Reflections from the case of the gas station employee being assaulted: Forgive but don't compromise

(Baonghean.vn) - Although the victim accepted the apology, the act of beating someone without clearly distinguishing right from wrong is an alarm bell about the violent behavior of some people.

On November 1, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc returned to work at Nghi Phu gas station (Vinh City) after many days off due to being attacked by a customer. This woman said that she had forgiven the person who beat her and no longer wanted to mention the incident.

Earlier, on the morning of October 24, Mr. Hoang Huu Duc (37 years old, an officer of the Vietnam Cooperative Bank in Nghe An) drove his car into Nghi Phu Gas Station to fill up with gas. After asking Ms. Ngoc to fill up with 500,000 VND, about 10 minutes later, Mr. Duc drove back because he thought she had not filled enough gas and asked for more gas. At that time, there were 3 of Mr. Duc's colleagues in the car.

The gas station where the incident occurred.

“Mr. Duc said that I did not fill up the full 500,000 VND, and I thought that the gauge on his car was wrong. So Mr. Duc held the gas pump lever and told me to fill it up. Because he was upset, he held the lever a little too hard, causing me to have a slight scratch on my forehead,” Ms. Ngoc stated in her petition to the police requesting that the investigation not be continued.

The woman said that after the incident, Mr. Duc took her to the hospital and paid all the expenses. The bank officer then went to Ms. Ngoc’s workplace and her family to publicly apologize.

Although the victim later accepted the apology and both sides agreed not to take the case to the police, Mr. Duc's actions were strongly condemned after a security camera clip recording his attack on Ms. Ngoc was posted on the media. Notably, the incident occurred in a context where public opinion was still indignant after an officer from the Hanoi Department of Transport assaulted a female employee at Noi Bai Airport.

“I hope that the bank's Board of Directors will open a training course for everyone in the bank on managing/controlling negative emotions. Conflicts that arise must be resolved in accordance with the law, everyone must respect the law. We must behave in a civilized manner,” a reader expressed his opinion.

Mr. Duc's behavior was recorded by security cameras.

A week after the incident, Mr. Duc was suspended from work for 15 days. The bank also required three colleagues who were in the car at the time Mr. Duc yelled at the gas station employee to write a report for not stopping his colleague and not promptly reporting to their superiors.

Explaining his actions, Mr. Duc said that after seeing that he had filled up 500,000 VND but the gas gauge did not rise, he turned the car around to "ask for clarification". "At that time, Ms. Ngoc said that my car's gas gauge was broken and then went somewhere else with 2 other employees, not cooperating with me. I then asked Ms. Ngoc to fill up the gas for me again, but she said to wait for the store manager to come back. Because I was so upset, I grabbed the gas canister and hit Ms. Ngoc", Mr. Duc said, adding that he later realized that his actions were wrong and "felt extremely regretful".

Public opinion condemned the bank officer's behavior, but many people also questioned whether the female employee's behavior was correct or not.

Ms. Le Thi Hong Cam, Store Manager of Nghi Phu Gas Station, said that because she was so surprised, Ms. Ngoc did not behave properly at that time. “The gas station staff followed all the regulations and there was no fraud, although they were not really careful. About 30 minutes after the incident, Mr. Duc, representatives of Nghe Tinh Gas Company and the store continued to fill up the car's gas tank, but the fuel gauge still did not work,” Ms. Cam said.

After the incident, Mr. Duc was suspended for 15 days.

Although the victim accepted the apology and Mr. Duc was temporarily suspended from work, this “unacceptable” behavior is like an alarm bell about the behavior of a group that has long been considered the intellectual class. They are ready to “kick and punch” anyone and everyone, even women. People who should be protected.

There is also an opinion that nowadays, many people tend to easily ignore when they become "victims" of uncivilized behavior because they do not want to make a fuss and attract attention. That is the understandable psychology of those involved in the context of strong media development, the speed and scope of influence of information beyond initial imagination. However, forgiving an unsightly behavior does not mean compromising or accepting that behavior. Society needs to sound the alarm about the current increasing trend of violent behavior.

Tien Hung