The Hmong are Indigenous Peoples to the Xaysomboun region of Lao, currently divided between (1) those who continue to live a traditional life in the forests of the region; and (2) those who live in towns in the region, many of whom have been forcibly resettled by the government, either because of a campaign to clear out the forest population from the region, or upon a forced return from countries in which they were living as refugees or asylum seekers. Regardless of their location, the ChaoFa Hmong face systemic persecution and gross human rights violations perpetrated by the government of Lao PDR.
The ChaoFa Hmong have endured decades of systematic discrimination including uncompensated land confiscation, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, suppression of freedom of expression, and severe restrictions on their economic, social, and cultural rights.Since the 1970s, military campaigns have killed thousands and displaced approximately 300,000 individuals to neighboring Thailand. Many of those remaining were forced to retreat to the forests, and face ongoing attacks, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings. The systemic displacement of Hmong communities remains a significant concern. Reports show the use of heavy artillery and starvation tactics to displace the Hmong villages with resources being destroyed and civilians being subjected to (gender-based) violence and forced labour, with Hmong communities being forcibly relocated to military-controlled villages, stripped of land rights and impoverished.
Earlier this year, Genocide Watch warned that the Hmong in Lao are at critical stages of dehumanisation, polarisation and persecution. In its submission to the UN Special Procedures, UNPO, CWHP, and BPSOS jointly drew attention to serious human rights violations committed against the Hmong people during the May 2025 crackdowns, correlating to further atrocity risks. These incidents, which took place in Bokeo and Xaisomboun Provinces, involved mass arrests, extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, displacement and the imposition of military lockdowns on entire villages. Hundreds of civilians, including women and children, were directly impacted.
The crisis began when Lao and Vietnamese soldiers blamed the ChaoFa Hmong for the deaths of five Lao soldiers, despite credible reports indicating these deaths resulted from clashes between military forces and drug traffickers. What followed was a renewed campaign of systematic violence and repression.
On May 3-4, Lao military forces arrested two Hmong men whose current whereabouts remain unknown. During the same operation, three children aged 12, 15, and 17 were killed, and five additional Hmong men were arrested. The situation deteriorated dramatically on May 17 when coordinated attacks by Lao and Vietnamese soldiers escalated, resulting in mass arrests, injuries, deaths, and the forced removal of women and children to undisclosed locations.
Since May 29, 2025, ongoing military lockdowns and killings have trapped Hmong communities, with approximately 200 Hmong men arrested and 67 confirmed deaths. Women and children have been systematically denied access to food and medical care, creating a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented proportions.
The UNPO, CWHP and BPSOS urged the Special Procedures to take immediate action, including:
- Issue a joint allegation letter to the Lao government regarding the May 2025 incidents and broader repression.
- Call for the immediate release of all arbitrarily detained individuals, especially vulnerable persons.
- Demand an immediate end to military lockdowns and restore free movement and access to essential services.
- Urge the Lao government to allow independent humanitarian access to affected areas.
- Request full cooperation from the Lao government with UN Special Procedures.
- Encourage engagement with the OHCHR to establish independent monitoring mechanisms.
- Urge the Government of Thailand to ensure protection and safe passage for Hmong individuals fleeing persecution.
Beyond immediate physical violence, the Hmong face severe limitations of their cultural, social, and economic rights. Despite Laos ratifying the ICESCR in 2007, Hmong communities experience systematic violations including forced relocations, violations of the right to self-determination, inadequate access to health and education services, and destruction of cultural life.
The submission to the CESCR highlights additional concerns including the suspected use of chemical weapons, alarming rates of child malnutrition and mortality, and the devastating impacts of economic development projects that forcibly remove Hmong communities from their ancestral lands without consent or compensation.
The UNPO and CWHP consequently made the following recommendations to the CESCR:
- Formally recognize the Hmong as Indigenous peoples, with appropriate legal protections.
- End military violence and forced isolation of Hmong communities.
- Grant international observers and humanitarian actors immediate access to the Xaysomboun Province.
- Safeguard Hmong lands against forced displacement linked to development projects.
The international community must act decisively to prevent further atrocities against the Hmong people and hold the Lao government accountable for these grave violations of human rights and international law.
Download the Submission to Special Rapporteurs here.
Download the Submission to the CESR here.
