Illegal immigration to Laos: Life is not like a dream

(Baonghean.vn) - Kinship relations, nomadic farming practices, lack of land for production, being exploited and lured by bad guys... are the reasons why a part of the Mong people illegally migrate to Laos.

To raise awareness among the Mong people, on the morning of August 28, the Nam Can Border Guard Station coordinated with the People's Committee of Nam Can Commune (Ky Son) to organize a conference to combat illegal migration to Laos. In addition to officials and people in the commune, there were also households who migrated and returned, sharing stories about their migrant lives.

Nam Can is a commune with 100% Mong ethnic people and a 25 km border with Laos. In the first 8 months of the year, this commune had 6 households illegally migrate to Laos, most of them in Nam Khien and Lien Son villages. Currently, one household has returned due to difficult life.

Nam Khien Village (Nam Can) is home to many households who illegally migrated to Laos. Photo: Dao Tho

Assessing this situation, Mr. Va Ba Di - Vice Chairman of the Commune People's Committee said that the reason Mong people illegally migrated to Laos was because they had family relations in the neighboring country; the practice of shifting cultivation has long been ingrained in the people's lifestyle.

Some households, when separated, lacked land for farming, so their lives were difficult; more specifically, many people, because they listened to bad people's enticements and promises of a better life on the other side of the border, did not hesitate to leave their villages to go to Laos.

Anh Va Xong Xo, returning from Laos, shared with everyone at the conference against illegal immigration to Laos. Photo: Dao Tho

Mr. Va Xong Xo (28 years old), residing in Lien Son village, just returned from Laos in July 2017. He confided: In April 2017, he listened to someone who promised him that he would have a full life in Laos, without having to work but still having food. Without hesitation, Va Xong Xo sold his house and land, brought his wife and children to Laos through illegal means.

However, life there was not as promised by the other person. “There was no preferential treatment, if you wanted to farm, you had to rent land at a high price, if you were sick, you couldn’t go to the clinic for fear of being discovered... It was too hard so you had to return to Vietnam, if you were hungry or full, there were still the villagers and the government” - And Xong Xo said in tears. Xong Xo’s story about his “paradise” life on the other side of the country made the whole hall silent.

When they left, they sold all their land and houses, so when they returned, it was very difficult. Photo: Dao Tho

On the sidelines of the story, we met Mr. Xong Ba Cha from Huoi Nhao village who returned from Laos after 3 years. He said: in 2010, his family's life was difficult. He heard some people in Laos propagandize that they would be provided with everything there, and that life would be happy and free from hardship. So he brought his whole family to Laos by unofficial route.

The place he set foot in was a locality in Polykhamxay province. It was not like what he imagined or dreamed of: “In 2010, I sold all my land and house to go to Laos. But when I got there, I had no job, and the money and food I brought with me gradually ran out. The people who had called me before told me to go trade opium with them, but I was very scared because it was against the law. My children could not go to school because they did not know how to read and write. If I went out, I was afraid of being arrested for going there illegally. The suffering was unbearable, I had to go back to survive.”

When asked: "So the people who told you to come here didn't help you?". He replied: "They just want you to come here to transport opium for them, they are not good." When saying these things, Mr. Cha still had tears in his eyes.

Over the years, the border guard station has coordinated to propagate and mobilize Mong people not to illegally migrate to Laos. Photo: Dao Tho

Mr. Nguyen Tu Hoa - Political Commissar of Nam Can Border Guard Station said: "Over the years, the Border Guard Station has coordinated to raise awareness among the local people. All households that illegally migrate to Laos violate the law. However, when they return to the Station, there are policies to support and help them to feel secure in settling down permanently"./.

Dao Tho