Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that answer the question.
Query: What kind of government does Laos have?
The politics of the Lao People's Democratic Republic (commonly known as Laos) takes place in the framework of a one-party socialist republic. The only legal political party is the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP). The "de jure" head of state is President Bounnhang Vorachith, who also is LPRP general secretary making him the "de facto" leader of Laos.
The Royal Lao Government in Exile claims that it is an interim democratic government consisting of eighty representatives from Lao political organizations and associations elected by the Lao people inside Laos and abroad. The Royal Lao Government in Exile is chaired by Professor Khamphoui Sisavatdy, who claims to have previously served in the former Royal Lao Government under H.M. King Savang Vatthana of Laos as a Deputy in the National Assembly and was a Professor of Lao History at Sisavangvong University. In 1972, he traveled to the United States with a Lao delegation to speak to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger concerning a series of proposed Geneva Convention treaties.
The Supreme National Political Council in Exile is reportedly chaired by H.E. Phraya Sithidej (Sithat Sithibourn), former Lao Governor, former Lao Congressman and former President of Political and Law Commission of the Lao National Parliament.
The flag of Laos consists of three horizontal stripes, with the middle stripe in blue being twice the height of the top and bottom red stripes. In the middle is a white disc, the diameter of the disc is the height of the blue stripe. The flag ratio is 2:3. The national flag of Laos was first adopted in 1945 under the short-lived Lao Issara government of 1945–46, then by the Pathet Lao. It is one of the two flags of a currently communist country (the other being Cuba) that does not use any communist symbolism and the only current communist country that does not use a five-pointed star in its flag as an emblem. The current flag was adopted on December 2, 1975 when it became a socialist state.
The French language was introduced to Laos in the 19th century when French explorers arrived in Laos trying to make inroads into China after colonizing Vietnam. The French did not pay much attention to the kingdom of Lan Xang but established a consulate in present-day Luang Prabang. The actual catalysts for the establishment of colonial protectorate over Lao cultural regions were French fears of economic and political competition from Britain. By the 1890s, border disputes with Siam and France led to the Franco-Siamese War and the borders of Laos and Siam were established in favor of France and Laos became a French protectorate. Unlike in Vietnam, the French did not pursue to fully exert their influence in Laos and it was not until the 1900s that French began to be introduced into schools in Laos, but it was mostly limited to Vientiane. However, French rule finally gained firmer ground and French soon became the primary language of government and education and the language spread into southern Laos following the founding of Pakse. The French language peaked between the 1910s and World War II and spread throughout the nation but, like Vietnam, was not widely spoken in most rural areas. French eventually became the language of government officials and the elite. When Japan invaded Laos in World War II, French remained in the educational system, unlike in Vietnam, where Vietnamese became the sole language of education, but the Lao language was briefly used in the government. French returned as the sole political language after France resumed its rule of Laos and was co-official with Lao when Laos was granted self-rule in 1949, but Lao became the sole official language after independence in 1953.
The Government of Laos does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however it is making significant efforts to do so. The government increased law enforcement efforts to investigate trafficking offenses and prosecute and punish trafficking offenders. It also increased collaboration with international organizations and civil society to provide training for government and law enforcement officials, to provide repatriation and reintegration services for victims, and to launch public awareness campaigns to combat trafficking. A severe lack of resources remains the biggest impediment to the government’s ability to combat trafficking in persons and it remains dependent on the international donor community to fund anti-trafficking activities.
, Laos has an estimated population of 6.5 million. The Lao government recognizes 47 distinct ethnicities, which are further sub-divided into 149 subgroups. Lao society is traditionally categorized into three broad groups based on ethnicity and location. Approximately 50% of the total population is ethnic Lao (Lao Loum or Lao Tai); 10% are categorized as Lao Theung or “upland Lao” who are predominantly people of Mon or Khmer ancestry; another 34% are Lao Sung or “mountain Lao,” and are also commonly referred to as “hill tribes.” Hill tribe peoples in Laos include the Hmong, Yao (Mien), Akha, and Lahu. Laos is also home to sizeable communities of Vietnamese and Chinese who make up the 6% remaining.
