Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
sown the seeds for what the Pathet Lao would later claim to be the stirrings of Lao nation-
alism.
World War II
The initial fallout from events in Europe in 1940 was the
Japanese occupation
of Laos.
Vichy France was left responsible for the administration of Indochina and gave the Japanese
the right to move and station troops throughout the region. Sensing an opportunity to avenge
its defeat of 1893, Siam, renamed
Thailand
in 1939, seized the west-bank territories of Say-
aboury and Champasak, leaving the Lao angry with both the Thai for encroaching on their
territory and the French for failing to defend the country.
To counter the appeal of Thai nationalist propaganda, the French encouraged a weak
na-
tionalism
among the Lao elite. They nurtured a renaissance of literature, theatre, music and
dance, while supporting patriotic rallies and the creation of a national development pro-
gramme. Schools were built, the healthcare system improved and the first Lao newspaper
was published. Colonial officials raised concerns that these steps were arousing dangerous
sentiments; they were to be proved right, although it would be left to the Japanese to shatter
the illusion of French power and provide the spark for Lao independence.
In March 1945, the Japanese staged a pre-emptive strike to neutralize French forces in In-
dochina, imprisoning French soldiers and civil servants, and proclaiming an end to France's
colonial regimes. Japanese forces reached Luang Prabang the following month and made Sis-
avang Vong, the pro-French king, declare independence, forcing his hand by hauling off the
crown prince to Saigon. Somewhat less reluctantly,
Phetsarath
, who could trace his family
line back to Anou, the last king of Vientiane, became prime minister. The eldest of three re-
markable brothers who would profoundly affect Lao history, Phetsarath was now the second
most powerful political figure after the king.
Free Laos
Nationalists across Indochina moved to take advantage of the power vacuum created by the
end of World War II and
Japan's surrender
. In Laos, an independent-minded Lao elite
formed a government which became known as the Lao Issara, literally “
Free Laos
”, while
next door Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Viet-
nam.
The rapid awakening of the Lao elite after years of French rule left them factionalized,
with support split between opposition to the Japanese and opposition to the French. A power
struggle ensued as King Sisavang Vong welcomed the return of the French and Phetsarath re-
affirmed the independence of Laos and declared the union of the Kingdom of Luang Prabang
