Posted on 06/22/2007 4:56:31 PM PDT by radar101
The ex-general's arrest inspires hundreds to rally in St. Paul. For the old, the concern is for a revered leader. For the young, it's for a distant homeland, too. 
Tou Meng, 12, of St. Paul, joins a rally Tuesday at the Minnesota state Capitol in support of former Gen. Vang Pao, who is charged along with 10 others with plotting to overthrow the Lao government. Vang Pao, a war hero to many, is drawing support from different factions of the Hmong community. (RICHARD MARSHALL, Pioneer Press)
View an audio slideshow from the rally Many young Hmong-Americans view Vang Pao as a George Washington-like figure. They know he's important, but they don't see how his history has much bearing on their daily lives.
Still, the former military leader's arrest on allegations that he plotted to overthrow the Lao government has sparked fervor among high school and college students.
A rally Tuesday in St. Paul shows the younger generation is using Vang Pao's plight to draw attention to one of the former general's chief causes: human rights violations against the Hmong hiding from persecution in Laos.
More than 500 demonstrators assembled on the Capitol steps, many coming for differing reasons. Even in a show of seeming solidarity, their causes were split.
Elders pledged loyalty to their revered patriarch, a war hero in their eyes with almost legendary status. Dressed in white, supporters waved flags, balloons and signs declaring Vang Pao's innocence.
Younger Hmong, though, said much more was at stake than Vang Pao's fate. They worry about the thousands of Hmong hiding in the jungles after 30 years of being hunted by the Lao and Vietnamese military.
As Hmong-Americans become wealthier and more educated in the United States, Dai Thao, 31, fears they are forgetting those left behind.
"I'll be honest with you. My admiration for Vang Pao is not as deep as the elders', " he said. "But this is a test that will change the outcome of the Hmong-American community.
They either make a stand here and save the people in Laos, or they become so mainstream that they forget about the people who are suffering." Community activist Kathy Mouacheupao, 29, said she fears the charges against Vang Pao might eclipse the contributions of the Hmong community. During the Vietnam War-era conflict, the CIA secretly recruited, armed and trained the Hmong - led by Vang Pao - to fight the communists in Laos.
"I'm afraid it will be very negative for our community," she said of Vang Pao's arrest. "If he's a leader who is now seen as a terrorist, I'm afraid of how this story might frame who we are."
Young Hmong-Americans have joined rallies in California, Wisconsin and now Minnesota in the weeks after Vang Pao's arrest. The 77-year-old former general sits behind bars in Sacramento, Calif., on charges that he and 10 others conspired to violate the Neutrality Act.
In St. Paul, young people were the driving force behind the demonstration. As soon as Vang Pao's arrest hit the news, Amee Xiong, 23, started e-mailing and text-messaging other Hmong-American activists to discuss possible actions. From there, the group joined elders and the traditional Hmong community leaders, such as those affiliated with the Lao Family Community of Minnesota and the Hmong 18 Clan Council.
Both young and old realized they had some common ground, said Xiong, a graduate student of public policy at the University of St. Thomas.
Part of the frustration for her and other Hmong-American activists is that the violent attacks against the Hmong in Laos seem to go unnoticed.
Many people say they don't condone Vang Pao's alleged approach - a plot involving missiles and Sept. 11-style destruction, according to criminal complaints. But they considered it a desperate attempt to save families from a communist-led genocide in Laos. The Lao government has denied atrocities against the Hmong.
"It's all about human rights," said Win Moua, a St. Paul native and 
Noah Vang, 28, foreground right, leads a chant among about 500 supporters of former Gen. Vang Pao who rallied Tuesday at the state Capitol. Younger Hmong leaders were the driving force behind the rally; elders also joined the effort. (RICHARD MARSHALL, Pioneer Press)"It's all about human rights," said Win Moua, a St. Paul native anda junior at Gustavus Adolphus College. "For me, what matters the most is that (Vang Pao) took things into his own hands, unlike so many of the Hmong people who sit and watch." Vang Pao, however, may have hurt his own cause, said Va-Megn Thoj, a community activist who works for St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman.
"Vang Pao is not synonymous with human rights," said Thoj, who did not attend the rally. "When he claimed to be working for human rights, that's not credible. First of all, he's been encouraging people to stay in the jungle and to overthrow the government in Laos. Secondly, he's a military man known for his own human rights violations himself."
The real issue, Thoj said, was the legacy of war and how it is continuing to divide the community. Many Hmong-Americans are confused about how to perceive Vang Pao, he said, because there hasn't been a true dialogue about the war in the 30 years since it ended.
At the rally, a man walked through the crowd with a bullhorn demanding freedom and justice for Vang Pao. Others cheered when a rally organizer compared the former general to Moses because he led his people from persecution to freedom.
In Hmong and in English, the crowd cheered, "Free Vang Pao! General Vang Pao is our father! Why have you captured the general? General Vang Pao is a righteous man!"
Sangey Vang, 16, of White Bear Lake, joined in. "I didn't know him well," she said of Vang Pao, "but I know he was our leader."
Laura Yuen can be reached at lyuen@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5498. Nancy Yang can be reached at 651-228-5480 or nyang@pioneerpress.com.