Anthropologists consider the Lao Loum as a subcategory of the wider “Tai” ethnic group who share common genetic, linguistic, and cultural heritage. The Tai family includes the Lao and Thai, as well as smaller groups which have generally been distinguished by their traditional dress and include the Tai Dam (Black Tai), Tai Daeng (Red Tai), and Tai Khao (White Tai). The Laos to define both the ethnicity and nationality. Further complication is added by the geopolitical history between Laos and Thailand, there are an estimated 19 million “Lao” speakers living in northeastern Thailand (Thai Isan or Lao Tai) and only 3 million in Laos. As a consequence identity politics has played a major role in the defining the Lao Loum. The Lao government makes no distinction between the bordering groups and views them as sharing a common identity, but the government of Thailand has through a process known as “Thaification” assimilated the Lao living in Isan. The Lao Loum define themselves based on location, agricultural practice, language and religion. The Lao Loum occupy the Mekong River valleys and cultivate wet rice crops, they are predominantly Theravada Buddhist but have strong syncretism with traditional animist beliefs.
Lao Theung are culturally distinct from both the Lao Loum and Lao Sung. The Lao Theung generally include Mon-Khmer peoples which are among the indigenous peoples from the Mekong River valleys. The largest single group (11% or 500,000 people) is Khmu (Khmou, Kmhmu, Khammu, Khamu, Kammu). Also included in the Lao Theung population are Katang, Bru, Kui, Laven, Mal, Phai, Katu, Lave, Ngae, Jeh, Khuen, Jeng, Alak, Ir, Kasseng, Khlor, Aheu, Bo, Halang, Doan, Hung, Xinh Mul, Khua, Arem, Bit, Chut, Maleng and Mlabri. The Lao Theung peoples are distinguished by dry rice cultivation, and animist beliefs.
The boundaries of Lao dialects also extend into the North-East of Thailand, known as Isan, but the Lao spoken in Thailand as a whole can be differentiated by adoption of much Thai vocabulary and code-switching. The language is not taught or used in schools, government, and most media outlets. Thaification policies removed the alphabet and now the language is written in the Thai alphabet, if at all, and the name changed to Isan to sever the political connection with Laos. Despite this, the Lao language is spoken by 20 million people, almost a third of the population of Thailand, and is the primary language of 88% of Isan households. It continues to serve as an important regional language and a badge of Isan (hence Lao) identity, but it is experiencing a decline in the advance of Thai
There are over 90 distinct native languages spoken by the different ethnic populations of Laos. Lao, the official language of Laos, is a monosyllabic tone based language from the Tai-Kadai family as spoken in Vientiane. There are 19 million Lao speakers in Thailand and 3 million in Laos, a reflection of geopolitical history. Lao can be further divided according to regional dialects including Vientiane, northern, northeastern, central and southern. Northern dialects are spoken in Sainyabuli, Bokeo, Phongsali, Luang Nam Tha, Udomxai, and Luang Prabang. Northeastern Lao is spoken mainly in Xiang Khoang and Houa Phan. Central Lao is found in Khammuan and Bolikhamsai. The Southern dialect is used in Champasak, Salavan, Savannakhet, Attapeu, and Sekong.
As part of the Tai-Kadai language family spoken Thai is similar to Lao, with some distinctions. Lao has six tones, whereas Bangkok Thai has five, the standard lexicon, grammar, usage and pronunciations are also different. The two languages are not mutually intelligible, although Lao speakers tend to have an easier time understanding Thai because of the prevalence of Thai radio and media in and around Laos.
Gay foreigners visiting Laos in the 1990s sometimes reported the existence of a taboo associated with foreigners, that made it hard to interact with Laos, except discreetly at night. Today, the government does block access to LGBT themed webpages and discussions about LGBT issues in the media are rare, beyond transsexuals who are quite visible in the culture as entertainment. However, the government generally tolerates, or simply ignores, LGBT people unless they campaign for LGBT rights or judged by the government to be too publicly immodest or indecent. Tolerance for LGBT people is, as is often the case, stronger in the urban cities than in the rural neighborhoods.
