Coup of 1960
On August 9, Kong Le led the Second Paratroop Battalion in a nearly bloodless coup. In taking over Vientiane, the paratroopers had unwittingly chosen a moment when the entire cabinet was in Luang Phrabang conferring with King Sri Savang Vatthana. They informed their compatriots and the outside world by broadcasting their communiqués on the radio. In a rally at the city football stadium on August 11, Kong Le expanded on his goals: end the fighting in Laos, stem corruption, and establish a policy of peace and neutrality. Recalling the experience of the first coalition when the country was temporarily at peace, Kong Le asked for the nomination of Souvanna Phouma as prime minister.
On August 11, General Ouane Rattikone, as the cabinet's envoy, arrived in Vientiane from Louang Phrabang. After negotiations with Kong Le and Souvanna Phouma, Ouan returned to Louang Phrabang with a document in which the coup leaders requested the cabinet to return. Fearing violence in Vientiane, the premier, Prince Somsanith Vongkotrattana, resigned, and the King named Souvanna Phouma prime minister. The new government was invested by thirty-four deputies on August 16. The next day, Kong Le declared his coup over and vacated the Presidency of the Council of Ministers.
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