Getting the boot

Friday afternoon brought us one of the saddest cases I have seen in a while.

A 14 year old boy named Loc turned up on our doorstep, brought to us by another street kid who knows about our center. My first glance at Loc told me he's been through something terrible. His thin body is covered in scabies. His arms have been slashed with cut glass. There are serious burns on his toes, scabbing wounds up and down both of his legs... and he was filthy, hungry, and tired.

It's kids like Loc who inspire me to keep going when everything else just seems too difficult. My last two posts, I realise, have been quite negative - looking over them tonight, I sound like a real whiner! Things have been tough, but sitting next to Loc and seeing the wounds all over his body, I know that I have nothing to complain about.

Apart from all the scars and bruises, perhaps the saddest feature of this little guy was the look of fear on his face. This boy has been through some awful trauma, and last night there was no chance of him giving us a smile. He was overwhelmed just by being in our building and having somebody be nice to him. But that look of terrible suspicion lingered in his eyes - will these people, too, beat me? Am I going to be tortured all over again?

Loc has been kicked about pretty badly - but this morning brought a huge change. Some kicking of a very different sort...

The New Zealand soccer team is in town, and the Embassy had organised with UNIS school to have a morning of coaching for some of their students. UNIS was EXTREMELY generous in inviting us along (thanks, Julian!) so about 20 of our boys - including Loc - spent some time on beautiful grass fields learning a few skills and playing some games.



The New Zealanders were just amazing. I'm sure they have no idea what an impact they had on our kids. They were HUGE by comparison to our little guys, but not in the least bit scary. They joked about, they bubbled with enthusiasm, they applauded our kids... and I have a feeling that their goalies might have let one or two of those goals in on purpose. I'm seriously hoping that the whole team decides to relocate to Vietnam permanently.



All of our kids had a great time - but it was the look on Loc's face that was the most precious of all. He spent most of the session chasing a ball around, half in his own little world. He was just so happy. For a little while, all of his aches, pains, and itches were totally forgotten.

And this afternoon, he's still smiling.

Keep it down

It has to be said: Vietnam is a noisy place. Maybe one of the noisiest places in the world.

It's 9pm on Thursday night, and one of my next-door neighbours is cutting metal inside his house. Another neighbour is just arriving home from dinner, and instead of ringing the doorbell she is sitting on her motorbike beeping the horn, over and over, until one of her under-age servants runs and opens the door. Soon, I know, another of the neighbours will send 4 or 5 of his servants to the rooftop - directly facing my bedroom - to start washing the clothes he has smuggled in from China. They will be talking, and laughing, and singing at the top of their voices until they are finished in a few hours' time.

Once you've lived here for a while, you either get used to it, or it drives you crazy. Or, like me, your tolerance level rises and falls depending on how much sleep you've had recently.

One of the peculiar things is how infrequently local people complain about the noise. I am sure that the vast majority of Hanoi's population have hearing impairments, but that cannot explain why they tolerate karaoke at midnight, or large parties gathering on the street at 5am.

But lately I have learned something new: locals DO complain about noise. Depending on who is making it.

The Blue Dragon center is spread out over our street, occupying parts of four houses in total. And we are increasingly receiving complaints by the neighbours about our noise.

One of the staff explained it this way: In a village, the richest person might make a lot of noise, play his CDs at full volume, and hold parties long into the night, and nobody will say anything. But if the poorest person in the village makes some noise, everybody will tell him to shut up.

And that's exactly what's happening on Blue Dragon street.

Of all of the houses in our neighbourhood, our center is almost certainly the quietest. We have strict rules about the kids when they are coming to and going from our center: No playing on the street... no calling from the houses to the street (and vise versa)... and no beeping of horns, ever!

Today some neighbours complained about the noise from our center after 10pm every night. Only problem is, we have a 'lights-out' rule at 9.30! The kids are asleep by 10!

Yesterday, a neighbour complained about the noise made by children as they come to visit us. The same neighbour beeps his horn every time he comes home - getting off the motorbike and ringing the doorbell is soooooo last season! - and, of course, our kids come and go by foot or bicycle. How on earth can they see us as the noisy neighbour!?

If there's any bright side to this predicament, it must be the opportunity we now have to teach the kids to stand up for themselves. We can show them that they do not have to accept unfair criticism just because they are poor. We can show them that they do not have to be punished just because they have no family to defend them.

It really is to our wealthy neighbour's shame that they are being so mean and hypocritical. Our kids don't deserve it!

It is finished! I think.

A small drama that's been unfolding over recent weeks and months has finally come to an end... At least, I hope it has.

A few weeks back I wrote about a pretty poor attempt at blackmail / extortion that's been directed at Blue Dragon, and at me in particular (being such a fabulously wealthy guy and all! Will somebody bring me my Aston Martin please?)