Lao Prime Ministers Bounnhang Vorachith, Bouasone Bouphavanh and Thongsing Thammavong made their state visit to the Philippines in 2002, June 2007 and May 2012 respectively. Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos visited Laos in October 1997. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo visited Laos in November 2004 for the ASEAN summit and President Benigno Aquino III visited Laos in November 2012 for the Asia-Europe Meeting Summit. President Rodrigo Duterte visited Laos in September 2016, his first international trip as president, to attend the 48th and 49th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summits and the Eleventh East Asia Summit.
The office of the President of the People's Democratic Republic traces its lineage back to Prince Souphanouvong, the first President of the People's Democratic Republic, a member of the deposed royal family, who became President when the former Kingdom of Laos was overthrow by the Pathet Lao in 1975, at the end of the Laotian Civil War.
The ULDL and its President Bounthanh Rathigna have provided information to and urged the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) to investigate ongoing religious persecution and religious freedom violations in Laos and to officially designated Laos as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC). In 2003, Laotian- and Hmong-Americans lauded the USCIRF's efforts in officially designating Laos as a CPC violator of international norms of religious freedom for its persecution of independent and dissident Lao and Hmong Christians, Catholic, Animist and Buddhist religious believers.
Lao Prime Ministers Bounnhang Vorachith, Bouasone Bouphavanh and Thongsing Thammavong made their state visit to the Philippines in 2002, June 2007 and May 2012 respectively. Philippine Presidents Fidel V. Ramos visited Laos in October 1997. Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo visited Laos in November 2004 for the ASEAN summit and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III visited Laos in November 2012 for the Asia-Europe Meeting Summit.
The Government of Latvia is the central government of the Republic of Latvia. The Constitution of Latvia (Satversme) outlines the nation as a parliamentary republic represented by a unicameral parliament (Saeima) and the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Latvia (Latvian: "Latvijas Republikas Ministru kabinets"), which form the executive branch of the Government of Latvia.
The politics of Latvia takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. The President holds a primarily ceremonial role as Head of State. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament, the Saeima. 
The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The Economist Intelligence Unit has rated Latvia as "flawed democracy" in 2017.
In June 1958, the "Committee for the Defense of National Interests" was created in Vientiane. Its program was the eviction of communist ministers of the "Lao Neo Hak Sat" party (ແນວລາວຮັກຊາດ), and the overthrow of the neutralist Government, in order to maintain Laos in the United States orbit. This civic association of young Laotians, anti-communist and renovator, was led by the army strongman, the general Phoumi Nosavan. Born in the Thai-Lao region border (Moukdahane-Savannakhet), he was the nephew of Sarit Thanarat (thai: สฤษดิ์ ธนะรัชต์) – the current Thai Government Prime minister – and first of all, the general Phoumi Nosavan was Kou Voravong's cousin and brother-in-law.
The current president is Bounnhang Vorachit, since 20 April 2016. He is also the General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, making him ranked first in the Politburo hierarchy.
Starting from 1959 and during six years, with the financial support of the CIA, the general Phoumi Nosavan became the dominant figure in the Laotian political life. At the height of his career in May 1960, thanks to his relationship with Sarit Thanarat – the current Thai Prime Minister – and in association with Ou and Bounthong Voravong, he commissioned and financed a life-size statue of Kou Voravong at the Department of Fine Arts of the Ministry of Culture of Thailand. In Savannakhet, a "Kou Voravong Stadium" was built at the extreme north of the avenue of the same name, and the site of the statue was planned on an esplanade just at the entrance.
