Laotians go to the polls to elect new top party officials
Laos goes to the polls today in a general election to select a 115-member legislative body tasked with producing the communist country's laws for the next five years.
The election will also endorse a new head of state and a new government. In keeping with the communist ethos, candidates running in the election are only those who have shown their loyalty and ability to respond to the development guidelines of the ruling Communist Party. The election is also being held one year ahead of schedule in order to have the new legislature pass laws for enforcement of the resolutions of the Eighth Congress of the Communist Party, which was held last month. Of 175 candidates in 17 constituencies around the country, only two are not members of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, said VisethSvengsuksa, deputy head of the External Commission of the National Assembly. Membership of the party was not a prerequisite to run, but in order to qualify candidates needed to meet the criteria set by the National Election Commission. And one of the main criteria is the belief in the leadership of the ruling party, he said. A total of 49 out of 109 former members of parliament are running in this election while the rest are new faces and well-educated candidates, Viseth said, noting that 73 candidates were holders of BA degrees and higher. Many rising stars of the Communist Party, including deputy premier Bouasone Bouphavanh, who was tipped to be the next prime minister, are also running. Bouasone is candidate No 1 in the capital Vientiane constituency. The results of the poll will be officially announced in about a week's time, or no later than May 10, Viseth said, adding the inauguration of the National Assembly will take place within 60 days after polling day. The Communist Party is expected to propose the ap- proval of the National Assembly, the new president to replace Khamtay Siphadone,who stepped down as party chief last month, and a new cabinet as soon as the new legislative body was completed. The Election Commission campaigned to persuade over 2.7 million eligible voters to cast their ballots, while village heads were instructed to check the readiness of all voters in their communities to make sure they came out to cast their votes, Viseth said. There was a 99.9-percent turnout in the previous election in February 2002. About a dozen laws were passed by the previous legislature over the past four years, mostly on the economy and investment. People have not been allow- ed to leave their communities unless they guaranteed they would return to vote between 7am and 5pm, one Vientiane resident said.
Supalak Ganjanakhundee The Nation Vientiane
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