Survivors of Trafficking from North
Vietnam: Psychological and Social
Consequences
February 2015, Hanoi
Professor Susan Kneebone, with Madhavi Ligam and Janelle Kenny (Monash
University) together with Luu Thi Lich, To Thi Hanh, Nguyen Thi Chinh from SHARE
Vietnam
Table of Contents
LIST OF FIGURES
3
LIST OF MAPS
3
Executive Summary
4
1
Introduction to research project
1.1 About the study
1.2 Research objective and research questions
1.3 Methodology
1.4 Research ethics
1.5 Limitations of the research
6
6
10
10
11
11
2
Trafficking in Vietnam
2.1 Definitions
2.2 Trafficking in persons in Vietnam
2.3 Vietnam’s response to trafficking in persons
2.4 Reintegration of returned trafficked women in Vietnam
2.4.1 Reintegration support models
2.4.2 Psycho-social support
13
13
15
17
19
20
22
3
Analysis of profiles of research participants – trafficking causes and vulnerabilities
3.1 Age of survivors and reasons for being trafficked
3.2 Origin and education level
3.3 Family’s financial situation
23
23
23
24
4
Analysis of profiles of research participants – trafficking experiences
4.1 Means of exploitation
4.1.1 Promise of employment to help family and self
4.1.2 Trafficked to China for marriage
4.1.3 Drugged
4.2 Exploitation and abuse
4.2.1 Physical violence
4.2.2 Sexual abuse
4.3 Escape, rescue and return home
25
25
25
26
27
27
28
29
29
5
Psycho-social difficulties faced by returnees
5.1 Physical problems
5.1.1 Other physical issues
5.2 Mental health and other emotional issues
5.2.1 Stress, anxiety and depression
5.2.2 Trauma and Post-traumatic stress disorder
5.2.3 Emotional reaction to trafficker
5.2.4 Devaluing of self-image
5.2.5 Distrust of others and feelings of hopelessness about the future
5.2.6 Fear of Love and marriage
5.3 Social difficulties
31
31
32
32
32
34
35
35
36
36
37
6
Conclusion and recommendations
6.1 Conclusions
6.2 Recommendations
41
41
42
1
BIBLIOGRAPHY
43
APPENDIX 1
45
APPENDIX 2
48
APPENDIX 3
49
APPENDIX 4
50
APPENDIX 5
53
2
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Education levels of returnees
Figure 2: Means of exploitation
Figure 3: Types of exploitation
Figure 4: Mode of return
Figure 5: Results from DASS test
24
25
27
29
33
LIST OF MAPS
Map 1: South-east Asia
Map 2: Provinces of Vietnam
Map 3: Map of Hanoi Province, highlighting Tay Ho district where the Peace House is located
7
8
9
3
Executive Summary
The research for this report was conducted by Counselling, Research and Life Psychology (SHARE)
between December 2010 and April 2011 under the supervision of Dr. Sallie Yea who was employed
under an Australia Research Council (ARC) funded project ‘Delivering Effective Protection to
Victims and Prevention of Human Trafficking in the Greater Mekong Sub-region’ (the Project) led
by Professor Susan Kneebone (Chief Investigator), Faculty of Law, Monash University, Australia.
The Partner Organisations for this project were Australian Agency for International Development
(AusAID), United Nations Intra Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP) and International
Organisation for Migration (IOM). The support of the ARC and the Partner Organisations for this
study is gratefully acknowledged.
The objective of this study is to investigate the psychological and social difficulties faced by women
and children who were trafficked across borders and subsequently returned to Vietnam. Based on
the results, the research provides recommendations to communities, agencies and individuals
working with survivors of trafficking so that they may be better equipped to provide appropriate
psychological and social support to the survivors.
The study was conducted on two sites where some survivors were living. The first site was Ngôi
Nhà Bình Yên (Peace House shelter) under Trung Tâm Phụ nữ và Phát Triển (Centre for Women
and Development), which is located in the Tay Ho district of Hanoi (see Map 3).1 The second site
was Mỹ Độ commune, Yên Dũng district in Bac Giang province.
The majority of research participants in this study were 15 women and children who were trafficked
and subsequently returned to Vietnam. Seven of these women and children lived in a community in
Bac Giang province and eight lived in Peace House shelter. Additionally, four officials who provided
direct support to survivors were also selected to participate in the study.
Data was collected about participants’ age, residence, manner in which they were trafficked, time of
departure, time of return, details of work done in receiving country and other information. The
survivors exhibited the common psycho-social characteristics faced by survivors of trafficking \
returnees (the terms are used interchangeably in this report). These included:
1
Peace House, www.peacehousevietnam.com, accessed 17 March 2015.
4

having doubts about their image;

an inability to trust others and feeling uncertain about the future;

an inability to adapt to a new environment;

feeling discriminated against by their family and community;

worrying about future marital and reproductive prospects;

dealing with immense emotional issues following a traumatic experience;

lacking decision making skills, assertiveness, and ability to protect themselves;

difficulty in establishing relationships and maintaining healthy and stable relationships;

behavioural issues such as drug abuse, engaging in unsafe sex, self-mutilation, withdrawal
from society; and

developing psycho-physical disorders such as sleep disorders, having nightmares and
headaches.
The study also considered the assistance survivors received from government agencies, family and
community. A key recommendation of the study is that survivors not only need acceptance, love
and support from their families and communities but they also require greater assistance in accessing
vocational training and employment.
The conclusions and recommendations for psychological support are made to assist receiving
agencies and communities in how they provide treatment for survivors. These recommendations are
based on the investigation of psycho-social difficulties faced by survivors of trafficking, their needs
and responsiveness to their needs.
5
1 Introduction to research project
1.1
About the study
This is a pilot study by Counselling, Research and Life Psychology (SHARE). The data collection
was conducted between December 2010 and April 2011 by Luu Thi Lich, MA Psychology; To Thi
Hanh, MA Psychology; and Nguyen Thi Chinh, MA Psychology. They all have 3-5 years experience
in counselling for disadvantaged people including returnees of human trafficking.
The study aims to provide officials who receive and assist survivors of trafficking with more
understanding about the psycho-social difficulties faced by survivors so that officials can then give
more appropriate assistance to the survivors.
SHARE cooperated with Peace House shelter (see Map 3) and Bac Giang Department of Social Evil
Prevention (Chi cục phòng chống tệ nạn xã hội Bắc Giang) (see Map 2) to conduct this study. These
two organisations were selected because both received survivors of trafficking who have returned to
Vietnam. Peace House shelter – Center for Women and Development received returnees and
provided psycho-social support and vocational training support. The Bac Giang Department of
Social Issues has many projects and support programs for returnees. As this is a small pilot study,
the field of research was limited to these two sites: Peace House shelter and a community in Bac
Giang province.
The results of this study will be shared with a number of agencies who receive and assist survivors
of trafficking. They will contribute to the formulation of an effective model of psychological support
for the group of returnees in Peace House shelter as well as other shelters. Recommendations for
supporting the returnees within their respective communities will also be made.
6
Map 1: South-east Asia
Source: Singapore Transport Supply Service, http://www.stss.com.sg/wpcontent/uploads/2009/09/southeast_asia_map2.gif accessed 27 May 2014.
7
Map 2: Provinces of Vietnam
Source: The Encyclopedia of Earth, Agency, C., Fund, W., & Department, U., 2012,
http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/172991/, accessed 10 May 2014.
8
Map 3: Map of Hanoi Province, highlighting Tay Ho district where the Peace House is
located
Source: http://www.hanoiguide.net/about-hanoi/hanoi-map/
9
1.2
Research objective and research questions
The objectives of this study are:

to investigate the psycho-social difficulties faced by trafficked women after they have
returned to Vietnam, specifically in terms of their reintegration and the subsequent problems
that they experienced; and
 to make some general recommendations for the care of returnees who suffer such psychosocial difficulties.
An understanding of the objectives will be gained by answering the following research questions:

what are the psycho-social difficulties that survivors of trafficking face when they return to
Vietnam? How do these difficulties impact on the women’s ability to reintegrate into the
community, find employment and build social relationships?

what support do survivors of trafficking receive when they return to Vietnam? Are these
support systems adequate in meeting the psycho-social needs of the survivors? Are there
other effective psychological supports that can be provided within communities and shelters
to survivors of trafficking?
1.3
Methodology
Nineteen in-depth interviews with both returnees and officials-in-charge were conducted. Each
interview lasted for about 1 hour. All of the survivors of trafficking that were interviewed were
female.
In-depth interviews were conducted with survivors of trafficking to investigate, first, what the
survivors’ experiences were, and secondly, to understand the physical, psychological, mental and
social difficulties that they faced upon returning to Vietnam. Survivors can find it difficult to share
such information. In-depth interviews were also conducted with officials who work with survivors
of trafficking as they provided both general and detailed information about the returnees’
interactions with others, attitudes, behaviour and feelings.
The group discussion method was used in this research to ascertain the health issues and life
difficulties that people faced and the support that the returnees received. This method was applied
10
to only two groups of survivors in the above-mentioned locations. There were between seven and
eight people in each discussion. Each discussion lasted for about 90 minutes.
The study used Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 42 (DASS) to assess the level of anxiety, depression
and stress experienced by returnees.
1.4
Research ethics
The research was conducted between December 2010 and April 2011 using ethical procedures
approved by the Monash University Human Research and Ethics Committee (Application
CF10/0173-2010000057: ‘Delivering Effective Protection to Victims and Prevention of Human
Trafficking in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region’).
The privacy, dignity and safety of research participants were ensured by the following the ethical
procedures:

written consent for the interview and consent for recording was obtained before the
interview;

every participant was assured that their identity would remain confidential and all were free
to withdraw from the interview at any time or to refuse to answer any question that they did
not feel comfortable to answer; and

the researchers ensured that no harm was caused to participants and their security and safety
was assured.
1.5
Limitations of the research
As this is a small scale pilot research project, there were some limitations placed on the project. The
research team was unable to cover the whole country due to a lack of manpower, time and financial
resources. The sample size and the number of research sites also had to be limited due to time and
budget constraints. Results therefore are based on an assessment of data collected from this small
sample, which constitutes only a small proportion of the total population of survivors of trafficking.
We have limited standardized tools designed to assess mental health issues for Vietnamese people.
In this research, we used the Australian standard to measure stress, anxiety and depression. We also
11
used the terms and definition of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder from the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder of the American Psychiatric Association.2
Information on the survivors of trafficking is limited due to the lack of time to be able to access
research participants; for that reason there is a lack of some specific information for some
participants.
2
American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5)
http://www.dsm5.org/Pages/Default.aspx, accessed 24 March 2015.
12
2 Trafficking in Vietnam
2.1
Definitions
Psycho-social difficulties
The definition of ‘Psycho-social’ varies between different organizations and agencies. However there
are several common aspects to the definitions below:
“The term psychosocial is used to emphasise the close connection between psychological
aspects of human experience and the wider social experience. Psychological effects are those
that affect different levels of functioning including cognitive (perception and memory as a
basis for thoughts and learning), affective (emotions), and behavioural. Social effects concern
relationships, family and community networks, cultural traditions and economic status,
including life tasks such as school or work.”3
PSYCHOLOGY

