Relatives of four members of the Hmong indigenous community

Cases
Case status
Unknown
Location of case in SG report
2021-059-001
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2021
Country Geolocation

Latitude: 19.85627

Longitude: 102.495496

Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
Laos
From Region
UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report
  • UN Special Procedures: Thematic
Dates of prior UN action
27 April 2021
Type of record
Unnamed individual/group/organization
Gender
Gender unclear
Was the victim a foreign national?
No
Was the victim a minor?
No
Individual's/organization's activity

Relatives of disappeared

Type of rights defended
  • Indigenous peoples’ rights
Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
No
Reported trigger of reprisal

Communicating with Special Procedures

Engagement with UN body
  • UN Special Procedures: thematic
Type of attempted engagement
  • Submission of information to UN
Reprisal information
  1. The mandate holders note that, following the August 2020 communication by special procedures (LAO 3/2020), relatives of the disappeared individuals, including women, have reportedly been the subject of threats and intimidation by the army. In particular, coinciding with the publication of the communication on the special procedures’ public database in October 202046 and thereafter, there has reportedly been an escalation of violence against indigenous Hmong residing in the Phou Bia mountain forest by the Lao army. It was reported that, on 8 March 2021, Mr. Chue Youa Vang, a 63-year-old male, and a relative of two of the disappeared, was killed by a group of Laotian soldiers in the forest while attempting to escape. A disturbing photo of Mr. Vang’s body was taken by the soldiers and disseminated among the Hmong community (LAO 3/2021).
  2. On 14 March 2021, authorities in Xaisomboun (Saysombun in Lao) province reportedly issued a decree, circulated via a letter sent to 26 villages in the area, forbidding all civilians, including Hmong villagers, access to the Phou Bia mountain forests in an apparent decision intended to isolate the individuals who have taken refuge in the forests from the rest of their community (LAO 3/2021). The mandate holders expressed “serious concern about what appears to be reprisals against the relatives of the disappeared in apparent retribution for having complained about their disappearance to UN Special Procedures” and that “the fear that the army is spreading among the Hmong population in the area appears to be deliberately intended to isolate these communities, many of whom are already living in militarised villages, under tight security surveillance, to severe links with their members who have fled in the forest, and with the outside world, including UN human rights protection mechanisms” (LAO 3/2021).
Types of reprisals suffered
  • Surveillance
  • Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
  • Travel restriction
Alleged/likely perpetrators
State actors
Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
No
Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
No
Government response dates
1 August 2021
Government response content

On 1 August 2021, the Government responded to the note verbale sent in connection to the present report categorically rejecting the allegations made by the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances. It reiterated that, according to the investigation of local authorities, there were no claims or reports filed related to the four missing members of the Hmong community. Moreover, the Government stated that the Xaisomboun provincial authorities had checked and confirmed that the names of the four individuals did not match any of the names of the family registration list recorded in the Ban Pha village and neighbouring villages.

Was the case raised by a State at the UN?
No
Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
No
Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
No
Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
No
How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
1
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
2022
Follow up information provided in SG report 0
  1. The case of four members of the Chaofa Hmong indigenous community, including two girls, one woman and an 80-year-old man, and their relatives were included in the 2021 report of the Secretary-General on allegations of enforced disappearance in March 2020 by the Lao People’s Armed Forces following the submission of information and the consideration of their situation by the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. Following the August 2020 communication by special procedures mandate holders on the fate of the four disappeared community members (LAO 3/2020), relatives in the Phou Bia Mountain forests (Xaisombun Province), were reportedly subject to threats and intimidation by the army, and a male relative of two of the disappeared was killed by a group of Laotian soldiers (LAO 3/2021).
  2. Mandate holders expressed concern about what appeared to be reprisals against the relatives of the disappeared in retribution for having submitted a complaint to the UN Special procedures. They noted that the fear that the army was spreading among the Hmong population in the area appeared to be deliberately intended to isolate these communities and to severe links with the outside world, including UN human rights protection mechanisms (LAO 3/2021). In August 2021, the Government responded categorically rejecting the allegations and stating that, according to the investigation of local authorities, there were no claims or reports filed related to the four missing members of the Hmong community.
  3. According to information received by OHCHR, the situation of the relatives of the four individuals allegedly disappeared and of members of the Chaofa Hmong community has deteriorated further. During the reporting period, authorities have reportedly further restricted the access of civilians to the Xaisombun Province, including of civil society organizations, tightening control over physical movements and information flows in the area. A Government Decree issued on 14 March 2021 prohibited civilian circulation in the area reportedly until 31 May 2021. However, as of 30 April 2022, independent observers, humanitarian actors, or international organizations had reportedly not been granted access to the area. During this time, relatives of the individuals allegedly disappeared as well as members of the Hmong community have reportedly experienced increased violence, fear, and isolation, and have consequently declined contact for fear of further retaliation. The case of the four community members and their relatives is still under consideration by the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances.
Followup Trends 0
Deterioration/further reprisals
Date of follow up 0
27 April 2021
Did the government respond? 0
Yes
Was this case followed up by a UN body? 0
  • UN Special Procedures: Thematic
  • UN Special Procedures: UN Special Procedures - General