it now.Laos is now called Myanmar? :bounce:

All this time I thought you had me on "Ignore"

Myanmar

Traveler's Information For Myanmar


When to Visit
You can visit Myanmar all the year round but the best time to come is between October and February as the weather during this period is neither too hot nor wet.

Entry Formalities
A valid Passport with Entry Visa is required of all visitors. A Tourist Visa allows a stay of 28 days, extendible for an additional 14 days. A Business Visa allows a stay of 28 days, extendible up to 12 months on a case-by-case basis. Visa on Arrival is granted on prior arrangement.

Customs Formalities
Foreign currency exceeding the equivalent of US$ 2,000, jewelry, cameras, video cameras, recording equipment and laptop computers must be declared at the airport. Failure to do so could end up in confiscation upon departure. Export of antiques and items of archaeological value are prohibited.

Foreign Exchange
No Credit cards are accepted.

Vaccination
Not required unless you are coming from an infected area.




You are right

[Aunty]

But the central point of the video, that the Hmong people are terrorised in Laos by the government, is quite untrue.

Doesn't matter whether it is (your claim) true or not. There is still something sick about a society and a country that allows its own soldiers to shoot its own children. I won't go to a country that does that.

Yet you do go to Thailand, where under Thaskin approximately 2500 people where murdered all in the name of the war against drugs.

Not that I agreee with the treatment of the Hmong in Laos, but as pointed out by Cuteboy, there is some ancient history involved.

While I don't condone the extrajudicial killings in Thailand in any way shape or form, how many of those killed in Thailand were children hunted down by soldiers and shot because the kids parents or grandparents were drug dealers? What is happening in Laos sounds a lot like genocide to me. I don't think you could ague that for the drug killings in Thailand.