Cognitive

Affective

Behavioural
SOCIAL
Relationships
Family and community
networks
 Cultural traditions
 Economic status


“The use of the term psycho-social is based on the idea that a combination of factors is
responsible for psycho-social wellbeing of people that are biological, emotional, spiritual,
cultural, social, mental and material aspects of experience can not necessarily be separated
from one another.”4
3
Action for the Rights of Children, ARC Resource Pack: Foundation Module 7 – Psychosocial Support, at
http://www.refworld.org/publisher,ARC,TRAININGMANUAL,,,,0.html#SRTop11.
4
Ibid.
13
In this study, psycho-social difficulties can be understood as constraints or problems that returnees
faced in attempts to maintain personal wellbeing and establish healthy social relationships. In
particular this includes:

physical/ health problems;

internal constraints such as mental health and emotional issues and issues of self-perception;
and

social constraints in maintaining/ building relationship, problems in employment and social
interaction.
Trafficking in persons
The definition of trafficking in persons used in this study is based on the Protocol to Prevent,
Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children in 2000 (Palermo
Protocol). That definition is as follows:
Trafficking in persons shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer,
harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other
forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a
position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to
achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose
of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the
prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services,
slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs. 5
Until recently, the only Vietnamese legislation prohibiting human trafficking was the Penal
Code. 6 Article 119 prohibits trafficking in women and article 120 creates the offence of
trafficking in children.7 In 2011, the Vietnamese Government passed a new anti-trafficking
law.8 This law expands the offence of trafficking in persons beyond the Penal Code offences
in articles 119 and 120, which are adopted as part of the new anti-trafficking law in article
5
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, supplementing
the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (‘Trafficking Protocol’), opened for
signature 15 November 2000, 2237 UNTS 319 (entered into force 25 December 2003), art 3(a).
6
Penal Code, Law No. 15/1999/QH10.
7
Ibid.
8
Law No. 66/2011/QH12 on Human Trafficking Prevention and Combat.
14
3(1). The new trafficking in persons offences relate to the recruitment, transfer,
transportation, harbouring or receiving of persons “for sexual exploitation, forced labour or
removal of human organs or other inhuman purposes” and the law creates an offence for
people who are brokers and people who force another person to carry out one of the above
actions.9
Reintegration
Reintegration of trafficked persons after returning to their country of origin can be defined as
follows:
Human trafficking can result from a migration process where migrants lose autonomy and
control of their own situation and are ultimately exploited. (Re)Integration should therefore
be about ensuring survivors of trafficking regain their autonomy and control of their own
lives. It is not just about returning back home, but about being socially and economically
empowered to make better informed decisions, and to become a healthy, productive
member of society, wherever that might be. In many cases (re)integration means a victim
will return to his/her family and area of origin, but it may also involve integration into a new
community or even a new country, depending on the needs and opportunities available for
the victim. A central aspect of (re)integration is to promote self-reliance and resiliency, and
to empower, encourage, and equip survivors of trafficking to improve their own situation
based on their skills and aspirations.10
Survivors of trafficking
Survivors of trafficking are women who were trafficked overseas through ways, such as those
described in the definition of trafficking, and subsequently returned to Vietnam. In this report we
also use the term ‘returnees’ with the same meaning as ‘survivors’ of trafficking.
2.2
Trafficking in persons in Vietnam
Trafficking in persons is not a new issue in Vietnam. Trafficking within the country occurs within a
complicated network of actors and has detrimental consequences to the trafficked persons, their
families and communities.
9
Law No. 66/2011/QH12, articles 3(2)-(5).
United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking, SIREN Report: Re-thinking reintegration – What do
returning victims really want & need? Evidence from Thailand and the Philippines, GMS-07, 28 August 2009, 2.
10
15
In Vietnam, trafficking is experienced by men, women and children.11 While cultural, economic and
social factors result in females being the most vulnerable to trafficking12, many women chose to
migrate but are exploited during their migration journey.13 Vietnam is also a transit and destination
country for trafficking in persons, but it is principally a source for destination countries such as
Cambodia, China and countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region. 14 It is recognised that the
primary destination for trafficked persons from Southern Vietnam is Cambodia, while the majority
of trafficked persons from Northern Vietnam end up in China.15
Trafficking of women and children in Vietnam is disguised in different forms such as illegal
migration, forced marriage, labour migration, and even as tourism. Some trafficked persons are
forced to do sex work or are married illegally. The majority of trafficked persons are of the Kinh
ethnicity who, before being trafficked, usually worked in agriculture, had low education levels and
their families experienced financial hardship.
The findings of this report confirm that traffickers usually target naïve women and children in poor
and remote areas, who have limited education, and may be experiencing financial difficulty and \ or
are jobless. Often they are promised jobs in cities but are actually trafficked across borders and
subsequently sold to brothels or criminal organizations. Another strategy is to take advantage of
intimate relations among border communities. Traffickers gain the community’s trust and promise in
order to take the trafficked women to a foreign country with the intention of selling them to
trafficking agencies there.
11
United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking, UNIAP Vietnam, www.notrafficking.org/vietnam_who.html; US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in Persons Report 2014 (‘TIP
Report 2014’), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, 408-410, 408; US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in
Persons Report 2013 (‘TIP Report 2013’), http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, 392-395, 392; Kneebone S. and
Debeljak J., 2012 148-9.
12
US State Department, ‘Topics of Special Interest – Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking’, Trafficking in
Persons Report 2009 (‘TIP Report 2009’), 41.
13
Hoang L. A., ‘Gender and Agency in Migration Decision Making: Evidence from Vietnam’, Asia Research
Institute Working Paper Series No. 115, April 2009, www.ari.nus.edu.sg/docs/wps/wps09_115.pdf, accessed 29 July
2014.
14
United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking, UNIAP Vietnam, www.notrafficking.org/vietnam_who.html; Pham 2013, 2; TIP Report 2009, 41; TIP Report 2014, 408; TIP Report 2013,
393; see also Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 149.
15
Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 148; TIP Report 2013, 393; see also United Nations Inter-Agency Project on
Human Trafficking, UNIAP Vietnam, www.no-trafficking.org/vietnam_who.html.
16
Besides professional traffickers, women and children who had previously been trafficked to China
(to become sex workers or marry Chinese men) sometimes lure, from their home towns, other
women and children, including their own relatives, into trafficking. There are also people who
operate their business near the border, who know the area well and who traffic women and children
overseas with the assistance of match making or adoption agencies. Traffickers take advantage of
border areas with trails as well as simplification of border immigration procedure to conduct their
business.
Although Vietnam previously understood human trafficking to be primarily a phenomenon that was
connected to the prostitution of women and children, it is beginning to view this issue as a much
more multi-faceted problem that includes internal migration and the trafficking of men. 16 As
discussed below, there is also a new trend of traffickers using the Internet to entice people into a
trafficking situation, particularly urban middle-class Vietnamese people.17
There are currently four main channels of trafficking in persons in Vietnam: first, the Vietnam –
China border (Quang Ninh, Lang Son, Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Cao Bang) which accounts for 70% of
trafficking cases in the country; secondly, the Vietnam – Cambodia border (An Giang, Tay Ninh,
Dong Thap, Hau Giang); thirdly, the Vietnam – Laos border especially the on-land channel to
Thailand and Malaysia via Cambodia and Laos; fourthly, the transnational channel to destinations
such as Macao, Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Europe.
2.3
Vietnam’s response to trafficking in persons
Vietnam has a new anti-trafficking law that began operation in January 2012 18, which employs a
definition of trafficking that is consistent with the internationally accepted definition in the
Trafficking Protocol. 19 There were significant delays in the implementation of this new law, which
creates offences but does not stipulate the penalties for their breach.20 However, in July 2013 the
penalties for these offences under the new anti-trafficking law were created by a joint circular, which
16
Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 148; see also TIP Report 2014, 408.
TIP Report 2013, 393.
18
See TIP Report 2013, 393; UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 7.
19
UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 7.
20
Penal Code, No. 15/1999/QH10; TIP Report 2013, 393.
17
17
began operation in September that year.21 Instead, Vietnam’s labour and criminal laws are used to
prosecute traffickers. 22 While Article 119 of the Penal Code originally created the offence of
trafficking in women, 23 the definition was expanded in 2009 to include all human beings, thus
including males. 24 Furthermore, Article 120 provides for an offence of trafficking in children. 25
Despite the sufficient penalties that are provided for offences against Articles 119 and 120, the
scope for application of these provisions is limited due to both the lack of definitions and restrictive
interpretations by judicial officers. 26 In addition, the Penal Code focuses more heavily on child
trafficking and trafficking for sexual exploitation than labour or marriage trafficking.27 Furthermore,
offences for labour trafficking under labour laws are not punished as criminal offences.28
The 2013 and 2014 Trafficking in Persons Reports state that Vietnam has taken insufficient action in
relation to the identification and protection of survivors of trafficking and the law enforcement of all
types of trafficking.29 However, Vietnam has improved its response to human trafficking in recent
years, moving from the Tier 2 Watch List in 2010 and 2011 to Tier 2 in 2012, 2013 and 2014.30
The Vietnamese Government has a 2011-2015 National Action Plan, which has a budget allocation
of roughly $15 million VND.31 According to Hoang, this National Plan of Action fails to deal with
the relationship between labour migration and trafficking in persons. 32 Originally, the National
Steering Committee on Human Trafficking administered the National Plan of Action, however this
21
TIP Report 2014, 409.
Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 151, 172; TIP Report 2013, 393-394; UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 6-9.
23
Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 172; TIP Report 2013, 393; Socialist Republic of Vietnam, National Assembly,
Penal Code, No. 15/1999/QH10; UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 6-7.
24
Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 151 (citations excluded); UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 6; UNIAP Sentinel Report
2011, 6-7; Penal Code, No. 15/1999/QH10.
25
Penal Code, No. 15/1999/QH10; Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 151 (citations excluded), 172; TIP Report 2013,
393-4; UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 6-7.
26
Penal Code, No. 15/1999/QH10; TIP Report 2013, 393-4; UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 6-7; see also Kneebone
and Debeljak 2012, 151.
27
Penal Code, No. 15/1999/QH10; UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 7.
28
UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 7; TIP Report 2013, 394.
29
TIP Report 2014, 409-10; TIP Report 2013, 393-5.
30
TIP Report 2014, 408; TIP Report 2013, 392; US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in Persons Report
2012, http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, 370-374, 370; US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in Persons
Report 2011, http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, 383-387, 383; US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in
Persons Report 2010, http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, 349-352, 349.
31
Hoang T. T. P., An Analysis of the Protection Regime for Trafficked Persons – From the International to Vietnam,
Thesis, Monash University, 2013, 185 (references excluded); TIP Report 2013, 395.
32
TTP Hoang 2013, 185-6.
22
18
committee has now become part of the Steering Board for Crime Prevention and Control. 33 But the
focus is not limited to trafficking in women and children: rather it takes the broader “trafficking in
persons” approach.34 In 2010, together with the Chinese Government, the Vietnamese Government
signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Strengthening Cooperation on Preventing and Combating Human
Trafficking (MOU 2010). 35 This is a significant step in Vietnam’s anti-trafficking efforts as the
majority of Vietnamese trafficked persons are trafficked to China. Both governments have agreed to
cooperate in prevention, communication and identification of trafficked persons (MOU 2010, article
1).
2.4
Reintegration of returned trafficked women in Vietnam
The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) is one of the main government
departments responsible for the reintegration of trafficking survivors in Vietnam.36 However, the
responsibility for reintegration support and assistance is also shared with non-governmental and
international organisations.37
The United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP) suggests that a
reintegration support program for trafficked persons needs to have the following characteristics:

