07/30/05

CHAPTER 3

DISMISSAL  FROM POSITION AS VICEROY AND EXILE TO THAILAND

When  the Japanese   took Luang  Prabang  in April   1945,   they  accused the  French of resistance  and arrested  them all;   even  surrendering French civilians were arrested.     Since  the position of the  French had been destroyed,   the  conditions  of  the   1898  protectorate  treaty,   under which  the  French  were   to  defend  Laos--specifically  the  Kingdom of  Luang Prabang--were  abrogated.     King  Sisavangvong   issued  a  royal  order pro­claiming   the  independence  of  Luang  Prabang,   and  the  Lao  people were joyful.     Prince  Phetsarath maintained  his  position as Viceroy and act as  Prime Minister   in the  capital   at  Luang  Prabang.

Royal  Proclamation

of the  Independence of the

Kingdom of Luang Prabang under

King Sisavangvong of Luang Prabang

In consideration of the present world situation and particularly the situations of the various countries of East Asia--

I hereby declare that from this day forward, our Kingdom of Laos, formerly a colony of France,  is now an independent nation.    Hence­forth, the Kingdom of Luang Prabang will attempt to preserve its own independence like the other countries of East Asia, and will join with neighboring countries to build prosperity and progress following the principles of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.

Consequently,  in order to work with the Japanese Empire as a trusted ally,  I hereby declare that our Kingdom has agreed to coop­erate in all things with Japan.

This royal order is hereby proclaimed in Luang Prabang on Sunday the eleventh day of the waning moon of the fifth month, 2487 (April 8, 1945).

In August, when Laos had been independent for four months, Emperor Hirohito of Japan surrendered to the Allies after the United States dropped atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The French, who had fled in defeat, then returned to swallow up the country and to assume authority over Laos as before.  Prince Phetsarath was unwilling to go along with them because he maintained that French rights according to the 1898 treaty of Paris had ended with France's inability to protect the Kingdom of Luang Prabang.  If they were to return, they would have to negotiate a new treaty. The Prince appointed Ngone Sananikone to make contact with Khammuane, Savannakhet, Saravane, and Champassak provinces and ascertain the people's sentiments regarding whether they preferred to join the Kingdom of Luang Prabang or return to rule by the French. Since the treaty had been abrogated, they had the opportunity to choose to join together. The Prince resolutely made up his mind that Laos must be brought together as one indivisible country.

Later, the Prince received word from the four provinces that they would join together in a single kingdom. While making this settlement, the Prince was staying in Vientiane. Subsequently, on September 2, the Prince, in his status as Viceroy, telegraphed the King, requesting that the four provinces be united in a single kingdom by royal proclamation, without regard for the French.

He waited for the royal proclamation until September 7, the day on which he received the following telegram from the Minister of the In­terior in Luang Prabang:

Government Telegram

      Luang Prabang, September 7, 1945. Minister of Interior to

Prince-Viceroy. Vientiane Ministry of Interior, Telegram Number 223.

Please be informed that the King has called for the Kingdom of Luang Prabang to remain a French colony.

Receiving this telegram, the Prince thought that the French had forced the King to make this submission.  If he followed the royal order, the people would have been dissatisfied and would have rebelled, since they would lose their only opportunity for integration.  The Prince thus kept the telegram secret so that he could seek a later resolution.  He feared that if the people knew, they might be angry with the King for his easy yielding of independence without regard to public opinion, and the King might be in danger.

At that time, the civil servants and people of the four provinces, in addition So Vientiane, were meeting together to accomplish the Prince's unification of Laos. No matter how much blood might have to be shed, the Prince believed that independence could only be bought with blood.  A French return could be blocked since the Lao still had many weapons and the Lao people's blood was the hot blood of fighters. The Prince urged the civil servants and the people to wait until the fifteenth for orders from the King.  If there were no answer by then, the Prince himself, in his status as Viceroy and Prime Minister, would declare the unification of the four provinces with the Kingdom of Luang Prabang.  This action could not be considered rebellious, since the Prince believed that to take the country the French had governed, inte­grate it, and present it in independence to the King would be a desir­able act.  Time would judge whether he was right or wrong.

On September 15, having heard nothing from the King, the Prince's intense patriotism made him willing to risk his life for the people. Prince Phetsarath thus proclaimed the unification of Laos as one indi­visible Kingdom, on the basis of strong public opinion, though without a royal proclamation.

Announcement

To our brothers, the people of the provinces of Khammuane, Savannakhet, Champassak, and Saravane:

For many years we Lao of the north and Lao of the south have de­sired to be united as one country, but there have been many circum­stances that have prevented our desire from being successfully realized. Now the right opportunity has arisen.

Beginning today, the phrases "Lao of the North" and "Lao of the South" need no  longer exist.    We can join together to be one nation, to be one Lao nation as in the times of King Fa Ngum,  King Settha-thirath,  and King Sourinyavongsa.

