BANGKOK—A French-based Lao exile group is accusing officials in a remote village in central Laos of seeking to evict Christians who refuse to renounce their faith, but the Lao Foreign Ministry denies the charge.
The Lao Movement for Human Rights (LMHR) charged March 18 that Nakoon village authorities had stepped up a bid to eliminate Christianity from the remote area, accessible only by an eight-hour boat trip.
“Nakoon Christians have been worshiping underground in fear of arrest and imprisonment,” the group said, citing eyewitnesses.
“After learning that the Borikhamxay provincial authorities had recognized Christianity throughout the province in September 2006, the Lao Christians in Nakoon village began to be open in their Christian meetings. Consequently, a Borikan district committee of 13 people was formed to put a stop to the spread of Christianity and also to eliminate Christianity from Nakoon village.”