“pro-active outreach” to improve identification;

vocational and skills training for economic advancement;

“a rights-based approach” which includes “flexible and individualized support” that
empowers trafficked persons “to make their own informed choices”;

services that are available “when returnees are ready to receive assistance”; and

avenues for migration that are “[s]afe and legal” (when required).38
Vietnam’s anti-trafficking law provides for the support of trafficking survivors as they reintegrate
into society. Basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter can be provided to survivors as
required.39 Additional assistance may be provided to trafficking survivors who wish to return to their
33
TIP Report 2014, 410; TIP Report 2013, 395.
TTP Hoang 2013, 185.
35
UNIAP Sentinel Report 2011, 10; Kneebone and Debeljak 2012, 158.
36
IOM 2012, 22.
37
IOM 2012, 23; Devine 2009, 82.
38
UNIAP SIREN Report 2009.
39
Law No. 66/2011/QH12, arts 32 and 33; IOM 2012, 22.
34
19
home but cannot afford to do so.40 Medical assistance and psychological support are available to
survivors but only “during their stay at social security or victim support establishments”.41 Legal
advice and assistance is available to trafficking survivors in relation to judicial proceedings,
compensation claims and registration of their residential status.42 An allowance and vocational
training may be available to trafficking survivors from poor families who are returning to their
home.43 Victim support organisations are to provide shelter, medical and psychological assistance,
vocational and living skills training and information on support services to trafficking survivors.44 In
reality, many of these support services are provided by INGOs and NGOs due to the “lack of
capacity of the government”.45 Furthermore, “[d]ue to the fact that the majority of returnees go
straight back to their communities without going through shelters/centres, more attention needs to
be paid to supporting survivors in their reintegration into the community.”46
2.4.1
Reintegration support models
An IOM report on the reintegration support models available to Vietnamese trafficking survivors
found that there are two such models that adopt “victim-centered, rights-based approaches”.47 The
first model is assessment centered, which can be found in high-risk trafficking areas.48 Trafficked
women receive psycho-social and medical support, as well as assistance with the creation of a
“reintegration plan” which “provides options for education, vocational training or income
generation, and is designed to provide the resources needed for trafficked persons to achieve their
planned goals”. 49 The assessment centers provide a safe environment for women, with shelter and
food provided, and the opportunity to recover from her trafficking experience and break free from
the “victim” label.50 One limitation of the assessment centers is their lack of capacity in identifying
40
Law No. 66/2011/QH12, art 33; IOM 2012, 22.
Law No. 66/2011/QH12, arts 34 and 35; see also IOM 2012, 22.
42
Law No. 66/2011/QH12, art 36; IOM 2012, 22.
43
Law No. 66/2011/QH12, arts 37 and 38; IOM 2012, 22.
44
Law No. 66/2011QH12, art 40(1).
45
Hoang T. T. P., An Analysis of the Protection Regime for Trafficked Persons – From the International to Vietnam,
Thesis, Monash University, 2013, 254, 265.
46
Hoang 2013, 257 (references excluded).
47
IOM 2012, 13-4.
48
Ibid, 13, 31.
49
Ibid, 31, 36-7.
50
Ibid, 36-7.
41
20
trafficking survivors, which can result in some women not having access to support services such as
those provided in the assessment centers.51
The second model is self-help groups that are made available to trafficked women who do not have
access to other services.52 Self-help groups create an environment for psycho-social support for
trafficked women by allowing them to talk about their experiences with other trafficking survivors.53
These women also receive financial help and assistance through a reintegration plan.54 However,
these groups do not provide trafficked women with immediate support as there can be delays in
identification.55 Nevertheless, the self-help groups can assist trafficking survivors with the support
they require.56
A number of recommendations were suggested by IOM to improve the effectiveness of Vietnam’s
reintegration support for trafficking survivors, including that:

reintegration support is made available throughout Vietnam to survivors of all types of
trafficking;57

regular training is conducted for government officials and support staff regarding human
trafficking, psycho-social and mental health, and the importance of “privacy, confidentiality
and dignity [a]s the foremost consideration”;58

training in victim identification is prioritised so that more survivors will have access to these
reintegration support services;59

the essentiality of individually tailored support is emphasised, particularly for disabled or
ethnic trafficking survivors;60

the use of the self-help group model is increased in areas where there is a significant
population of trafficking survivors, in order to provide an environment where trafficking
51
Ibid, 36-7.
Ibid, 13.
53
Ibid, 31, 45, 48, 52.
54
Ibid, 31, 45, 48, 52.
55
Ibid, 45.
56
Ibid, 45.
57
Ibid, 14.
58
Ibid, 15-6, 52-4, 64; see also Devine 2009, 87.
59
IOM 2012, 51.
60
IOM 2012, 15, 40-1. 52-3, 63; Devine 2009, 87, 96.
52
21
survivors “can support each other, provide mutual psycho-social support and be a group for
income-generation activities”;61 and

