The anti-Christian repression goes on without weakening in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), where around ten Christian were arrested because of their faith during the Easter celebrations held in the Hueihoy Neua village, located in the Muang Phine district, in the Savannakhet province (South), according to reliable information, which the Lao Movement for Human Rights (LMHR) received today.

Thus, after their acts of intimidation, their threats, their administrative harassment, failed to make the Christians of this village renounce to their religion, the political and judicial authorities of Muang Phine arrested 11 faithful of Ban Hueihoy Neua on March 27 and 28, 2005, that is to say on Easter Sunday and on Easter Monday.

Two Christians – Mr. KHAMCHAN and VANTHONG — were arrested on March 27th, 2005, and brought to the Muang Phine prison. On March 28, nine other Christians of this same hamlet were arrested too: one of them was released after having agreed to sign an act of renunciation to his faith. The eight others --Mr. DONKHAM, Mr. KATHIEM, Mr. A-YAM, Mr. TAR-NA, Mr. TAR-TAGIM, Mr. A-NGUOD, Mr. A-GOM and Mr. THONG-NAK—were taken to the rice-plantation located at the end of the village, and were left there, hands tied, without food and without water, for 48 hours, under a blazing sun. According to the information received by the LMHR, these ten Christians are still in detention.

The LMHR condemns these serious breaches of the freedom of belief, as well as the constant violations of the fundamental rights of the Lao people in the political, economic, social and ethnic fields. It denounces the double language and unacceptable attitude of the LPDR authorities, which deny the existence of any form of religious discrimination within the country, while continuing to violate in this manner the Human Rights international conventions that it signed.

The LMHR insistently requests that the Lao authorities put an immediate end to this anti-Christian repression, and release unconditionally these ten Christians, as well as every person held in the LPDR prisons because of their opinion or belief.

The Lao Movement for Human rights calls on to the donating countries, in particular the European Union and its State Members, the United Nations, the United States, Japan, Australia, the ASEAN and the International Financial Institutions, to reconsider their relationship with the LPDR and to put more pressure, including in the economic field, on this totalitarian regime, so that the freedom of belief and the fundamental rights of the Lao people are fully respected.