14 Facts About Sombath Somphone

Sombath Somphone was born into a poor farming family, the eldest of eight brothers and sisters.

Sombath Somphone attended high school in the US state of Wisconsin.

Sombath Somphone pioneered the use of participatory rural appraisal techniques in Laos.

But, Sombath Somphone's work has never been confrontational or antagonistic to government policy.

Every project and every activity that Sombath Somphone has carried out, has been with the approval of the relevant government sector, and in cooperation with the local officials.

In later years, Sombath Somphone played an important role in introducing the concept of Gross National Happiness into Laos.

In 2001, Sombath Somphone received the Human Resource Development Award for empowering the rural poor in Laos from the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.

Sombath Somphone remains the only person from the Lao PDR to receive this award.

In 2011, Sombath Somphone made the keynote address at the 10th API Regional Workshop; API is a network of Asian Public Intellectuals supported by fellowships from the Nippon Foundation.

Sombath Somphone was abducted in Vientiane on the evening of 15 December 2012.

The disappearance of Sombath Somphone was immediately followed by statements of concern from around the world.

One month after Sombath Somphone disappeared, United States Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, issued a statement urging the Lao Government "to pursue a transparent investigation of this incident and to do everything in its power to bring about an immediate and safe return home to his family".

On 15 December 2013, the one-year anniversary of Sombath Somphone's disappearance was marked by new statements from the governments of Switzerland, the UK, and the US, and demonstrations outside the Lao Embassies in Bangkok, Tokyo and Canberra.

International media coverage of Sombath Somphone's disappearance includes reports by the BBC, Al Jazeera, Fox News, Deutsche Welle, Le Monde, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, ABC Australia and others.