the availability of psychological, counseling and mental health services for trafficking
survivors immediately upon their return from their trafficking experience is increased.62
2.4.2
Psycho-social support
Physical, psychological and psycho-social treatment and support is required “in all phases of the
recovery and reintegration process”.63 If this treatment is not tailored to the needs of the individual
victim, it “may inadvertently be the cause of further psychological distress or ‘re-victimization’”.64
There are a number of factors that must be considered in determining the support that is required
by each victim, including the type and length of exploitation they experienced, their family
background, health, culture, ethnicity and age.65
Psycho-social support relates to both the social and psychological needs of the victim, including
their ability to form and maintain relationships, their ability to learn and remember, and their ability
to behave within “culturally-appropriate social codes”.66 Its purpose is “to reduce the impact that
stress and emotional distress have on individuals and to strengthen individual and community
coping mechanisms and healing processes” with the aim of “achiev[ing] personal and social wellbeing”.67
Of all the support services available to female returnees, it is widely accepted that psychological
support and counseling is the most essential immediately upon their return from their trafficking
experience.68 Psychological symptoms of trafficking can include trauma, loss of trust, depression,
acute or post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety.69
61
IOM 2012, 15, 53.
IOM 2012, 39-40.
63
Devine, S., Psychosocial and Mental Health Service Provision for Survivors of Trafficking: Baseline Research in
the Greater Mekong Subregion and Indonesia, IOM: 2012, ix, 1.
64
Ibid, 1, 11.
65
Ibid, 3, 14, 87.
66
Ibid, 4-5.
67
Ibid, 4 (citations excluded).
68
IOM 2012, 39.
69
IOM 2012, 39; see also Devine 2009, 8-9.
62
22
3 Analysis of profiles of research participants – trafficking
causes and vulnerabilities
3.1
Age of survivors and reasons for being trafficked
Nine of the fifteen returnees were aged between 17 to 21 years. Five returnees were trafficked for
sexual exploitation, four for forced marriage and two for labour exploitation, while the remaining
four returnees did not explain their trafficking experience in detail. Most of the young returnees who
were trafficked across borders were forced to do sex work. Older returnees had been married off or
subjected to labour exploitation.
3.2
Origin and education level
Most returnees were from the northern mountainous areas of Vietnam such as Ha Giang, Lang Son,
Bac Giang, Lao Cai and Quang Ninh provinces, which are located near the Vietnam – China border.
Education levels and the economic background are factors that can make a person especially prone
to being deceived by traffickers. While most of the returnees did not give information about their
economic background, those that did came from a poor family.
There were varying education levels amongst the returnees, with most providing this information.
While two did not finish primary school, one completed year 11 and another the first year of
vocational school. Two returnees had completed Grade 9 while Grade 5, 7, and 8 were completed
by one returnee each.
23
Figure 1: Education levels of returnees
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
3.3
Family’s financial situation
Most of the survivors who migrated for employment reasons were in financially difficult situations
and hoped that finding employment abroad would alleviate their problems. Some returnees had
young children and needed money to raise their children.
Two of the teenaged trafficked women had experienced the death of one of their parents (A02 and
A03). One returnees’ mother was herself also a returnee from a trafficking experience (A04). Her
father had remarried and she lived with many different family members for varying periods of time
before being trafficked (A04).
24
4 Analysis of profiles of research participants – trafficking
experiences
4.1
Means of exploitation
Five of the returnees were trafficked for sexual exploitation, two for forced labour and four were
subjected to forced marriage. The exploitation experienced by the remaining four trafficked women
is unclear. The main recruitment methods that were adopted are discussed below.
Figure 2: Means of exploitation
Unclear
27%
Sexual exploitation
33%
Forced labour
13%
Forced marriage
27%
4.1.1
Promise of employment to help family and self
Most of the survivors of trafficking had travelled to China for employment reasons. The
overwhelming majority of returnees had been offered a job opportunity before leaving Vietnam. In
most cases, either friends and acquaintances or people they had met randomly were involved in the
recruitment process and the promise of employment. One returnee revealed that she had met a
woman who told her to “… go to Sapa with her to work in a restaurant. She lived 8km away from
my home. I met her through a friend” [A01]. The formal recruitment process was rarely used.
25
These friends and acquaintances who acted as recruiters often made
false promises about the nature of the work that they would engage
in. One interviewee said that she met a woman in a “hang out
session” who talked her into working for her mother’s eatery in
China [A07]. It was only when the interviewee arrived in China that
she was told that she was “brought there to do sex work” [A07].
The interviewee informed her own mother who contacted the
police, but the trafficker scolded her for doing so [A07].
At least five returnees were lured into leaving Vietnam with the
promise of a comfortable working life that would give them high
wages. One research participant said she felt that she had many
similarities between her and her recruiter, whom she had met in an
internet shop [A08]. She said that the recruiter had “talked me into
going to Lao Cai to work with salary of 3,000,000 VND/month. I
was just hoping to find a job that will feed me and pay me as much
as 50,000 VND/month. What she offered was far beyond my
expectation. Thus I decided to go with her. I didn’t inform my
parents and just said that I would go to find a job” [A08]. Another
Case Study – A10
A10 was married against her will to a
Chinese man. She was taken to three
houses in an attempt to marry her
off. This is her account of her
experiences at the first two houses:
“They brought me to the first house
and said “You are here to get
married”. I said, “No, I absolutely
won’t, I won’t get married. I still
have my mother, my 2 children, I
won’t leave them. I have to bring up
my children, one 13 years old, the
other 10 years old, how can I
abandon my mother and my
children?” I told them to bring me
back, they refused. It was the same
in the second house, they could not
sell me. They said, “If we can’t sell
you, we will kill you”. I replied, “If
you don’t kill me and I stay here, I
will die anyway”.
research participant had a similar experience where the recruiter told
her that she would “help look after [the recruiter’s] family’s internet
shop and … would be paid 6,000,000 VND/month” [A06].
4.1.2
Trafficked to China for marriage
All of the four participants who were forced into a marriage had been convinced by recruiters that
they would go to China to work. One participant said, “I attempted to run away once but was
caught. I didn’t know that I would be going there for marriage. That person told me I would do
domestic work. I was 14 years old then. That person said I would be paid 3 to 4 million VND. My
family was poor so I wanted to help my parents” [A03].
26
4.1.3
Drugged
One participant was recruited against her will when she was drugged by a Vietnamese couple she
had met whilst working in a Christmas ornament factory [A04]. One day she went shopping with the
couple and had coffee at a coffee shop. After taking a few sips of coffee the victim lost
consciousness and woke up in a strange place. The victim asked the woman where she was and “she
said it was her home and she would bring me back to the factory the next day” [A04]. But the victim
was not returned and after several days she found out that she had been trafficked [A04].
4.2
Exploitation and abuse
There was a range of exploitation and abuse inflicted upon the trafficked women, as shown in the
graph below. However, in this section, we will be focusing on the two of the main forms of
exploitation – physical violence and sexual abuse.
Figure 3: Types of exploitation
8
7
Number of returnees
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Types of exploitation
27
4.2.1
Physical violence
A returnee complained that her employers had physically
abused her by beating her and kicking her in her abdomen.
Despite being in intense pain, she was nevertheless
required to get up at night to do the car washing and carry
heavy trash bins. When her employers returned home they
would check to see if there were any stains. They said, “if
there was any stain I would have to clean again, every
Case study – A07
“They beat me very often and I had to
work from 7am to 4am the next day and
only 1 small meal per day. When I was
too tired to see customers, they beat me.
When I got too tired and fell asleep after
seeing customers, they beat me too. I
was always living in fear because the
pimp threatened that she/he would sell
me further if I didn’t see customers.”
window. I had to do cleaning all night. Some days I didn’t
have anything to eat from dawn to dusk. They gave us Chinese bread which sometimes was
uneatable”.
Case Study – A05
Employers used threats, fear, physical violence and
abductions to exercise control over the women who were
forced to work as sex workers. All but one of these five
women suffered beatings, either at the hands of their
owner, their customers or both.
A returnee said, “they [the employers] used a knife to
threaten me and hit me and force me to see customers”
[A08].
Physical and sexual abuse were used to invoke fear and
deter women from trying to escape. One returnee felt
“scared and anxious,” and feared that if she ran away the
employers would hire gangsters to look for her [A01].
Gangsters were even hired to rape one of the women
[A10]. The women did not easily forget these experiences,
and many of them continue to suffer from anxiety and
stress as a result.
“I was badly beaten: they used big sticks,
and an electric rod to cause burns on my
body. I was brought to a hotel – rushed
out – got 2 slaps. They used a knife to hit
my thighs and forced me to see
customers. Thirteen to 15 customers a
day. I could not stand it, I was too tired.
I was hit, slapped, and electrocuted. I
bled badly. They beat me for 2 months. I
scream in my dreams of those days. I
was abducted many times. Those
gangsters, they looked very fierce. I stole
a customer’s phone to call home. He
found out. I was beaten and threatened
to be sent away. Other co-workers
begged for me. I was not allowed to eat
for 3 – 4 days and had to see customers
non-stop. They didn’t allow me to go to
hospital. I had to stay there, use medicine
and eat plain porridge. When I recovered
a bit they forced me to see customers
right away. Some people were kind, they
gave me money to give to the pimp. But
some were cruel. They gave me bandage
and forced me to see customers, they
didn’t care that I was bleeding. Some
customers even hit me as I was bleeding.
If I didn’t see customers the pimp would
hit me. If I saw customers, customers
28
would hit me.”
4.2.2
Sexual abuse
Returnees who worked as sex workers frequently saw up to 10 – 15 customers per day, regardless of
their physical condition. Two reported being given only one meal per day (A01 and A07).
Women who had been forced into arranged marriages were also subjected to physical abuse from
their husbands and his family. A returnee who did not have any sexual relations with her husband
was caught by her in-laws whilst she was trying to escape. She said, “when I ran away and they
caught me back, they stripped off all my clothes. I was so embarrassed. They were very smart that
they didn’t leave anything in the room. The room was very small. When everyone went to bed, my
father-in-law and brother-in-law locked me and my husband in there. We had a pail in the bedroom
for the toilet” [A09].
4.3
Escape, rescue and return home
Figure 4: Mode of return
10
9
Number of returnees
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Police
involvement
Family
involvement
By herself
Job ended
Unclear/not
stated
Mode of return
Five returnees escaped by themselves, or with friends, to a police station. Police were involved in the
return of another four participants. One returnee said that she ran away with a co-worker when the
29
owner went to pick up new traffickees [A07]. They stayed at a hotel over “night and took a taxi to
the police station the next day to report” [A07]. Once at the police station in China, three returnees
were detained there. One victim complained that she was detained “in the same place with drug
addicts” for one and a half months [A01]. Another returnee, who had run away with a friend, had to
stay in a detention center for two months because they didn’t have passports [A04].
The Chinese police would then escort the survivors to the Vietnamese border. Participant A01 was
taken to the border and handed over to Vietnamese police and then placed in an orphanage for five
days until her father picked her up [A01]. The police escorted another returnee who had run away
“through the forest to the border”. She obtained a lift from a friend’s friend to Hung Yen. She
rented a room there and then took a coach to Hai Phong the next day [A04].
Three families were involved in the returnees’
rescue. One returnee had left home in search
of a job and on the fifth day that she had been
gone, her family went to look for her [A02].
