To Watch Video: © SommerFilms, 2007 (by Rebecca Sommer) All rights reserved.
Brief history (Vietnam War) of the ethnic Hmong Lao people of Laos, narrated by Hmong leader General Vang Pao, and Mr. Vang from the LHRC. In the 75 minute-long awareness-raising documentary “Hunted Like Animals”, the refugees who fled from Laos to Thailand explain what the military inside of Laos did to them, while they were running and hiding, half starved, from the attacks by the soldiers ~ over 30 years after the Vietnam War ended. Some footage in “Hunted Like Animals” was filmed by the Hmong-in-hiding themselves- in the mountainous conflict areas of Laos (2002-2006). (Cameras were smuggled in, and tapes out of the conflict area by Fact Finding Commission.)
Thousands of Hmong Lao fled from Laos to Thailand – starting 2004- to escape increasing military attacks inside of Laos, and settled in Thailand’s Ban Huay Nam Khao Refugee Camp.
Over 1400 DVD of HUNTED LIKE ANIMALS were disseminated to governments, UN system and NGOs end of 2006 and 2007. Even so diplomats and UN officials has no access to the people-in-hiding inside of Laos, or to the refugees in Thailand’s refugee camp – HUNTED LIKE ANIMALS brings the voices of the desperate Hmong Lao directly to them. The refugees want the world to know what they have endured, and speak on behalf of many thousands of Hmong left behind — who are still trapped inside of remote mountainous jungle areas, chased, attacked, tortured, mutilated, killed, starving — AT THIS VERY MOMENT !!!!!
U P D A T E :
Notice year 2009/10:
The people went down into the valleys and have merged, with some bumps and even a few losses, into Hmong Lao villages or even cities elsewhere. Also thanks to efforts from Earthpeoples at the UN level, the many great partners from Hmong Lao, Hmong US and Hmong Thai.
A change at the UN, with a new Vietnamese Ambassador, helped as well, as he had made steps towards communication with us to facilitate “Hmong coming out of hiding” to happen. Yes, Vietnam seemed to pull the strings in foreign country Laos, at the UN level.
So at the end, after many meetings and many Hmong leaders traveling back and forth to NYC, Hmong people-in- hiding came down and have been enabled to settle in small groups or families in Hmong areas. It happend not exactly as we had wanted nor tried to negotiate, meaning in a controlled coordinated and with an observatory goal, with UN officials present on the ground, programmes for those Hmong coming out.
But it worked nevertheless, because it was agreed upon states at UN level and was at that time also the will of the leadership of Vietnam and Laos.
Please contact the filmmaker Rebecca Sommer, if you have questions: SommerFilms@gmail.com
