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Nguyen thi Ngoc Hanh, who is she? She is regular, but also very complicated. She is a war victim among many Vietnamese who sufferred under the atheism of The Viet Communists ("VC"). In her autobiography, "Lua Tu Do" (Flame of Freedom), she calls herself a "simple country girl" from southwestern Viet Nam (Long Xuyen). She is married with four children. Her husband belonged to the Viet Nam ("VN") armoured guard. In 1980, she attempted to flee the Communist Regime
in a wooden fishing boat with her two and a half year-old son, The Nguyen,
and 38 others. They were robbed by Thai pirates and captured by the VC
in the Coloway Island of Cambodia. Every six months, a food supply boat
traveled from VN to that island. When Ngoc Hanh and her companions arrived,
the boat had just left the island to the VN inland, so they had to wait
for another six months to join the other prisoners in Viet Nam. From there,
her hardship began. Small portions of rice soup were fed to everybody each
day. The VC permitted the man of each family to get out of the camp to
gather edible food such as pineapple, banana, sweat potato, manioc, and
taro. At the end of the day, the men returned to the camp and distributed
the food to their families, except Ngoc Hanh and her son. The 24 year-old
young mother and three year-old boy were so hungry that they had to gather
food for themselves. At one time, Ngoc Hanh carried her son on her back,
sneaked out of the camp, and climbed onto the "Death Cliff" (Doc Tu Than)
searching for food, despite the camp rules:
After six months of torture and hunger, the 40 refugees were brought to Phu Quoc and then to other prisons in Viet Nam. Ngoc Hanh's family attempted to escape 10 times, of which six times they were captured by the VC and imprisoned for almost five years where she suffered unforgettable pain. The most terrible memory was the punishment of the VC toward a prisoner at Ta Nien prison of Rach Gia City. The victim was steeped in a leech pond for days. When the VC pulled him out, the victim's body was covered by thousands of leeches. After the VC threw the leeches back to the pond, the victim remained a bloody immovable body and died immediately. Witnessing such a tragedy, Ngoc Hanh told herself that she would fight for the war victims even if she had to sacrifice herself. After many failed attempts to leave Viet Nam, Ngoc Hanh finally succeeded in 1987, when she fled with her family to the Cambodia border and then to Camp Panatnikhom in Thailand. Ngoc Hanh and her family spent four years in Thailand. In 1991, she immigrated to France, where she has resided in Bretagne with her husband and four children. On April 30, 2000, Ngoc Hanh attempted to burn herself in front of the VC Embassy in Paris to protest against the crimes of the VC during a visit from the VC general, Le Kha Phieu, who was known as the "predator." No Vietnamese could forget that April 30, 1975, was the national disaster day. On August 31, 2000, Ngoc Hanh flew from France to London, hung the VN national yellow flag with three red stripes in front of the VC Embassy, threw two gas bombs and two smoke grenades, and then waited for police to arrest her. The first gas bomb was thrown in the guest room of the VC Embassy. While the officials tried to stop the fire, Ngoc Hanh tied the VN flag to the main gate. A 30 year-old VC man ran to the flag, took it down, and broke the handle. Ngoc Hanh threw the second gas bomb at the man, whom she later discovered was Nguyen Hai Bang, the VC Ambassador. As Ngoc Hanh threw two more smoke grenades, the VC Ambassador used an extinguisher to stop the flame. In the mean time, Ngoc Hanh stretched the banner "FREEDOM for VIETNAM, HUMAN RIGHTS for VIET NAM" on the main gate. The VC Ambassador sprayed the extinguisher at Ngoc Hanh, creating large clouds of smoke. All of the events occurred within a span of a few minutes. Ngoc Hanh had plenty of time to escape, but she stayed to take responsibility for her actions and to use prisons in England to denounce the VC. She was shouting "Freedom for Viet Nam, Human Rights for Viet Nam" when police arrested her. She was transported to Chelsea Police Station, where she was forced to take off her shirt adorned with the slogan, "Freedom for Viet Nam, Human Rights for Viet Nam." A female Vietnamese interpreter told Ngoc Hanh in a frigid, ironic manner: "You are involved in politics, but you're unwise. Why don't you take off your shirt by