Lao State Formation in Phôngsali Villages: Rising Intervention in the Daily Household and Phounoy Reaction

Abstract

Since the mid-nineteenth century, the Phunoy in Phongsaly province have been closely linked with the state in Laos through their role in defence, yet state intervention in their affairs has remained minimal. Villages have traditionally organised their own social and economic lives without interference at household or community levels. Since the first half of the twentieth century, successive states in Laos have attempted to benefit from Phunoy villages, but they have had limited and transient success. For the last 15 years, however, the state has become a more significant reality for villagers, with a swath of policies implemented locally: resettlement, land reform, mandatory commercial plantations, a shifting cultivation ban, a hunting ban, etc. This synergistic cocktail has contributed to drastic and irreversible changes in village livelihoods and the landscape. Surprisingly, the Phunoy have not reacted publicly to this drastic revolution of their livelihood. I investigate whether their apparent lack of resistance is a counter-example to the more widely-debated concept of “Zomia”. I conclude that the Phunoy resist the state at the family level, and move away from their former homes, leaving behind a deserted landscape.

ຕັ້ງແຕ່ສັດຕະວັດທີ 19 ຊົນເຜົ່າຜູ້ນ້ອຍແຂວງຜົ້ງສາລີ ຢູ່ປະເທດລາວແມ່ນມີການພົວພັນຢ່າງໃກ້ຊິດກັບລັດໂດຍມີບົດບາດ ໃນວຽກງານປ້ອງກັນຊາດ ເຖີງວ່າການແຊກແຊງຂອງລັດໃນການດຳລົງຊີວິດຂອງເຂົາເຈົ້າຈະມີຫນ້ອຍຢູ່ກໍ່ຕາມ. ບັນດາບ້ານຕ່າງໆແມ່ນມີການຈັດຕັ້ງທາງດ້ານຊີວິດສັງຄົມແລະເສດຖະກິດຕາມຮີດຄອງປະເພນີ ໂດຍປາສະຈາກການແຊກແຊງໃນລະດັບຄົວເຮືອນ ຫຼື ຊຸມຊົນ. ຕັ້ງແຕ່ຕົ້ນສັດຕະວັດທີ 20, ຢູ່ປະເທດລາວໄດ້ມີຄວາມພະຍາຍາມຫາຜົນປະໂຫຍດຂອງລັດຈາກບ້ານຊົນເຜົ່າຜູ້ນ້ອຍຢ່າງຕໍ່ເນື່ອງ ເຖີງວ່າໄດ້ມີຜົນສຳເລັດຫນ້ອຍແລະບາງຄັ້ງກໍ່ຕາມ. ແຕ່ວ່າ ຢູ່ໃນ 15 ປີຜ່ານມານີ້, ການກ້າວກ່າຍຂອງລັດທີ່ມີຕໍ່ຊາວບ້ານແມ່ນເພີ່ມຂື້ນ ດ້ວຍການຈັດຕັ້ງນະໂຍບາຍຕ່າງໆຢູ່ພື້ນທີ່ ເຊັ່ນ: ການຍົກຍ້າຍຈັດສັນ, ການປະຕິຮູບທີ່ດີນ, ການປູກພືດສວນເປັນສີນຄ້າ, ການຫ້າມຖາງປ່າເຮັດໄຮ່ ອື່ນໆ. ບັນດານະໂຍບາຍທີ່ຈັດຕັ້ງປະຕິບັດພ້ອມກັນເລົ່ານີ້ໄດ້ປະກອບສ່ວນໃຫ້ເກີດມີການປ່ຽນແປງຊີວິດການເປັນຢູ່ແລະພູມີປະເທດຂອງບ້ານຢ່າງຮຸນແຮງແລະບໍ່ສາມາດເອົາກັບຄືນມາໄດ້. ສີ່ງທີ່ແປກໃຈກໍ່ຄື ຄົນຜູ້ນ້ອຍບໍ່ມີປະຕິກິລິຍາແບບເປີດເຜີຍ ຕໍ່ການປ່ຽນແປງຊີວິດການເປັນຢູ່ຢ່າງສີ້ນເຊີງນີ້ຂອງເຂົາເຈົ້າ. ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າຊອກຫາຄວາມຈີງກ່ຽວກັບການທີ່ພວກເຂົາບໍ່ມີການຕໍ່ຕ້ານ ຊື່ງກົງກັນຂ້າມກັບແນວຄວາມຄຶດ “ໂຊມມີອາ” (Zomia) ທີ່ກຳລັງຖົກຖຽງກັນຢ່າງກວ້າງຂວາງໃນປະຈຸບັນນີ້. ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າສະຫຼຸບວ່າ ຄົນຜູ້ນ້ອຍໄດ້ຕໍ່ຕ້ານລັດຢູ່ໃນລະດັບຄອບຄົວ ດ້ວຍການຍ້າຍຫນີຈາກບ້ານເກີດເມືອງນອນຂອງພວກເຂົາເຂົ້າໃນເມືອງ ແລະປະຖີ້ມພູມີປະເທດທີ່ແຫ້ງແລ້ງໄວ້ເບື້ອງຫຼັງ.

Keywords:

• Laos
• Phounoy
• history of social resilience
• Zomia
• state and society
• shifting cultivation
• internal migration
• agrarian political economy

Notes

1. The author worked as technical advisor for PDDP (Projet de Développement rural du District de Phongsaly) between 1996 and 2002.

2. When the former head of Komène recalled the tale of the village’s foundation, he talked about a tribute to pay to a Khamou community from the vicinity, but he did not know what happened to them later. According to Evrard (private communication, 1998), local toponymy (e.g. some rivers, some village names) partially comes from Khamou language. In 2005, most of the villages were Phounoy (31), with a few Akha ones (5) at the limits of the surveyed area (cf. Figure 1). There is no current Khamou settlement in the district.

3. The council of elders is comprised of male villagers who are deemed successful: they have established and maintained a family, keep cordial relationships, and participate actively in the community. Membership of the council is informal, marked by an invitation to attend meetings. Generally, members are heads of household over 50 years old (Bouté, 2011; Ducourtieux, 2009).

4. In 1912, Sun Yat-sen’s Republic of China toppled the Qing Dynasty, but in remote provinces such as Yunnan the new regime experienced many tribulations and the region was dominated by warlords.

5. In charge of the province in the 1930s, Col. Aymé wrote that “[t]he Fifth Military Territory is the poor child of Laos, which stands alone in its deprivation among the countries of the [Indochinese] Union” (1930, p. 131).

6. See in particular the Indochinese colonial archives in Aix-en-Provence (CAOM), references INDO/GGI/40465 (1922) and INDO/RSL/Q2 (1915–1933).

7. Letter from 04/01/1917, Indochinese colonial archives (CAOM), ref. INDO/RSL/L17.

8. Indochinese colonial archives (CAOM), ref. INDO/GGI/40423 to 40475.

9. Prime Minister Decree no. 162 (7/1993).

10. “Koum ban phatana” (Prime Minister Decree no. 9, 7/2007), literally “development of groups of villages”, is often applied in the sense of “village cluster development”.

11. See Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2004) National growth and poverty eradication strategy (NGPES); Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (1999) The government’s strategic vision for the agricultural sector; Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (2010) Strategy for agricultural development 2011 to 2020: Sector framework, vision and goals.

12. “Mob din, mob pa” in Laotian, or literally, “entrust land, entrust forest”.

13. Comment to the author by a high official of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (6/2001).