Souk, another Lao environmental activist, found herself in the same boat as Toto: They were both scared when they were asked to introduce themselves while participating in various activities at the U.N. forum. “Being seen as attending human rights events would put us at risk,” Souk says.

On paper, U.N. protocols protect participants in U.N. human rights forums from reprisals, but this doesn’t necessarily provide activists with solace. Their concerns stem from harsh realities. In May, a well-known young Lao activist, Anousa Luangsuphom, was shot in the face and chest, sending shockwaves to the public at home and abroad.

“We all know that our government is involved in it,” Toto says.

Laos activist Anousa Luangsuphom survived cafe shooting, rights group says — https://web.archive.org/www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-65465770

There is little room for political opposition or dissenting voices in Communist-ruled Laos, one of Asia's poorest countries. The landlocked country between Thailand and China is a one-party state, ruled by the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, where "authorities use legal restrictions and intimidation tactics against state critics", says the US political advocacy group Freedom House.

https://freedomhouse.org/about-us 🦅

[–] voight@hexbear.net 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

@DivineChaos100@hexbear.net let me know if you can convince me why the Laos police taking too long to check on this guy in Vietnam after BBC reported he was murdered means they also put a hit out on him

is it possible that people who are working with US regime change orgs also have other enemies than the states they oppose? why send a gunman if they can just arrest or "disappear" people (another tenuous claim that can be made by people in hiding) as they claim?