Laos-Philippines relations began even before the colonial era imposed French rule in Laos and Spanish rule in the Philippines. The Jade trade brought Philippine-made Jade to Indochina as early 2000 B.C.[1] During the Burmese–Siamese War (1547–1549), Filipinos were employed as mercenaries all across Indochina (which includes Laos).[2] While in the Spanish period of the Philippines, there was a historical incident when the Spanish and Filipinos assisted the exiled Christian Cambodian King, Satha II, who was given asylum in Laos, was restored to the Khmer throne, through the help of Laos.[3]
Formal relations between Laos and the Philippines were officially established on 14 January 1955.[4] Relations between the two countries were said to have started during the early period of the Vietnam War. Operation Brotherhood, a joint international venture by Jaycees International, sent 50 volunteer Filipino doctors, agriculturists, and nutritionists to Laos and Vietnam from 1957 to 1964.[5]
There are about 730 Filipinos in Laos as of 2013, mostly working as professionals as teachers, nurses, engineers, hotel employees and consultants.[9][10]
Filipinos are often offered lower fares on riding tuktuks compared to other foreigners.[5]
References
^Bellwood, P., H. Hung, H., Lizuka, Y. (2011). Taiwan Jade in the Philippines: 3,000 Years of Trade and Long-distance Interaction. Semantic Scholar.
^The Mediterranean Connection by William Henry Scott Page 138 (Published By: Ateneo de Manila University) Taken from "Translated in Teixera, The Portuguese Missions, p. 166."
^Quirino, Carlos (1969). "First Philippine Expedition to Indo-China". Journal of Southeast Asian History. 10 (3): 491–500. doi:10.1017/S0217781100005044. JSTOR27651723.