tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29524574.post4713234035851673887..comments2024-03-26T03:24:09.287-07:00Comments on On The Other Side Of The Eye: Narratives, truth and the war for LaosBryan Thao Worrahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14250802784254875765noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29524574.post-66969789313752658992016-11-16T04:33:01.324-08:002016-11-16T04:33:01.324-08:00As an expatriate living in Laos and something of a...As an expatriate living in Laos and something of an amateur historian, I have taken the time to study and immerse myself the amazing history and culture of this country. I have married into a Lao family and have been able to see and experience first hand and impartially, the attitudes and opinions of three generations. Your comments are absolutely spot-on. It is a crying shame (almost criminal) to see the way that the current government propagate a distorted and largely fabricated version of the country's history over the last 4 decades. The formal school curriculum includes little, if any, history prior to "the revolution" and the young kids thus have no understanding or knowledge of the former Royalist regime or the fate of their former Royal Family, of the reasons behind their country's decline into socialism, of the decades of economic and cultural damage that has been forced upon them by the communist regime, of the absolute failure of "the revolution", etc, etc. Sadly, although detailed first hand accounts of the country's recent history is widely available through published and online media, the population appear to have little incentive to learn the truth. Or perhaps they have simply experienced such a long and intense period of repression and intimidation that the will to know the truth has been lost? On the positive side, I have detected a slight shift in the outlook of the younger educated Lao, who are now (albeit tentatively) beginning to ask questions. So there is a small possibility that we may be on the cusp of witnessing the beginning of the end of 40+ years of lies and deceit from the government. We can only hope...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05660776745396905435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29524574.post-86632521492679788112016-11-16T04:20:33.954-08:002016-11-16T04:20:33.954-08:00As an expatriate living in Laos and something of a...As an expatriate living in Laos and something of an amateur historian, I have taken the time to study and immerse myself the amazing history and culture of this country. I have married into a Lao family and have been able to see and experience first hand and impartially, the attitudes and opinions of three generations. Your comments are absolutely spot-on. It is a crying shame (almost criminal) to see the way that the current government propagate a distorted and largely fabricated version of the country's history over the last 4 decades. The formal school curriculum includes little, if any, history prior to "the revolution" and the young kids thus have no understanding or knowledge of the former Royalist regime or the fate of their former Royal Family, of the reasons behind their country's decline into socialism, of the decades of economic and cultural damage that has been forced upon them by the communist regime, of the absolute failure of "the revolution", etc, etc. Sadly, although detailed first hand accounts of the country's recent history is widely available through published and online media, the population appear to have little incentive to learn the truth. Or perhaps they have simply experienced such a long and intense period of repression and intimidation that the will to know the truth has been lost? On the positive side, I have detected a slight shift in the outlook of the younger educated Lao, who are now (albeit tentatively) beginning to ask questions. So there is a small possibility that we may be on the cusp of witnessing the beginning of the end of 40+ years of lies and deceit from the government. We can only hope...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05660776745396905435noreply@blogger.com