Pathet Lao (redirected from Phatet Lao)

Pathet Lao (pät`ət lou), left-wing nationalist group that was ultimately victorious in the Laotian civil war that began in the mid-1950s. The name was first used in 1950 by Lao forces after the they joined the Viet Minh's revolt against the French, and it became the generic term for the Lao Communists. In 1956 an official party, the Neo Lao Hak Sat (Lao Patriotic Front) was formed. In the 1960s and early 70s, the Pathet Lao fought the U.S.-supported government and finally won control of Laos in 1975.

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Pathet Lao 

the name given to Laos by the nationalist movement of Lao Issara (Free Laotian Party) after the anticolonial revolt in October 1945. The United National Front of Laos (Neo Lao Issara), which sprang up in 1950, was also often called the Pathet Lao. By extension, the name was applied to the national liberation movement directed by the front. At present the name “Pathet Lao” is used as another name for the Patriotic Front of Laos (PFL, Neo Lao Hak Sat), formed in 1956.