On Saturday, 24 March 2012, a military convoy brought the remains of fourteen prominent and less known Lao revolutionary leaders to the newly constructed National Cemetery – namely Kaysone Phomvihane, Souphanouvong, Nouhak Phoumsavanh, Phoumy Vongvichit, Phoun Sipaseuth, Sisomphone Lovanxay, Saly Vongkhamxao, Maychantan Sengmany, Oudom Khatthiya, Somlath Chanthamath, Osakan Thammatheva, Khambou Sounixay, Sompheth Thipmala, and Vaenthong Luangvilay. The construction of this cemetery, comprising a huge 52 hectares, took four years and cost an estimated 150 billion Kip (almost 19 million US$).
The urns with the ashes of the revolutionary ancestors were taken from their original resting places in stupas on private or temple grounds. In the case of the ‘Red Prince’, Souphanouvong, for example, a stupa next to the That Luang contained his remains since his death in 1995. The reburials required the ritual assistance of 120 Buddhist monks to safeguard the transfer of the leader’s relics to their new homes. In comparison to Vietnam, this practice seems to be rather unusual in Laos and might even be considered dangerous in Lao Buddhist cosmology, not least because of the disturbances for the spirits (phi) of the deceased, which make the presence of the monks even more crucial. The above Vientiane Times video illustrates the importance of Buddhist ritual for this event, including basi ceremonies and public sermons (maybe NM readers spot other interesting details).
The above video gives some snapshots of the ceremonies and illustrates the heterogeneous elements of contemporary revolutionary commemoration in the Lao PDR: Buddhist sermons and almsgiving ceremonies for the well-being of the ancestors, private basi ceremonies, military guards capped and gowned, Buddhist stupas (and urns!) with the socialist star on top, the Lao Youth Union lining the route of military trucks carrying the urns and large portraits of the revolutionary leaders, local residents offering flowers and incense, a solemn speech by president Choummaly Sayasone to the revolutionary families on this “meaningful day”, etc.
A lot of questions concerning the peculiarities of Lao commemorative practices remain. One can only speculate about the decision to concentrate the revolutionary remains in one place. As the Vientiane Times (16 March 2012) points out: “The interment at the national cemetery will see the remains of all the first generation of revolutionary leaders located in a single place, so they can be properly preserved and honoured by future generations.” Obviously, the care for the revolutionary ancestors is not family duty anymore but rather the responsibility of the state. Even if apparently made public, the remains of the dead are taken away from religious settings such as stupas on temple grounds and relocated to a rather anonymous site for collective commemoration resembling Vietnamese cemeteries for war martyrs.
The Lao National Cemetery appears to embody different dimensions of commemorative practice: Nationalist cult of death, old-school socialist public mass ceremonies, and traditional Buddhist practices concerning the delicate handling of relics. While the Buddhist ceremonies which can be seen on the video suggest – again – that the LPRP increasingly turns to Buddhism as component of state ceremonies, the new National Cemetery means a backslide towards socialist concrete purism as well – almost an antithesis to the cheerful atmosphere of the 2009 SEA Games which marked a new quality of the regime’s self-staging (see Creak (2011) on SEA Games).
It is interesting to note that Khamsaeng Sivilai, the first ethnic Lao member of the ICP and founding member of the Lao People’s Party, was not included in this group of LPRP luminaries. There is a burial stupa for him at Wat Sisaket so his remains are not missing in action. Another founding member of the Lao People’s Party, Boun Phommahaxay, was not included in this pantheon of Lao revolutionaries. The whereabouts of his burial stupa is unknown to me. One wonders why pioneer revolutionaries such as Sisana Sisane, Gen. Singkapo, Chao Souk Vongsak and Xomxeun Khamphithoune were not promoted ahead of Somphet Thipmala and Osakanh Thammatheva. I was quite surprised to see the name Vaenthong Luangvilay who only briefly occupied the LPRP Central Committee. I’m sure if you asked the average Lao citizen who this person was they would shrug their shoulders and say “bor hu”.
Regarding rituals, it was surprising to see the old stupas for Phoun Sipaseuth, Oudom Khattiya and Khambou Sounixay near the That Luang with their doors smashed in. Some also had the carved ‘grave’ portraits smashed. In contrast the stupa for Souphanouvong remained in relatively good condition. Small fences around these stupas had been removed or left open following the transfer of the urns. One wonders what will become of these stupas, will they be knocked down in the near future like colonial villas along the riverside or left to stand ‘spiritually’ empty?
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Martin, thanks for this insightful comment. It would indeed be interesting to know more about the selection process and the absence of ‘revolutionary ancestors’ such as Khamsaeng or Souk Vongsak.