The whole story is long and complex, and for several reasons I can't give all the details on the blog. But the extortionist is someone known to the staff and kids of Blue Dragon - he used to be very close to us all - and demanding money out of me "or else" isn't the only thing he's done to cause trouble.

Some months ago, the same guy robbed Blue Dragon while I was in Australia. We got back the most important gear, but it took a lot of work and left a nasty taste in all of our mouths!

And since his attempt at blackmail failed so hopelessly, he went out and bought himself a home made bomb. Apparently he was walking around with this thing in his pocket, so he's lucky to still have both legs. He was just trying to scare us, it seems, but we did have to take some precautions and close the center very early one Friday!

It's been a stressful time - not only because of the demands and the bomb threat, but also because this has all come about at the hand of somebody we have helped and cared for. That really hurts.

And the conclusion? Not quite satisfactory... But then, we were all going to be losers in this case.

The young man was caught by the police this week, and spent some time shackled by the leg in the nearby police station. But he's not going to prison; instead he has to pay compensation and then stay far away from us. We have been assured that he'll spend about 20 years in prison if he causes any more trouble.

But is it really over? I'm not so sure. His father has already been ringing me to complain that the family can't afford to pay compensation. I've suggested that they try selling their house, but I don't think they liked that idea.

Life goes on, though - nothing has slowed down at Blue Dragon, even though we've been looking over our shoulders for such a long time. Yesterday 5 runaway boys from a remote village stumbled into our center, bringing the total number of runaways we have seen this month to 10! And of course there's plenty more happening, even though I have been staying quiet on the blog of late.

With this mess behind me, I promise to write more updates!

Got to have FRIENDS...

Here 'tis... The latest Blue Dragon newsletter.

And below are some photos of families we are working with in central Vietnam. All of these families have children who have been trafficked to the south, or have been approached recently by traffickers wanting to buy their kids.

I don't think I need to add any captions...

Ups and downs

It feels like weeks since I last wrote, but I see it was just 5 days ago. So much is going on!

There are some exciting things that I would LIKE to write about, but have to wait a few more days... To be honest, there have been major ups and downs in recent times and it's sometimes hard to get things into perspective.

A few of our staff have been in Hue, visiting children who were previously trafficked to Saigon and have since been reunited with their families. Van, Bich and Phuong travelled together to meet a group called the Hue Committee for the Protection of Children and Families, who were inspired to tackle this issue after hearing about our role in bringing trafficked kids home.

The whole issue of trafficking is a sensitive issue in Vietnam (as in every other country), so I was not at all optimistic about the possibility of us having an official project in Hue any time soon. But suddenly, the Hue Committee is ASKING us to do something. We are actually being INVITED in, on the basis that our work so far has been so successful. (And just so you know: our total budget to date has been less than $3500US. I'm boasting about this, because NGOs usually spend hundreds of thousands of dollars just buying stationery and business cards).

While the team was away, I took over the job that Van does de-facto in the evenings... supervising the 11 kids who live on "Blue Dragon Street." It's pretty tiring - and I am much stricter than other staff - but I can't complain about the swimming trips and the football matches at UNIS and the dinners as we sat around together talking about school and homework and the usual daily crises. I guess it's like being a parent, only with rather more mouths to feed.

So that's all the good bits, and it's the darker stuff that I have to leave out of the blog for the time being - suffice to say that there have been some explosive developments with the blackmailer I wrote about earlier, and an unrelated string of incidents around our center involving drug dealers and thugs. But there's always a happy ending, so stay tuned.

Roofed

My last post appealed for help to put the roof back on a street kids' center in Hoi An, in central Vietnam.

A BIG THANKS to Hugh Perrottet, Bob Purdie and Leonore de Visser for your donations. All up, Blue Dragon has received about $400US so far - and I know some more is on the way - so we have sent this cash down already. I'm told the work has already started.

Loads happening here in Hanoi, as usual. We met two runaway kids on Sunday, and had them home with their families by Monday afternoon. But today we have another five! I love a good challenge...

Blown away

Most of the world has heard about the typhoon that swept through Asia recently. In case you haven't, click here.

Many of the families we support live in areas that were hit quite hard, and we are still trying to assess the damage.

Today I received an email from a good friend who works in Hoi An at a street children's center. The following photo says it all:



Right at the moment, Blue Dragon does NOT have a 'formal relationship' with the center, but I understand that their roof blowing off is just the latest financial blow to hit them.

Any wonderful people out there who want to help them - please let me know. If you make a donation to Blue Dragon on their behalf, I'll pass the whole amount on and won't keep any admin expenses. Send me an email if you want to put that roof back on! bluedragon@bdcf.org

Blackmail for Dummies

Sometimes life is just so bizarre that it's hard to know whether I should laugh or cry.

Over the last fourteen days, I have been the subject of an attempted blackmail. Somebody I have known for a few years has decided that, rather than working, they should simply sit back and wait for me to hand over all of my money, by making a series of threats.

