LAOS - Illegal Issues of Postage Stamps

Dear Sir/Madam

The postal administration of the LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC asks me to inform you of the following:

"On 16 November 2000, illegal postage stamp issues entitled "Three of the Great of the Golf World: Tiger Woods, Payne Stewart and Arnold Palmer" and "Great People of the 20th Century, part III", with pictures of famous people, namely Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, John Lennon and the Beatles, appeared on the philately market through an Internet site.

"The postal administration of the Lao People's Democratic Republic states that it never issued these stamps. The circulation of these false stamps causes moral and economic harm to the Lao People's Democratic Republic, discredits its services in the eyes of stamp collectors worldwide and forces them to differentiate between these stamps and genuine Lao stamps. The false stamps were issued in violation of the provisions of the Universal Postal Convention and the Letter Post Regulations and Lao People's Democratic Republic legislation.

"These stamps and any similar ones are therefore to be regarded as illegal and may not be used for the prepayment of postal items".

Yours faithfully,

C GHEORGHIEV
Assistant Director General

Description of these postage stamps on websites

Laos 1999 - Tiger Woods, Payne Stewart and Arnold Palmer

Announced as having been released in the Fall of 1999, one of the most famous golf issues: a souvenir sheet depicting 

• Tiger Woods 
• Payne Stewart
•  Arnold Palmer

Laos 2000 - Entertainers

Great People of the 20th Century, part III: sheet of nine commemorating

• Elvis Presley, 3 stamps
• Marilyn Monroe, 3 stamps
• John Lennon / Beatles, 3 stamps
• A set of three souvenir sheets Marilyn Monroe
• A set of three souvenir sheets Elvis Presley
• A set of three souvenir sheets commemorating John Lennon and the Beatles

More information about the illegal issues can be obtained directly from the UPU, Mrs. Maria Libera.