Laos

THE LAO PEOPLE'S REVOLUTIONARY PARTY

Figure 8. Organization of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP), 1993

Source: Based on information from Martin Stuart-Fox, Laos: Politics, Economics, and Society, London, 1986, 61.

Khamtai Siphandon, Prime Minister, Lao People's Democratic Republic
Courtesy Embassy of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Washington

Nouhak Phoumsavan, President, Lao People's Democratic Republic
Courtesy Embassy of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Washington

Whereas communist parties in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe have crumbled, in Laos, the ruling communist party, the Phak Pasason Pativat Lao (Lao People's Revolutionary Party-- LPRP; see Glossary) has retained undiluted political control. The constitution, adopted in August 1991, notes simply in Article 3 that the LPRP is the "leading nucleus" of the political system. LPRP statutes, revised following the Fifth Party Congress held in 1991, leave no doubt regarding the dominant role of the party:

The party is...the leading core of the entire political system, hub of intelligence, and representative of the interest of the people of all strata. The party formulates and revises the major lines and policies on national development in all spheres; finds solutions to major problems; determines the policies regarding personnel management, training of cadres, and supplying key cadres for different levels; controls and supervises activities of party cadres and members, state agencies and mass organizations.

Data as of July 1994