Has it been frightening? No. Worrying? Try again. Disconcerting? Nope, that ain't it either.

Try - Amusing. Hilarious. Comical.

Of course, there is a serious side to it all, and I have had excellent support from my local policeman. But this blackmailer has done such an awful job of trying to get money out of me, that I feel it is my duty, as an international aid worker, to make a few suggestions.

So here it is: Blackmail for Dummies.

Tip 1: When blackmailing somebody you know, avoid using your personal email account.

This is especially pertinent when, for example, your name is "John Smith" and your email address is "johnsmith@hotmail.com".

Tip 2: Keep personal information out of your emails.

Remember, the police might be able to use that personal information to track you down. In particular, giving your bank account number is highly likely to give them some clues as to your identity - if they didn't already have enough.

Tip 3: If you really MUST use your personal email account, and you really MUST fill the emails with your personal information, then make sure you do NOT confess to other crimes that you have committed.

If you have been involved in drug dealing and organised crime, for instance, you probably should not mention this. Or go into detail with dates and places. Again - look at this from the point of view of the police!

Tip 4: If you are going to blackmail somebody by threatening to slander them, at least make the accusation something that is illegal.

The ol' blackmail line: "Give me money or I will tell everybody that you..." can be effective, but you have to think in advance how to finish that sentence. Some BAD ideas are:

- "... that you eat too many sausages."

- "... that you wear your underpants for a whole week without washing."

- "... that you didn't send your mother a gift last Christmas."

You see, these are all bad things, but, to be frank, none of them is actually illegal. So I'm not going to send you any money to avoid you telling people this kind of thing, am I?

Tip 5: And this is an important one - when you embark on a career in blackmailing, choose victims who have money. As a general rule of thumb, the Director of Blue Dragon Children's Foundation usually has to borrow money at the end of the month in order to eat. Therefore, he is not a wise target.

Perhaps I should add another tip about "don't try to blackmail people who enjoy blogging."

Twists and turns

The weekend was supposed to go like this:

On Saturday morning, I would fly to the south to meet Van, my staff member, and "Binh", the young guy who finished drug rehab and was released on Friday afternoon. I would discuss and negotiate a plan for "Binh's" return to Hanoi, then the three of us would fly back together on Sunday at lunch, in time for me to attend a meeting at our center with some of the nice folk from the Australian Embassy. All perfectly planned!

It's now Saturday night. What has actually happened is this:

On Friday night, "Binh" decided that he is not yet ready to return to Hanoi; although he had already been released, he requested another month of study in the Center and the Director agreed to re-accept him. So at 10.30pm, Van called me to say there was no need to fly down.

This morning, "Binh" returned to the Center - what a mature and brave thing to do! - and Van prepared to fly back to Hanoi early. Except... Saigon is having a typhoon, or hurricane, or something, and no flights can depart! He's trapped! And I would be, too, if I had gone.

Instead I have spent the day drinking too much coffee, swimming with the kids, and dealing with some twit who wants to blackmail me. More on that another day.

The best laid plans of mice and men...

But who cares. I am stunned at how courageous "Binh" is, and how wise, in choosing to return to a Center that limits his freedoms and makes him wear pink pyjamas 24 hours a day, because he can see that he is not yet ready to come home. He is no longer dependant on drugs.

A special THANKS to those of you who have been supportive and have expressed your concern for "Binh". I have high hopes for this kid.

Excitement, adventure, and really wild things

That heading doesn't build up your hopes, does it?

It has been an exciting week, though.

Last Sunday, a troupe of our girls put on 6 short performances in front of an audience of about 60 Blue Dragon kids, staff and friends. Drama is not commonly taught in Vietnam, so the girls had never done anything like this before... But WOW what a great show they put on. Their skits were on themes of school, home life, abuse, and so on - and all of the ideas and scripts came from the girls themselves. (Our staff member, Hanh, Khanh and Skye deserve a big clap too, though. Well done!)

Some photos below by Adam Hurley.

Anyone wearing pink and yellow together needs to be arrested


A skit about family relationships: Aww, please mum...


Hey! I'm in this picture!


The body language says it all: Get your act together, old man


On Tuesday we had the launch of a small project. This is actually a Disability Forum project, but Blue Dragon will have a role in developing a resource booklet for families of kids with disabilities. The Ambassador for New Zealand, James Kember, attended, as the NZ Embassy is funding the project, which was initially put to the World Bank for funding but failed to attract support. Thanks again, New Zealand!

And this weekend... A very big event. Six months ago I was writing about a 16 year old Blue Dragon boy who went to Saigon for drug rehab. Now he's coming back, and we hope to have him home either on Sunday or Monday. He has done well, he's off the drugs, and we can't wait to see him again.

He's home

It's been a challenging week, but the little guy pictured below is now safely at home with his family.

