Colonel Bounleuth Saycocie (1 September 1931 – 23 October 2014) was a Lao military and political figure of the

Second Indochina War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

and the

Laotian Civil War The Laotian Civil War was waged between the Communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao Government from 23 May 1959 to 2 December 1975. The Kingdom of Laos was a covert Theatre (warfare), theater during the Vietnam War with both sides receiving heavy ...

Early life

Bounleut Saycocie was born in the Hineboune District of Khammouane province and attended the ''Lycée Pavie'' in

Vientiane Vientiane (, ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Laos. Situated on the banks of the Mekong, Mekong River at the Thailand, Thai border, it comprises the five urban districts of Vientiane Prefecture and had a population of 840,000 ...

, followed by the Lao Military Academy at Dong Hene in Savannakhet Province. He later attended staff courses at the French Army Staff School () in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and at the

United States Army Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

Fort Leavenworth Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...

, Kansas.

Career

From 1960 to 1962 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and served as Military Attaché to the Royal Lao Embassy in Washington D.C. He was again promoted to colonel in 1962 and served as Chief of the Special Cabinet (Military Affairs) of the Ministry of Defense until 1964. From 1964 to 1966, he was appointed Chief Logistics Officer of the

Royal Lao Army The Royal Lao Army (; – ARL), also designated by its anglicized title RLA, was the land component of the Royal Lao Armed Forces (FAR), the official military of the Kingdom of Laos during the North Vietnamese invasion of Laos and the Laotian C ...

in Vientiane. Col. Bounleut attempted a coup on 31 January 1965, with

Phoumi Nosavan Major General Phoumi Nosavan (; 27 January 1920 – 3 November 1985)Stuart-Fox, pp. 258–259. was a Laotian military officer who served as the military strongman of Laos during the Laotian Civil War in the 1960s. Early life Phoumi Nosavan w ...

attempting his own coup at the same time. Both coups were crushed by

Kouprasith Abhay Major general Kouprasith Abhay (; nicknamed 'Fat K'; 1926–1999?Stuart-Fox, pp. 169–170.) was a prominent military leader of the Kingdom of Laos during the Laotian Civil War. Scion of a socially prominent family, his military career was consi ...

by 3 February. Undaunted by his failure, Bounleut conspired with General

Thao Ma Brigadier general Thao Ma (1931–1973) was a Laotian military and political figure of the Laotian Civil War and the Vietnam War (aka Second Indochina War). Thao Ma began his military career as a paratrooper in the French Union Army, when Franc ...

to prepare for the 1966 Laotian coup. After the coup failed, Bounleut took refuge in

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

where he remained until 1968, when he moved to France. Along with Phoumi, he is said to have assisted in drafting the plan for

's coup attempt in August 1973. Bounleut accompanied Thao Ma in the latter's seizure of Wattay Airbase on 20 August 1973. While Thao Ma commandeered aircraft, Bounleut drove an armored car into Vientiane to take over the radio station. At 07:00 hours, he broadcast a communiqué calling for the replacement of Prince

Souvanna Phouma Prince Souvanna Phouma (; 7 October 1901 – 10 January 1984) was the leader of the neutralist faction and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Laos several times (1951–1954, 1956–1958, 1960, and 1962–1975). Early life Souvanna Phouma was the ...

by Prince

Boun Oum Prince Boun Oum (also Prince Boun Oum Na Champassak; ; ; ; 2 December 1911 – 17 March 1980) was the son of King Ratsadanay, and was the hereditary prince of Champassak and also Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Laos from March 1949 to Febr ...

as Prime Minister of the

Royal Lao Government The Royal Lao Government was the ruling authority in the Kingdom of Laos from 1947 until the communist seizure of power in December 1975 and the proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The Franco-Lao Treaty of 1953 gave Laos full i ...

. As the coup was suppressed, Bounleut stole a Cessna U-17 and returned to Thailand. After the

Lao People's Democratic Republic Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west an ...

was established by the

Pathet Lao The Pathet Lao (), officially the Lao People's Liberation Army, was a communist political movement and political organization, organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The group ultimately gained control over the entire country of ...

in December 1975, Col. Bounleuth became a leader of the anti-communist political and military resistance against the communist Lao government and their Vietnamese mentors.Exclusive Interview with Touxoua LYFOUNG, Lao Nation Party President 1996
Given to Hmoob Vam Meej. Published in the Paj Tshiab Review]

Later life and death

Col. Bounleuth finally immigrated to the US in 2000 as a political refugee and settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He suffered a stroke a few years later that left him paralyzed and bed ridden until his death on 23 October 2014 at the age of 83.

Notes

References

* Kenneth Conboy and James Morrison, ''Shadow War: The CIA's Secret War in Laos'', Boulder CO: Paladin Press, 1995. , 1581605358 * Victor B. Anthony and Richard R. Sexton, ''The War in Northern Laos'', Command for Air Force History, 1993. {{DEFAULTSORT:Saycocie, Bounleut 1931 births 2014 deaths Laotian military leaders Military personnel of the Vietnam War Laotian anti-communists People of the Laotian Civil War

Early life

Career

Later life and death

See also

Notes

References