Author: ltadmin

The first Laos-China international freight train loaded with spare parts, control panels, textiles and electronics officially left Chengdu, China heading to Vientiane, Laos.

The train with 35 cars was loaded with nearly 350 tons of goods, all manufactured in the Liu Chuang Special Economic Zone, according to China Radio International – CRI.

The train is expected to reach Vientiane within 72 hours from Dec 4 and save up to 20% -30% of the cost for Chinese enterprises.

The launch of the newly built Laos-China railway has not only provided more convenient channels for Sichuan’s commercial enterprises and electronics manufacturers to transport goods to ASEAN, but also reduced the time and cost of transporting goods from Sichuan to ASEAN.

It also constitutes a strategic point for Sichuan to accelerate the development of high-quality modern goods and deepen economic and trade exchanges with ASEAN countries.

Source: Lao News Agency

The National Taskforce Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control has approved an action plan on opening tourist destinations in the country to fully vaccinated visitors to ensure Covid-19 free tourism in the Lao PDR by January 2022.

The Lao Travel Green Zone Plan will be used as a reference for relevant ministries, agencies and sectors to get ready and coordinate the opening of green zones to ensure safe tourism amid Covid-19 and contribute to reviving the Covid-hit economy.

Under the plan, both domestic and foreign visitors are required to have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 for at least 14 days but not longer than one year, otherwise a booster shot must be given.

Foreign visitors must apply for a green travel card using official website – www.laoevisa.gov.la/greenzone -, encounter Covid-19 test (RT PCR) at least 72 hours before beginning their trip, have samples collected for Covid-19 test once arriving in the Lao PDR and be isolated at hotel for 24 hours (while waiting for test results).

They are also required to download a monitoring app with QR code which they can use when entering tourist sites along with Covid-19 vaccination certificates.

Photo: Tourism Information Center Laos

Source: Lao News Agency

With more than two dozen states poised to ban abortion if the U.S. Supreme Court gives them the OK next year, California clinics and their allies in the state legislature on Wednesday revealed a plan to make the state a safe place for those seeking reproductive care, including possibly paying for travel, lodging and procedures for people from other states.

The California Future of Abortion Council, made up of more than 40 abortion providers and advocacy groups, released a list of 45 recommendations for the state to consider if the high court overturns Roe v. Wade, the 48-year-old decision that forbids states from outlawing abortion.

The recommendations are not just a liberal fantasy. Some of the state’s most important policymakers helped write them, including Toni Atkins, the San Diego Democrat who leads the state Senate and attended multiple meetings.

Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom started the group himself. In an interview last week with The Associated Press he said some of the report’s details would be included in his budget proposal in January.

“We’ll be a sanctuary,” Newsom said, adding he’s aware patients will likely travel to California from other states to seek abortions. “We are looking at ways to support that inevitability and looking at ways to expand our protections.”

California already pays for abortions for many low-income residents through the state’s Medicaid program. And California is one of six states that require private insurance companies to cover abortions, although many patients still end up paying deductibles and co-payments.

Enough money

But money won’t be a problem for state-funded abortion services for patients from other states. California’s coffers have soared throughout the pandemic, fueling a record budget surplus this year. Next year, the state’s independent Legislative Analyst’s Office predicts California will have a surplus of about $31 billion.

California’s affiliates of Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, got a preview of how people might seek abortions outside their home states this year when a Texas law that outlawed abortion after six weeks of pregnancy was allowed to take effect. California clinics reported a slight increase in patients from Texas.

Now, California abortion providers are asking California to make it easier for those people to get to the state.

The report recommends funding — including public spending — to support patients seeking abortion for travel expenses such as gas, lodging, transportation and child care. It asks lawmakers to reimburse abortion providers for services to those who can’t afford to pay — including those who travel to California from other states whose income is low enough that they would qualify for state-funded abortions under Medicaid if they lived there.

It’s unclear how many people would come to California for abortions if Roe v. Wade is overturned. California does not collect or report abortion statistics. The Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, said 132,680 abortions were performed in California in 2017, or about 15% of all abortions nationally. That number includes people from out of state as well as teenagers, who are not required to have their parents’ permission for an abortion in California.