His name is The (prounounced 'tare'), and he's been sleeping on the streets of Hanoi, after a dispute with his family about computer games that lead to him running away from home for three months!



The's mother has been so stressed and worried that she's been hospitalised. His father has also been unable to sleep - to the point that he had an accident and broke his arm. One of our staff accompanied The home this morning, a two hour bus trip from Hanoi.

He's been through a lot, and had some difficult times... but I feel that he must be counted among the luckier of our kids for having a family that cares for him so very much.

We won't forget you, The...

Wheels?

Yesterday's blog mentioned, in passing, that I have a dog named Wheels... and, fair enough, I have received a few emails asking what the story is!

Wheels is the most gorgeous dog I have ever owned! She's great with the kids and, apart from people with beards and sunglasses, she loves everybody. I'm sure she was delighted at having somebody to play with that time the office was robbed.

But anyway - why "Wheels"? Well... one of our neighbours is a disabled woman named Thanh, who sells chewing gum from her wheelchair around town. But her wheelchair is a special vehicle with three wheels, operated by a lever that is pumped up and down.

When Thanh heard that I wanted a dog, she went out and found a tiny pup, and brought it to me on her wheelchair. Hence the name "Wheels".

These days, when visitors come to Blue Dragon for the first time, I introduce Wheels as the Deputy Director, or the Entertainment Coordinator, which isn't far from the truth. If ever we have a dull day, we can always rely on Wheels to keep things exciting.

Anger, fear and laughter

I'm still in my post-oceanic euphoria. As much as I loved the sailing journey - and I DID love it - it's great great great to be home.

I am still finding myself riding some emotional waves, though. We're dealing with some powerful cases this week, and I think that all of the staff are feeling the heat.

On many occasions, I have mentioned our work in the area of helping kids who have been trafficked for child labour. Apart from reuniting children with their families, the most effective thing we can do is to educate people about the dangers of selling their kids to the traffickers.

Now, I happen to think we have done a pretty good job of this so far. But we were greatly shocked on Monday to learn of a mother who has just sold her 12 year old daughter, in spite of us having rescued her son once from a very serious situation. This mother knows better than anybody that her daughter is now in great danger; but it seems she wanted the money more than she wanted the daughter. This is VERY unlike Vietnamese families, which are normally so strong and caring. Family is everything.

The woman's son, who is now 13, is confused and angry about what his mother has done. In most cases, I would encourage kids to not be angry with their parents... But, well, I happen to think he's right about this. And I think it shows great strength of character for someone so young to be prepared to take a stand on such an important issue. Anger isn't always a negative emotion.

In a completely separate case... On Saturday night we received a call from a good friend who works in Vietnam, named Kees, who had seen a small boy sleeping on the streets and was hoping we could help. Kees knows us well, and also knows a lot of our kids.

We found the boy on Sunday night, wandering about near a massive apartment complex on Hai Ba Trung street. The boy, Hieu, is tiny: he says that he is 15, but if I posted a photo, nobody would believe me. He looks like a 12 year old who is way too small for his age. At best.

Van and I spoke with Hieu for about an hour. He absolutely would not consent to come with us. His clothes were filthy, he clearly hadn't eaten well in weeks, and his huge brown eyes made him look so incredibly vulnerable - but there was no way he would trust us. He finally agreed to walk with us to a cafe, where we all had a drink. Even then, I could see how frightened he was that we would hurt him.

We did our best. We gave him some money and said that, if he came with us and did not like our center, he could leave immediately. We promised that we would not force him to do anything, would not make him call his parents. We suggested that he could stay just one night, and then leave the next morning if that's what he wanted.

Nope. No. Forget it.

So we rode home, unsuccessful. Not a good feeling.

Before we left, though, we promised we would come back the next day. And so, on Monday night we returned, this time with a secret weapon: Vi. I first met Vi about 4 years ago when he was shining shoes on the streets. Today he is a senior barman in a fine restaurant; he speaks fluent English, and has traveled to Singapore, Thailand, and China. (He would have gone to the US for the summer if only they would give him a visa! C'mon, Bush, I KNOW you're reading this.)

We found Hieu, in deep sleep on a stone slab beside the street. It took me so long to wake him that I started to fear something was wrong. But when he did wake, he seemed - well, not pleased, but certainly less hostile than the night before.

Vi, Van and I took him for another drink. We chatted, talked about computer games, joked about, listened to Vi tell his own life story... and finally, FINALLY, Hieu gave us a smile. The impenetrable barrier was breaking down. (Confession: I had to tell him that I am married to my dog, Wheels, and that we love each other very much in order to get this smile out of him. But it was worth it).

Hieu agreed to come back with us. He spent the night sleeping with several other kids at our center, and the whole of today was taken up with reading comic books and sleeping. And laughing. I swear, his smile is the most beautiful sight on earth.

He's still afraid, and there is so much that we don't know about him yet. He is telling us that his parents have died, which might be true... But it's also what 99% of runaway kids tell us when we first meet them.

