Happy ending of a couple who were once involved in drugs

(Baonghean) - The husband was a serious drug addict and had been in and out of prison many times. Desperate and destitute, the wife was also caught up in the law. But with determination, love and responsibility, the couple rose up, overcame their mistakes, and became typical factors, setting a shining example in "Community Integration" and the movement to build a cultural life in residential areas.

That is the story of Mr. Phan Van Dong (born in 1969) and Ms. Ngo Thi Huong (born in 1972) in Quang Tien block, Vinh Tan ward (Vinh city). Most of the people in Vinh market bus station, Cua Tien "black water village" and the suburban area are no longer unfamiliar with the nickname Dong "black", with nearly 20 years of "seniority" as a "drug addict", once famous for stealing but now reformed.

Drowning in pain from drugs…

He has been off drugs for nearly 10 years now, but until now, Mr. Dong still "shudders" every time he remembers the days when the "brown fairy" led him down the dark path...

Vinh Tan Ward Police (Vinh City) visited and encouraged Ms. Huong's family.

Being the youngest child in a poor family with many children, the whole family only looked at a few acres of contracted rice fields and a field of water spinach. Like his brothers and sisters, Dong also had to struggle to make a living. In 2008, following his friends, Dong jumped on a truck to sell plums and chayote squash to Moc Chau (Son La province) and resell them to traders at Vinh market.

Long trips to remote villages in the Northwest created for Dong the “opportunity” to access opium. At that time, every family in the village grew opium in their fields and had some “drugs” in their homes to entertain regular guests, so Dong was often invited to use them for free. From then on, Dong fell into addiction, and the craving for drugs became stronger and stronger, unable to quit…

At the end of 1992, Dong met Huong, who worked as a porter in Cua Nam ward. Their love quickly led to a simple wedding. After living together for a short time, Huong discovered that her husband was a serious drug addict. This was also the time when Dong revealed all his cruelty whenever he had a craving for drugs.

After the torment of drug addiction, Dong was no longer healthy enough to follow the truck to sell drugs. He needed to inject 3-4 times a day, so every day Dong had to wander around with his drug addict friends to find "goods" to satisfy his cravings. All the household items were sold. Just like that, the house was ruined by cigarette smoke... Ms. Huong worked hard selling fruits at the market, making little profit, only hoping to have enough to eat every day, but every penny Dong made, he forced her to give it to him to satisfy his addiction. Just 20 days after giving birth, Huong had to carry her newborn baby and ask her grandmother to look after it, and go to the market to earn a living...

When he could no longer get any money from his wife, Dong turned to pickpocketing. Vinh market bus station and the “black water area” of Cua Tien were the places where Dong and his drug addict friends did business and found pleasure. Whenever people reported a theft, the police in the neighboring wards had no difficulty in tracking Dong down.

The couple was serving a prison sentence, their children were helpless, Huong's parents felt sorry for their children and grandchildren so they took them home to raise. The two children did not have birth certificates so they were too old to go to school, so the grandparents had to re-issue birth certificates so that the children could go to school. After more than a year of serving their sentence at Prison No. 5 (Thanh Hoa), receiving the news of her father's death, Huong was in pain, regretful, tormented, she was so depressed that she just wanted to die, but the prison officers visited her, encouraged her, and boosted her spirit, Huong tried hard to reform well and was released from prison early.

Huong returned to the community and applied for a job as a porter. After a while, Dong was also released from the camp. That day, by chance, on the way home, Dong saw a small woman carrying a bag of cement on her back, struggling to walk into the warehouse. When he got closer, he recognized his wife and Dong was heartbroken. Taking the children home, looking at their bewildered eyes, unfamiliar with their parents, the empty house, no valuables left, pain mixed with regret, awakened Dong's responsibility as a father. He told himself he had to be determined to give up drugs to rebuild his life.

For nearly 20 years of being friends with “white death”, that “magical” drug seems to be deeply ingrained in his brain, and if there are conditions, he will relapse, so his journey to reformation is full of obstacles. Dong and his wife encourage each other, must be determined to overcome difficulties and mistakes to build happiness and take care of their children. And they are not alone when they have a spiritual support - that is the “Circle of Friends” Club…

Find the light of life

To help Dong and his wife reduce their self-consciousness and confidently integrate into the community, the ward police, Party Committee, government and people in the block and neighborhood, especially the women in the "Circle of Friends" Club of the Women's Union of Vinh Tan ward regularly visit, encourage and help Huong's family.

Knowing that Huong had a good voice for singing folk songs, the Women's Union encouraged Huong to join the ward's art troupe. During the day, she worked for hire and at night, she took her child to practice performing arts. Gradually, Huong's inferiority complex disappeared. The union also guided her on how to do business, save and lend 34 million VND from the Central Women's Union fund, and stood as a guarantee for her to borrow another 15 million VND from the Social Policy Bank to have capital to do business. Dong was hired by a company as a construction worker, with a stable job. After work, he also helped his wife with housework and took care of the child so that she had time to practice performing arts and participate in club activities. Seeing her husband's positive changes, Huong was very happy.

Mr. Dong helps his wife cook.

He gave all his money to her. She treasured the hard-earned money. But the most meaningful and happiest thing for her was knowing that he had given up drugs.

For nearly 10 years now, Ms. Huong's family has truly become a warm home. The children are well-behaved, the couple works hard, and the debt from the fund and the bank has been gradually paid off. Their son was sent to Laos by relatives to work, and their daughter is married.

Ms. Huong was continuously invited to give typical reports at "Community Reintegration" conferences, set a good example at "Community Integration" conferences and movements to build cultural life in residential areas at all levels.

"Drugs have destroyed many families. To overcome it, we need personal strength and determination; love, tolerance, and sharing from the community. The "Circle of Friends" Club, the government, all levels and sectors have helped us do that," Ms. Huong shared.

Dam Phuong