Thousands of ethnic Hmong protested in the California state capital of Sacramento against the incarceration of a revered former military leader and 10 others accused of plotting a coup against the communist regime in Laos, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday, according to dpa. The rally took place in front of the state capital and federal courthouse, where Laotian General Vang Pao, 77, and his alleged accomplices pleaded not guilty to a five-count indictment. The daylong demonstration was the third rally in support of Pao by ethnic Hmnog, thousands of whom emigrated to the US following the fall of Saigon in 1975. During the Vietnam war the Laotian hill people fought with the US against communist forces and are credited with slowing the military march of North Vietnam. Vang Pao, 77, and the others are charged with conspiracy to violate the neutrality act and illegally export munitions as well as conspiracy to kill and maim citizens in a foreign land. The general and eight other defendants are also accused of trying to purchase Stinger antiaircraft missiles. Prosecutors alleged that they planned to topple the Laotian government and reduce buildings in the capital city of Vientiane to rubble. In the 30-minute hearing, Vang Pao and the others sat quietly, hands and feet manacled, as their lawyers pleaded not guilty on their behalf. Outside, the angry crowd said the charges were unjust. "We feel betrayed," said rally organizer Vaming Xiong. "We hope they dismiss these charges. What's the point to go to trial? The general is a hero." On June 5, US authorities arrested nine ethnic Hmongs and a tenth man, Harrison Jack, a 60-year-old West Point graduate. Since then, an eleventh person has apparently been detained. The Laotian government has welcomed the arrests. Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein, who announced the arrests earlier this month, said the defendants had "developed an audacious plan to overthrow the government of Laos, and were seeking to arm themselves with automatic rifles, rockets and surface-to-air missiles." Vang Pao was the chief leader of the guerrilla struggle during the 1960s to 1970s. He and thousands of other Hmong fled Laos in 1975 when the country fell to communist forces. Tens of thousands of Hmong refugees have remained in Thailand, afraid to return to Laos while it remains communist and reluctant to be resettled abroad. For this Thai-based Hmong community, the arrest of Vang Pao represented another betrayal by the US government. "He helped the US fight communism so why have they done this to him?" said Meng Sae Vue, a Hmong religious leader based in Thailand, after the arrets. "Vang Pao is so old. It's sad." US investigators said Vang Pao and his followers had planned to use AK-47 automatic rifles, stinger missiles, LAW rockets and anti-tank rockets to topple the Lao government and "reduce government buildings in Vientiane to rubble." The thwarted plot, reminiscent of a Sylvester Stallone Rambo movie, had been code-named "Operation Tarnished Eagle," investigators said.