Her family sought help from the local Chinese
because “they knew the area and could figure
out where [the survivors of trafficking] were”
[A02]. In another case, the trafficked woman
returned to Vietnam with her Chinese husband
and their child at his request (A14).
Case Study – A08
“I managed to call home when I was seeing a
customer. My pimp found out and they beat me
really hard. Upon my call my mother informed the
police in Lao Cai and they informed the police in
China. When Chinese police raided our brothel,
we were brought to a chamber and the guards put
a knife to our necks, threatening that they would
kill us if we screamed. Right on the next day we
were brought to an apartment on the 6th floor.
When the pimp wasn’t there, we tied clothes
together to make a rope to climb down. The rope
extended to the 2nd floor only because there was
not enough clothes. Other people were scared to
jump from the 2nd floor so there was only me who
managed to escape and run to the police station.
After I reported at the police station, the police
came and rescued 4 more people.”
30
5 Psycho-social difficulties faced by returnees
This section will present the findings obtained during the interviews in order to identify the main
problems and difficulties faced by returnees once they have returned to Vietnam. The findings can
be categorized in terms of the following broader issues:
1. physical problems;
2. mental health issues;
3. discrimination from the community; and
4. distress about future life and well-being.
5.1
Physical problems
Five returnees were forced to work as sex workers, three of whom are unsure if they are able to have
children anymore. Two of the returnees reported having sexually transmitted diseases from being
forced to work as a sex worker [A06 and A08]. A returnee had been informed by her doctor that
because she had too many infections, she “would not be able to conceive and [she] was devastated”
about this. [A08]
Three women reported having an abortion. One woman recalled the difficult decision she took to
abort her pregnancy by hitting her “abdomen with [her] fists to destroy the foetus” [A08]. She said
that “although the pimp told us to just give birth if we are pregnant and she will take care of the
child, I didn’t want my child to suffer so I did it. After the incident I didn’t have any day off and had
to receive customers as usual because the pimp will beat me if she found out I aborted” [A08]. A
returnee who had an abortion, performed by a doctor, after she returned to Vietnam still felt very
emotional afterwards [A04].
One woman experienced significant weight loss after having an abortion because she had difficulty
sleeping and was distressed [A06]. Most women became emotional and wept when pregnancy and
motherhood were mentioned during the interview.
Physical examination and treatment for returnees is crucial to any program that provides
care for returnees. There is also a need to establish psychological counseling services to
address the returnees’ anxiety and the concerns that they have about their fertility. This helps
31
returnees to recognize their self-worth and minimize harmful behavior to self and others in the
future.
5.1.1
Other physical issues
Returnees told horrific stories about the physical trauma they endured whilst working. All of the
returnees who were trafficked for sexual exploitation reported working for many hours a day. One
returnee reported that she suffers back and neck pain as a result of her work while trafficked. She
said that it is “so painful that [the returnee] had to lie down for a while and continue [her] meal after
that, and then resume [her] work” [A15].
Even after the survivors had returned home they continued to experience physical and emotional
pain as a result of the harsh conditions that they had endured. One returnee reported having a “joint
infection and dizziness” [A07]. Three returnees had trouble going to sleep, while five returnees had
flashbacks of their experience in their dreams.
One returnee had borrowed money from the bank before she left Vietnam and did not have any
money when she returned. She was worried and clearly felt isolated from the rest of the community
and said, “I didn’t dare to see others. That was why I had headache. I also had backache because I
was forced to do heavy work beyond my capacity” [Group 1 – see Appendix 3].
5.2
Mental health and other emotional issues
5.2.1
Stress, anxiety and depression
In addition to the data on tension and anxiety collected through interviews with returnees, the
research team used Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS) to aid the assessment of the
severity of the returnees’ psychological trauma. DASS was used only on returnees at Peace House
shelter as they had returned within 9 months of the data collection (see p4 above). The rest of the
respondents had returned more than 2 years prior so DASS was not applicable. The results are
contained in the table below.
32
Figure 5: Results from DASS test
Returnee ID
Stress
Anxiety
Depression
1
Severe
Moderate
Normal
2
Mild
Severe
Mild
3
Moderate
Moderate
Normal
4
Moderate
Extremely severe
Severe
5
Moderate
Extremely severe
Extremely severe
6
Moderate
Severe
Extremely severe
7
Mild
Moderate
Fairly critical
8
Moderate
Extremely severe
Mild
9
Normal
Moderate
Mild
10
Critical
Extremely severe
Extremely severe
11
Moderate
Normal
Mild
12
Severe
Extremely severe
Mild
13
Severe
Extremely severe
Moderate
Normal
Mild
Moderate
Severe
Extremely severe
33
The results above show that all returnees experienced at least one of the three psychological
disorders (stress, anxiety and depression). Only four returnees had a normal result for one of these
three disorders.
The returnees’ stress level ranged from moderate to severe (6 out of 13 were in the moderate
category and 4 out of 13 in the severe category). The DASS results show that returnees experienced
stress and pressures from family and peers, and from reintegration in shelters. Some were distressed
because they were illiterate, ridiculed by friends or unable to attend school. Some were distressed
because they were planning to see their family again and were not sure if their family would accept
them.
The DASS results also show that, of the three disorders, returnees most commonly reported
suffering from anxiety. Six out of thirteen reported extremely severe anxiety, two had severe anxiety
and four had moderate anxiety and only one was categorized as normal. Respondents shared with
interviewers many of their anxieties. They reported experiencing anxiety during sleep, daily routines
as well as in their thoughts. Some reported having nightmares of being re-trafficked, or being
anxious that they would have no future, or that they would not be able to have children, that their
family and parents would not accept them, and that they would not find someone who loves them
or wants to marry them.
Some returnees reported experiencing depression. Of the thirteen people, there were two in the
normal category, five in the mild category and three in the extremely severe category. However, to
assess depression more accurately there needs to be clinical assessments and other techniques
applied.
It should also be noted that the use of this test is not conclusive.
5.2.2
Trauma and Post-traumatic stress disorder
This research did not use clinical test/tools to assess post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), however
it was easy to see that the returnees had some symptoms of PTSD such as: repeatedly reliving the
event (intrusive, distressing recollections; repeated distressing dreams, flashback, etc…); avoidance
of trauma related stimuli (trying to avoid thinking or conversations concerned with the event, trying
34
to avoid activities, places that recalled the event, etc…); and hyperarousal (insomnia, angry outbursts
or irritability, excessive vigilance, etc…).
Some returnees reported that they suffered from sleep disorders and had frequent nightmares.
Although they had left their former workplaces, some still recalled vividly how terrifying it was when
the pimp and customers would beat them. One returnee reported that she had frightening dreams
which would cause her to wake up trembling and made her too scared to fall asleep again [A03].
Another returnee said she dreamt of her experiences as if she was “still there” and being raped and
beaten [A08]. She said she felt scared that she would have to serve customers [A08]. One returnee
said that she had “terrifying feelings as if I am still there. It is so overwhelming that I can’t even
sleep. I can’t get rid of these feelings. I had more dreams of this kind when I just came back” [A12].
In order to cope with her problems, one returnee said she had taken to binge drinking: “now I long
for alcohol. When I go out with friends, we drink. I can take a litre of alcohol each time. Whenever I
go out, I drink. When my parents give me money, I will go buy drinks. My father drinks too” [A01].
One returnee, who would smoke and drink in China when she felt sad, gave up smoking and
drinking when she returned to Vietnam. She said, “now when I feel sad I talk to the social workers
or my mother” [A06]. Her story highlights the feelings that survivors experience when they return to
Vietnam and the positive impact that a strong support network can have on the rehabilitation of
returnees.
5.2.3
Emotional reaction to trafficker
Returnees reported that they often felt a great sense of anger, resentment, sadness and angst when
they returned to Vietnam. Returnees reported that they still harboured much resentment towards the
traffickers. One woman said she wanted to “beat them” and wanted “them to be punished and [put]
in jail” [A06]. Another returnee said she wants to “chop [her trafficker] up” [A07]. She said that she
would never be able to forgive or forget what happened to her.
5.2.4
Devaluing of self-image
Most of returnees saw themselves as having diminished worth, no future and felt ashamed to see
their relatives and family members. This self-perception was most prevalent among young returnees
35
who had been trafficked to China to work in brothels. They believed that the work that they
engaged in was viewed as a “social taboo”. They felt “ashamed and unconfident” and had very low
self-worth [A06].
5.2.5
Distrust of others and feelings of hopelessness about the future
One returnee who knew the trafficker felt betrayed and blamed her for ruining her life: “I can’t
understand how she [trafficker] could do that. Even she was sold by her own mother to become a
prostitute. She must see how much pain she has inflicted on us. I just want to chop her up! I can
never forgive her. She traded my life for only 60,000,000 VND! I am traumatised about being
trafficked and will never forget” [A07]. This returnee was fearful of being abused and drugged again.
She said, “I can’t trust anyone. After I returned I went out with friends only a few times, and I took
care of my drinks by myself (out of the fear for being drugged). I fear strangers and tricks” [A07].
One woman, who was 21 when she was trafficked, reported that the experience has made her more
mature and thoughtful. She also reported that she would not trust people so easily anymore [A12].
Two returnees reported contemplating suicide as they had lost hope for the future but they did not
act on their thoughts because of their mothers [A06 and A07]. They felt that only after a period of
receiving psychological support and reintegrating into the community (after many years) will they be
able to rebuild their trust in people and have hope for the future.
Community members sometimes made discriminatory remarks to the returnees. A returnee said that
she was so happy when she returned to Vietnam, but was very hurt when community members
taunted her and called her a “returning sex worker.” However, she saw this as a challenge that she
had to overcome. This proved to be difficult for her, as she still felt traumatised by the flashbacks
that she had of her trafficking experience [A08].
5.2.6
Fear of Love and marriage
The trafficking experience has the potential to impact on the woman’s marriage and intimate
relationships. For example, one returnee said that she was anxious or afraid of what her future
husband’s reaction would be if he found out about her past [A06]. She reported her fears that her
36
Case study: A06
husband would bring up her past every time that they
quarreled. For these reasons, she thought it would be
better if she did not get married.
Another concern amongst returnees who already had
boyfriends or husbands was whether and when to tell
them about their trafficking past. One returnee who
had a boyfriend before she went to China said that he
“didn’t know [she] went to China” but that she would
A06 has told her boyfriend about her
trafficking experience. She said:
“I have confessed everything to my
boyfriend and asked for break-up but he
didn’t agree. He very much sympathised
with me.”
However, she still does not feel
comfortable to see him again:
“I feel inferior about myself towards my
partner. It needs time to heal the
wounds so I haven’t seen my boyfriend
yet. We just talk on the phone.”
tell him before they get married [A01].
Case study: A07
A07 hasn’t told her boyfriend that she
was trafficked to China. She said:
“I am anxious because my boyfriend
suspects why I didn’t come home. I
don’t know if I should let him know and
how he would react. Since I returned I
don’t feel comfortable talking to my
boyfriend because I am not used to lying.
I am afraid of losing him. I am also
afraid that if I tell him and we break up
and then I have a new boyfriend he will
tell my new boyfriend. But I will tell him
before the [trafficker’s] trial takes place
because I don’t want him to hear about
this from someone else.”
5.3
One returnee who married after she returned to
Vietnam was forced to leave her husband because he
could not tolerate that she had been trafficked.
