COPE & National Museum

We often hear that Laos was the country subjected to the most bombings during the Vietnam War. The Ho Chi Minh Trail, which was actually a vast network of routes, primarily ran from northern Vietnam through Laotian and Cambodian territory down to the south. When the Americans began to cut off supplies along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the two officially neutral kingdoms of Cambodia and Laos ultimately fell victim to a conflict that did not involve them directly.

We visited memorials and museums in both Cambodia and Vietnam that address this young part of the history of both countries. In Laos, however, we searched almost in vain for a confrontation with the devastating war, which still has effects today:

'After the end of the Vietnam War, the communist forces of Pathet Lao took power in a relatively bloodless revolution in 1975 compared to what happened in neighboring Cambodia and proclaimed the Lao People's Democratic Republic on December 2, 1975.' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laos)

On December 2, 2025, two days after our arrival in Luang Prabang, the founding of the Lao PDR marked its fiftieth anniversary. Although the country is always adorned with the Laotian national flag and the insignia of the communist workers' and peasants' state - hammer and sickle - the national holiday did not noticeably occur for us. When we inquired, we were told that the anniversary was only celebrated in Vientiane.

In Vientiane? Almost silence! We visit COPE (Cooperative Orthotic & Prosthetic Enterprise), located on the grounds of the Centre for Medical Rehabilitation (CMR). Here, the bombings, primarily with cluster bombs and their terrifying effects on the rural population, are vividly described. We encounter almost exclusively some Western visitors at COPE.

Next, we visit the National Museum. Even in the parking lot, we notice: no cars, a concrete wasteland! The museum has five sections - even those where we found many young people in Cambodia and Vietnam are yawningly empty. The first three exceptionally well-curated exhibitions deal with prehistory, the historical formation of states, colonial history, independence, and the Vietnam War up to the revolution in 1975. The two newer sections, which leave a very rundown impression, address the current state of affairs and the ethnicities of the country.

Anja has already deeply articulated her thoughts on Laos. Rather: her frustration! She says: 'This had to be done to close this chapter here!'

vakantio.de/oneway2025/cope-cooperative-orthotic-and-prosthetic-enterprise-and-our-search-for-laotian-identity

What remains is an impression of lethargy. The people in Laos convey, unlike what we felt in Cambodia and Vietnam, no pride, no national consciousness. They do not identify with their state. Despite all the energy we observe in some, especially young people, it’s a country in twilight sleep.