Binh was Enslaved

November 27, 2007

NO, THIS IS NOT ME! In this article you will see Binh is writing about Binh who was rescued by Binh.

This woman, whose name is Binh Thi Nguyen was kept as a slave in a family right in the capital of Vietnam. She was tortured and forced to work hard for 13 years since she was only 11 year old. She was still fortunate enough to get rescued by a neighbor.

The compassionate neighbor who rescued Binh is an 70 year old woman, also called Binh, Binh Thi Ha.

The news article states:

It was a case that outraged a nation: for 13 years a Vietnamese couple abused and tortured a young woman they kept as a virtual slave, until she was finally rescued by a compassionate neighbor.

When Nguyen Thi Binh, 24, emerged from the family-run Hanoi noodle shop that had been her prison, her tragic story and the scars covering her body triggered outrage at the perpetrators -- and anger at officials who did nothing.

Source: Maid's ordeal in Vietnam highlights domestic violence

And another article just for the rescuer:

The Ha Noi People's Committee has awarded a certificate of merit to Ha Thi Binh for her role in helping Nguyen Thi Binh, a domestic servant, escape thirteen years of abuse at the hands of her employers.

Source: Woman honoured for blowing whistle in Hanoi abuse case

My take: I can't believe their is still enslavement in the modern society. I worry this is not the only case that happen in Vietnam. And I think in the world there are countless much-worse cases.

Note: Please bear with the naming confusion.

• In Vietnamese the name is in order of Surname > Middle name -> First name,
• while in English it is First name -> Middle name -> Surname.

I'm writing in pure English so it is the second case, while the news article write in half English so it's the first case.

What's next?

I found this news article from Google Alerts. In fact I have have alert everyday with the keyword "Binh", so from now on I will spare sometimes posting news about the other Binhs around the world. What do you think about this idea?

As always, please feel free to say your opinion in the comment form.

Tags: Binh, News, vietnam