Sounds downright civil. What could be wrong with such a system...oh yeah, right.

From the Vientiane Times, which has now gone all uppity and requires a subscription to read stuff more than a day old...


Election preparations in Attapeu province

The Election Committee of Attapeu province is preparing documents on what candidates should and should not talk about with the villagers during their election campaign.
The committee president, Mrs Vatsady Khotyotha, said all candidates should be careful not to say anything against one another. They should only introduce themselves to the villagers and inform them about their background.

“All candidates should make sure their discourse is in line with the Party’s policy. They should not promise to do anything for the villagers, only record the problems in the village, to report them to the National Assembly, where they will be taken into consideration,” Mrs Vatsady said.

The candidates will represent all the categories of the population, including ethnic groups. They will become the legislative organ of the country, representing the Party and the people at all levels.

All Lao nationals can apply to be NA members, but they must match legally determined criterions. Some citizens have applied to be candidates, but were not accepted by the Provincial Election Committee because they were not sufficiently qualified: some did not know enough about the Party or about governmental policies for the development of the nation.

“I think all our candidates now are qualified to represent the people. They will work to serve the interest of the people,” she added.

There are five candidates in Attapeu province. Three of them will be elected for the National Assembly. All candidates will carry out the election campaign together on March 15. They are also expected to meet with the villagers several times afterwards.

It is fundamental that they understand the villagers’ problems so that they can report precisely to the NA sessions.

Attapeu province is located in the south-eastern part of Laos. It has five districts and a population of 112,000 people. There are 135 election units in the province, of which 60 are mobile.

Many parts of the province are remote and mountainous with no access by road, such as Xamluang, Kongna, Vangtut, and Muangkao in Xanxay district. It takes from five to ten days to walk from the provincial town.

“We are asking the National Election Committee for airplanes,” Mrs Vatsady said. The planes might be used for the candidates to carry out their election campaign in these areas.

At the moment, the provincial committee is actively spreading information to the villagers about the election. The province has designed five informative documents at provincial level, three for district level and two documents for village level; they will be read and explained to local populations. “We inform the villagers about election rules, and about their right and obligation, as Lao citizens, to vote for their representatives. We tell them that voting is our role and that it builds up a stronger state power,” Mrs Vatsady said.

The province also planned to hold sports competitions, singing contests and other art performances, which will start this month, to celebrate the General Election and attract voters.