It's going to take a lot of time to build up some trust before we can find a way to help Hieu. For now, I'm just glad that he's not sleeping on the street tonight.

All new episodes

I'm back.

For the past month, Skye Maconachie has been blogging about Blue Dragon kids while I have been sailing across the Pacific Ocean.

My good friend, Hugh Adams, bought a 46 foot sail boat in San Fransisco and needed some help to sail it to his home in Fiji. I thought it would be a great experience to travel with him - having never been on a boat before in my life.

So I went. I didn't make it to Fiji, though; we had some delays and so I could only get as far as Hawaii before I had to head back to Vietnam. Hugh is continuing the rest of the way with another sailor, and should arrive in Fiji in about three weeks.

Everybody wants to know, of course, how my trip was. But what can I say? I have delayed writing on the blog since we landed in Hilo, on the Big Island of Hawaii last week. I am still not sure how to explain the joys and terrors of our journey.

We set out on this...

The clearest thing I can say is this: I feel like a character in a TV show, at the start of a new series.


We arrived on this

A new series always comes after the dramatic season finale; and there are always changes, twists, and new threads as the next series commences.

It's been a long time since I saw much TV, but I still remember the excitement of end of season / start of season action on over-the-top shows like Melrose and X-Files, when you'd be left hanging over the Christmas break to find out how all the crises would resolve, which they invariably would.

So here’s the story, and I’m expecting Aaron Spelling to call any minute now.

The basic plot: Michael and Hugh spend a week in San Fransisco preparing to sail across the ocean. The two finally set out, only to discover that Michael really does get sea sick, after all. Once he has stopped vomiting over the side of the boat, he starts to enjoy the trip – until things start going wrong. The travelers land in Hawaii 18 days later, in a row boat, and Michael returns home to an emotional reunion with Blue Dragon kids and staff.

The action: Out at sea, the sail boat strikes trouble during a storm, when the boom tears away from the mast, leaving the boat without the main sail. Other minor problems compound the drama: water pumps fail; the radar dies; and the engine becomes incapacitated, making it impossible to reach shore. Meanwhile, back at Blue Dragon, a team of doctors investigate the cases of four disabled children, and deliver a mixed bag of verdicts. The Blue Dragon lawyer, Van, once again avoids arrest while fighting for trafficked children in Hue. Everybody in Hanoi gets pink eye, but this appears to be unrelated to everything else that’s going on.


The romance: Back at Blue Dragon, Social Worker Giang announces that she’s getting married! And everybody is invited!

The comedy: For the first time in his life, Michael goes sleep walking. Unfortunately, the hotel manager is not amused at having some guy walking about in his underwear asking which room he is staying in.

The character changes: Two key volunteers, Eric and Noemie, pack their bags and head home, following emotional farewells. Kids and staff alike are devastated. However, at least four new children arrive, all with beautiful hearts and desperate for a helping hand.

The conclusion: Back at home after all the drama and excitement of the 3000km sailing trip, Michael realises that he wants nothing more than to be with the Blue Dragon family. On his first day back, he meets a 13 year old boy named Dat, who cries as he tells of how he and his mother are sleeping on the street because they cannot pay their rent. And so the new season begins…

TO BE CONTINUED

A Blessed Opinion

We are not medical experts here at Blue Dragon- Education and Wholistic well being are our stengths. However we do know how to handle fevers, small cuts, Betadine and bandaid applications, and RUBELLA ( ask me about that later). But there are a handful of Special cases amongst our kids that are difficult to get a good opinion on and to find the best medical plan for their lives.

This week we have been blessed with Doctor Jan from America who works with PROJECT VIETNAM. James Brennan, a friend of Blue Dragon's was able to organise this consultation for us. She came to visit our centre to give us a third opinion for five of our children. This was a very moving experience for me.

Duc, a little boy with major hormone deficiencies, came with his Mother. Duc has been to see many doctors, and I can't imagine how much it must bare on him having to listen to adults talking about his health, future or lack of. The reality of the situation is that there is no miraculous drug which will make him normal height, strength,etc as he is now 15 and his bones are already starting to fuse.
Seeing Duc and his mothers reaction to all of this information really broke my heart. I can understand his mothers stress, especially in a culture where your only son holds such great importance for your families future. Ducs mother is such a loving woman, and has tried her whole life to help her son. There is hope though!
If we can get him to see a GOOD Specialist at an SOS clinic who can do the proper hormone tests on him to see exactly what his body needs and to work out a medical plan for him. Maybe they could improve his testosterone levels which would help him to develop in a more 'manly' way , which would in turn boost his confidence. If we can increase Duc's confidence and self esteem it will help him to enjoy the life he has been given. He just wants to be like the other kids, to be normal. Bless his little heart. We won't give up, and we have just found out that there is an alternative to the drug which Duc needs,(crucial if he gets sick) which is cheap and readily available in Vietnam. Slowly, Slowly the right path is being shown to us with the help of wonderful people.

