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State of the World's Minorities 2006 - Laos

The Hmong face ongoing severe discrimination in Laos. Like the Hmong in Vietnam, they are a target because they supported the US during the Vietnam War and because some are Christians. Hmong continued crossing into Thailand through 2004 and early 2005, joining thousands already there hoping for resettlement in the US. UNHCR facilitated the resettlement of 14,000 Hmong to the US during 2005. Those not accepted for resettlement face an uncertain future; camps have closed, families have been evicted from villages and left destitute, facing possible deportation back to Laos. The government's anti-drug campaign implemented with support from the UN Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the US and European Union resulted in a large reduction in cultivation of the opium poppy; however, this has been at the expense of those hill tribes who relied on its cultivation. Opium eradication has been used to justify resettlement of indigenous peoples from the remote highlands to lowlands areas. Poppy cultivation has been eliminated before alternative economic activities were established, resulting in worsening economic and social conditions. Relocation has disrupted the indigenous hill tribes' way of life and has left them with insufficient land to earn a living and few of the promised health and education services.

Topics: Drug trafficking, Resettlement, Ethnic discrimination, Ethnic minorities, Hmong, Minorities, Minority rights,