Warning about illegal workers abroad

(Baonghean) - Believing in the enticements and promises of a dreamlike future in a foreign land, many gullible people risk giving money to these people to escape to work abroad. And the consequences are not only borne by the workers themselves but also affect society.

Sophisticated tricks

People in Nghi Thiet commune (Nghi Loc) are still in an uproar over the incident where some of their children were tricked into going abroad to work illegally. The victims are Mr. PVB (born in 1991), Mr. VVT (born in 1991) and Ms. HTL (born in 1995).

Although all three have now returned safely to their families and received the money they were scammed by the criminals, the tiring wait in a foreign land without a job or a place to live still haunts them. For their relatives, family and neighbors, those were days of anxiety and sleeplessness.

The father of the victim HTL shared: Hearing Uncle Niem come to our house and promise that if we could not bring L. to Germany, he would not only return the cash but also pay monthly interest. Because we believed him, my wife and I agreed to mortgage the red book to the bank to borrow money for the child to go, hoping to escape poverty. Unexpectedly, after only 3 months in Russia, we saw the children return..."

Previously, in mid-2016, understanding the need for jobs of some people in Nghi Thiet commune, Hoang Niem (born in 1974, residing in Nghi Quang commune, Nghi Loc district) approached and promised to send people to European countries to work with high income and leisurely jobs. Believing Niem, many people borrowed money and brought their documents and 1,000 USD to deposit.

Around September 2016, Niem continued to collect 10.5 million VND and 5,000 USD from each worker under the pretext of completing the procedures. According to the pre-arranged schedule, these workers would be taken from Vietnam to Russia and then from Russia to Germany. However, once in Russia, these victims were not taken to Germany as planned. Niem gave many reasons and asked them to wait. Tired of having no place to live and no job, these victims realized they had been scammed, so they bought their own tickets to fly back to Vietnam and reported Niem's ​​actions to the authorities.

Nghe An Provincial Police return foreign currency to workers who were tricked into going abroad illegally. Photo: Trung Duc

After investigation, Nghe An Provincial Police determined that this was an organized illegal human trafficking ring. In addition to Niem, there was also Nguyen Hoang Trieu (born in 1975, residing in Nghi Phong commune, Nghi Loc district) who colluded with a Vietnamese person living in Russia to carry out the act.

After being summoned to the security investigation agency, Nguyen Hoang Trieu and Hoang Niem admitted that although they did not have the function of sending people to work abroad, they collected money and organized for workers to fly to Russia to escape to Germany under the guise of tourism.

Not only in Nghi Thiet commune but also in many other rural areas in Nghe An, many workers have been tricked into going abroad illegally and returned empty-handed, even in debt. According to the police, the subjects often use 3 forms to organize illegal escape and send people abroad. The first is to organize illegal escape; the subjects lead people through unofficial routes (without papers - by land) or buy boats to cross the sea (by sea), including from Vietnam and through a second country to cross the border to a third country.

The second is to organize illegal hiding under the form of public; they can use fake passports, falsify documents to get passports in other people's names or use passports and permanent residence cards of people who have settled in the host country to do the same. Some people even organize people to go on tours to a second country and then find ways to escape to a third country by land, illegally, by sea or hiding in cargo containers.

Recently, another form that many subjects openly use is in the form of sightseeing, tourism, visiting relatives; forging labor contracts to get a work visa but after leaving the country, they find work themselves; legalizing themselves as employees of companies and enterprises to go abroad to attend fairs, seminars, market surveys, sign contracts, or they can legalize self-funded study abroad and then sneak out to find work, etc. However, regardless of the form, these acts are prohibited by law. However, the subjects still use all means to deceive the authorities and make profits from illegal work.

Be alert to temptation

According to Major Chu Van Huong - Head of the Criminal Investigation Team, Security Investigation Department, Provincial Police, the difficulty in dealing with subjects who illegally send people abroad is that when collecting money from workers, there is no receipt or only a receipt reflecting unclear content, written sketchily, with a coping nature to prevent future consequences. When arrested, most criminals have had a civil agreement process, discussed and dispersed documents and evidence; when arrested, they often give little statements, cut off the tail, and cover up the leads. Because they agree with workers through verbal contracts, the rights, lives and properties of workers are controlled and constrained.

Therefore, the most disadvantaged are those who are gullible and follow the enticements of these subjects. As a result, when leaving the country, workers without a labor contract must accept living in hiding, having to find work on their own, not being taken care of when sick, being arrested, and being deported without the protection of any state or organization, leaving behind huge debts for relatives and families.

Subject Hoang Niem at the police station. Photo: Trung Duc

Authorities also determined that most workers were aware from the beginning of the open or secret form of going abroad to achieve the purpose of escaping to work abroad. Only a few did not realize it because the subjects arranged and connected with individuals or organizations to allow them to stay and work illegally.

However, despite being aware of these consequences, many people still disregard everything, betting their future, fate and money on those who have no authority or responsibility in this field. Mr. Dang Cao Thang - Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs said that people voluntarily or through brokers go to some countries to work without a labor contract and reside illegally, causing a lot of damage to the workers themselves and to state management.

It can be seen that illegal emigration not only poses many risks to workers but also leaves a series of negative consequences for society, seriously harming state management in the fields of immigration, household registration and residence registration. In addition, this behavior also creates a bad image and public opinion for Vietnamese workers abroad, affecting the foreign policy of the Party and State, especially in the field of labor export to potential markets. Therefore, the law needs to strictly handle these behaviors, warning workers against the dream of going abroad by illegal means.

Phuong Thao