Page 64 - FMR64_Trafficking and smuggling & Climate crisis and local communities_2020_web

FMR 64
64 Trafficking and smuggling
www.fmreview.org/issue64 June 2020

and social/cultural support for two nails and how important it was for every
young Vietnamese people, one male and Vietnamese woman to find a good nail salon.
one female, who had been identified as We used the appropriate terms to address
potential victims of trafficking. They had each other – ‘big sister’ (chị) and ‘little sister/
been granted temporary leave to remain brother’ (em) – and used the Vietnamese
in France, released into child protection zodiac to inquire about their ages, as it is
services, and provided with housing while customary for Vietnamese to respond with
awaiting a ruling on their official status. their animal sign rather than a number.
We arrived at the migrants’ hotel very Mai and Tuan slowly began to trust
early, knowing that there us and eventually felt
was a strong possibility comfortable enough to
that they would flee. reveal more of their true
During the six hours stories. Mai was just over
we spent together we 18, scared of travelling by
explained their legal herself, and missed her
situation and the family very much. She
advantages of staying in had embarked on this
France, and forged as many journey after her father
personal connections as had been deported from
possible so they would Europe a few months
begin to trust us. earlier, and now it was
There were clear her duty to repay the
indicators that the initial debts and provide for
stories given by the young her family. Mai had no
adults, Mai and Tuan, were idea how much her debt
rehearsed and untrue. was. She had taken the
Mai stated that she was ‘VIP’ route that used
an orphan from Quang Nadia Sebtaoui air transport to reach
Tri Province – although France but would have
her accent indicated to wait until her final
otherwise – who had been A mirror reflects Vietnamese migrants in ‘Vietnam City’, destination – the UK
kidnapped when she was France, often the last transit point for Vietnamese – before the smugglers
migrants before they enter the UK hidden in lorries.
10 years old and brought would tell her how much
to China, where she endured slave labour she owed them. This was likely to be around
for several years. She claimed that one day €50,000, and the burden of repaying it and
she met a Chinese man (whose name she supporting her family were enormous weights
had never asked) who offered to pay for her that motivated her subsequent actions.
journey to Europe and helped her escape. Tuan’s father had died, leaving the
This story is one that smugglers frequently family in debt. Tuan was studying law and
tell migrants to give to authorities when politics at university, but his aunt and uncle
asked. In reality, criminal gangs rarely take on encouraged him to drop out and go to the
non-paying orphans. We had to be sensitive UK to earn money to support the entire
with Mai, however, as the reasons for giving family, including his mother and disabled
her false story could also have been due sister. Like Mai, Tuan would not know how
to abuse or sexual exploitation en route. much his journey cost until he reached the
The first step in building trust was to UK. His aunt and uncle would borrow funds
show empathy, offering food and drinks, and from elsewhere to pay the sum and Tuan
explaining that we were only volunteers who would then be responsible for earning the
wanted to help. We discussed lighthearted money to repay his aunt and uncle’s debt.
topics such as their favourite Vietnamese food Less than two hours after we left the
and football player, and joked about Mai’s hotel, social services notified us that Mai