Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06VIENTIANE526
2006-06-08 10:21:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Vientiane
Cable title:  

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY "ELECTS" A NEW PRESIDENT AND

Tags:  PINR PGOV PREL LA 
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FM AMEMBASSY VIENTIANE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0002
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 1976
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 1056
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 0499
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENTIANE 000526 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/MLS, INR, DRL
DEPARTMENT ALSO FOR USTR

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/08/2016
TAGS: PINR PGOV PREL LA
SUBJECT: NATIONAL ASSEMBLY "ELECTS" A NEW PRESIDENT AND
PRIME MINISTER

REF: VIENTIANE 433

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Kristen Bauer, reason 1.4 (b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENTIANE 000526

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/MLS, INR, DRL
DEPARTMENT ALSO FOR USTR

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/08/2016
TAGS: PINR PGOV PREL LA
SUBJECT: NATIONAL ASSEMBLY "ELECTS" A NEW PRESIDENT AND
PRIME MINISTER

REF: VIENTIANE 433

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Kristen Bauer, reason 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: In its inaugural session June 8, the
newly-elected National Assembly selected a new President,
Vice President and Prime Minister and approved the Prime
Minister's cabinet. Party Secretary Choummaly Sayasone takes
over as President of Laos, while former PM Bounnyang Vorachit
has been kicked upstairs to be Vice President. Khamtai
Siphandone protege Bouasone Bouphavane becomes Prime
Minister. Bouasone announced his new cabinet, which retains
some ministers, shifts others, and elevates a number of
technocrats who joined the Central Committee at the 8th Party
Congress in March. Most significantly, Politburo member
Thongloun Sisoulith will take over as the Foreign Minister
from long-time FM Somsavat Lengsavad, who will move to the
Prime Minister's Office. Several other relatively young,
perhaps more flexible, Central Committee members will also
move up. This being Laos, the new cabinet is no "dream
team," but the transfusion of new blood can't help but
improve the government's normally lackluster performance. We
also hope the rise of moderates like Thongloun will help the
U.S.-Lao relationship. End summary.


2. (U) In a departure from past practice, the Assembly
invited the diplomatic community to sit through its entire
opening session, during which the new Assembly members
formalized all the government and cabinet changes anticipated
since the 8th Party Congress in March. Since Lao democracy
has a long way to go, the Assembly session could not have
been less spontaneous. The entire three-hour opening session
was heavily scripted; none of the foreigners in attendance
had any illusion that the full slate of cabinet changes
hadn't been worked out long in advance. The various
acceptance speeches were so identical we concluded they must
have been written by the same hack at the Party's Kilometer 6
headquarters. Surprisingly, however, the Assembly took the
bold step of "electing" the new appointees in front of the

diplomatic corps in attendance, making use of their
UN-donated electronic voting system. The votes created some
confusion when the numbers broadcast on the electronic tally
board didn't add up, but the Assembly President ignored the
discrepancies and forged ahead.


3. (U) Rumors had been flying since March about who would
take over as the new President, since it was widely assumed
Khamtai would step down. For weeks, the consensus had rested
on Party Secretary Choummaly taking over from Khamtai and
for the Party's golden boy Bouasone taking the helm at the
PM's Office from the ineffectual Bounnyang, and the Assembly
did not disappoint. After electing Politburo member Thongsing
Thammavong as Assembly President (allowing the retirement of
long-serving Assembly President Samane Viyaket),and Pany
Yathoteu and Saisomphone Phomvihane as co-Vice Presidents,
the Assembly turned its attention to the important post of
National President. Following Khamtai's formal resignation
speech, Thongsing nominated Choummaly as new President and
Bounnyang as VP; the Assembly ratified both selections
unanimously.


4. (U) Embarrassingly, after the new Assembly President,
Thongsing Thammavomg, nominated the new Prime Minister,
President of the Supreme Court and Prosecutor General, he
forgot to call for a vote on the nominations, as called for
in the constitution, and summoned PM nominee Bouasone
Bouphavane up to the stage to deliver his acceptance speech.
A brave Assembly delegate spoke up before Bouasone could
reach the podium, politely requesting a vote on the
nominations. While Bouasone did an about-face and went back
to his seat, Thongsing ran through the motions and called for
the vote on the PM; four delegates actually voted against
Bouasone, although he still handily carried the nomination.
In the confusion, the Assembly never got around to ratifying
the President's nomination of the new Supreme Court President
and Prosecutor General; we assume they will sort out those
formalities later.


5. (U) In his acceptance remark, the new PM informed the
Assembly that the government would be reorganized, with the
number of ministries or ministry-level organizations going
from 13 to 16. The biggest changes would be the restructuring

VIENTIANE 00000526 002 OF 002


of the Ministry of Industry and Handicrafts and Ministry of
Commerce to create two new ministries: a Ministry of Energy
and Mines (to handle the hydropower and mining portfolios, we
understand) and a Ministry of Industry and Trade. The
Science, Technology and Environment Agency (STEA) was also
elevated to become a ministry-level organization, although
still within the Prime Minister's Office.


6. (U) The most significant of Bouasone's appointments was
Politburo member Thongloun as new Foreign Minister, a change
that we had been hearing about for months. Thongloun was
once Chairman of the National Assembly's Foreign Relations
Committee, speaks English, and reportedly for many years has
had a keen interest in foreign affairs. FM Somavat will
retain his DPM position but will move to the PM's Office,
becoming Bouasone's new right-hand man. Former Commerce
Minister Soulivong was put in charge of Thongloun's old post,
the Committee for Planning and Investment.


7. (U) Other significant new ministerial appointments include
former Lao Women's Union President Onechanh Thammavong to the
Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare; former head of the
Party School Chaleun Yiapaoheu to the Ministry of Justice;
National University Rector Somkot Mangnomek to Ministry of
Education; former Vice Minister of Industry and Handicrafts
Nam Viyaket to the Ministry of Industry and Trade; former Lao
Trade Union President Bosaikham Vongdala to the new Ministry
of Energy and Mines; Sommath Pholsena to Ministry of
Communications, Transport, Posts and Construction; Sitaheng
Ratsaphorn to Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry; and
Deputy Bank of Lao Governor Phouphet Khamphouvong to become
Governor of the Bank. Other ministries (Defense, Public
Security, Health, Finance, Information and Culture) will
retain their current ministers.


8. (C) Comment: First, the bad news: none of the changes to
the government or cabinet line-up signal a departure from
Party policy. The new line-up will be expected to carry out
the Party's directives, established at the 8th Party Congress
in March. New PM Bouasone made it clear in his acceptance
speech, in fact, that the responsibility of his new team
would be to ensure that the 8th Party Congress's directives
were translated into action; poverty reduction remains the
government's mantra.


9. (C) But there is good news here as well. Personality-wise,
the new cabinet is a significant improvement over its
predecessor. No one will miss PM Bounnyang, for example, who
by all accounts was largely ineffectual as PM, and in fact
had been little more than a figurehead for several years
while Deputy PM Bouasone ran the show. FM Somsavat is another
we are glad to see moving on. He took insincerity to new
heights, and his personal animosity against the U.S. explains
much of our challenges in the relationship over the past two
years. We enjoy a good relationship with his successor
Thongloun, and hope the change will help the bilateral
relationship. Others like Soulivong Daravong, Somkot
Mangnomek, Sommath Pholsena and Nam Viyaket are technocrats
more than Party animals and we expect will bring higher
professional standards to their jobs.


10. (U) We will provide biographies of the new cabinet and a
more detailed assessment of its makeup via septel. End
comment.

BAUER