I think living in the bubble of our own lives we really forget to put ourselves in other peoples shoes. When I got home last night i thought of the kids who had seen the doctor and how their lives have or haven't changed, what do they worry about, how are they feeling, what strength they need to get through every day? I won't turn this blog into a novel about each individual case, but I just wanted to share with you this experience. Basically, for those whose "medical condition" does not effect their everyday life, ie. they can still play, run, walk, have fun, have friends, study and have energy, they will be able to live a full normal life regardless.

Unfortunately for one of the boys, Thien, 9 years old, who is disabled, the access to professional carers who are experts in education for children with learning disabilities is not available here, hence putting so much extra stress on the mother who is already struggling to survive. BUT if we can find a specialist Optometrist for disabled children, we may be able to get him the RIGHT pair of glasses which would increase his ability to learn by 80%. I couldn't imagine trying to learn how to read and write when I can't even see the paper in front of me clearly, Could you?

And so our work continues, to find the best solutions for these amazing children and their precious carers.

For those of you like me, who are blessed with good health and a strong body, give thanks because there are many people who go home everyday and worry about what their future holds or can't go to school because their face is a funny shape, or can't make new friends because of their Cerebal Palsy even though their are the smartest kid in class. We must give thanks for our blessings, and share them with all.

I hope you all have a beautiful weekend

Skye

Trafficked children return to School

Toan recieves a bag of goods for his family

Last weekend Van, our Lawyer and Diep our trainee Social Worker headed off to Hue to help the 16 trafficked children (who were recently returned to their homes in Hue from Ho Chi Minh City) to enrol in school. A total of 24 children were enrolled, including a few siblings of the trafficked kids. Van and Diep provided each child with schoolbags and stationery to study and a bag of supplies for their family - shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and 1kg of OMO.

These kids have been on quite the journey since they were initially trafficked to Ho Chi Minh City. They are only one sixth of the kids who were trafficked from this village, that we are aware of. They now are enjoying their right to education and their right to a childhood. We intend to support these children for the duration of their education and also support their families. The poverty which these families are living in is extreme; most houses are patchworks of wood, plastic, and bamboo scraps, many with only 2 walls and exposed to the elements.

This is the home of 6 people.
One of the daughters is now attending school.

Van also discovered in this area that so many of the children were illiterate and had never been to school before. These children are at high risk of being trafficked as the traffickers bring promises of education..which of course never come true. (One of our kids was working from 7pm - 12pm the following day selling flowers - no time for school at all!)Van was able to interview 45 of these children ( there are many more ) and we are working on finding ways to get these children free education.

Van collecting information and giving gifts

Whilst Van and Diep were in Hue, they met two children and one adult in need of Eye surgery and as our lucky stars were shining, there was a group of Australian Vietnamese Eye Doctors in a nearby district. It was a VIETNAM VISION PROJECT sponsored by Australian Vietnamese Health Professionals NSW and Rotary.

Lanh, 17 years old.
Enjoying good sight after his successful eye operation.

One of the children was able to receive immediate eye surgery and is now enjoying clear bright sight, the other two people have appointments next Tuesday. Van was truly touched when the doctors gave priority to those without identity papers. When a Vietnamese doctor questioned this action the response was "because they have no papers they have always been turned away so many times at other hospitals, not here".

There is so much work to be done in Hue, and I guess for those of you in other parts of the world you could say the same about the countries you are living in. We have to do the best we can where we are, so we intend on doing all in our power to lift the standard of life for these people living in extreme poverty in villages in Hue.

On a lighter note today is our last day before a long weekend. Which we are all looking forward too. As much as I absolutely love life here at Blue Dragon you also need to take some time out for yourself and out of the CITY!!! I am off to the cool mountains of Sapa up on the Chinese border. Have a fantastic weekend!

Skye

Children teaching children

It has been two weeks...or maybe three since Michael left. He only set sail from San Francisco two days ago so we don't expect him home any time soon. We are working hard to compensate for his absence especially with the kids. There is extra love flying around everywhere here. This week I have been blown away by the care and responsibily of our kids.

Michael has mentioned before our Internal swimming program, teaching Blue Dragon children how to swim. We are now on our second program and currently teaching 16 kids. On Tuesday I took one of my students, Nhan, to the pool along with an extra child, Thuy, as my other student, La, had to stay home and look after his baby nephew. I have been here 5 months and my Vietnamese is pretty basic even though I practise very day with the kids, a language with 6 tones ain't the easiest language to learn. I am sure you can imagine my swimming lessons now!!!

My heart was so warmed when Thuy began to help me teach Nhan how to do freestyle breathing. Thuy showed so much patience and compassion, gently correcting Nhan to improve his stroke. I am so impressed with the children over the last couple of months, a real sense of brotherhood and unconditional love has grown amongst every one.


