National Assembly (Laos)

The National Assembly (Laotian: Sapha Heng Xat, French: Assemblée nationale) is the unicameral parliament of Laos. The National Assembly meets in Vientiane.

National Assembly

ສະພາແຫ່ງຊາດ
Sapha Heng Xat
Assemblée nationale
Type
Type
Leadership
Pany Yathotou, LPRP
since 23 December 2010
Structure
Seats149
Political groups
  LPRP (144)
  Independents (5)
Length of term
5 years
Elections
Last election
20 March 2016
Meeting place
National Assembly Building, Vientiane, Laos
Website
www.na.gov.la

Laos is a one-party state, with the Lao People's Revolutionary Party as the sole legal party in the country.[1] Most of the National Assembly's actions simply rubber stamp the party's decisions.[1] Efforts have been made to increase the capacity of its members, aiming to strengthen their legislative, oversight, and representational capacities.[2]

History

The National Assembly was established in its current form by the Lao Constitution of 1991,[3] replacing the Supreme People's Assembly (the latter also formerly known as the Supreme People's Council). After the December 1997 elections, the number of seats were increased to 99, a new structure was announced and Samane Vignaket was elected as its president.

The last elections were held on March 20th, 2016. The Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) took 144 seats in the enlarged 149-member National Assembly while the five remaining seats went to independents. Nearly 73% of members were elected to the National Assembly for the first time. During the election campaign, many candidates focused on development, promising to serve the interests of the nation and the people.[4]

Committees

Parliamentary committees of the National Assembly currently include:[5]

  • Law Committee
  • Economic, Technology and Environment Committee
  • Planning, Finance and Audit Committee
  • Cultural and Social Committee
  • Ethnic Affairs Committee
  • National Defence and Security Committee
  • Foreign Affairs Committee

Latest election
Main article: 2016 Laotian parliamentary election
Alliance Party Votes % Seats +/–
Lao Front for National ConstructionLao People's Revolutionary Party100144+16
Independents5+1
Invalid/blank votes–––
Total3,657,026100149+17
Registered voters/turnout3,733,93297.94––
Source: IPU

See also

References
  1. Freedom in the World 2020: The Annual Survey of Political Rights and Civil Liberties. Rowman & Littlefield. 22 January 2021. pp. 633–. ISBN 978-1-5381-5181-5.
  2. UNDP Governance Support Archived 2008-07-30 at the Wayback Machine
  3. Constitution of the Lao PDR
  4. Union, Inter-Parliamentary. "IPU PARLINE database: LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC (Sapha Heng Xat), Last elections". www.ipu.org. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  5. National Assembly, 'Status and Roles of the Committees of the National Assembly' Archived 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine
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