A few days a slave
Unmarried and unemployed, Ha* decided on a fresh start, following a recruiter who had lured her with the promise of an exciting new job. And it’s only now, with the support of World Vision and the local Women’s Union, that she can begin to forget her experience as a victim of trafficking.
Five years ago, Ha* wouldn’t have dared dream of marriage. Today, the 42-year-old woman has found a good man and they are planning their wedding.
Born into a poor ethnic minority in the mountainous province of Yen Bai in Vietnam, Ha only completed the third grade before dropping out of school to help her parents provide for her many siblings.
Time flew.
By 2010, Ha was 37, still single and had no stable job. Desperate to raise some cash for her own small business, she agreed to go with a supposed recruiter, who had promised her the well-paid job she craved. The final destination was not what she had been told, however. Instead, she ended up far from home on a banana plantation in China, where she was forced to work all day as a slave.
The nightmare ended a few days later when the Chinese police discovered the farm and rescued Ha and the other trafficked workers. Yet their next destination was not home. All of them were sent to a refugee camp where daily life was meagre and having a shower was a luxury. The police kept Ha there for a month before she was finally returned to the Vietnamese authorities.
Despite a joyful welcome from her family, Ha couldn’t forget the misery of her experience.
Despite a joyful welcome from her family, Ha couldn’t forget the misery of her experience. She avoided meeting people and obsessively regretted her decision to go. But thanks to the encouragement of the Women’s Union officer in her village, she gradually learned to move on.
For a living, Ha decided to become a mason. She worked hard, but life was still a struggle as the money she made barely covered her basic daily expenses.
Ha Thi Phong, the vice president of the local Women’s Union, explains that after her organisation reported the case to World Vision’s End Trafficking in Persons programme, Ha was given the equivalent of nearly 600 US dollars to begin raising poultry.
Ha is feeding her brood of chicken. The brood now consists of over 50 healthy chicks. Ha was equipped with chicken raising techniques through World Vision-facilitated training.
“I’m pleased that she no longer has to do exhausting work to earn a living,” Phong says. “She sold her last brood of chickens for 11 million dong and expects to sell the second brood for a similar price.”
Besides funds, the staff of World Vision’s programme also worked closely with Yen Bai’s provincial Women’s Union to offer training for victims of trafficking like Ha. There, they learned practical life skills and financial management to maintain and develop household incomes.
I found relief as I could finally be open about what I went through and how my life has changed.
Ha says: “I’m grateful that not only did I learn helpful knowledge to make money, but I also found relief as I could finally be open about what I went through and how my life has changed. Everything seems brighter for me now. I’ve also met a good man who treats me well despite my age and past. We plan to get married soon.”
*Name changed to protect identity
Written by Ha Thi Phong, Vice President of a village Women's Union in Nghia Lo commune, Yen Bai province