Laos

Laos By: Cortney Lydon and Tyler Wells   I. Political Information  - Type of Goverment: Communist State - Suffarage Rate:  18 years old - Legal System  is based on traditional customs, French Legal norms and prcedures and socialist practice has not accepted compulsary ICJ jurisdiction. - Current Leader:  President Lt. General Choummali Saighason

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II.Social: - Population: 6,834,345 - HIV/AIDS Rate: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Adult prevalence- 0.2%, People living- 5,500, people that have died with HIV/AIDS- fewer than 100 <span style="color: #0d4fba; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">- Religions: <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"><span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Buddhist 67%, Christian 1.5%, and Unspecified 31.5% <span style="color: #0d4fba; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">- Literacy Rate: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Total 68.7%, males 77%, females 60.9%, people over the age of 15 can read and write. <span style="color: #0d4fba; font-family: Georgia,serif;">- Languages: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Lao (official language), French, English, and various Ethnic Languages <span style="color: #0d4fba; font-family: Georgia,serif;">- Life Expectancy: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">56 years of age

<span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">III. Economics - <span style="color: #f29c69; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Curency and Exachnge Rate: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Kips per dollar- 8,556.56 - <span style="color: #f29c69; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Poverty Rate: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">26% <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">- <span style="color: #f29c69; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Major Industries: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">The main industries of Laos was processing, rice,media type="custom" key="5762623" align="right" beverage production, and also saw milling and manufactoring of building material. - <span style="color: #f29c69; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Major Imports and Exports: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">In terms of value are millions of Timber,and other forest products, electricity, coffee and tin. The major countries they Import/Export with are Thialand, Japan and China. - <span style="color: #f29c69; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Natural Resources: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Timber, Hyrdopower, Sypsum, Tin, Gold, and Gemstones. - <span style="color: #f29c69; font-family: Georgia,serif;"> GDP per captia: <span style="color: #404040; font-family: Georgia,serif;"> $765

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V. Current Events 1-2

(1) This current event states that the Thailand government forcing refugees to return to their own country of Laos. The government says this is a volunteer thing but in reality it is not. The refugees are being forced to return to Laos and this makes the Laos people unhappy. The Laos people are afraid to return to there own country because they feel that they will be seriously punished by the government.

My own opinion I disapprove for what the government is doing to these people. I think that the people have a say with what they want to say, but as I think of it most people in the world can not have anything they want, and this in some ways affects the the country and the people. Well that is all I have to say about this matter.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/28/world/asia/28hmong.html

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VI.Map

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