Hmong Christians Killed, Imprisoned in Crackdown in Laos
Jeff M. Sellers
Compass Direct News
August 9, 2007

Vietnamese, Lao forces searching rice paddies and mountains and shooting on sight.

LOS ANGELES – Soldiers, police and others have killed at least 13 Christians in Laos in the past month in a swarming crackdown on Hmong villagers falsely accused of stirring rebel dissent, sources told Compass.

In the sweep, encouraged by communist village leaders and others who have falsely accused the Christians of being separatist rebels, authorities have arrested and imprisoned about 200 members of a 1,900-strong Laos Evangelical Church in Ban Sai Jarern village, Bokeo province in northwestern Laos.

The hunted Christians are largely Hmong refugees who had fled persecution in Vietnam. Those killed include Hmong who went into hiding when joint forces of Vietnamese and Lao police began rounding up Christians falsely accused of supporting Gen. Vang Pao in August 2006. the rest