The Vietnamese government always considers overseas Vietnamese as a Thach Sanh mine that will never run out for them to exploit. Because overseas Vietnamese, even though they don’t like the Communist government and hate the injustices in this society, but they have relatives so their hearts always turn to Vietnam.
Taking advantage of overseas Vietnamese’s affection for their ancestral homeland, the Communist government called them “thousand-mile compatriots” to entice them to pour money back home to invest and do business. Then, many people “mistake” to listen to the government’s refutation, and receive bitter fruit when they realize that they have been “tricked“.
A typical example is Mr. Trinh Vinh Binh, an overseas Vietnamese with Dutch nationality. Once a successful businessman in the Netherlands, listening to the delicious words of the Party, he sold all his assets in the Netherlands and brought $3 million to invest in Vietnam in 1987. But then, he was trapped and robbed of all his property, accused of tax evasion and sentenced to 11 years in prison. Fortunately, he escaped from Vietnam after 18 months in detention, a period he called “terrible.” While in detention, he was subjected to corporal punishment, torture, and forced confession. Returning to the Netherlands, he filed a lawsuit against the Vietnamese Government to an international court, but even though he won the case, he only “claimed an elephant but received an apple.”
Another overseas Vietnamese brought some skin cream as gifts for relatives, but the customs at Tan Son Nhat airport requested tip. It happened in mid-October 2022, but recently, on the occasion of the story that Singapore tourists were also “fawned“, Mr. Nguyen Ha Anh Nhat just posted clips of him being asked for “$500.” But just 1 day later, the leader of Tan Son Nhat International Airport Customs Branch told the press, “This is completely negative and comes from a misunderstanding.” As for the other customs officer, she calmly said that she did not ask for money, just “kidding.” There is no one more shameless in this world than her.
Bribery similar to Mr. Nhat’s case is not unique, and it happens every day at Vietnam’s border gates. They ask money for tip not only from overseas Vietnamese, but also international students or export workers returning home. The money that the Vietnamese had to pay with blood, sometimes even their lives, were mercilessly raped by the state officials.
Thought, after 10 years of Mr. General Secretary burning the furnace, everything has been rectified. But no, the reality is still the same, but even more dirty than before. A swarm of worms is still swarming and pulling people’s blood and bones.
The writer himself once had to regretfully throw away 2 boxes of goods, just bottles of shower gel and baby powder sent to his children, but they were imposed a “special consumption tax” rate, which they included cosmetics category, making the tax even higher than the purchase price.
Overseas Vietnamese or export workers in foreign countries have to work hard to earn money. Not everyone is rich. Although the income in the country is high compared to Vietnam, the expenditure is also not small. But the Communist government always considers them an endless source of income, from unreasonable fees at the embassies, to begging at the border, to unreasonable taxes and fees when sending gifts home…
The money that Vietnamese expatriates saved to send back to help their relatives, but then turned into a stream of remittances that fell into the Party’s pocket.
However, if overseas Vietnamese are “unwise” they will immediately change from “a good compatriot” to “objects of reactionary resistance.” If this “object” accidentally sets foot in Vietnam, they will be sent to prison like Professor Pham Minh Hoang or Mr. Chau Van Kham, and the countries they are nationals of cannot save them from prison.
Thoibao.de (Translated)
