I believe I mentioned in a previous post about village chiefs. Here I’d like to expand a bit more.

I remember several conversations with Angie, former Director of the Suntisouk Language and Vocational Center, concerning this topic. When she began talking of our visits to Laos village chiefs, I had visions of elderly men, sitting in grass huts, wearing traditional native outfits and being in distant countryside areas. To me, the words “village” and “village chief” brought up images of the below Laos landscape:

And while the above is true for distant remote areas, as the 60-people community I visited shows above, in cities and towns, it’s a bit different.

Villages in Vientiane

 For urban and larger town settings, a village (under Laos Communist Party guidelines) is somewhat like a USA city precinct with the Village Chief taking on the role of something between a precinct committeeman and a mayor. The appointment is made by Party members of that village who elect someone to be the chief. Candidates have to have been a Party Member for at least 3 years, be between the ages of 21 – 60 and have lived in the village for at least 2 years. 

Meeting the New Village Chief

The structure of government is very organized and clearly stated. 

 In fact, I found out just how structured a few weeks ago when our Center was personally invited by official invitation to attend the welcoming in ceremony of our new village chief. This is the first time the Suntisouk Language and Vocational Center’s foreigners (Angie from the Philippines, myself as an American and Daniel Yang, a Hmong-American) have ever been invited to such an event. In fact, it’s the first time any foreigners at all have been extended such an honor. Even the overseas residents from the nearby international school, French Embassy, international business ventures and also foreign restaurants weren’t invited.  In the 7 years the Center has been in existence, Angie mentioned (as director) we also were never included in such an important community gathering, thus making this first time so very, very special.

Here are pictures from the 2 1/2 hour introduction as well as meet-and-greet of our newly appointed village chief.

I learned the following about my village, Thongkang.

1. A village is comprised of 20 or more households or a population of 100 co-existing people in the same area.
2. My village’s name is Thongkang. It is comprised of 441 households and 2,110 people (I’m now one of them!)
3. Our Vientiane district is called Sisattanak. It has 73 villages. Thongkang is one of them.
4. 30% of households in my village are making improvements to their houses or are building new additions to beautify their homes.
5. If someone dies in the village, 3 million Kip ($136 US) is given to the family as a memorial gift from the village chief’s office on behalf of the village.

Why were we Invited, the only foreigners?

The Center is giving free classes to any village chief or his/her staff who are interested in learning English to communicate with their foreign expats in their neighborhoods. We have so many here from all over the world, not to mention the many international schools that the kids go to. The big cities in Laos, especially here in Vientiane, are swarming with foreigners and foreign visitors.  Our village chief and staff class is very small (only 4) but it has helped us gain a reputation as wanting to help others.

As you can see, it pays to have students in high places! Our village deputy chief leaders and those who hold posts in our neighborhood Communist Party appreciate this opportunity to learn, share and understand those from other cultures through language. 

The above ladies have English skills from basic A-B-Cs (unable to read) to simple conversational skills. Their busy schedules, taking care of community duties and also families, often have them coming later than their 5 – 6:30 timeslot. Despite being tired and exhausted after a long day, they rush on their scooters to attend class. I am not their regular teacher but I do spend time with them before my primary school kids start at 5:30.  Getting to know them on a personal level is a rewarding and eye-opening, especially for me as a newcomer to Laos. 

I am hoping, as the word gets out, that more of our local leaders will join in. Already, two have invited those from other villages to join us. Little by little, this class will grow. You wait and see!

My next entry? 

Stay tuned for my personal visits to our village chief to welcome him into his new position, introduce myself and advertise our Center as a service-oriented establishment. Also included in the next entry will be my visit to the nearby primary school, where the principal’s request of furthering our relationship proved to be a lifesaver. (Watch this space for the marvelous story, with pictures to follow.)

May peace and joy surround you in all your endeavors this week. I know this is already proving true for me.