BACKING THE GENERAL
Hmong youth expressed support for Vang Pao during a rally Tuesday in St. Paul.
"If there was no Vang Pao, none of us would be here today."
- Kham Se Vang, 23, St. Paul
"The U.S. would be a different place and the story would be different if he hadn't helped during the Vietnam War."
- Gao Vang, 17, St. Paul
"He's our general. If he's in pain, then all of us are in pain. He supported us, now we've got to help him."
- Nhia Xiong, 19, Minneapolis
"He led us to freedom. ... He's not perfect and makes mistakes, but he strives to be helpful."
- Tong Vang, 20, Brooklyn Park
http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/breakingnews.php?id=119560
Los Angeles (dpa) - Thousands of ethnic Hmong protested in the California state capital of Sacramento against the incarceration of a revered former military leader and 10 others accused of plotting a coup against the communist regime in Laos, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.
The rally took place in front of the state capital and federal courthouse, where Laotian General Vang Pao, 77, and his alleged accomplices pleaded not guilty to a five-count indictment.
The daylong demonstration was the third rally in support of Pao by ethnic Hmnog, thousands of whom emigrated to the US following the fall of Saigon in 1975. During the Vietnam war the Laotian hill people fought with the US against communist forces and are credited with slowing the military march of North Vietnam.
Vang Pao, 77, and the others are charged with conspiracy to violate the neutrality act and illegally export munitions as well as conspiracy to kill and maim citizens in a foreign land.
The general and eight other defendants are also accused of trying to purchase Stinger antiaircraft missiles.
Prosecutors alleged that they planned to topple the Laotian government and reduce buildings in the capital city of Vientiane to rubble. In the 30-minute hearing, Vang Pao and the others sat quietly, hands and feet manacled, as their lawyers pleaded not guilty on their behalf.
Outside, the angry crowd said the charges were unjust.
"We feel betrayed," said rally organizer Vaming Xiong. "We hope they dismiss these charges. What's the point to go to trial? The general is a hero."
On June 5, US authorities arrested nine ethnic Hmongs and a tenth man, Harrison Jack, a 60-year-old West Point graduate. Since then, an eleventh person has apparently been detained.
The Laotian COMMUNIST government has welcomed the arrests.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein, who announced the arrests earlier this month, said the defendants had "developed an audacious plan to overthrow the government of Laos, and were seeking to arm themselves with automatic rifles, rockets and surface-to-air missiles."
Vang Pao was the chief leader of the guerrilla struggle during the 1960s to 1970s. He and thousands of other Hmong fled Laos in 1975 when the country fell to communist forces.
Tens of thousands of Hmong refugees have remained in Thailand, afraid to return to Laos while it remains communist and reluctant to be resettled abroad. For this Thai-based Hmong community, the arrest of Vang Pao represented another betrayal by the US government.
"He helped the US fight communism so why have they done this to him?" said Meng Sae Vue, a Hmong religious leader based in Thailand, after the arrets. "Vang Pao is so old. It's sad."
US investigators said Vang Pao and his followers had planned to use AK-47 automatic rifles, stinger missiles, LAW rockets and anti-tank rockets to topple the Lao government and "reduce government buildings in Vientiane to rubble."
The thwarted plot, reminiscent of a Sylvester Stallone Rambo movie, had been code-named "Operation Tarnished Eagle," investigators said.
(NOTE: This was strictly coincidental. We had no idea he'd be on the plane.)
When we landed State Department types quickly escorted him out into the terminal. As we departed we were privileged to see him enter into the area where several thousand Hmong had gathered to welcome him to safety in America.
It was truly awe inspiring ~
Whatever is going on in Minneapolis, it ought to stop.
For me this is a tough one. I would let Pao serve maybe 15 days in jail if found guilty and then pardon him.
Makes me wonder if they would arrest and imprison Iranian/Americans who were plotting to overthrow Ahmanutjob, or Koreans plotting to overthrow Kim Jung Il
I believe they would. Presidencies may come and go, but the treasonous communists that control the State Department and government bureaucracies remain forever...
...until we have the political will to eliminate them.
ask yourself this, if we overthrow all the communist goverments where would U.S. businesses get all of their cheaply manufactured goods?
Well, when the great depression comes in the wake of Walmart’s failure and the rest of the Chinese teat feeders, I’ll volunteer to step into the wake.
I can make damn near everything.
Then, when I control everything in the US of A, I’ll move into China...
I’m hoping with all the problems that are coming up with the safety of goods coming from China there will be a backlash against making things there by the public, so that U.S. companies will be forced to stop sending all of our manufacturing over there
I’d never make anything that would hurt you. I’ll only cut American trees, mine American minerals and farm American soil.
You’ll be safe - I promise.
Quote:”...Gen. Vang Pao, who is charged along with 10 others with plotting to overthrow the Lao government.”
Overthrowing the government of Laos would be bad?
When will members of La Raza be arrested?
Well, now that's a real scary thought. You know they all make such quality products.......< / sarcasm >
We might actually have to make those products ourselves. Imagine that! ;o)
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