Lotteries are a favorite activity among Laotians for both recreational and financial gain, yet are not without controversy. Some players allege that lottery results are fixed, prompting investigations by various government agencies as well as lengthy disputes between lottery operators and players that ultimately led to decreased operations due to settlement of these disputes and subsequent decrease in operations; ultimately prompting government measures against illegal lotteries which it now intends to tackle head on.
Legal state lottery earnings in Laos have recently declined due to widespread sales of foreign lotteries by illegal lotteries, such as foreign nation lotteries. The Ministry of Finance wants to crack down on illegal lotteries and restore control of its legal lottery back to government control; to that end it has asked Ministry of Public Security to monitor and prosecute individuals selling lottery chances; they also encourage citizens to report illegal lottery activities using its website.
Other than the legal state lottery, there are other lottery games operated by private businesses and individuals across the country. Many mobile phone operators, banks and credit card companies provide mobile phone-linked lotteries. Others organize them online via social networking websites; others host them directly in bars and restaurants. To protect players against fraud, the Ministry of Finance has requested state-owned companies make their lottery operations transparent to the public.
Laos Lottery
Although gambling is illegal in Laos, certain Special Economic Zones within the country allow lotteries and other forms of gambling. Lao Development Lottery Enterprise offers Sibsonglasy lottery – currently, two winners claimed prizes totaling 7.2 billion Kip. Mr Thongdy from Phongsaly was among them after purchasing an App Insee six-digit lottery ticket for 1,000 kip.
Phonxay Chanthavong from Vangvieng won 6 billion Kip after purchasing an App Insee six-digit ticket for only 5,000 kip. Following complaints from players, lottery officials denied that results are fixed and promised to improve transparency within their product.
Charles Zuckerman is a linguistic anthropologist at the University of Sydney interested in exploring the societal effects and cultural significance of gaming in Laos. His PhD research investigated gender and moral dimensions of gambling in Luang Prabang. During this talk he will trace the political, economic, moral history of Laos’ lotteries since 1975; their mechanics can shed light on state enterprises across Laos more broadly.
Xia Rattanakone, who spent her early years living in an orphanage in Laos during its turbulent 1960s and ’70s years, plans on giving some of her $55 million prize to those who raised her. She may also return home in search of her birth family.