The anxiety and fear that many returnees felt about their
partner’s reactions was perhaps reflective of underlying
community perceptions of trafficking survivors, their
sexuality and the mistaken belief that survivors are in
part to blame for their predicament.
Social difficulties
Discrimination from community and family members
While there were stories of families and neighbours who were sympathetic and supportive of the
returnees, readjusting to life in the victim’s home community was also difficult for eight of the
women because they felt stigmatized by their family and community.
37
Returnees were concerned about how the community would judge them once they had returned.
Two returnees felt too ashamed to talk about their experiences to friends and neighbours. As one
woman said: “but I haven’t figured out how to face my friends. I don’t know how. If they ask I
think I would just say I left for a job in the provincial town” [A03].
One returnee reported that she was “afraid of discrimination from the villagers,” and thought that,
because of the villagers’ gossiping nature, if one community member judged her then everyone else
would too [A02]. Their fears of being judged by the community may have been well founded as
eight of the returnees (who had made known their experiences) reported gossiping and derogative
remarks from their family and community. One woman also reported that her mother was judged by
the community: “said my mother deserves it (the trafficking of the daughter to China). That hurts
me” [A01].
Reaction of family members
Case study – A06
Five women were abused and scorned by
their family. Three women were not
accepted back into their families by their
fathers and/or siblings, however their
mothers still loved and supported them
[A02, A06 and A07]. One woman’s relatives
viewed her “as a spoilt girl” [A07]. One
family’s
unforgiving
and
unwelcoming
attitude meant that the returnee had
nowhere to live: “after I returned, my older
brother and sister-in-law scorned me and
didn’t allow me in. My mother loves me but
she can’t have a say because my brother has
got married so I wasn’t allowed in. I didn’t
have anywhere to go” [A02].
However, some returnees received support
and care from family members. This is a
A06 explained that she faced difficult reactions
from her family and friends:
“My father and younger sister stay away from me
because they cannot accept such a daughter and
sister. … He said many hurting words but I
don’t blame him. Instead I feel very guilty to
him but I can’t apologise.”
Her sister no longer calls her “sister” and she
hopes to try to restore their relationship.
Her mother is loving and supportive of her, and
she wishes that her father would do the same: “I
wish that my father can understand and stop
hurting me with his words. I wish he comforts
me like my mother.”
While she has also had difficulties in her
friendships, she has also been surprised by the
reactions of other people in her life: “I don’t see
people’s humiliation of me as I expected. My
relatives, uncles, aunts, my mother and social
workers – they don’t look down on me. But one
close friend of me couldn’t take it when I talked
to her about what I had to go through over
there. I didn’t get any sympathy from her and
she stopped talking to me since then”.
38
remarkable source of encouragement for returnees to rebuild their faith in life and overcome the
difficulties of reintegration. One returnee said that her relationship with her parents became closer
and they “became a source of encouragement” [A08]. Other returnees said that they received
support, sympathy and acceptance from some or all of their family members. Another returnee
reported that the local officials were a great source of support: “there are some officials from the
province’s association to help me. I don’t care about neighbours but [I welcome] the help I have got
from these officials” [A02].
Education and vocational training
Three returnees expressed a desire to complete a vocational course in order to find a job [A03, A04
and A05]. However, two of these returnees reported that they needed help from officials to enroll in
a vocational course [A03 and A05]. Three returnees also hoped that by being employed they would
be able to “help their family members” [A03, A05 and A08]. Two women explained that they hoped
to do a life skills course at the Peace House shelter [A03 and A06]. A woman who wanted to
participate in such a course hoped “to pick up some skills to interact with people,” and thought that
by doing the course she would “become more mature and think more positive[ly]” [A03].
Three returnees wanted to go back to school so that they could finish their education [A01]. One
returnee had left school in Grade 11 to find work but after returning home said, “what is important
to me now is a high school diploma. My uncles and aunts said that I can find a job in the antitrafficking service after I finish my study. But I am not sure about that” [A02]. One returnee hopes
that her children can stay in school because she wants them to have a better future [A15].
Recommencing secondary schooling, though, may not be so straightforward and may result in
returnees facing additional humiliation and stress. A study conducted by the Blue Dragon
Foundation found that trafficked children who recommenced school after returning to Vietnam
experienced difficulty in readjusting to school life.70 They had to repeat the school levels that they
had missed but felt ashamed because they were older than other students in their class.71 They were
teased by other students and some of the teachers did not help the returnees in adjusting to their
70
S. Kneebone, S. Yea and M. Ligam and Blue Dragon, “Child Labour & Migration – From Hue to Saigon,
Vietnam” (Monash University, September 2013). Available at
http://www.law.monash.edu.au/research/projects/asia-pacific-forced-migration-connection/index.html (accessed 22
February 2015) and at http://www.bluedragon.org/about/publications/#1 (accessed 20 March 2015).
71
Ibid.
39
new circumstances. 72 Thus, returnees who wish to finish their education may need ongoing
psychological support to deal with any discrimination they encounter. Teachers who work in
communities which have high rates of child trafficking should also be made aware of the returnees’
vulnerabilities so that the teachers can be better placed to understand and support the children.
Financial support to start a business
Some returnees hoped to start a business by receiving financial assistance from the government or
aid organizations. Usually, financial assistance was needed to buy machinery for the business. For
instance, one returnee wanted to buy an oil press to press oil for community members [A13].
Another returnee wanted aid to buy a plough machine to work other people’s fields [A12].
Peace House shelter is a project supporting the returnees and is run by Center for Women and
Development and funded by AECID (Spanish Agency for International collaboration and
Development). Returnees who stayed in Peace House shelter received basic need such as health care
support, daily meal, safe accommodation, counseling, family/community reintegration, and
vocational support.
All of the returnees living in Peace House Shelter had experienced economic difficulties and found
difficulties in getting employment or starting a small business for themselves.
72
Ibid at 14.
40
6 Conclusion and recommendations
6.1
Conclusions
This study has documented the psycho-social difficulties faced by 15 women and children who were
trafficked across borders and subsequently returned to Vietnam.
Some returnees had health complications as a result of being beaten, working in harsh labour
conditions and being sexually abused and\or exploited. Returnees who had engaged in sex work had
more severe issues such as scars, infections, sexually transmitted diseases and anxiety about
reproductive health issues. Some may have difficulties in the future in becoming pregnant because of
injuries and infections obtained from being forced to work as sex workers during their trafficking
experience.
The self-image that returnees had when they returned to the Peace House shelter or their
community was low. They perceived themselves as having no value, being worthless, and having
nothing to aspire to in the future. Many felt stigmatized by the community.
Many returnees experienced discrimination from their family and/or community. Adolescent
returnees suffered the most as their neighbours and family presumed that they had engaged in sex
work. Only a few returnees received sympathy and support from their family.
Returnees reported having difficulty in establishing or re-establishing romantic relationships with
men or their husbands. They were also concerned that any future marriage would not last even if
their husbands were aware of their past. Married returnees were concerned that their husband,
children and also their in-laws would judge them harshly.
A number of returnees reported suffering from sleep disorders and recurring nightmares about their
trafficking experience within the first year of their return. These problems gradually decreased after
the first year.
41
6.2
Recommendations
Survivors of trafficking not only need acceptance, love and support from their families and
communities but they also require greater assistance in accessing vocational training and
employment.
When returnees return to their home towns, they face complex difficulties and obstacles including
physical, mental health and emotional issues and relationship problems with other people and issues
in obtaining employment.
Returnees should receive a general health check, especially gynecological health checks, which
should be conducted on returnees who were trafficked for sex work, raped or sold to multiple men
for marriage. This should be followed by sex and HIV/AIDS education for returnees so that they
and the community will remain safe.
Returnees need psychological stabilisation and need to build a positive attitude about themselves and
their future. For this to occur, they need psychological support including counseling/ psychotherapy
and other vocational and life skills training. This process may also be facilitated by increased
education about trafficking within communities, which would encourage greater tolerance and
acceptance of returnees.
42
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Legislation/Treaties
Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, supplementing the
United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (‘Trafficking Protocol’), opened for
signature 15 November 2000, 2237 UNTS 319 (entered into force 25 December 2003).
Vietnamese Government, Penal Code, Law No. 15/1999/QH10.
Vietnamese Government, Law No. 66/2011/QH12 on human trafficking prevention and combat.
Websites
American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5)
http://www.dsm5.org/Pages/Default.aspx, accessed 24 March 2015.
Giao Duc Thoi Dai online news: http://www.gdtd.vn/channel/2773/201005/Don-nhan-3190-phunu-tre-em-bi-buon-ban-1927494/, accessed 23 March 2015.
Peace House, www.peacehousevietnam.com, accessed 16 March 2015.
Articles/Reports/Books
Action for the Rights of Children, ARC Resource Pack: Foundation Module 7 – Psychosocial
Support, at http://www.refworld.org/publisher,ARC,TRAININGMANUAL,,,,0.html#SRTop11,
accessed 23 March 2015.
Devine, S., Psychosocial and Mental Health Service Provision for Survivors of Trafficking: Baseline Research in the
Greater Mekong Subregion and Indonesia, IOM: 2012.
DSM IV Made Easy, the clinican’s guide to diagnosis, Jame Morrison, MD, The Guilford Press 1995.
Hoang L. A., ‘Gender and Agency in Migration Decision Making: Evidence from Vietnam’, Asia
Research Institute Working Paper Series No. 115, April 2009,
www.ari.nus.edu.sg/docs/wps/wps09_115.pdf, accessed 29 July 2014.
International Organisation for Migration, Assessment Report on Reintegration Support Models for Survivors of
Trafficking in Viet Nam, 2012.
Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), Guidelines for Mental health and Psychosocial support in
Emergency Settings, (IASC) 2007.
43
Kneebone, S,Yea S, and Ligam M and Blue Dragon, “Child Labour & Migration – From Hue to
Saigon, Vietnam” (Monash University, September 2013). Available at
http://www.law.monash.edu.au/research/projects/asia-pacific-forced-migrationconnection/index.html (accessed 22 February 2015) and at
http://www.bluedragon.org/about/publications/#1 (accessed 20 March 2015).
Kneebone, SY, Debeljak, JF, Transnational Crime and Human Rights: Responses to Human Trafficking in the
Greater Mekong Subregion, Routledge, Abingdon UK, 2012.
United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking, SIREN Report: Re-thinking reintegration
– What do returning survivors really want & need? Evidence from Thailand and the Philippines, GMS-07, 28
August 2009.
United Nations Inter-Agency Project on Human Trafficking, UNIAP Vietnam, www.notrafficking.org/vietnam_who.html, accessed 23 March 2015.
US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in Persons Report 2014,
http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, accessed 23 March 2015.
US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in Persons Report 2013,
http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, accessed 23 March 2015.
US State Department, ‘Topics of Special Interest – Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking’,
Trafficking in Persons Report 2009. http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, accessed 23 March 2015.
US State Department, ‘Vietnam’, Trafficking in Persons Report 2012,
http://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/, accessed 23 March 2015.
44
APPENDIX 1
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS WITH SURVIVORS OF TRAFFICKING
Topics for interview questions
Objectives:

