Lotteries are a popular way to raise money for public and private projects, including schools, hospitals, sports teams, and art or cultural events. In the United States, there are more than 40 state-run lotteries that raise billions of dollars a year for public purposes. In addition, there are several privately owned lotteries. Lottery prizes can range from a few thousand dollars to many millions. Regardless of the amount won, winning the lottery is exciting for everyone involved.
Lottery games have been around for centuries. The earliest were played by religious orders, and in the 17th century they became a part of daily life in some urban areas of Europe. In Canada, purchasing a ticket in a lotto was illegal until 1967 when the federal Liberal government introduced a special law (an Omnibus Bill) to modernize a number of obsolete laws. Montreal mayor Jean Drapeau, trying to recover funds lost on the World’s Fair and a subway system, created his own version of a lottery, calling it a “voluntary tax.” For a $2.00 donation players could enter a drawing to win silver bars instead of cash. The federal minister of justice argued that this did not constitute a lottery, but the Montreal City Council and the mayor insisted that it was.
Laos, a communist country, has no state-run lottery, but it allows private business interests to operate unauthorized lotteries in special economic zones. The businesses are run by people who have close ties to the ruling elite, sources tell RFA’s Lao Service. Some of the lotteries offer tickets for free, while others charge premiums above base lottery prices. The companies make millions of dollars from the games, while state lottery revenues drop.
In recent years, some of these businesses have been accused of rigging the results to prevent large pay-outs. In one case, a winning number was announced over the radio as 134, but then changed to 662 just minutes before the drawing, an RFA source said. The number was associated with the buffalo, a symbol of good fortune in Laos.
A spokesman for the state lottery supervisory department told RFA that allegations of rigged results are unfounded. He said that the ministry is working to improve transparency in the lottery industry by reducing the number of drawings from two to one per week and by taking steps to ensure that all winners are properly identified. He said he has also instructed the local police to step up enforcement against unlicensed lottery operators. However, he did not say when the new measures would take effect. RFA’s Ounkeo Souksavanh and Bounchanh Mouangkham contributed to this report. Copyright