yourself? It is a shame to have them force you to take it off." Ngoc Hanh responded: "I don't feel ashamed. I'm tortured because of my people. The one who should feel ashamed is the one ignoring the misery of our people. " The first trial was held on September 2, 2000 at the West London Magistrates Court. Ngoc Hanh was accused of attempted murder of the VC Ambassador Nguyen Hai Bang. She shouted in the Court, "I'm not fighting for myself, I fight for the freedom of my country." Fifty-five years ago, Ho Chi Minh started to redden the VN country with the Communist Regime. He took advantage of the patriotism of the VN people to create a horrible civil warfare. Now, on the same day in 2000, Ngoc Hanh used her trial to denounce to the world the crimes of the VC toward the VN people and VN country. Ngoc Hanh was brought to Holloway prison, where she was taken to room D3 on the third floor. There were four beds in the room with a small drawer for clothing, a table for writing, and a set for tea or coffee. Lying on the smooth white spring bed, Ngoc Hanh thought about the misery of VN people, a majority of whom cannot afford to have a room as luxurious as her prison. On September 4, 2000, the first person to visit Ngoc Hanh was Mr. Ngo Trong Hieu, who had videotaped the attack of Ngoc Hanh in front of the VC Embassy from a hotel room across the street. He helped her find a public defender and interpreter and contact her family and friends. After being classified under prisoner category A, Ngoc Hanh was placed in a separate room, where she had a chance to write to her family explaining that she decided to sacrifice herself for the VN country, even though she loved her family so much. Her children are still luckier than many VN children whose mothers stand in line in front of Hung Vuong hospital to sell blood. Then Ngoc Hanh was transferred to Besmash prison, which was much dirtier than Holoway. The prison was located underground without any sunlight, noise, or heat. She was isolated from the outside world. The public defender visited her at the cell. Ngoc Hanh's son, The Nguyen, traveled from France to see her. The three year-old boy that had accompanied her from one prison to another was now a 22 year-old man. Again, he saw his mother captured in a prison in a foreign country. Ngoc Hanh instructed her son to get help from the lawyer, Hoang Duy Hung, and from her relative, di Xuan, to contact the World Women Association. On September 16, 2000, Ngoc Hanh was led out of jail to meet Governor Peed of the Besmash prison. That was the first time she saw sunlight since her captivity in this prison. She inquired as to why Great Britain, the most civilized country and the most democratic country with human rights in the world, could treat a woman fighting for freedom and democracy that badly? He let her know that he respected her, did not consider her as a terrorist but a friend, and admired her courage and patriotism for the VN country. Governor Peed requested that she should take care of herself and not go on a hunger strike. Touched, Ngoc Hanh thanked him for his compassion and understanding. Through a telephone call from her friend Ngoc Tram, Ngoc Hanh discovered news from the House of Commons in England, which said that if Ngoc Hanh did not confess and denounce Ngo Trong Hieu as her accomplice, she would be sentenced to 13 years in prison. She decided not to reveal anything about Mr. Hieu, even though she had to stay in prison 13 to 20 years longer. She wanted to protect him and the spirit of a national warrior, not betray the compatriot fellow. While she was in prison in London, Ngoc Hanh received a threatening card from an unknown person telling her she should commit suicide, otherwise she would be killed when she got out of jail. Ngoc Hanh knew that card came from the VC, because the signature D/C reminded her of the same person who wrote an article on the Thoi Bao Magazine in San Jose to insult her. She did not pay attention to that threat and tried not to fall into the VC trap. Their intention was to disassociate the patriotic Vietnamese. Anyway, the Thoi Bao Magazine had been punished by the U.S. Court for their false accusation. At trial on October 27, 2000, the prosecutor dropped the charge of attempted murder and determined that the case was a political protest for freedom and human rights in Viet Nam. The Vietnamese Community Associations in Germany, France, and USA sent petitions to Prime Minister Tony Blair requesting