Planned Parenthood, which accounts for about half of California’s abortion clinics, said it served 7,000 people from other states last year.

A huge influx of people from other states “will definitely destabilize the abortion provider network,” said Fabiola Carrion, interim director for reproductive and sexual health at the national Health Law Program. She said out-of-state abortions would also likely be later-term procedures, which are more complicated and expensive.

More workers

The report asks lawmakers to help clinics increase their workforce to prepare for more patients by giving scholarships to medical students who pledge to offer abortion services in rural areas, help them pay off their student loans and assist with their monthly liability insurance premiums.

“We’re looking at how to build capacity and build workforce,” said Jodi Hicks, CEO of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California. “It will take a partnership and investment with the state.”

Abortion opponents in California, meanwhile, are also preparing for a potential surge of patients from other states seeking the procedure — only they hope to persuade them not to do it.

Jonathan Keller, president and CEO of the California Family Council, said California has about 160 pregnancy resource centers whose aim is to persuade women not to get abortions. He said about half of those centers are medical clinics, while the rest are faith-based counseling centers.

Many of the centers are located near abortion clinics in an attempt to entice people to seek their counseling before opting to end pregnancies. Keller said many are already planning on increasing their staffing if California gets more patients.

“Even if we are not facing any immediate legislative opportunities or legislative victories, it’s a reminder that the work of changing hearts and minds and also providing real support and resources to women facing unplanned pregnancies — that work will always continue,” Keller said.

He added: “In many ways, that work is going to be even more important, both in light of [the] Supreme Court’s decision and in light of whatever Sacramento decides they are going to do in response.”

Source: Voice of America

U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order Wednesday to “leverage” the federal government’s scale and purchasing power to make it carbon neutral, cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 65% in less than a decade and establish an all-electric fleet of vehicles.

The order will cut emissions in federal operations as part of the government’s effort to combat climate change.

Biden’s directive requires that government buildings consume 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2030, the U.S. fleet of vehicles be 100% electric by 2035, and federal contracts for goods and services be carbon-free by 2050.

“The United States government will lead by example to provide a strong foundation for American businesses to compete and win globally in the clean energy economy while creating well-paying union jobs at home,” the White House said in a statement announcing the climate change initiative.

Source: Voice of America

– General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong received Chairman of the National Assembly of Laos (NA) Xaysomphone Phomvihane, who is paying an official visit to Vietnam, in Hanoi, Vietnam on Dec 7.

The Lao leader thanked Vietnam for its enormous, timely, and effective support and assistance for his country. He affirmed that the Lao NA will keep close coordination with its Vietnamese counterpart to effectively carry out the agreements reached between leaders of the two Parties, countries, and parliaments.

Welcoming his guest, Party General Secretary Trong described the visit as a demonstration of the close and special ties between Vietnam and Laos.

He highly valued the important role of the two parliaments as well as their cooperation outcomes, asking the two NAs and their committees to enhance cooperation and information and experience sharing; organise workshops on law making, supervision, and decision of major issues; increase coordination in monitoring and promoting the governments, ministries, sectors, and localities’ implementation of signed programmes and projects; and keep supporting each other at multilateral and inter-parliamentary forums.

The host leader also asked the two sides to work together to hold activities celebrating the Laos – Vietnam Solidarity and Friendship Year in 2022.

At the meeting, both host and guest expressed their delight that the special bilateral relations, set up by late Presidents Ho Chi Minh, Kaysone Phomvihane, and Souphanouvong and nurtured by generations of the countries’ Party and State leaders, have been unceasingly solidified and developing in a substantive and effective manner in all fields, generating practical benefits for the two peoples.

They also committed all-out efforts to maintain, nurture, and pass down the sound Laos – Vietnam relations to future generations.

The two leaders shared the view that their countries’ special ties are a priceless common asset of the two Parties and peoples, a vital relationship, an important resource for the national development and safeguarding in each nation, and also an active contribution to regional and global peace, stability, cooperation, and development.

On December 7 morning, Chairman Xaysomphone Phomvihane, his spouse, and the high-ranking delegation of the Lao NA laid wreaths and paid tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum in Hanoi.

Source: Lao News Agency