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The location of this cemetery, more than 20 kms outside of the capital heading south on Route 13, will sadly not draw many visitors (local or foreign). I visited it twice while the Vietnamese labourers were touching up the relocated unknown soldier’s memorial. It was hot and empty, and the guards at the front gate were less than thrilled to have visitors. They wanted to remain in their cool gatehouse rather than venture out onto the scorching hot concrete. I wonder how many people will actually make the pilgrimage? Maybe Thaksin followers when they gather for their Phi Mai Red Shirt Fest at the National Sports Stadium. Few Vientiane locals bother to visit the Kaysone Museum which is at Km6, so how many will go an extra 15 kms? The role of the soldier’s memorial near the National Assembly is also a vague subject. Like most soldiers’ memorials around Laos the National Cemetery will probably be locked up 350 days of the year with wreaths left to fade and decay after Army Day. Recently the Vientiane Times mentioned efforts were being made to revive the Kaysone Memorial in Luang Phrabang, which in the past functioned as a major fire hazard rather than a pilgrimage site due to the high growing grass and scattered rubbish found within its fences. This memorial abandonment is also a problem for temple enthusiasts who often find sanctuaries locked up and the only key with the abbot who is off touring Myanmar or Cambodia. Having recently returned from the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, I find the Lao National Cemetery to be somewhat of a disappointment due to its barren layout and lack of information for visitors, be they Lao, Vietnamese, Thai or Western. I know many high ranking Lao prefer maintaining their own private mausoleums or frequenting their family temple to pay respects to their ancestors. One wonders if the ashes of revolutionary leaders have been divided up with some being kept close to home and the rest made available to the Party.
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Martin,
I love your expertise in this area. I have always wondered, are there any memorials to Souphanouvong besides the statue in Luang Phrabang? Would you say Souphanouvong, among the population, is remembered more fondly than Kaysone? I have always wondered if there are “conflicting” affections for the two men.
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There are a couple of memorials to Souphanouvong, one in Vientiane and another in Thakhaek. The statue in Thakhaek is quite impressive for its design and location (overlooking the limestone karsts). The memorial residence in Vientiane is less eye-catching. I understand there are plans to revamp the Viengxay residence of Souphanouvong, but I don’t know if that includes statues or bronze busts in revolutionary pose. Souphanouvong was definitely more photogenic than Kaysone. The bronze images of Souphanouvong also depict a better resemblance when compared to those of Kaysone which make him too thin or too fat. In his lifetime Souphanouvong was well aware of the power of image. He always took advantage of a good photo opportunity. With regards to displays of public affection, neither
figure attracts a lot these days. The younger generation need to see a high definition digital version of Souphanouvong/Kaysone striding through the liberated zone to catch their attention. Kaysone is in the people’s mind due to the fact that his portrait is on the kip notes. If he wasn’t represented on the national currency many people would quickly forget him, along with Nouhak, Sisomphone and Phoumi.
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Martin,
Thank you for your input. For some odd reason, I have this thought that the Lao people still have this affection for deceased leaders. One last bit, how does Souvannaphouma fit into this revolutionary history? There is never any mention of him. Even I forget he existed at times, same with the late King Sisavang Vatthana. I guess the rewriting of history is doing it’s job.
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Souvanna Phouma was never a member of the revolutionary movement. When a monument is built for Phetxarat, then we might see one for Souvanna Phouma who was a nationalist. I’m sure we won’t see statues of Savang Vatthana any time soon, because in the eyes of the current regime he was too closely associated with the American war effort and Vang Pao’s guerrilla forces. I presume that if family members have the funds they can build memorials on their own private land, as in the case of General Sounthone Pathammavong’s family. With regards to the statues of Lao kings, these are all artists impressions since we have no historic images to refer to. Due to the patriotic theming of these images the Lao public have accepted them with little debate. It will be interesting to see how people react when they see the Chinese crafted images of Sithon Kommadam and co. which are in the works at present. I remember lots of locals muttering with discontent when the images of Kaysone were unveiled. It would be interesting to know who is involved in the process of image selection when choosing the best representation of Party leaders.
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Thanks for this, Olli and Martin. I just went to That Luang Neua temple (where many stupas of the old revolutionaries were located) and spoke to the abbot. Regarding the smashing of the stupa doors you were right Martin: The bones were taken out with the ritual presence of Buddhdist monks. The abbot deemed this absolutely necessary because “this disturbes the vinyan of the deceased which is still attached to the stupa”. So the rite involved an excuse for the disturbance and an invitation to the new place.
According to the abbot the stupas have already been completely knocked down this week. I think the stupa itself only maintains its status as a memorial when the bones are in there – so a bone stupa without bones is just a thing to tear down and replace with something new.
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Thank you for this elucidation, Patrice!
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I just strolled down to the That Luang to view the site of the old revolutionary stupas. I has been cleared and repaved, and any newcomer would never know there had been five large stupas there a week before. In fact the space is now being used for car parking. I presume the stupas got knocked down just before Thaksin came to the Salaphanhong to make merit. Phi Mai Lao in Vientiane this year is very subdued. One wonders if this is because of all the clearance work around the temple complex.
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