austraLasia #1876

High level Laos delegation to investigate possibilities for 'Don Bosco' school in Vientiane

VIENTIANE: 13th June 2007 -- A delegation of six men and women, including the Deputy Director of the Foreign Affairs Office, the Head of the Non-formal Education Department and the Deputy Director of the Education Department from Vientiane, have already completed a visit to Don Bosco institutions in Cambodia and are about to embark on a similar visit to Bangkok from 23-26 June.  The delegation leader, Ms. Ketmany Bandasak (Deputy Director Education Department) has expressed the desire to have a Don Bosco technical school in Vientiane 'as soon as possible'.
    This story has its own important history.  There is a Don Bosco presence in Vientiane - has been since 24th May 2004 in fact.  It went back to an invitation, 10 years previously, by the then Nuncio in Thailand, following a request from the Laotian Ambassador in Thailand.  The group which arrived in Vientiane in 2004 included five Laotian past pupils who had attended a Salesian school in Bangkok under a study bursary arrangement following the 1994 request. With the group was a lay teacher from the Bangkok's Saint Dominic Savio school and Fr Pedron.  The latter returned to Thailand but has remained the provincial delegate for the presence. The small workshop that was set up took in a dozen local students in its first year, then doubled the following year.  Laotian government officials were impressed but had still not given formal approval. While there is a 'memorandum of understanding', the presence has not been formalised.
    The delegation's visit to Cambodia in May was a crucial one for future planning.  There they met not only those involved in several presences of the Don Bosco Foundation, but also with the Cambodian Minister for Work and Technical Education. The Cambodian minister explained how, 20 years ago, they too had their doubts, particularly relating to the political order and matters of religion, but pronounced the judgement that ' we have seen over these years, however, that a Don Bosco school prepares the students well and there is by now a large number of them contributing effectively to the development of the Country. They create no difficulties but work together for the common good'.  He expressed the hope that Laos could receive a similar benefit from such a school in its Capital.
       _________________
 AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific.  It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome.  For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use BoscoWiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - subscribe to www.bosconet.aust.com/RSS/rssala.xm   Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at at http://sdl.sdb.org. To contact austraLasia by voice on Skype, the Skype name is austraLasia