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Afraid of cops<\/strong><\/p>\n A motorcyclist in Borikhamxay province, who also declined to be named, told RFA that \u201cmany people are afraid of the police\u201d in Laos based on prior experience.<\/p>\n \u201cEven if they were stopped by a traffic police officer who demanded a kickback, most of them wouldn\u2019t report the corruption to the authorities or to public,\u201d he said. \u201cIf they did report, they would end up in trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n Other motorists said that while they might take a photo or video of a police officer engaged in an illegal act, they would never say anything bad about the police on social media, because doing so could land them in prison or \u201cforcibly disappeared.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe can\u2019t say much,\u201d a resident of Champassak province said. \u201cIf you say something bad, you\u2019ll be accused of trying to break up the Party and government. We can\u2019t talk back to or make any argument against the authorities.\u201d<\/p>\n Bounthone Chanthalavong-Weise, president of the Alliance for Democracy in Laos, a Germany-based rights organization, suggested that Thongloun had \u201cmisspoken.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhat he said was incorrect because social media exists to allow the public to report on, publish and exchange information that is often blocked by the government,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n When contacted by RFA to clarify Thongloun\u2019s statement, an official at the Prime Minister\u2019s Office said that while netizens can \u201csay anything you want\u201d on social media, \u201cwhat you say must be supported by proof and facts.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the law,\u201d he said, without providing further details.<\/p>\n Targeted for speaking out<\/strong><\/p>\n Last year, RFA documented several cases in which Laotians were targeted after reporting police wrongdoing.<\/p>\n In March 2020, a young man and woman who gave their names as Boey and Keo were arrested in their home village of Xiengda on the outskirts of Vientiane and detained for a week after posting a video they took during a heated exchange with police over whether their land belonged to the state. One of Keo\u2019s family members said at the time that the two had been \u201creeducated\u201d for posting the video before they were released.<\/p>\n Sangkhan Chanthavong, who is better known as Thisi, was arrested on Aug. 26 last year in Champasak and detained for one month and three days after posting a video clip accusing the Lao government of nepotism because high-ranking officials regularly stock their departments with family members. In another video, he had criticized the judiciary, including police, prosecutors and judges.<\/p>\n On the evening of Oct. 27, 2020, police stopped a 17-year-old boy who had been sent by his mother to buy spices for their small restaurant in Vientiane and demanded 200,000 kip ($21.24) to release his motorcycle. The mother posted a video clip on Facebook scolding the officers for exploitation and three days later was summoned to the police station and forced to apologize.<\/p>\n Thongloun is not the first Lao president to issue a seemingly contradictory statement that led to public confusion.<\/p>\n Three years ago, during a speech to the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, former president Bounnhang Vorachith lamented what he called \u201cdull and unpopular\u201d broadcasts by Lao media, calling for more programming with more \u201ccreativity\u201d that is \u201cmore reflective of the needs of the public.\u201d<\/p>\n Later, in the same speech, Bounnhang called television, radio, and newspapers \u201ctools\u201d of the state, adding that \u201call media must serve the Party and government,\u201d and adhere to their guidelines and policies.<\/p>\n