Kaysone phomvihane biography definition

Even among the five actually-existing socialist AES countries of the world, Laos is generally the least-understood and least-studied. Prior to colonization, Laos had, at times, existed as powerful and independent kingdoms, such as Lan Xang, and at other times as vassalized petty kingdoms under the Burmese, Thai, and others; rising and falling with the ebb and flow of feudal politics in southeast Asia.

European colonizers, however, sought to establish a more permanent arrangement: to subjugate the whole world to the whims of the white capitalist elite, and to completely wipe away any vestiges of independence and prosperity from their colonies.

Kaysone phomvihane biography definition

As the 20th century dawned in Indochina, a generation of men and women were born who would break the back of colonialism, and face decades of genocidal war against imperialism, to secure their freedom and independence once and for all.

One such man would rise from the south of Laos, from humble origins, to become one of the most consequential revolutionaries of the century—not only in Laos, but in the world. His name lives on in the hearts of Lao people from the lush forests of Attapeu, to the caves of Houaphan, and in the nightmares of imperialists around the world: Kaysone Phomvihane.