Suchergebnisse

The various regimes that have marked the contemporary political history of Laos -- the French colonial state (1893-1953), the Independent Kingdom of Laos (1953-1975) and, since 1975, the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR) -- have all carried out ethnic censuses. The classifications that have been used over the course of these three political periods highlight the rulers' desire to define the community they seek to dominate. For this reason, the census has performed a variety of different functions: helping to collect taxes under the French administration; an instrument in the service of the young Laotian state's nationalist project following independence; and, under the present regime, a dual purpose tool for promoting cultural diversity & monitoring ethnic groups. At the same time, postwar census campaigns have created a space in which a number of so-called "minority" ethnic groups have been able to express their identity. The study of ethnic classification -- whether as an instrument of power or a vector of identity -- is essential to understanding the politics of identity in contemporary Laos. Adapted from the source document.

The history of the hinterlands of the Indochinese peninsula, astride the frontier between Laos and Vietnam, during the first and second Indochina wars (1946-75) is arguably the least informed of this turbulent period. The aftermath of World War II saw the establishment of revolutionary bases at the junction between southeastern Laos and central and southern central Vietnam in highly strategic areas that were conduits for the "Ho Chi Minh Trail." This article aims to go beyond conventional diplomatic and military histories of the Indochina wars to examine war from below. In particular, the second half of the article is constructed around the narratives of two female war veterans of ethnic minority origins who conducted most of their revolutionary activities during the Vietnam War along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Particular attention is given to their motivations and wartime lives, linked to their transformation from members of upland populations who not long ago were described as "savages" into "revolutionaries" and "patriots." (Crit Asian Stud/GIGA)

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