Police guard teacher's house being terrorized by debt collectors

Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Hieu, a primary school teacher in Ho Chi Minh City, lives with her husband's family in a house in Binh Tri Dong Ward, Binh Tan District. Three months ago, her sister-in-law left home and many strangers came to ask the family to pay the debt.

Unable to get their money back, the group "terrorized" the house by throwing rocks, paint, and shrimp paste. At the peak, they locked the outside door and locked the whole family inside. The sister-in-law's two children who were still living at home were constantly threatened with death. The family reported it to the local police, but the incident continued.

Faced with this situation, Ms. Hieu had to take her family to another place to take refuge. Due to frustration at her life being turned upside down, she wrote a petition asking the "mafia" to let her go so she could go back to teaching.

According to Ms. Hieu, at noon on October 13, the Chairman of Binh Tri Dong Ward invited her to work and suggested repainting the front of the house that had been splashed with paint and graffitied by the debt collectors. By the afternoon, the authorities had helped her repaint it.

"I was very touched by the ward's actions because my house was dirty and I had to repair it myself. I am very happy to receive such attention," said Ms. Hieu.

The ward People's Committee said it will coordinate with the police to install cameras and set up a civilian guard post near the house to ensure safety for Ms. Hieu's family to return to live.

"I'm currently busy with work, so I'll be returning home with my family in a few days. If I'm protected like this, I hope the debt collectors won't dare to terrorize me like before," Ms. Hieu shared, adding that she will write a letter of thanks to the local authorities and many people who have shared her story.