Royal symbolism is embraced amid communist ideology in Laos

The Lao government's decision this week to mark the birthday of the 14th century king Fa Ngum is part of its search for legitimacy as communism fades.

Builders are already preparing the foundations for a statue of the king near the Novotel hotel in Vientiane.

Fa Ngum's birthday, on January 5, will be a public holiday and exhibitions extolling 'Laos' first king' would be held, said Radio Vientiane in a broadcast reported in Bangkok.

Observers and scholars are fascinated as to why a self-styled revolutionary communist government is allowing royal symbolism, and promoting monarchical sentiment. Some said the Lao government was disturbed at the extent to which Lao people now paid obeisance to the Thai king in the absence of one of their own and were putting up the ancient Fa Ngum as competition.

Scholars said the communist regime had not been able to ignore the respect Lao people had for the institution of monarchy, especially as communist ideology had declined in usefulness since radical changes in the former Soviet Union.

Grant Evans, a Laos scholar at the University of Hong Kong, said: 'What is happening . . . is an intensification of re-traditionalisation of the regime to garner legitimacy now that communism has been forsaken.

'The Fa Ngum business, with a national holiday, is certainly a heightening of this. But it has been coming for a while.'