Explore the feelings, attitudes, thoughts and behaviours of survivors of trafficking after their
return

Explore the causes and factors that influence the feelings, attitudes, thoughts and behaviours
of survivors of trafficking

Assess the survivor’s need for support and their assessment of the support they are receiving
Content:
1.
Current life:

When did you return and how is your current life?

Do you work and receive an income?

What are your family relationships like?

Do you have any difficulties in your life?

How do you feel after returning home?
2.
Returning process:

How did you return? Who helped you? Did you experience any difficulties in the returning
process?

Did you receive any support after your return? From whom (eg. government, family)? What
impact has the support made on your life?

3.
What is your expectation of support?
Difficulty after return
 How is your life after your return?
 What are your feelings/thoughts/attitudes/behaviour both after your return and now? Which
one with high frequency? What causes those feelings, thoughts, attitudes and behaviour? For
45
how long did you experience this? How severe? How is it now? How did you/are you
overcoming it?
 What are the causes of those feelings/thoughts/behaviours?
 What impact do they have on your current life?
 How do you cope with it?
 What support do you need?
 What difficulties did you face upon your return? Eg. health, residence, accommodation,
community/family’s reaction, job etc.
 How did the community and your family accept you when you returned?
 Did you find it difficult to get along with people upon return?
 Did you have any health conditions upon return? Do you have any health conditions now?
Any sicknesses? Do you use addictive drugs?
4.
Trafficking process:
Trafficking process
 Have you had any life changes before and after trafficking?
 Describe your trafficking situation? What was the method of trafficking?
 What issues emerged during trafficking (eg. transfer, imprisonment etc.)?
 Who was your trafficker? What was your relationship to the trafficker?
Marriage and children
 Are you married?
 Do you have any marital pressures?
 Do you have any children? How is having children affecting their life?
Work in receiving country:
 What kind of work did you do while you were trafficked?
 What were your working hours?
 What were your working conditions?
 What was your working environment like?
 How do you perceive the impact of this work on you and your future?
46
 Did you experience any work-related difficulties in the receiving country?
Living environment:
 Who did you have relationships or interaction with?
 What was the nature of these relationships/interactions?
 Did you experience any benefits/risk/loss from these relationships/interactions?
 What was your living environment like?
 Perception of the trafficking experience.
OBSERVATION:
 Mood, language, physical expression… in interaction with other people and her family
members…?
47
APPENDIX 2
OFFICIALS WHO WORK DIRECTLY WITH SURVIVORS OF TRAFFICKING
Objectives:
 Explore the judgment and assessment of survivors’ feelings, attitudes, thoughts and
behaviours manifested through interaction and reintegration in community
 Explore current support mechanisms for returnees
Interview guideline:
1.
Official’s particulars:
 Name, age, gender
 Appointment, duration of employment
 Knowledge and training of human trafficking
2.
How many survivors have you worked with? Receiving work? What role do you perform?
Who do you receive the survivors from?
3.
What form of trafficking do you usually see when working with survivors? For what purpose
were they trafficked?
4.
How were the survivor’s feelings, perceptions and behaviours in the beginning? Have there
been any changes? What influenced the changes?
5.
What causes the changes?
6.
What are the methods of support for survivors? What types of survivors are put in shelters
and what types are sent back to their hometown?
7.
What is the impact of the support on the survivors?
8.
What have you done to support survivors? How often do you see survivors and how many
meetings have there been? How long is each meeting?
9.
Assessing the outcome? What are the difficulties throughout the process?
48
APPENDIX 3
GROUP DISCUSSION
1.
Physical assessment:

