Siho Lamphouthacoul

General Siho Lamphouthacoul (1934 – September 1966) used his powers as the National Director of Coordination to build Laotian police forces into a national power. Appointed as Director prior to the August 1960 coup by Kong Le, Siho gathered and trained two special battalions of paramilitary police during the latter part of 1960. When his patron, General Phoumi Nosavan, seized power in December 1960, Siho's new battalions helped carry the day at the Battle of Vientiane. Acquiring the National Police from the Ministry of the Interior, and co-opting local military police, Siho consolidated the Lao police into the Directorate of National Coordination. Attaining a strength of 6,500 men, the DNC would be Siho's instrument for his short-lived 18 April 1964 coup.

Having failed once in his attempt to take over the Kingdom of Laos, Siho sat out the 1965 Laotian coups. Nevertheless, the Royal Lao Army would attack and dismantle the Directorate of Coordination on 3 February 1965, driving Siho into exile in Thailand. In June 1966, he believed it safe to return to Laos and surrender. Three months later, he was shot while trying to escape.

General Siho Lamphouthacoul was born on Khong Island, the French Protectorate of Laos. He was of Chinese-Lao heritage. His family served in the aristocratic household of the Abhay family. The eldest son, Kouprasith Abhay, was eight years older than Siho, and they were reared together. As a result, for unknown reasons, Siho grew up resenting Abhay. Siho would come to be characterized as "rough", "tenacious", "vain", and subject to sudden outbursts of temper.

In September 1953, Siho joined the French-led Lao National Army (French: Armée Nationale Laotiénne - ANL) as a member of its first reserve officer training class. He became a protege of Phoumi Nosavan. Siho served as Phoumi's aide during a year's training in France. In 1958, Siho was selected by Phoumi as his intelligence officer as well as his aide. Phoumi also appointed him as Director of National Coordination. On 25 December 1959, General Phoumi ascended to control of the Kingdom of Laos.

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