Laos in 1986: Into the Second Decade of National Reconstruction

Abstract

In 1986 the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR) entered its second decade of nation-building since its establishment on 2 December 1975 under the present government of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP). In many respects, the first decade of post-war reconstruction has not been smooth or easy for the LPDR. Politically, the LPDR's close alignment with Vietnam and the Soviet Union has caused it to become more isolated from the non-socialist world. Socially and economically, after ten years of post-war reconstruction, it is still one of the poorest and least developed countries in the region. In political terms, 1986 was a significant year as it marked the holding of the Fourth Party Congress and the launching of the country's Second Five-Year Plan.1 Largely as a result of the relative lack of economic and social progress, the preparation for the Fourth Party Congress became an occasion for the Party to assess past policies and establish guidelines for its future development. Originally rumoured to be scheduled in April, the Congress was postponed several times before it was finally held from 13-15 November. This postponement was necessitated by the thoroughness with which the state bureaucracy had to be prepared for the event, and was indicative of the intensity of the debates which went on within the Party before a consensus was finally reached.