Scouting in Laos
Encyclopedia
At the present time, there is no known Scouting
program in Laos
, one of only five of the world's independent countries that do not have Scouting.
In the 1930s, André Lefèvre
, chief of the Eclaireurs de France
, set up a training camp for 60 Scoutmasters from all over French Indochina
. At the end of 1937, French Scouting sent Scoutmaster Raymond Schlemmer
to the Cambodia
n, Laotian
, and Vietnam
ese areas of Indochina
to oversee the setting up of the Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme
(FIAS, Indochinese Federation of Scouting Associations) in all three regions.
From 1939 through 1945, the political situation affected Scouting activities all across the country, as World War II engendered a movement for an independent Laos. The French began to lose control and were finally overthrown by Japanese intervention. This ceased the French Scouts' activity in Laos, as well as all Scouting activities.
Homegrown Scouting was once again active in Laos, as Scouts Lao (Laotian
: ສກຸດລາວ, pronounced skudlao) between its inception in 1959, at which date it numbered 2,300 Scouts, and its banning by the Pathet Lao
in 1975.
Laotian Scouting in exile
existed at least into the early 1990s in Los Angeles
, alongside fellow Vietnamese Scouting in exile and Cambodian Scouting
in exile groups.
According to Eric Khoo Heng-Pheng
of the World Organization of the Scout Movement
, "We hope to work on (Laos and Burma
) again... Laos is the closest, as we have got Cambodia in already... Just like Vietnam... we are working with them through ASEAN Scouting. We hope to enroll all the countries including China in (the Asia-Pacific Scout Region)."
The Scout Motto is ຕຣຽມພຣ້ອມ (Triam Phrom /tliaːm˨ pʰlɔːm˦˩/), Prepared in Lao, and Sois Prêt, Be Prepared in French
.
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
program in Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, one of only five of the world's independent countries that do not have Scouting.
In the 1930s, André Lefèvre
André Lefèvre (Scouting)
André Lefèvre was National Commissioner of the Éclaireurs de France from 1922 to 1940. In the 1930s, Lefèvre set up a training camp for 60 Scoutmasters from all over French Indochina...
, chief of the Eclaireurs de France
Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs de France
Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs de France is an interreligious and coeducational Scouting and Guiding association in France. The first interreligious Scouting groups in France were founded in 1911, and interreligious Guiding started in 1914; both movements merged in 1964 forming the EEdF...
, set up a training camp for 60 Scoutmasters from all over French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
. At the end of 1937, French Scouting sent Scoutmaster Raymond Schlemmer
Raymond Schlemmer
Raymond Schlemmer was a seminal figure in the early history of Scouting in France, from 1922 to 1952.In late 1937, French Scouting sent Scoutmaster Schlemmer to the Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese areas of Indochina to oversee the setting up of the Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du...
to the Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
n, Laotian
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
ese areas of Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
to oversee the setting up of the Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme
Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme
The Fédération Indochinoise des Associations du Scoutisme was the earliest Scouting governing body in French Indochina, encompassing several smaller Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese Scout associations, open without bias of faith or political viewpoint, from 1930 to 1954...
(FIAS, Indochinese Federation of Scouting Associations) in all three regions.
From 1939 through 1945, the political situation affected Scouting activities all across the country, as World War II engendered a movement for an independent Laos. The French began to lose control and were finally overthrown by Japanese intervention. This ceased the French Scouts' activity in Laos, as well as all Scouting activities.
Homegrown Scouting was once again active in Laos, as Scouts Lao (Laotian
Lao language
Lao or Laotian is a tonal language of the Tai–Kadai language family. It is the official language of Laos, and also spoken in the northeast of Thailand, where it is usually referred to as the Isan language. Being the primary language of the Lao people, Lao is also an important second language for...
: ສກຸດລາວ, pronounced skudlao) between its inception in 1959, at which date it numbered 2,300 Scouts, and its banning by the Pathet Lao
Pathet Lao
The Pathet Lao was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The group was ultimately successful in assuming political power after the Laotian Civil War. The Pathet Lao were always closely associated with Vietnamese communists...
in 1975.
Laotian Scouting in exile
Scouts-in-Exile
Scouts-in-Exteris, also referred to as Scouts-in-Exile, are Scouting and Guiding groups formed outside of their native country as a result of war and changes in governments...
existed at least into the early 1990s in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, alongside fellow Vietnamese Scouting in exile and Cambodian Scouting
Scouting in Cambodia
The National Association of Cambodian Scouts is the national Scouting organization in Cambodia. It was founded in September 2005 through the merger of the Scout Organization of Cambodia and the Cambodian Scouts and became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement on 1 July,...
in exile groups.
According to Eric Khoo Heng-Pheng
Eric Khoo Heng-Pheng
Eric Khoo Heng-Pheng, from Tranquerah, Malacca, Malaysia, , is one of 12 elected volunteer members of the World Scout Committee, the main executive body of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, and Chairman of its Asia Pacific Regional Scout Committee, elected in 2001...
of the World Organization of the Scout Movement
World Organization of the Scout Movement
The World Organization of the Scout Movement is the Non-governmental international organization which governs most national Scout Organizations, with 31 million members. WOSM was established in 1920, and has its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland...
, "We hope to work on (Laos and Burma
Scouting and Guiding in Burma
Today, Burma is one of only five of the world's independent countries that do not have Scouting, however Scouting in Burma had a rich five-decade history...
) again... Laos is the closest, as we have got Cambodia in already... Just like Vietnam... we are working with them through ASEAN Scouting. We hope to enroll all the countries including China in (the Asia-Pacific Scout Region)."
The Scout Motto is ຕຣຽມພຣ້ອມ (Triam Phrom /tliaːm˨ pʰlɔːm˦˩/), Prepared in Lao, and Sois Prêt, Be Prepared in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
.