Friends and colleagues,

I know the LPDR officials do not want to hear or see this, but please
allow me to reveal this to you all. My sources reveal to me that
there are three kinds of re-educational camps created by LPDR.

1. Prisons. These facilities were created mainly for common
criminals, but many political prisoners, especially former military
officers were sent there for short terms of 6 to 12 months. These
former military officers were considered criminals against humanity by
LPDR. Prisoners were usually locked in deep dark hole with no
sunlight and virtually no air. Each prison is forced to write his
autobiography, listing all the Pathet Lao and Vietnamese soldiers whom
he had killed, the livestock he had killed or stolen and the property
he had damaged. If his confession did not satisfy the guard
supervisor, he would be tortured until his confession satisfied.
Downed Hmong pilots such as Mr. Vang Bua Fue, Ly Chue and Yang Pao for
instance, were imprisoned in these facilities. Two of these Hmong
pilots were executed before their term expired. One was lucky enough
to make it through.

2. Centres for Remoulding and Reconstruction. These facilities were
designed mainly for high ranking civil servants serving longer terms
from 3 to 5 years or longer. Prisoners in these facilities faced
daily hard labour and nightly self-criticism plus the humiliating
lecture courses devised by the instructors to purify and redeem the
prisoners’ capitalist and American sins. Hard labour was pulling
ploughs on farms like cattle, cutting timber, building camps and
schools for local and national uses, repairing roads, filing bomb
craters and digging ponds.

3. Education camp. Prisoners in these facilities received milder
punishment. There are 6 basic compulsory courses that every prisoner
must go through: the political evolution of the world, the decadence
of capitalism, the inevitable triumph of socialism, and another three
bureaucratic courses. It is a full-time study followed by individual
study in small groups. Each prisoner is forced to write his
autobiography and apply it to what he had learned. Self-criticism,
condemning his past errors and political beliefs is expected. These
prisoners live in rugged conditions with limited food, heavy manual
labour, and daily reproaches.

For all of these three different camps, virtually every prisoner died
before their term expired due to starvation, torture and executed.
Mr. Touby Lyfoung was executed in type 3 camp in 1978. In the same
year King Savang Vattana, Prince Vong Savang and Queen Khamphoui all
died of hard labour, starvation and imprisonment.

In 1976 the number of detainees was estimated at 20,000, but Western
diplomats stationed in Vientiane believed it to be more than 30,000.
Today it is believed to between 10,000 and 15,000 still remained in
these facilities and of course new prisoners are brought in everyday.
Perhaps, Mr. DKJ can update us on this. We know Mr. DKJ has done a
great job posting many photos of those Hmong returnees so far, so why
not post some good photos of these dying prisoners in these camps for
us and the world to see. This would be a great chance for Mr. DKJ to
win a world Noble Prize award.