Laos

Late in 2023, police in Laos arrested three Christians from the Akha people group for building a church and held them without giving any information to family or friends for several months. On January 26, 2024, authorities demolished the building these brothers in Christ had constructed.

KhamKeo placed his trust in Christ after he was healed from gallbladder disease. Eventually, the change in his life caused his wife and children to place their trust in Christ as well. The family began to experience opposition from neighbors and coworkers who noticed that they did not participate in the worship of local spirits. KhamKeo bought land some distance from the village and built a hut there, but the villagers were still unhappy with his family, so they moved again.

Oudong and his wife, Lae, placed their trust in Christ in May 2023, becoming the first Christians in their village. Two weeks after their conversion, the village head came to their home and told them to stop worshiping Jesus Christ because Buddhism and animism were the only religions permitted in the village. The couple, along with their four children, began to travel two hours each way to gather in worship and fellowship with believers in another city, but this did not satisfy the authorities.

In August 2023, district police officials summoned the Houy Khoun village chief and all local Christians to a meeting where they outlined steps that would be taken against Christians to halt the spread of their faith. Authorities threatened to demolish the pastor’s home (which also serves as a house church), enforced restrictions that do not allow new members to join the church, and warned them against evangelizing in the village or elsewhere in the district. The Christians boldly challenged the right of the police to close or damage the church.

Phet, 71, and his wife placed their trust in Christ in 2005. As a veteran of the Laotian army with more than 30 years of service, Phet is entitled to a government pension but was denied it. The commander said he would approve the pension if Phet would recant his faith. Phet answered, “My family and I, we already accepted Christ, and we could not turn back to worship the ghost spirits any longer.” His wife and children agreed, saying, “God, our Father, will take care of us.” Phet’s family experienced increasing persecution in their village, and the police took their family registration book, which holds important records such as birth and marriage certificates, educational records, and work permits.

While Wru was making funeral arrangements for his mother in July 2023, the village headman asked permission to play a game that involved gambling during the funeral observances. Funeral observances in Laotian villages are often considered community affairs and include a variety of activities. Wru told the headman no, stating, “I am a Christian, and I want to give honor to my God. I do not support the idea of gambling, especially in my mother’s funeral.” The village headman, feeling that he had “lost face” in the interaction, was angry and threatened to kick Wru and any other Christians out of the village.

Siporn is a faithful Christian and a member of the village council in his community. In August, the president of the council confronted Siporn about his faith, promising that Siporn would succeed him as council president if Siporn would recant. Siporn answered, “I will not stop believing in my God, because I have found the truth and chosen the right path for my life.” The council then met without Siporn and voted to remove him from his position.

Sed, the headman of his village and a faithful Christian, hosted a worship service in his home. District officials reprimanded him and gave him an ultimatum: stop believing in Christ or lose his position in the village. Sed chose to follow Christ, telling the authorities, “I will not recant my faith. I love God because he brings peace to my family. I rejoice in my God.” He was immediately forced to sign a resignation letter, losing the post he had held for 18 years and the income he received from that position.

When Inn’s uncle shared the gospel with his family in February 2022, Inn was the only one who accepted Christ. The village leaders threatened Inn and his parents, saying he would be kicked out of school and jailed and the whole family would be evicted. Inn sought refuge with front-line workers so that he could finish high school and grow in his faith. Inn stayed in touch with his family, sharing about Christ whenever he could. Those gospel seeds took root. In January 2023, Inn’s mother, Phin, and his two sisters accepted Christ. Village officials made daily threats, and Inn’s father persecuted them as well.

BoonTaWong came to Christ because he wanted a changed life like he saw in other Christians. That decision brought the attention of the main religious leader of his community, who began to threaten and harass BoonTaWong. He demanded that BoonTaWong recant his faith in Christ, blamed his Christian faith for causing BoonTaWong’s wife to die, and mocked the impoverishment of most Lao Christians.