'Returning martyr' from Cambodia hopes to soon complete identity papers
(Baonghean.vn) - After returning, Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho in Quynh Xuan ward (Hoang Mai town) had no house, no job, and no personal papers, so he had to rely on the care of his nearly 90-year-old mother and relatives.
Returning after 42 years of death
On February 13, 2020, Ms. Chau Bich Hue, a resident of Chau Doc, An Giang province, traveled to bring Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho from Kong Pong Cham, Cambodia to Quynh Xuan ward, Hoang Mai town. After 42 years, the old mother, now nearly 90 years old, and Mr. Pho's 5 younger siblings were both happy and sad to see their son and brother again. Mr. Nguyen Duy Sinh - Mr. Pho's younger brother, emotionally said: "When we heard that Mr. Pho had returned, relatives and neighbors filled the house, waiting in front of the door to welcome him." Every now and then, Mr. Pho's younger sister, Ms. Nguyen Thi Quyen, sobbed with emotion.
 |
| "Martyr" Nguyen Duy Pho (2nd from right) returns to see his old mother, siblings and relatives. Photo: Hoai Thu |
“I took Pho home, there were a lot of people. But Pho did not remember anyone. Even his old mother standing in front of him, crying to welcome him, he did not recognize her” - said Ms. Chau Bich Hue. In the house of Mr. Pho’s younger brother, Ms. Le Thi Thoi, mother of Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho, is 89 years old this year, her eyes are dim, her legs are slow, but she will never forget the face of her eldest son Nguyen Duy Pho. For more than 40 years, she has cried countless times because she missed her son. After returning after the death notice, but due to memory loss, during the first week of reunion, Mr. Pho could not speak Vietnamese clearly, because it had been too long since he used his mother tongue, so he had to rely on Ms. Chau Bich Hue to “translate”.
Hope to have identification papers soon
The joy of reunion made many people unable to hold back their tears of joy and emotion. However, behind those tears of reunion were the feelings of those who returned. Because Mr. Pho's wish when he found his family was "to stay in Vietnam". But he also expressed his concern because he himself currently has no papers, no house or livelihood to support himself. The wound on his head has been aching for decades, and the change of weather has made his health decline, making him unable to do heavy work.
 |
| The moment of reunion of Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho's mother and son after 42 years of death notice. Photo: Hoai Thu |
Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho's wish is also the wish of his family members. However, to achieve that, it is necessary to ask the authorities and local government to help Mr. Pho and his family complete the legal procedures according to the law. However, when returning to Vietnam, Mr. Pho only brought with him a single identity card issued by the Cambodian government under the name Hung.
Because when he was lost in Cambodia, Mr. Pho was adopted by Mrs. Chau Bich Hue's aunt, who settled in Cambodia. Because Mr. Pho suffered a head injury and lost his memory, Mrs. Hue's aunt named the adopted son Hung and naturalized him as a Cambodian citizen with that name.
 |
| The only document that Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho has is a Cambodian citizen identification card. Photo: Hoai Thu |
Mr. Nguyen Duy Sinh, Mr. Pho's younger brother, added that from February 2020 until now, Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho has not been able to make personal documents to be able to stay with his family for a long time due to problems in making an identity card. "To make an identity card for Mr. Pho, we have to go to a competent authority to translate and authenticate Mr. Pho's Cambodian identity card into Vietnamese. However, the family brought Mr. Pho's identity card to Vinh City, then to Ho Chi Minh City, but still no agency can do it. Currently, the family is taking it to Hanoi for authentication," said Mr. Sinh.
Support and guide "returning martyrs" to complete procedures
Regarding the implementation of policies for Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho, Ms. Cao Thi Tuyet - Deputy Head of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (Hoang Mai Town) said that the department is currently guiding Mr. Pho's family to make an ID card. Only after making an ID card can the next documents and procedures be done. Quynh Xuan Ward currently has 55 martyrs and 75 policy families, of which only Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho is a case that has been recognized as a martyr and has suddenly returned. "However, the difficulty is that Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho cannot remember information about his combat history and comrades to be able to prove his combat history," Ms. Tuyet said.
 |
| Currently, Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho has to live at home and rely on the support of his siblings. Photo: Hoai Thu |
According to the statistics of the Policy Department, the Provincial Military Command, Nghe An has 21 cases of "returned martyrs", however, only a few have completed the paperwork procedures to enjoy the State's policies and regimes. For example, the family of Mr. Nguyen Sy Hong in Yen Son commune (Do Luong) received Mr. Hong's death notice in March 1968, then in 1973 Mr. Hong was returned. Since then, Mr. Hong has enjoyed the regime for cadres imprisoned by the enemy and the regime for people infected with Agent Orange.
In cases where death notices have been issued, or where martyrs have been recognized as martyrs but later return, the State will revoke documents related to the martyr regime, suspend or cut off the regime, and depending on the level of completion of the documents and evidence, other regimes will be enjoyed. If participating in the resistance war before 1975, they will enjoy the regime according to Decision 142/2008/QD-TTg; if enlisted after 1975, they will enjoy the regime according to Decision 62/2011/QD-TTg.
Similarly, Mr. Phan Xuan Oanh in Dien Thai commune (Dien Chau); Mr. Duong Dinh Thua in Trang Son commune (Do Luong), a 4/4 war invalid; Mr. Hoang Trong Huan in Nghi Yen commune (Nghi Loc) were all soldiers who were captured and imprisoned by the enemy, so after reporting their deaths, when they returned, they had enough grounds to enjoy the policies and regimes according to the State's regulations. In the remaining cases, many "returned martyrs" did not live in Nghe An but settled in other provinces, or did not have enough documents to request benefits. The case of Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho is an example.
Mr. Dam Huu Hong - Deputy Secretary of Hoang Mai Town Party Committee, said that the town has initially supported Mr. Pho with some money. Although there are still many problems and difficulties, the authorities in Hoang Mai will study and apply the provisions of the law to guide and support Mr. Pho in completing the procedures to request the relevant authorities to consider and resolve his wishes, helping Mr. Nguyen Duy Pho to soon stabilize his life.