The following table employs 2000 census data. Caution should be exercised with Thai census data on first language. In Thai censuses, the four largest Tai-Kadai languages of Thailand (in order, Central Thai, Isan (majority Lao), Kam Mueang, Pak Tai) are not provided as options for language or ethnic group. People stating such a language as a first language, including Lao, are allocated to 'Thai'. This explains the disparity between the two tables. For instance, self-reporting as Lao has been prohibited, due to the prohibition of the Lao ethnonym in the context of describing Thai citizens, for approximately one hundred years. This was due to the promotion of a 'Thai' national identity to cement Siamese claims over the Lao city-states of what is now Northern and Northeast Thailand following the 1893 Franco Siamese War and subsequent threat posed by French Indochina to Lao tributary states of Siam. Some historian argued that the birth of a homogenizing Thai ethnocentric national identity sufficient to begin transforming Siam from an absolute monarchy into a modern nation-state was achieved by assimilating the Lao within this Thai 'identity', equivalent to what is now known as the Tai–Kadai_languages, under a 'Greater Thai Empire', and can be traced back to at least 1902. But this view neglects the fact that "Lao", as a unified ethnic group, was also created by the French in order to sever the Siamese influence over Lan Xang and to justify the annexation of "Laos" -- as a created territory -- to its Indochinese "protectorate." The 2011 Country Report data is therefore more comprehensive and better differentiates between the large Tai-Kadai languages of Thailand. As a country submission to a UN convention ratified by Thailand, it is also arguably more authoritative. ไทย
All state governments are modeled after the federal government and consist of three branches (although the three-branch structure is not Constitutionally required): executive, legislative, and judicial. They retain plenary power to make laws covering anything not preempted by the U.S. Constitution, federal statutes, or treaties ratified by the U.S. Senate, and are organized as presidential systems where the governor is both head of government and head of state (even though this too is not required). The various states are then typically subdivided into counties. Louisiana uses the term parish and Alaska uses the term borough for what the Census terms county equivalents in those states.
The sole official language of Thailand is Central Thai, a Kra-Dai language closely related to Lao, Shan in Burma, and numerous smaller languages of southern China and northern Vietnam. It is the principal language of education and government and is spoken throughout the country. The standard is written in the Thai alphabet, an abugida that evolved from the Khmer script. However, Central Thais speak an folk language in Central (including the metropolitan area), Eastern, Southwestern Thailand and Nakhon Ratchasima Province.
Laos does not recognize same-sex marriages, nor any other form of same-sex union. There have been no known debates of such unions being legalized in the near future, though this does not imply that the government or Laotians are opposed to such unions—the topic has simply yet to come up for debate.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has previously named the communist government of Laos a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for religious freedom violations and has on numerous occasions placed the government of Laos on a special watch list for its serious persecution of minority Laotian and Hmong Christians as well as independent Animist and Buddhist believers. The Lao People's Army and its police and security forces have been involved in human rights violations and religious persecution in Laos.
Lao authorities remained suspicious of major supporters, both foreign and domestic, of religious communities other than Buddhism, especially Protestant groups, in part because these faiths do not share the high degree of direction and incorporation into the government structure that Theravada Buddhism does. Some authorities criticized Christianity as an American or imperialist "import" into the country. In the past decade, the LEC suffered the brunt of local-level efforts to close churches, arrest church leaders, and force members to renounce their faith. The LEC's rapid growth during the last decade, its contacts with religious groups abroad, the active proselytizing by some of its members, and its relative independence of government control contributed to the Government's suspicion of the church's activities. Some authorities also interpreted Christian teachings of obedience to God as signifying disloyalty to the Government and ruling party. There was also strong evidence that the Communist Party leadership viewed Christianity as a tool of western countries to undermine the Communist political system. While LEC leadership was primarily Lao, the LEC membership was mostly ethnic Mon-Khmer tribes and the Hmong, two groups that historically have resisted central Government control, which contributed to the Government's distrust of the LEC.
The Mekong River plays an important role for Laos economy. The Mekong River basin covers nearly 90 percent of Laos country and drains toward Vietnam. In Laos, government encourages hydro-power investment which increase pressure on water and sea animal threats. The development of electricity in Laos and export to neighboring countries are essential for government revenues to reduce poverty. Although hydro-power does not pollute water or air directly, hydro-power reservoir and dam can impact the change in environment, land use and natural habitats. There are potential environmental consequences of damming water, creating gigantic reservoirs, flooding entire area, blocking natural course of river and constructing power lines. For example, the structure of dam and reservoir interfere fishing migration, and alter water temperature and river's flow; as a result. it may injure the live of sea animals and animals on land.