2.
What health issues do you have?
Rating:

List the difficulties you have in your life

Rate each one according to their importance and urgency

Discuss: Who or which government agency do you want to help you?
49
APPENDIX 4
DEPRESSION ANXIETY STRESS SCALE 42 (DASS 42)
Author: Lovibond & Lovibond
Please read each statement and circle the number 0, 1, 2 or 3 that indicates how much the statement
applied to you over the past week. There are no right or wrong answers. Do not spend too much time
on any statement.
The rating scale is as follows:
0 - Did not apply to me at all
1 - Applied to me to some degree, or some of the time
2 - Applied to me to a considerable degree, or a good part of time
3 - Applied to me very much, or most of the time
1
I found it hard to wind down
0
1
2
3
2
I was aware of dryness of my mouth
0
1
2
3
3
I couldn't seem to experience any positive feeling at all
0
1
2
3
4
I
0
1
2
3
experienced
breathing
difficulty
(eg,
excessively
rapid
breathing,
breathlessness in the absence of physical exertion)
5
I found it difficult to work up the initiative to do things
0
1
2
3
6
I tended to over-react to situations
0
1
2
3
7
I experienced trembling (eg, in the hands)
0
1
2
3
8
I felt that I was using a lot of nervous energy
0
1
2
3
9
I was worried about situations in which I might panic and make
0
1
2
3
0
1
2
3
a fool of myself
10
I felt that I had nothing to look forward to
50
11
I found myself getting agitated
0
1
2
3
12
I found it difficult to relax
0
1
2
3
13
I felt down-hearted and blue
0
1
2
3
14
I was intolerant of anything that kept me from getting on with
0
1
2
3
what I was doing
15
I felt I was close to panic
0
1
2
3
16
I was unable to become enthusiastic about anything
0
1
2
3
17
I felt I wasn't worth much as a person
0
1
2
3
18
I felt that I was rather touchy
0
1
2
3
19
I was aware of the action of my heart in the absence of physical
0
1
2
3
exertion (eg, sense of heart rate increase, heart missing a beat)
20
I felt scared without any good reason
0
1
2
3
21
I felt that life was meaningless
0
1
2
3
22
I found it hard to wind down
0
1
2
3
23
I had difficulty in swallowing
0
1
2
3
24
I couldn't seem to get any enjoyment out of the things I did
0
1
2
3
25
I was aware of the action of my heart in the absence of physical
0
1
2
3
exertion (eg, sense of heart rate increase, heart missing a beat)
26
I felt down-hearted and blue
0
1
2
3
27
I found that I was very irritable
0
1
2
3
28
I felt I was close to panic
0
1
2
3
29
I found it hard to calm down after something upset me
0
1
2
3
51
30
I
feared
that
I
would
be
"thrown"
by
some
trivial
but
0
1
2
3
unfamiliar task
31
I was unable to become enthusiastic about anything
0
1
2
3
32
I found it difficult to tolerate interruptions to what I was doing
0
1
2
3
33
I was in a state of nervous tension
0
1
2
3
34
I felt I was pretty worthless
0
1
2
3
35
I was intolerant of anything that kept me from getting on with
0
1
2
3
what I was doing
36
I felt terrified
0
1
2
3
37
I could see nothing in the future to be hopeful about
0
1
2
3
38
I felt that life was meaningless
0
1
2
3
39
I found myself getting agitated
0
1
2
3
40
I was worried about situations in which I might panic and make
0
1
2
3
a fool of myself
41
I experienced trembling (eg, in the hands)
0
1
2
3
42
I found it difficult to work up the initiative to do things
0
1
2
3
Depression Anxiety Stress Scale
Depression
Anxiety
Stress
Normal
0–9
0–7
0 – 24
Mild
10 – 13
8–9
15 – 18
Moderate
14 – 20
10 – 14
19 – 25
Severe
21 – 27
15 – 19
26 – 33
Extremely Severe
28+
20+
34+
52
APPENDIX 5
SUMMARY OF TRAFFICKED PERSON PROFILES
*Please Note: The names of the trafficked persons have been changed to protect their
identities.
Personal and pre-trafficking information
Peace House shelter
Name
Age when
trafficked
Age when Current
returned
age
Education
level before
trafficking
Marital
status
before
trafficking
Single
A01
16
16
17
Completed
Grade 7
A02
16
20
21
Single
A03
14
Not stated
Not
stated
Was
completing
Grade 9
Completed
semester 1
of Grade 5
A04
Not stated
20
21
Not stated
Single
A05
17
18
18
Did not
completed
Grade 1,
school made
her leave
because her
parents
hadn’t paid
Single
Single
Family situation
before trafficking
Second of five
children.
She often slept over at
her friend’s house
(unclear if this lead to
her being trafficked)
Her father had passed
away, mother still
alive, has one brother
Her mother passed
away two months
before she left. She
has an older brother.
Her father has since
remarried.
Her mother was
trafficked when she
was 1 year old. Her
father remarried. She
has lived with many
different family
members.
Has two siblings.
Both her parents are
fishermen.
Economic
situation
before
trafficking
Not stated
Not stated
Poor – she
took the job
offer
because she
wanted to
support her
parents
Not stated
Poor
53
A06
Not stated
Not stated
(in Nov
2010
Not
stated
A07
Not stated
Not stated
20
A08
Not stated
Not stated
(August
2010)
Not
stated
the school
fee
Completed 1 Single
year of
vocational
school
Completed
Single
Grade 9
Not stated
Single
She has a younger
sister.
Not stated
She has three siblings,
two brothers and one
sister. Her father,
older brother and
younger sister used to
beat her.
Not stated
Has a younger brother
who loves her very
much. She feels like
her parents love her
more now that she
has returned than they
did before.
Not stated
Community in Bac Giang province
Name
Age when
trafficked
Age
when
returned
Current
age
A09
20
23
37
Education Marital
level before status
trafficking before
trafficking
Not stated
Not stated
Family
situation before
trafficking
Economic
situation before
trafficking
She has a
mother, father
and brother. She
also has a child.
Her family is her
mother, her son
and her daughter
(her daughter
was also
trafficked at
some point)
Not stated
She was married
with a 2.5 year
old child.
She had a
husband and a
child.
Her father was
rich but now he is
poor
A10
25
48
55
Not stated
Not stated
– she has
children but
doesn’t
mention her
husband
A11
A12
19
21
20
23
21
27
Grade 11
Completed
Grade 9
Not stated
Married
A13
Not stated
26
33
Completed
Grade 5
Married
A14
Not stated
Unclear
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
A15
29
29
Not
stated
Unclear
Not stated
Difficult – this was
why she decided
to find work
Poor – she
borrowed money
to go so that she
could earn money
and send her child
to school
Not stated
Grade 8
Married
Married with
Difficult
- Unclear but
potentially poor
54
Name
Age when
trafficked
Age
when
returned
Current
age
Education Marital
level before status
trafficking before
trafficking
Family
situation before
trafficking
Economic
situation before
trafficking
children. Her
husband drinks
alcohol and
would beat her
(unclear whether
this was before
or after
trafficking)
Trafficking experience
Peace House shelter
Name
Recruiter
Type of
trafficking
Sexual
exploitation
Exploitation experienced
A01
Friend of her friend
A02
Friend
Not stated
Not stated
Unclear
A03
Friend
Forced
marriage (14
years old)
Physical violence
Not stated,
but she
was away
for a long
time
A04
Vietnamese couple
Not stated
that she had made
friends with at work,
who handed her
over to a stranger
Not stated
Not stated
Physical violence, fear of
leaving, poor work conditions,
insufficient food
Length of
time
7.5
months,
including
1.5 months
in a police
station in
China
Mode of return
Escaped and
went to the police
station. The
police helped her
to return. She was
taken to the
children’s social
protection centre
for five days until
her father came
to take her home
Found by her
family
Brought back by
Chinese police,
once across the
border she
returned by
herself. She
stayed in the
children’s social
protection centre
before going to
Peace House.
She ran away with
a friend. She had
to stay in the
detention centre
for 2 months
because she
didn’t have a
55
Name
Recruiter
Type of
trafficking
A05
Introduced to
people through her
friend
Sexual
exploitation
A06
A woman that she
met
Sexual
exploitation
A07
A woman she met
while looking for
work
Sexual
exploitation
A08
A friend who she
had met at an
internet shop
Sexual
exploitation
Exploitation experienced
Length of
time
Physical violence, sexual
exploitation, poor work
conditions, insufficient food,
abducted, not taken to hospital
Sexual exploitation, poor work
conditions
7 months
Verbal abuse, physical abuse,
insufficient food, poor work
conditions, sexual exploitation,
threatened by owner
Sexual exploitation, poor work
conditions, threatened with a
knife, hidden when police raided
the brothel
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Mode of return
passport, before
being escorted
across the border.
She returned the
rest of the way
with her friend.
Assisted by
Chinese police
Unclear, but it
seems police were
involved
Ran away with a
co-worker, sought
help from the
police
Escaped and
went to police
station (after a
failed police raid)
Community in Bac Giang province
Name
Recruiter
A09
A woman she met
while working
A10
Unclear who her
recruiter was
Forced
marriage
(potentially
also forced
labour)
A11
Not stated
Not stated
A12
An acquaintance
(but other people
were involved in the
journey)
Unclear
Unclear, but
possibly
sexual
exploitation
Forced
labour
A13
Type of
trafficking
Forced
marriage
Exploitation experienced
- Physical violence, sexual
abuse/humiliation, poor
living conditions,
deprivation of movement
Threats to kill her, drugged,
insufficient food, physical
violence, verbal abuse
Length of
time
Possibly 19
days
Mode of return
Unclear,
possibly
two to four
months
The first time she
returned she went
back by herself using
her savings to see
her mother and
child.
The second time she
returned she sought
the help of police to
return
Not stated
She was beaten but she
wasn’t exploited (sexually)
Deprivation of movement,
financial abuse
Approx 1
year
Approx 2
years
Financial abuse (she wasn’t
paid)
40 days for
first job, 4
Unclear
Sentenced and jailed
for migrating
illegally, then
deported by police
She left her first job
and returned to
56
(domestic
work)
months for
second job
A14
School mate that
she had known
since Grade 1
Forced
marriage
Married the man because
she was afraid of being
taken further away where no
one would speak
Vietnamese
Unclear
A15
A person that she
knew
Forced
labour
(domestic
work)
Financial abuse, insufficient
food
1 month
and 3 days
Vietnam while she
waited to be placed
in another job by the
company.
She left the second
time after the
woman she was
looking after died.
Returned to
Vietnam with her
Chinese husband
and their child at her
husband’s request.
She may have
already returned to
Vietnam and gone
back to China before
they moved with
her.
She was taken to the
airport and allowed
to leave
Experience upon return to Vietnam
Peace House shelter
Name
Reintegration
support?
Experience of Peace
House shelter
A01
Lives at Peace
House shelter
- Happy and safe but
she doesn’t like the
place.
- Made friends
- Doesn’t like not
being allowed to go
out or use her phone.
A02
Lives at Peace
House shelter –
receives medical
treatment, clothes,
excursions, classes.
Also supported by
the Women’s Union
and the Commune
She referred to it as
“the best place ever”.
She doesn’t have any
problems with the
staff but sometimes
she has conflict with
the other women
Experienced
discrimination (from
neighbours and family
members)?
Her immediate family treat
her like normal. Her
neighbours or relatives
(unclear) know that she
went to China and say that
her parents deserve to have
a daughter who was sold to
go to China. This upsets
her and makes her want to
throw a stone at their
houses.
- Scorned by brother and
sister-in-law who won’t let
her live with them and also
by some of the neighbours
- Stigma improved over
time
- Feels like the community
didn’t accept her
Current marital status
In a relationship (began after
returning to Vietnam from
China) – he doesn’t know
that she went to China but
she plans to tell him before
they get married
Single
57
Name
Reintegration
support?
Experience of Peace
House shelter
committee. She
organises the club
for the women in
her district.
A03
Lives at Peace
House shelter
At first she felt
uncomfortable, but
now she is
comfortable there.
The people are nice,
although there is
sometimes some
conflict.
A04
Lives at Peace
House shelter
She was very worried
at first, but now finds
it to be a very cozy
place
A05
Lives at Peace
House shelter.
Feels happy when
people talk to her.
She is happy there
because she is fed and
doesn’t have to do
anything.
Likes staying at Peace
House shelter but
doesn’t like that they
can’t go out much
and they have to be
escorted when they
do. She doesn’t want
to study there because
she had already
studied at the
vocational training
school in her
hometown and they
have her record.
She is more stable but
it is still difficult. She
really appreciates their
support. She didn’t
feel like she had any
A06
A07
Went to court but
unclear whether
related trafficking
Lives at Peace
House shelter –
receives job
support, vocational
training, medical
care, counselling,
skills training.
Lives at Peace
House shelter –
receives medical
care, psychological
support and
Experienced
discrimination (from
neighbours and family
members)?
- She doesn’t care about
the neighbours because she
has support from the
women in the Women’s
Union.
- She can’t live with her
father who has remarried
and has more children. She
can’t contact her family.
- Wants to return to her
hometown but doesn’t
know how she will be able
to face her friends. She will
probably just tell them that
she went away to work in a
provincial town.
Doesn’t get along with her
father and doesn’t want to
live with her mother.
Tells people that she
visited her mother so no
one suspects that she was
trafficked
- People were gossiping
about her
- She only talks to a close
friend who sympathises
with her, but the friend still
feels uncomfortable.
- She lost a friend when
she told them she was
trafficked.
- Her mother accepts her
but her sister and her
father do not
- Her relatives and social
workers accept her and
don’t judge her
- She doesn’t feel like she
is understood and she
worries about people’s
reactions when they find
out that she was trafficked.
- Her mother loves her but
her father, relatives and
two brothers discriminate
against her and stay away
from her. Her father said
Current marital status
Single
Single
Single
In a relationship – he knows
that she was trafficked and
he said no when she told
him that she wanted to
break up because of it. She
doesn’t feel worthy of him
and feels inferior and
ashamed. She is also
worried about her future
husband’s reaction when he
finds out that she was
trafficked.
In a relationship – She
hasn’t told him that she was
trafficked but he suspects.
She isn’t used to lying but
she doesn’t know if she
58
Name
A08
Reintegration
support?
Experience of Peace
House shelter
vocational course
training
value but now her life
is more meaningful.
She calls it her second
home.
Lives at Peace
House shelter –
referred by
policeman in Lao
Cai to get support
and vocational
training.
She feels comfortable
there. She is grateful
for the free clothes,
safe accommodation,
vocational and skill
training, psychological
counselling and
medical treatment
Experienced
discrimination (from
neighbours and family
members)?
that she is not his child and
does not deserve to stay in
his house.
- She doesn’t care what her
neighbours think, she just
wants her family to care
about her.
She was called a returned
sex worker.
Her younger brother is her
main source of comfort.
Current marital status
should tell him. She is afraid
that if she tells him, she will
lose him and he will tell her
next boyfriend. She has lost
all trust and doesn’t trust
him anymore.
Single
Community in Bac Giang province
Name
Employment
Reintegration
support?
A09
Not stated
A10
Sold onions at
the marker and
then as a
construction
worker to
support her
younger brother
Not stated
A11
Not stated
Not stated
A12
She has a job,
but what she
does is not stated
Not stated
A13
Not stated
She enjoys meeting
with trafficked
women and finds it
easy to talk to them
Not stated
Experienced discrimination
(from neighbours and family
members)?
Not stated
Current marital status
Some people said things about
her behind her back. Others
visited her and sympathised with
her.
Her marriage broke up because
he couldn’t tolerate that she had
been trafficked, even though she
had not been exploited
- She didn’t experience
discrimination from her family or
relatives-in-law.
- Her relationship with her
husband has improved since she
has returned and they have been
able to talk through things.
- Her mother-in-law was angry
with her when she returned. They
quarreled and her mother-in-law
beat her.
Not stated
Not stated
Separated from husband
(married after trafficking
experience)
Married (from before
trafficking experience)
Married (from before
trafficking experience)
59
Name
Employment
Reintegration
support?
because they have had
the same experiences.
Her reintegration
would have been very
difficult otherwise.
A14
She borrowed
money to buy
farm animals and
a rice husker.
Joined a group for
trafficking survivors
A15
Hired labourer
Not stated
Experienced discrimination
(from neighbours and family
members)?
- Her husband was difficult but
now he understands. She has to
obey him.
- People thought that she should
have money but she didn’t and
had to borrow
- The police said that she was
coming back into Vietnam
illegally. They fined her and her
husband, although they had
wanted to deport him. They were
not supportive or helpful.
- Her neighbours were very
supportive and gave her money
to help her buy food for her
children.
- People said things about her.
- Family didn’t support her.
Current marital status
Unclear if still married to
Chinese husband
Married
Health
Peace House shelter
Name
A01
A02
Physical health
problems?
No physical health
problems
Mental health
problems?
Not stated
Substance
abuse?
Drinks a lot of
alcohol
Receiving
treatment?
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Unclear if she is
receiving
medical
treatment at
House Vietnam
Hopes for future
Hasn’t thought about
her future but wants
to continue her
education and finish
high school before
getting married
Thinks that it will be
difficult to get
married and is afraid
that her future partner
won’t accept her past
or would keep
bringing it up.
She wants to finish
her high school
diploma. She is told
that she could get a
job in anti-trafficking
work after she
finishes her studies
but she isn’t sure
about that because
60
Name
Physical health
problems?
Mental health
problems?
Substance
abuse?
Receiving
treatment?
A03
No physical health
problems
Has nightmares doesn’t want to go
back to sleep because
she doesn’t want to
have the dream again.
Not stated
Unclear, she
goes to see the
doctor as usual
A04
Had an abortion
after returning
home (started
feeling stomach
pain in detention)
She menstruated
every 4 days when
in China so she
isn’t sure if she
can have children
anymore
Not stated, but upset
about the abortion
Not stated
Not stated
She dreams of her
trafficking days and
screams.
Not stated
Chinese police
sent her to get
blood treatment
but unclear if
she is still
receiving
treatment
Had an abortion,
isn’t sure whether
she can still have
children.
She lost a lot of
weight (from 47kg
to 40kg) after the
abortion.
She has uterus and
stomach infections
because she had to
work very hard
and wasn’t fed
sufficiently.
- Very anxious and
worried after her
abortion
- Emotional about the
breakdown in family
relationships with her
father and her sister
- Contemplated
suicide while in China
- She can’t forget
what happened and
feels anxious and sad
- Resents that
traffickers and wants
to beat them and have
them punished.
- Had trouble sleeping
She drank
alcohol and
smoked
cigarettes
when she was
in China and
felt sad, but
she doesn’t do
that anymore.
Now she talks
to her social
worker or her
mother when
she is sad.
Receives medical
treatment at
Peace House
shelter
A05
A06
Hopes for future
she doesn’t know if
she could handle it.
- Wants to get
married but is afraid
that people will say
bad things about her.
- Wants to go back to
school but says she is
too old
- She wants to learn
Chinese so she can
translate (Peace
House shelter are
trying to help her with
this)
- Wants to do the living
skills course so that she
can pick up skills to
interact with people.
She plans to work for
her two uncles who
own a cafeteria. She
wants to learn to
cook.
She wants to study so
she can have some
skills.
She hopes that the
officials will enroll her
in a vocational course
so that she can get a
job to help her
parents.
She hopes that the life
skills course will help
her to gain skills to
interact with other
people.
61
Name
Physical health
problems?
A07
Joint
infection/arthritis
and dizziness
A08
- Sexually
transmitted
infections, which
mean that she
cannot have
children
- Had an abortion
by hitting herself
in the stomach.
She didn’t have a
day off after it
because she would
be beaten if the
owner found out
about her
abortion.
Mental health
problems?
and thought too
much after abortion
- She has improved
- Has nightmares
about her trafficking
experience and wakes
up in terror.
- She doesn’t trust
anymore, not even
her boyfriend.
- She is angry at her
trafficker and wants
to chop her up. She
said that she could
never forgive her.
- Tried to commit
suicide once but
didn’t do it because of
her mother
- She said she was sad
and cried but it has
gotten better.
- She sometimes feels
ashamed that she is
no longer a virgin.
- She wants to stab
her traffickers to
death in revenge.
She feels traumatised
and has flashbacks,
dreams and negative
thoughts.
Substance
abuse?
Receiving
treatment?
Hopes for future
Not stated
Medical
treatment and
psychological
support at Peace
House shelter
She hopes to receive
more regular and
individual
psychological
counselling (twice a
week).
Not stated
Mentions that
she was
hospitalized and
injected but
unclear whether
this was before
or after her
trafficking
experience
She knows that she
can’t change what
happened and says
that she will have to
get over it somehow.
She wants to find a
job so that she can get
a stable income and
support her parents.
She wants to work for
the trafficking
support service,
because she has an
understanding of
trafficking and wants
to offer help.
Community in Bac Giang province
Name
A09
A10
Physical health
problems?
Not stated
Blurry vision
(may not have
been caused by
trafficking)
Mental health problems?
She has flashbacks and
dreams and feels anxious
She doesn’t sleep very well
but she doesn’t have
dreams
Substance
abuse?
Not stated
Receiving
treatment?
Not stated
Hopes for future
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
62
Name
A11
A12
Physical health
problems?
Not stated
Not stated
A13
Not stated
A14
A15
Not stated
- Sore teeth
while in China
- Back, neck,
shoulder and
limb pain
- Migraines
- Difficulty
sleeping
Mental health problems?
Substance
abuse?
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
- Recurring nightmares
- Difficulty sleeping
- Felt terrified and scared,
and it took her years to feel
better
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Receiving
treatment?
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Not stated
Hopes for future
Not stated
She wants to get financial
aid from the government
to invest in her field. She
wants to do agricultural
work
She wants to buy an oil
press so that she can make
homemade oil. She will
need financial assistance to
do this.
Not stated
She hopes that her
children can keep going to
school so that they can
have a better future.
63