Here is a little background on 14 year old Thuy to help you paint a picture in your mind. Thuy's father abandoned him and his mother when he was one year old. Thuy quit school many times due to lack of money and used to work around the Old Quarter of Hanoi, his mother selling postcards to tourists and Thuy selling lottery ticket results. Thuy's mother died from a drug overdose over one year ago. Thuy then came to live with his 72 year old Grandmother who sells tea all night at one of the busiest markets in Hanoi. He and his Grandmother used to live in very poor accomodation with only one bag of possessions and a small light.

Blue Dragon met Thuy a month after his mother passed away as he stayed with his Grandmother on the same street as our centre. Thuys grandmother is unable to care for Thuy anymore as the burden of providing for two mouths is too much for this 72 year old woman. Thuy has been living in one of our Residency houses with 5 other boys for three months now and is provided with daily meals. He is now studying grade 2 at school and participates in various extra classes at our centre; drama, drumming, swimming and Music Club. He is a ray of sunshine and always brings laughter with his natural sense of humour and acting abilities.

Another incident this week was in our second Drama class. Two of the older girls who had participated the day before came again...must be because I design SUCH WONDERFUL CLASSES!!! he he he. We encouraged the girls to co- facilitate the class with us, and they did such a wonderful job. It is so powerful to see children lead and help other children. And this genuine care and mentorship seems to be happening everywhere around me at the moment. And so the family grows!

Last Saturday we had a very successful opening ceremony for our "Stay in School" kids School in Bac Ninh Province. A team of staff have been working very hard over the past three weeks preparing school books, bags and stationery, planning logistics of transporting 350 school bags laiden with stationery, counting and re-counting to make sure they had the right number "was that 211 or 215??? Oh count again". The ceremony ran smoothly and all the kids were so well behaved and very happy to receive their schoolbags and books. They began their school year last Monday.

All in all, Blue Dragon life is flowing along with full strength. This Sunday some of the kids from the Product Design team are heading out to the pottery village to learn how to make pottery. We never stop learning!

Have a great weekend
Skye

The ship hasn't sunk...yet

Well we are all still alive in Hanoi. Michael has been gone a week and things are still as busy as usual, even without him around to give us new projects to manifest and implement. On the weekend a few of us were fortunate enough to attend the first guitar recital of three of our kids; Ha, Nam and Ngoc. These three boys have been taking Classical guitar lessons since my arrival here in March. The guitar lessons were a part of our weekly music program which finished 2 months ago. However we decided to continue the lessons for our budding guitar players.

Ha, Nam, Ngoc, myself and two other volunteers all met beforehand, huddled in the dry of our house while the summer storm passed. We then rode together to the venue, the boys on bicycles and the three of us putting along behind them on our Minsks (big smoky Russian motorbikes that lots of foreigners ride in Hanoi). Our boys were the first to perform. We were so proud and they played so well together.

(Ha, Nam, girl, Ngoc)

We also had the pleasure of celebrating Diep's 18th Birthday this week. A Special day! Some of you may have already heard of Diep. Diep is one of the reasons why Blue Dragon is here today. Michael met Diep when he was a shoe shine boy 4 years ago, befriended him and Vi and began sharing breakfast with them daily. Watching Diep grow up has been a pleasure for all that have know him. Diep has been working as a trainee social worker for Blue Dragon for over six months now. The kids all love him, his soft nature and huge smile warms everyones hearts.

Michael was very sorry he was missing his baby boys 18th birthday so we prepared a filmed message before Michael left. The film featured a motorbike which was supposed to be Dieps gift which is then stolen by our local Xeom driver ( all staged of course) whilst Michael is talking to the camera ( the kids were hysterical when watching it). After the bike was "stolen" Michael was left with a white envelope in his hands with Diep's name on it which I was able to give him after watching the film. The contents of that envelope will buy Diep a bicycle so he can get around alot easier.

(Diep enjoying his Blue Dragon Party)

We had a lovely party at the Blue Dragon Centre with alot of the kids and all the staff. Later three of us joined Diep, the other Boys who live in the BIG ROOM and some more older Blue Dragon kids ( all 18 and older ) to sing Karaoke and share a couple of beers in true Birthday style. Tarah, Eric and I were so impressed with how considerate and respectful all of the boys are, and full of such positive, fun energy. Once again we were so proud of the boys, they are growing into such wonderful young men!

Michael mentioned in his last update that Chinh, Can and Hue were starting at a new school, well they have been studying there for a week and a half now and they are LOVING IT!!! Chinh and Can live in Blue Dragon houses and they are always beaming when they return from School.

Well friends, its over and out for this Wednesday afternoon. Tomorrow we have another fantastic morning of Drumming!!! Hopefully the sun is shining.

Skye

From the streets of San Fransisco

Today I am in another world.

