Biography
Phomvihane was born Nguyen Cai Song to a Vietnamese father named Nguyen Tri Loan, and a Laotian mother named Nang Dok. He had two sisters: Nang Souvanthong, living in Thailand, and Nang Kongmany in the USA. He was born in Na Seng village, Khanthabouli district (now Kaysone Phomvihane District, Savannakhet Province), Laos. He had one brother and one sister.
Phomvihane attended law school at Hanoi University in Hanoi, Vietnam, with Nouhak Phoumsavan. He dropped out of law school to fight the French colonialists who were in Vietnam. Later, he joined the Pathet Lao, which was also fighting the French colonialists.
He became an active revolutionary while studying in the Indochinese capital of Hanoi during the 1940s. Lao People's Liberation Army (LPLA) was established by Kaysone Phomvihane on January 20, 1949. He is minister of defense of Resistance Government (of the Neo Lao Issara) the from 1950. In 1955 he was instrumental in setting up the LPRP at Sam Neua in northern Laos, and subsequently served as the Pathet Lao leader, although Souphanouvong served as the figurehead. In the years which followed he led communist forces against the Kingdom of Laos and the Americans. After their victory he served as Prime Minister from the founding of the Lao PDR in 1975 until 1991. He married Thongvinh Phomvihane.
Phomvihane displayed expert skills in handling relations with Vietnam. The demarcation process started in 1977 and just finished in 2007. According to western journalist the Lao/Viet borderline is "very close" to the 1945 border between Laos and Tonkin and Annam, respectively.
According to Vatthana Pholsena, assistant professor of Southeast Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore and author of the book "Post-war Laos", Kaysone Phomvihane was the top policy maker in LPDR, and a strongman. He created Sekong province to honor the southern minority for their support on the war effort.
Kaysone died in Vientiane the capital of Laos. After Kaysone's death, the government of Laos built an eight million dollar gold-plated museum in Kaysones honor, in Vientiane, partially funded by Vietnam.
Read more about this topic: Kaysone Phomvihane
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