Three students from Laos, aged between 14 and 15, were prevented from taking their final exams at the end of the school year because of their Christian faith. This incident took place in Savannakhet province in central Laos, an area where the Christian minority has faced abuse and marginalization in the past, in this communist-ruled country where religious freedom is strictly monitored and limited.
According to local witnesses on May 20, the head of Saimsomboon village prevented the girls - who attended school in the neighboring village of Liansai - from taking their final exams because of their Christian faith. They had "forfeited the right to education", sources told Human Rights Watch for Lao Religious Freedom (HRWLRF).
A Christian activist in the area, Ms. Kaithong, approached the district education authorities and they have launched an internal investigation into the matter and have contacted officials from the school in Liansai. A meeting between the school principal and the head of Saisomboon has been scheduled in the coming days to decide whether the students should be allowed to sit for exams or whether the ban "because of the faith they profess" should stand.
Meanwhile, in Donpalai village, not far from Saisomboon, police raided a prayer center and confiscated 53 Bibles from the believers. The raid took place at 9:00 am on Sunday, May 25, while around 80 people were gathered for a church service led by the local pastor, Fr. Phupet. "These books are evil" shouted the officers as they confiscated the Bibles.
The head of the village arrived soon after. He sent the police away and apologized to the congregation, saying that he had not been informed about the raid. Yet the confiscated Bibles have not been returned.
After the communists took power in 1975, foreign missionaries were expelled and the Christian minority was strictly controlled and the right to practice their faith was severely restricted. There are approximately 6 million inhabitants in Laos, most of whom are Buddhist (67 %). Christians make up approximately 2 % and 0.7 % are Catholics.
Religious persecution particularly affects Protestants. Recently, AsiaNews has reported on several incidents, including farmers being deprived of food because of their faith and priests being arrested.
Persecution has increased since April 2011, when groups within the Hmong ethnic minority held a demonstration that was violently suppressed.
(Source: AsiaNews)