San Fransisco - the weather is gorgeous, the streets are wide and the shops open at lunch time.

The flight over here was interrupted because of the latest conspiracy out of England... I lost my toothpaste in Hong Kong, lest that Colgate be used for evil.

I am now with two of my best friends: Hugh Adams, who invited me on this trip, and Pham Sy Chung from Vietnam. Back in the very earliest days of Blue Dragon, Chung was working with me - before there was even an intention to start an NGO (Non-Government Organisation), Chung was working alongside me to help street kids in Hanoi. (That's Chung in the photo. He won't be happy when he sees I've stolen his university photo).

And, by coincidence, it was Chung who introduced me to Hugh. Since then, Hugh has relocated to Fiji, and Chung has moved to Santa Monica where he studies at Rand. But today we are together again. Just like before, except in a different country. And the street kids here have MP3 players.

Back in Vietnam, as I sat waiting for the taxi to pick me up from our street kids' center, a new development arose that is playing on my mind.

Anyone who knows Blue Dragon - anyone who reads this blog - will know that our kids go through a lot. They are at the bottom of the social ladder. Everyone is out to get them.

We've been working hard to change that, though. Our local policeman, Mr Thang, is even about to start coming around to the center to have some informal workshops with the kids on how to stay out of trouble with the law. That kind of thing is extremely rare in Vietnam.

But on Wednesday, as I was about to leave, I learned something truly shocking. A new, all-time low, I think.

Some of our kids have reported being locked in a room and beaten, quite savagely, and they have the bruises, scars, and witnesses to prove it.

Why were they beaten? Somebody had been robbed, and they were beating the children in the hope that one of them would know who had stolen the money, and would confess the information.

So, the big question: Who was this? The police? No.

A local householder, a private citizen? No.

It was another NGO. That's right, another charity. A charity that's fully foreign funded, and claims to help street children.

Now, the NGO community tends to stay closed-lipped about each other's dirty laundry. Some pretty awful deeds are done in the name of charity, but usually nobody says anything.

But this action goes right against everything I believe in, and everything my staff and I have worked for over the past few years.

We won't stay quiet about this.

Van, our lawyer, has started talking to the kids to find out the details and verify if this is all true. While my first instinct is to believe the kids - or at least believe that there is SOME element of truth in what they say - we do need to confirm, to be sure, before we take action.

Of course, I am about to get on a boat and sail to Hawaii, so I won't be writing any more about this for a while. But if these kids are telling the truth, then there will certainly be some follow up to come.

As always, stay tuned.

It's time

... Time to go!

I plan to pack my bags this afternoon, at the last minute as usual, while the taxi is outside beeping for me.

Tonight I go to Saigon, and then on to San Fransisco. And then on to the sail boat!

While I am away, Blue Dragon's Arts and Theatre coordinator, Skye, will keep this blog alive by posting news of the kids. It may be a couple of weeks before I have internet access again.

Saying farewell to all the kids is incredibly difficult, but it's a selfish sorrow that I am feeling. Right now the kids at our center are doing amazingly well. And they will continue to do well while I am away - it's just that I won't be there to see them...

We've had some good news about funding in the last week or so.

World Vision is looking quite likely to continue the support of our Step Ahead program, and they have also offered a small grant to pay for school text books for over 300 kids.

And the New Zealand Embassy has offered to support our legal advocacy work - which means we can really make our work more professional and organised, and so reach many more children in need.

The NZ Embassy has also confirmed that it will fund a proposal by the Disability Forum to develop training packages and resources for staff involved with disabled youth. Blue Dragon will work with the Forum on the implementation of some parts of that proposal, as we have a HUGE need to develop our abilities in that area.

This is all exciting news, but there's more...

On Monday of this week, three of our kids started at a new school.

Most Blue Dragon kids attend a local charity school, which is OK, but as time goes by more and more of the children are aspiring to go to university. The charity school just doesn't have a high enough standard to get them there.

So Chinh, Hue and Can have started studying at a private school, a few kilometers away but only 20 minutes by bus.

Chinh and Hue are brother and sister; they were both forced to leave home in the countryside after their mother died and their father remarried. Chinh was shining shoes when we met him. He's one of the smartest, funniest, most likable kids I have met... And his sister, although much more shy, is a beautiful soul too.

Can is only 12 years old, and he is one of the kids we rescued from child traffickers a few months back. He's another very bright boy - after just a few days, he's thriving in his new school environment already.

Every now and then I meet somebody who tells me that I am wasting my time with Blue Dragon: street kids are lazy, dishonest, sneaky, stupid.

But as I set off on my sailing adventure I am already thinking about my return to Vietnam, and to the children's center. I am already filled with excited anticipation - what news will await me?

What progress will Hue, Chinh, and Can have made?

Which university will Hoang be enrolled in?

How many more children will have their births registered, so they can be officially recognised by the government?

But first, I have an ocean to cross.