More money for policemen

I borrowed this list of violations directly enforced in Thailand, from the popular Bangkok blogger Richard Barrow, as an example how the notorious underpaid and underchallegend Lao policemen can get more money and do something for road safety (but still have to get up, walking a few meters to stop a car):

แข่งรถในทาง – road racing
ขับรถเร็ว – speeding
แซงในที่คับขัน – dangerous overtaking
เมาแล้วขับ – drink driving
ขับย้อนศร – driving against traffic flow
ไม่สวมหมวกนิรภัย – not wearing helmet
จอดรถซ้อนคัน – double parking
ไม่ติดแผ่นป้ายทะเบียน – car has no license plates
มลพิษควันดำ – black smoke from exhaust
จอดรถในที่ห้ามจอด – parking in forbidden zones
จอดรถบนทางเท้า – parking on sidewalks
ขับรถบนทางเท้า – driving on sidewalks
แท็กซี่ปฏิเสธไม่รับผู้โดยสาร – taxis refusing to take passengers

One more time a motobike hits a dog (CCTV footage)

This is the second time in a few months when a motobike hits a dog right in front of my house. This time again, the driver didn't even slow down a bit, clearly seeing that 4 dogs are on the street. I haven't seen so many dumb people on motobikes since I am in Laos. Is this the buddhist thing that they don't care? What other excuse are there? (This idiot didn't even had a helmet, so it's pure luck he didn't get hurt more)

The street I live is a short cut between Khouviang and Lao Thai road, so the traffic is much more than it should be in a residential area. And people are driving to fast (including the NGO people in their big SUVs). And yes, we do have kids playing here, and it is just a matter of time when one them got hit.

Crackdown on (certain) foreigners in Laos

So here we are, the big clean up starts: Yesterday the VT reported that beggars will be brought to a certain center before and during the ASEM summit, to clean up the streets and put some rouge on it.

Now the crackdown on foreigners starts:

Hawkers, nail cutters, beauticians, scrap metal collectors, vegetable and seafood vendors in markets or doing other informal work will not be allowed to stay.

Most of them are Vietnamese. Interesting is, that the Chinese workers for the ASEM facilities are under special regulations.

Also, Foreigners found owning and operating businesses such as wholesale or retail shops, tailors and livestock farms without business licences can apply for legal documents if the value of the business amounts to at least one billion kip.

What isn't mentioned in the recent VT is the new law that will take place soon, where foreigners can only stay 4 years and have then to return to their home country (so the Lao government can force me to go to Germany?).

I wonder what kind of consultants wrote this laws? It reminds me a bit to the Vietnamese Labour Law.

Students on a chicken farm

Bangkok Post had an article about CP Laos, the local branch of the successful Thai food company, known for its chicken, poultry and pig. It says :" He said C.P Laos now employed about 600 local workers and 30 Thai
staff. Some of the local staff were former university students who had
been undergoing training with the company."
I was just wondering why you need - beside some specialists and administration staff - university graduates on a chicken farm?

Government urges land reforms

Vientiane Times reported about land reforms:
"During a
riveting keynote speech given at a international land and forestry
conference in Vientiane today, Dr. Souvanhpheng Bouphanouvong,
President of the National Assembly of Lao's Committee on Economic
Planning and Finance, announced the government's intention to undergo
a nationwide formal process of large scale land reform, and prioritize
the need for increased local land management, given that access to
land for rural households is fundamental to sustained poverty
alleviation."
Later on it is said that the gov is concerned about land disputes. I just wonder how this new policy will fit to the practise to give land to people working in the government. And if Vietnam and China will still get concessions and leases.

Old Thalat Sao to be demolished soon

Everyone was asking why the hell they started building a new shopping mall around a old one. But thats they way they do planning in Laos. Anyway, now they decided to finally demolish the old Thalat Sao, forcing 400 sellers to move into the Malls 1+2. I am wondering where these 400 shops are since Mall 1 is full already and in Mall 2 I can't see this ammount of empty shops. Anyway, selection of products will remain small, quality extreme low.

Vientiane Times told us some numbers about the rent today (for the new Mall):

"Vientiane authorities, Talat Sao Shopping Mall Company, and merchants met to discuss contracts and rental fees at the mall. At the meeting they agreed to exempt the rental fees for relocated retailers for the first six months, but after that they will be required to pay US$150 per month.

In the second year, the company will charge US$200 per month and US$ 300 per month for the third year. The rental fees for the following years will be adjusted according to GDP of the country. The investors will be required to pay the government about US$1.7 million for property compensation."

DECIDE provides data from Laos

A project paid by the Swiss government called DECIDE shows data about Laos in a nice and fancy way. The website says:

The Lao DECIDE info project strives to stimulate
data and information sharing among sectors and
administrative levels towards improved evidence-
based socio-economic planning and decision-
making in the Lao PDR.
Through a set of tools and procedures, the project
actively promotes the availing of spatial and statistical
data - initially from the Lao national Population and
Housing Census 2005 - in various formats to users
with a variety of individual needs.

You can zoom into maps, compare at least two maps and get data from Migration to Female Head of Household. Downside is, the Data is from the 2005 census (but I was told data from 2011 is on the way), and it is provided by the Department of Statistics, so I am not sure how reliable it really is.

Anyway, that's kind of the only data available so far, so if you register, you get access to more tools like a GIS viewer where you can create your own maps.