The government of the Kingdom hopes that all our brothers will welcome our cooperation on the basis of the following principles:

1.    Lao integration will benefit the Lao people.

2.    The Lao people's fulfillment will come about through a con­ference of the nation's representatives acting unanimously together.

3.    A National Assembly will be established to deliberate poli­tics, economics, culture, and national restoration.

4.    In Asia, the new Kingdom of Laos will work with its friends in the region for prosperity, progress, and equality.

5.    The Kingdom of Laos will protect and defend the lives and possessions of all foreigners.    All regions have the duty to respect and to be under the administration of the national  law.

6.    The Kingdom of Laos can exist only with the support of the officials.    The government will consist of people with qualifications and ability who have had experience as civil servants.

7.    The government now is being modified as a coalition govern­ment and will be established in Vientiane.

May the Kingdom of Laos Prosper.

Vientiane, the 15th of September, 1945

Signed:    the Prince Viceroy-Prime Minister Phetsarath

On October  10,   the Minister of the  Interior  in Luang Prabang  sent an official  telegram announcing that  the King had dismissed Prince Phetsarath from his  positions of Viceroy and  Prime Minister  for follow­ing a political policy not  in keeping with the wishes of the  Lao people and  for failing  to consult with  the King  in advance.

Copies of Telegrams Dismissing the Prince-Viceroy

Luang Prabang, October 10, 1945. Minister of the Interior to His Excellency Uthong [Souvannavong], Minister of the Treasury in Vientiane. Ministry of Interior telegram number 285.

A royal command has been issued changing the Prime Ministership to bring it into political and administrative conformity with the will of the people.    Without prior consultation with Prince Phetsa­rath, the King has dismissed Phetsarath from his position as Viceroy. You are therefore recalled to Luang Prabang to maintain your usual duties and position.

Luang Prabang, October 10, 1945.

Minister of Interior to His Excellency Phoui [Sananikone], Minis­ter of Religion in Vientiane.  Ministry of Interior, telegram 285.

A royal command has been issued changing the Prime Ministership to bring it into political and administrative conformity with the will of the people.    Without prior consultation with Prince Phetsa­rath, the King has dismissed him from his position as Viceroy.    You are therefore recalled to Luang Prabang to maintain your usual duties and position.

Please announce this royal command to the people, and please con­sult with H.E. Uthong to set up means of defending the people's lives and possessions.    Please explain all of this to chao phmya Khammao so that work will continue in accordance with this directive.

Everyone who has   the blood of independence,   please consider who was wrong!   What Lao people desired to return to the  status   of French slaves?     As   for  the  allegation  that   the  Prince  did not  consult  with  the King,   there   is   still   a  copy  of  his   telegram  as   evidence.    When the King did not answer consider whether   the Prince's   action had broken the royal proclamation.     The desire  to  place  the  Kingdom of Luang  Prabang under   the  control  of  the  French was   the  desire  of  the  King  alone.     How could   the  King  allege  that   it  was  public opinion  since  it was   clear that  the people begged  for   the  proclamation  of  independence?

The situation that followed is explained in the writings of Prince Phetsarath:

"When I received the King's proclamation,   I answered that I would obey his orders.     Then  I   took  the  telegram putting  the  Kingdom of Luang Prabang  under  French control,   together  with  the  telegram dismissing me from my duties,  and presented  them to  the civil  servants  and  the Lao people,   and explained  that  from  that  time on,   I  would have no part  in the affairs of  the  country."

The civil servants and people of Vientiane showed great excitement and regret.    They   then joined  together  to  form a  Free  Lao  Government   to integrate Laos  and  to  fight  the French for  the preservation of  indepen­dence  as  proclaimed by  King  Sisavangvong  on April   8,   1945.     When  this government  had  been  established,  under   the  Prime Ministership  of phanya Khammao,   a  telegram was sent    to  the  King,   requesting   that he  accept   it as  his government.     The  King was  asked  to reply within twenty-four hours,   and was  told that  if there were no answer within the  allotted time,   the Free Lao Government would deal with him  in the best  interest of  the  country.

When no answer was received from the King, the Free Lao Government ordered that a military force be sent by boat to  seize the royal palace. However, before the soldiers reached Luang Prabang,   the people of the city closed the palace.

Later a popular revolt arose to  seize the palace,  but  the Prince saw that  the Free Lao Government  could not attack because  the  French were strong in Luang Prabang and the  King was  helping  them destroy his countrymen.     At that time,   the Free Lao were weak and would have crum­bled.   If they blundered, the King would be in danger, and the Prince would be blamed.    There would be another opportunity to take revenge on the French, but in any event, the King had to be induced to agree with the Prince's policy.    The Prince ordered the Free Lao Government to go into temporary exile in Thailand, and he followed later.