When difficult is your normal, then it’s just a different type of difficult…

Last week was a very deep and insightful week into the reality of these kids lives and their experiences in Saigon working in garment factories, and selling on the streets. Before we started delving into personal experiences we talked with the kids who haven’t been to Saigon yet, to ask if they wanted to go, hands shot up into the air like it was an exciting journey to paradise, when they expressed their reasons, they giggled with childlike innocence and bravery...

• I am ready for hard work, so I am keen to go
• My family is very poor so I can help them if I go to work in Saigon
• I don’t care about working hard, only about earning money

These two workshops have been the most challenging for our team so far, as the kids really opened up their hearts and lives to us. It was not easy to hear and see their stories before us and stay composed. It really woke us up to the fact that these kids have such a high level of resilience as the level of difficulty of their everyday lives far exceeds any of ours. When all you have ever known is 'difficult', then your tolerance of hardship is much higher. The parents of these kids are doing the best they can, living with a lifetime of poverty, day to day survival, hard labour, endless childbirth, and trying to provide enough food for the mouths that depend on them. However the reality is that it is inevitable that these kids will need to work to support their families, its just trying to find the balance between child appropriate working conditions and employees, and still attending school so they have more opportunities in the future to break their cycle of poverty. In casual conversations with the kids they are starting to think about different ways they can help their families locally, so this is a start! Also the children who were at high risk of being trafficked had a total transformation of their belief of working in Saigon...the land of promise, and now have a more informed perspective on the reality of life as a working child in the big city.

Voices of the children in Hai Tien village...

• The trafficker ( Mrs Diep) came to our village looking for children to take to Saigon. She talked with us, telling us how wonderful Saigon was, it sounded like a paradise. She told us that we could save 3 million VND in one year, and then if we were good we could get a salary increase. A group of us went together.
• Some kids had to convince their parents, but some parents thought it was a good idea because they couldn’t afford to keep their children.
• With Mrs Diep, they were split into two groups.
• We had to change our body clock because we would work all night selling flowers
• My sister and I had a really hard time, if we didn’t make enough money they were beaten, they would pull their hair and hit them with a broom. When we were on the street selling flowers we were monitored by people on motorbikes, who would order us around.
• But the other girls in the group said that they were treated well and their boss was a nice person.
• There was one school, like a centre to help children. The girls saw that the children there were in very poor condition, but they asked their boss if they could attend some classes at the school. The boss agreed and they used to attend 3 morning classes/ week to join in with activities, etc. ( I think it was free because it was a child help centre)
• They were mainly very homesick
• On the first day they arrived, the food was very good and they were very excited to be in such a beautiful and amazing place like Saigon, but as time progressed the food became very poor.
• It turned from paradise to hell very quickly
• One of the girls said they went on a trip to Nha Trang for 3 days and also to Vung Tau, so she thought that it was ok working for these people

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Closing Circle Reflections about their experiences

• Working in Saigon at such a young age requires a lot of energy to work like that. And then you miss out on going to school and remain or become illiterate.
• I can say for sure that the employers are exploiting the children
• Before we did the performances, I was very curious to work in Saigon, but now I see the reality that it is very difficult
• I also agree with Uyen, that I was very excited and curious about working in Saigon, but now I see it is important to encourage kids to stay at home and school and to build and follow their dreams
• From the performances, I see that the children have to work very hard, there is poor nutrition for them, the trafficking is criminal activity, and the employers are exploiting the children.

Voices of the children from Phuong Dien Village..

What was the reality once you were working in Saigon?

• Working hours were difficult, but we were treated normal ( What does ‘normal’ mean? )
• I was insulted and beaten when I was absentminded, or daydreaming while I was working
• It was difficult

How did you know about working in Saigon?

• All of the kids already have older brothers and sisters working there.
• Some went by their own decision
• One boy was forced to go by his mother
• Parents told them to go

Why did you go?

• Because of poverty, I am only at my house not doing anything, so my parents told me to be useful and do something, so I went to Saigon
• I didn’t want to go but my mother pushed me to go
• My parents said “ You are useless here, we can not afford you”
• My mother didn’t make me go, although she couldn’t afford to keep me but she said she would try her best, so I went by my own decision.
• I feel I have a responsibility to earn money to take care of my siblings so they can go to school, that is why I went.

Closing Circle Reflections about their experiences

• Our parents don't understand the difficulties children suffer and the hard work we had to do
  
• The employers in Saigon have no conscience, they fight and beat the kids and insult them
• The employer they acted was a little bit kinder than the real employers I have worked for. In reality they are very cruel. They treated us like animals, beat us whenever they liked. Both of my employers exploited me.
• After observing the performances, I no longer want to go to Saigon to work. I see it’s a hard life and it is not the same as my expectations.
• There is no other option but for our parents to send us to Saigon because their daily reality is very hard
• Because I made my own decision to go to Saigon, when I came back I had no sympathy from my parents, they said “ well, that’s your fault, we tried to prevent you from going but you didn’t listen”
• I went by my own decision, and I regretted my decision once I was there. The employer was so cruel and I have heard a lot of terrible stories about other employers.
• If someone asked me to get in a car to go to Saigon now, I would say NO
• I still think its my fault and I regret making my parents upset