SV: Lao Theravada Buddhism (incl. stats.)

Dear E.M.,

<He reported that Animism, however, has made a glorious comeback after the
war; but I wonder to what extent his evaluation is blinded by the vibrancy
of the costume & the rituals.  The spoken literature of the minority
languages and Animist faiths would have been almost as difficult to preserve
as Theravada lineages when reduced to taking shelter from incessant bombing
in the caves.  Even at the level of costume, many "genres" of Northern Lao
textile have become extinct during the course of the war; i.e., if you can't
actually sit down with your daughter at a loom, you can't impart this sort
of lore between generations.>

About one year ago I happened to pass a shop in Paris selling the most
fabulous silk fabrics I have ever seen. They were allegedly traditional
types of fabric from Laos! Although the price was ourageous, I had to
control myself.

Ole Pind


----------------------------------------------------
Source: 1997-8 Vientiane Social Survey Project, "drafted by" Grant Evans.
Attributed to: Institute for Cultural Research, Ministry of Information and
Culture.
Funded/assisted by: SIDA, AusAID, & University of Hong Kong.
------
Vientiane Municipality Population 524,000
Sample size of 1998 survey circa 2,000 families [not individuals
--i.e., a family could include 5 or more respondents, and seems to have been
comprised of a married couple as a minimum]
% of V. residents born in V. (1995 census) 55.8
Pater: 48, Mater: 60
% of V. residents settled in V. after 1975 Pater: 47, Mater: 53
------
Who [in the family] gave offerings to the Buddha in the last week?
Wife/mother 86.4%
Daughter 6.7%
Husband 6.4%
Son 0.5%
Where did they give [offerings to the Buddha]?
Local temple 80.2%
Elsewhere 19.8%
------
In the past month, has anyone in the household consulted a shaman or a
fortune teller?
Yes 12%
No 88%
If yes, for what reasons?
For fortune / future 67.6%
Health problems / pain 12.4%
Lost objects 10.4%
Do not believe [sic.?] 9.7%
------
"What do you think is best for successful live?" [sic.!]
Hard work Pater: 86.5%, Mater: 62.3%
A pure heart* Pater: 9.8%, Mater: 27.2%
To respect & practice religion Pater: 3.1%, Mater: 7.2%
Luck Pater: 0.6%, Mater: 3%
Trick / cunning Pater: 0.1%, Mater: 0.3%
*[One would have to consult a specialist in Lao idiom to know what this term
means in its cultural and religious context --or if it is a religious
sentiment at all.]
------
In what ways are Lao youth moving away from Lao culture?
Style of dress 47%
No respect for their elders 22%
Heavy drinking & promiscuity 12%
Do not go to temple 8%
Belief in superstition 4%
Westernization 4%
------
Do you think it is important for girls to have [the] same level of education
as boys?
Yes 99%
No 1%
------
If you were able to choose a country to go and visit, which one would you
like to visit most?
America 32%
Japan 14.4%
Anywhere 11.4%
Thailand 10%
Not go anywhere 9.2%
China 7.1%
Vietnam 5.9%
Australia 3.4%
Canada 1.4%
England 1.3%
Switzerland 1.3%
Singapore* 1.2%
Germany 0.9%
India 0.4%
Hungary 0.1%
*[The low ranking of Singapore as a place to visit is interesting,
considering its high ranking on the list of "modern societies to be a model
for Laos".  The opposite is the case for the U.S.A. --apparently a nice
place to visit, but very few would want Laos to resemble it]
------
Which of the modern societies would [you] most like to be a model for Laos?
Lao* 37.2%
Japan 26.3%
Singapore 19.9%
Developed, modern countries [i.e., Misc.?] 5.7%
America 3.6%
France 3.4%
Russia 2.8%
Hungary 0.7%
Thailand** 0.1%
Cambodia 0.1%
Vietnam 0.1%
*[This category includes "those who saw no country as a model", reported as
35% of the total on pg. 44; thus, perhaps only 2.2% actually intended to
indicate Lao as its own model for development.
The meaning of this sentiment, or of "seeing no country as a model" is
unclear in the report; perhaps it reflects a nationalistic idiom that the
survey was not prepared for?] **[Amazingly, Thailand gets fewer votes than
Hungary, tied with Cambodia and Vietnam, each of the bottom three receviving
just two nominations to be the model for Laotian development.  This is
really a very strong indication of how much the Vientiane Lao disapprove of
the development models' of their immediately neighboring countries.]
------
What is the most serious social problem in Vientiane? (Summary)
Drinking and fighting 23%
Stealing 21%
Unemployment 17%
Prostitution 9%
Sniffing glue & drugs 7%
Other* 23%
*[I note that "Failure of study / education" is below 1%]
------
Are you the owner of your home?
Yes 86%
No 14%
------
Do you read books?
Yes 39%
No 61%
% of "Yes" respondents who had actually "read or looked at" a book in
the previous year 14%
[% of respondents who had *not* "read or looked at" a book in the past
year] 94.5%
% of residents who have "read or looked at" 10 or more books in the past
year 3%
------
Of books read in the past year, in what language were they?
Vietnamese 56%
Lao 28%
English 10%
Thai 6%
------
V.'s ethnic distribution according to the 1995 census (summary, pg. 37)
Lao 92.6%
Phu Tai (also considered 'Lao loum') 3.1%
Other 4%
------
Do you have relatives who are refugees overseas?
Yes 43%
No 57%
Do you keep in touch with them? [i.e., refugee relations, if any]
Yes 73%
No 27%
Do you receive money from them? [i.e., refugee relations, if any]
Yes 48%
No 52%

Quotations from the study
"A large percentage of the old residents of Vientiane, in particular
merchants, many of whom were ethnic Chinese or Vietnamese, became refugees
as did many RLG officials and their families.  This, plus the policies of
the incoming LPDR, had the effect of fundamentally changing the character of
the city for approximately 10-15 years [starting in 1975]." pg. 25-26

"What is clear from the above figures ... is that in demographic terms the
main disturbances to the social fabric of the city occurred between
1975-1980, and then secondarily 1981-1990, rather than after the relaxation
of restrictions on population movements that accompanied the New Economic
Mechanism first implemented in the late 1980s.  This contradicts commonly
held perceptions of significant rural-urban migration in the 1990s." pg. 27

"The official [1995] census does not help us very much here either because
when it inquired about ethnicity, out of the 44 options given, Chinese or
Vietnamese were not specified (nor Thai nor Indian)." pg.
36

"98% of Lao marry Lao, 62% of Phu Tai marry Phu Tai, while the remaining Phu
Tai marry only Lao, thereby giving some credence to the category 'Lao Loum'
for these two groups.  A similar statement could be made for the small
number of Tai Lue in Vientiane who only marry either Lao or Lue." pg. 38

"One would have to say from these findings that the population Vientiane
expresses a relatively high consciousness of linguistic conformity to a
standard accent, and indeed this may have led to some under-reporting of
'deviant' language practices, such as the use of minority languages in the
home (e.g. Chinese or Hmong).  Also, from these replies we can begin to see
clearer confirmation of the importance of Vietnamese in the language
practices of the people of Vientiane.  The high score for English in the
question on knowledge of other languages reflects the rapid shift in
linguistic orientation of the population since the beginning of the N.E.M.
... In the above responses, however, there is one language that is
drastically under-reported, and that is knowledge of Thai.  ... [W]hen we
actually asked direct questions about knowledge of Thai 91% said they
understood Thai, while only 27% claim to be able to speak and read it." pg.
39


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