There have been economic reforms that have officially introduced a market-based economy for the last twenty years, and it seems like Laos is working to become more integrated into the world economy and society. However, they are still heavily influenced by their neighbors Vietnam and China who are able to insulate them from some of the external pressures of the rest of the world that might advocate more democratic or transparent changes.
With that little summary, my work is trying to support an International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) that works at helping rural villages. This help comes in many forms, and I am specifically working on a Rights LINK project that emphasizes the legal land rights that such villages possess under the law. I think I am developing a decent grasp on some key issues, but I need to begin to really focus upon one or two topics to address the legal significance of current legislation, policy, etc. An example would the current state of community title for villages, what requirements must be met for the government to give land (concessions) to investors for plantations [this is a major problem in Laos], should villagers be able to transfer use rights even if they do not have title, etc. You can imagine that the political climate heavily influences the type of work that I am doing, and the differences between the Lao legal system and the U.S.'s is astronomical.
Something that may be slightly troublesome for me is the fact that I am living quite a posh life here in Vientiane (Laos's capital). I'm kind of doing the whole foreign NGO thing, so that means living in large houses, getting connected to other foreignors in town, eating out a lot, etc. More than the money, questions of whether I am making the most of my time or whether I am part of a problem rather than a solution are definitely valid. I kind of count it as an opportunity to learn a side of the global NGO side that I previously was unaware of, and it is good to remember how I had the complete opposite experience in Guatemala. There, the work I was a part of was 99% on the ground yet there were many obstacles placed in our way because we weren't connected to centers of power or resources. I was wanting to see the policy side of this kind of work and that generally means being close to centers of power. A natural byproduct of that is that you can become detached from those that are on the ground.
However, let me clarify that I feel the organization that I am working for has a very, very real understanding and presence on the ground here in Laos. Their strength is working with rural villages and because of that it makes their policy efforts more legitimate, responsive, and effective.
Pic Notes:
1. I share a house with four other persons. Davis (Augusta, GA - yes, he has been to the Masters 25 times), Simon (London, UK), Dena (Canadian), Sarah (Canadian). We're turning into a nice little family, it is quite sweet. Our house is the big yellow one, and that is the flooded road after a large rain. We are entering the rainy season here and I like it. We pay probably too much for the house, but it comes with someone who cleans and does our laundry. She is also our neighbor and her family has taken care of us so much already.
2. Last Saturday, the four interns that are working for the same NGO I am working for, went with other Laos workers in the office to one of their houses outside of town. The house is on a plot of land that has chickens, fish, eel, frogs, turkey, and I'm sure other stuff. The people here drink a lot of Beer Lao [Beer Lao has a 99% market share in the country], and that is pretty much what everyone did all afternoon. It was hard for them to understand that sometimes you just have to say "N0" and I think they thought some of us weren't having a good time because we weren't drinking that much. The drinking culture here is probably another topic, but I'll just say that their hospitality in the matter is second to none. The picture is of me reeling in what I thought was going to be a catfish-like fish, but it turned out to be more of an eel-like something that they didn't want to eat. I still think fishing on a lake is quite boring, but they cast the line and would just let me reel it in if it got a bite. Also, for any fisherman out there, they had two hooks on the line and the only reason I can make for it is that their line wasn't strong enough or the hooks they were using weren't big enough. The two fish I reeled in swallowed one of the two hooks and I'm not sure if the fisherman I was with understood the troubles of a swallowed hook.
3. Saturday was a big day, I'm not going to lie. We went out to this "farm" from 9 until 4:30pm and then some of us met a fellow intern's law professor from Univ of Indiana who was in town to briefly check up on the intern's progress/work, so we had a nice dinner paid for. Then we headed over to the French Cultural Institute where we listened to good French acoustic, some acoustic Dylan that lacked much heart, some really really bad Lao hardcore rock, some mediocre Lao ska and hiphop, and some very good Lao reggae. I'm not exactly sure what the Cultural Institute does, but I know they give French lessons and help support local French culture. Laos was a French colony so there is a decent French presence in Vientiane. And by "presence" I really don't have too much to go on besides the fact that there are a lot of French people and excellent pastry shops. There was a pretty decent crowd in this open-air courtyard to hear the music and then at the end of the night there was a DJ that played American tunes for a couple of hours. It was interesting because there seemed to only be younger Lao and all types of French people there, but our group (5 from the house) tore up the dance floor. We really made everybody take it up a notch. Highlights would be Rage's "Killing in the Name" which was directly followed by Nirvana's "Smell Like Teen Spirit". But Biz Markie's "You Say He's Just a Friend" has been in my head ever since.
I did an imitation of my friend Tristan's I-need-a-glow-stick hand movements and even though I knew it was second-rate, the crowd ate it up.
Also, I am adding a new section of my posts entitled
"Things My Mother Would Want to Know" (which is different than "Things My Mother Would Ask Me")
- I have been eating well, and even though I've had some stomach issues recently I've been able to keep my weight up.
- I am getting quite tan on my face, arms and shoulders but my stomach still is pretty white
- there was one quite pretty girl I saw at the Cultural Institute, but I could tell she had "drama" written all over her
- my hair is curlier now that things are so humid here, but it isn't long enough to cut
- yes, I might just keep growing it out
- I can go to the store if I run out of deodorant or any other hygiene item
- I worked out yesterday and am wanting to keep running when I have the chance
- No, I haven't kept in contact with any friends back home, and I do feel bad about it.
- the French bakeries are quite nice and are owned by French persons.
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