legal amnesty for Ngoc Hanh. Mr. Nguyen Tai Dam, Chairman of the Vietnamese Community of Northern California wrote: "From news wires and witnesses' accounts, Ms. Nguyen's action was cleared and executed to make a political statement, and civil protest to draw public attention to the cause of Freedom, Democracy and Human Rights for Viet Nam She intended to harm no one and in fact nobody was hurt as a result of her action. The charge of attempted murder, therefore, is excessive unwarranted and simply can not be supported by factual evidence. It is perceived as an attempt by British Government to yield to political pressure and appease the oppressive Communist Vietnamese Government" John Battle from the Minister of State wrote: "Mrs.. Hanh was arrested by the police at the scene of the incident and has been charged with intention to endanger life and to damage property, and recklessly to endanger life and to damage property. These are obviously very serious charges. The committal hearing took place on October 31, 2000, when the magistrates decided there was a case to answer. She was refused bail, and will be tried at a Crown Court within the next few months" The Court ordered Ngoc Hanh to compensate for the damages to the premises. She refused explaining that the VC Embassy was the property of the VN national government, which the VC occupied as traitors and robbers. The VN people and VN country had been deceived for 25 years without any compensation. The VC destroyed the whole country, but who will compensate the VN people? On October 16, 2000, Ngoc Hanh was transferred to Durham prison in northern England, where she was treated very cruelly. Two giant policemen scrutinized her every gesture and a big watch dog was ready to pounce on her anytime. For each trial, Ngoc Hanh was transported from Durham to Besmash for seven hours in a small iron box, while her hands were tied forward. Physically and mentally broken, Ngoc Hanh was hospitalized at Gordon Hospital for four months. Mrs. Roland Peel, a French citizen, had been informed by the Vietnamese Association in London about Ngoc Hanh's case and sought help from the French Embassy and the World Human Rights Associations. Since Ngo Trong Hieu refused to cooperate with Mrs. Peel, she worked closely with Pham Anh Cuong and some other national Vietnamese. On February 15, 2001, Ngoc Hanh was released with honor from the Judge who called her "a very courageous little woman." She returned to France with her husband and four children on March 23, 2001. Outraged by the mistreatment of the British prisons towards a little woman fighting for freedom of her country, her people, and for the justice of the world conscience, Ngoc Hanh mentioned in her letter to the Court why she chose the VC Embassy in London to protest. In 1931, Ho Chi Minh and his fellows started demonstrations in China and Thailand. Ho Chi Minh was captured and imprisoned in Hong Kong, where he was prosecuted at the British Court. The two British defendant lawyers, Lobedai and Nowell Pry, assisted in his release and escape to Russia where he later organized the Viet Nam Communist Party in 1945. So, Great Britain was directly responsible for the VC domination in Viet Nam. Ngoc Hanh was also inspired by Winston Churchill, the great British writer who won the Nobel Prize for his unyielding spirit in fighting for freedom, democracy, and human rights against Communism. He had contributed a great deal to the defeat the European Communists in 1989. Opposed to the recent US-Vietnamese trade pact on December 13, 2001, Ngoc Hanh again protested against Nguyen Tan Dung, the VC deputy prime minister, who was speaking to a group of US businessmen at the Marriott Hotel in San Francisco. Ngoc Hanh entered the ballroom with her clothes soaked with gasoline. As she tried to light the gas-soaked torches to set a fire, an FBI agent tackled her. She was arrested with Pham Anh Cuong, her 53 year-old friend from Paris, who works in the hotel industry. Currently, they are being held in the Alameda County Jail in Oakland for the charge of attempted violence toward a foreign official, assault of a federal agent, and arson. In a recent jailhouse interview, Ngoc Hanh said, "Fifty-eight thousand American soldiers died for the cause of freedom in Viet Nam, and I believe that what I'm doing today is a similar kind of sacrifice?I want to be the light of freedom for Viet Nam." James Nguyen, April 2002
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