Tien Thuyet Magazine issue #336 (Originally in Au Lac Language)

Journey Along With
The Demonstrators

By Do Van Tron

Unlike previous trips to Hong Kong, we came this time to pray for the boat people so that they would not be so hopeless as to commit a mass suicide.
The faces of the passenger on the plane were familiar, even though this was unplanned. No overwhelming greetings were spoken, but all understood the purpose of this trip, deep from within. We counted more than forty people who came from San-Jose, San-Francisco, and Oakland. There were all ages. Some came alone, some with family.
When we arrived at the Hong Kong airport, we exchanged a few words with one another and then departed. Most of them were first comers, yet everyone independently found their own place to stay. Except for our group, we were greeted by a welcoming party and taken to the Mekong Hotel.
To me, Hong Kong is not an unfamiliar place, I have been there every year for the past decade. At times, I came to print calendars or telephone book directories, and sometimes came along with Mai Thao, and Hoang Anh Tuan to visit the refugee camps. I would nonchalantly stroll down the streets and alleys of Hong Kong, looking for opportunities at every corner to conduct my profession... any link of relationship, and plans for making movies.
Brother Mai Thao has often sternly reminded me that: "Hong Kong will have a new leader, and you will have to leave before 1997." This phrase has been repeated in many of Mai Thao's writings of Hong Kong.
No noise, no communication, nor a single news report. I knew that during the 4-day visit to Hong Kong, I would not be allowed to do any other work except that which is specifically related to what my fellow countrymen are hoping and waiting for. Having not rested after a long flight, Mai Han, Minh Ngu and I rushed to follow a guide to an appointed location. The other people who temporarily stayed in this hotel and I took a ride in a two-deck bus. There were more than two hundred people. They were from many different countries and may have arrived the day before. During the bus ride, I kept thinking about the situation. The twenty mile trip was pulsating and stirred deep within my heart. Hong Kong under the April sun is still humid and very hot. The skyscrapers grow taller and taller and the pedestrians snugly filled the streets of the famous harbor. On Thursday, April 28, at 11:00 a.m., we all met at a large Church North of Mekong City. From here, a long line of buses, one after another, parked along the street. We couldn't imagine it, an ocean of people of all races from twenty-six nations were sitting in meditation on the grass, covering the whole church yard. They were notified only three days before. They only knew that the goal of this gathering in Hong Kong is to pray for the Au Lacese boat people. Then, they were on the road; their luggage nothing but the love from one human being for another. A lot of the Formosan couldn't get Hong Kong visas in time so they had to stop by Korea to do the paperwork. The temperature from the sun seemed to be rising as if wanting to burn up the ocean of people, everyone was soaking wet in sweat. At noon, the Supreme Master Ching Hai came, everyone stood up and bowed. They expressed their utmost respect of a disciple to a Master.
After a few exchanges of greetings, Supreme Master Ching Hai clearly explained the goal of the gathering today. With many different languages and in a gentle tone, she said: "Our goal today is to pray for the Au Lacese boat people not to commit a mass suicide. Our aims are for the Au Lac people. All fellow practitioners that are participating must be in one spirit and that is to use sincerity as the key. The pitiful Au Lac refugees are asking nothing more than just basic human rights; the right to live, to breath fresh air. We are asking for human rights, which is a common thing that everyone should have. This needs to be voiced. They have traded so much and have suffered so much during the time they were locked up inside the camps. Having gone through many hardships, difficulties, and trials in the face of death, they have reached the shores of freedom and yet, they are now being expelled again. They are being oppressed stripped of their dignity. We must love our own kind. The presence of fellow practitioners of many different races signifies love between mankind. The Au Lacese have shed blood, in the many refugee camps, the innocent children have to suffer from those tear gas bombs; the boat people are agonizing. We cannot ignore it. We have nothing to fight back with, but we do have love and compassion; we do have responsibilities. What can those poisonous tear gas bombs, bats aiming at the helpless boat people accomplish? What can they oppress? Or maybe they're continuously digging a deeper hole to bury the Au Lacese alive. The rebellious flame has been ignited. How many Au Lacese have set themselves on fire? Gone on a hunger strike? Looking at us today, everybody has significance, except for the boat people, they are dying in the refugee camps. We have gathered here to call on everyone, every parliament, government parties, organizations, religious groups, individuals, especially the mass media and all the Au Lacese overseas to step forward and demand justice for the Au Lacese boat people. Give them back their refugee rights. Let's pray for the fate of these Au Lacese to soon overcome this bad karma."
News about the bloody oppression on April 7 was still fresh in my mind. Thousands of Hong Kong officers and 500 riot police armed with tear gas masks, shields, clubs, tear gas guns... attacked the refugees to force them to repatriate at the White Head Camp, the place where approximately 1500 refugees were held. More than half were children, women, and elderly people. One person had tried to burn himself in protest against this act, but fire fighters had put it out and arrested him. At the same time, hundreds of refugees tied their hands together, signifying non-violence, sitting quietly in the camp. Police troops shot tear gas grenades directly at these empty handed people to dismiss them. Many of the children, women and elderly people could not breathe from the smoky tear gas that filled the entire protest area, so they ran inside the rooms. Yet, the troops wouldn't stop, they shot more tear gas into the rooms and arrested 300 people on the first pass. Many people including children fainted with blood flowing out of their mouths, noses, ears and eyes.
What crime have those boat people committed? They only yearned for freedom, wanting to have a life where human right and dignity exist. It was very unjust of the Hong Kong government to allow this inhuman act.
At 1:00 p.m. on the same day, the caravan brought 1500 people to the front of the Hong Kong Government Building. The demonstration started at 2:00 p.m. The whole area was pack with demonstrators. The posters and signs, the hymns calling out compassion from the human race, along with the sobbing sounds on every tearful face created a very tragic sight resembling a bright white funeral in front of the government building. Our hearts were deeply touched. The tourists and the staff working in the Governor's building were also very sad and moved. All kinds of international media and Hong Kong's live video coverage, interviewers, and radio were present, there was a 70 years old lady from Australia who had fainted because she was so overwhelmed. We reported live to Saigon radio and answer questions from the BBC station, and the VOA station. We had to try to suppress our feelings. However the overpowering emotions made me stutter when I tried to perform my duty as a reporter. We only want to say that we love our countrymen very much, we love the unfortunate refugee very much, we also love those who came today to pray for the Au Lacese boat people. Even though they are not Au Lacese, they may not even understand the dangers of fleeing empty-handed on the open ocean, the deadly big waves that have claimed so many Au Lacese lives. But they were here, present. It didn't come from a command that was given to them. I only knew that they were here to share. They are beginning to understand the agonies and sufferings that the Au Lacese boat people are going through. I thank the Supreme Master Ching Hai, an Au Lacese lady with a small fragile body, who has done many incredible tasks. I think, only love can eliminate hatred and vengeance; it can awaken the minds of ignorance.
The demonstration lasted 3 hours, very peaceful. Everyone was in the stillness of meditation. The hymns of Hallelujah, Tan Lu Huong, Quan Yin Bodhisatva were been sung many times. At 5:00p.m. people lined up, getting on the bus one at a time to return and get ready for tomorrow's demonstration at other camps. We followed Miss Bach Phuong, a meditation practitioner, and took a taxi back to the hotel. Everybody was shaky because of hunger and fatigue, but there wasn't time to eat or sleep yet. At 7:00p.m. we packed our luggage to move to a church, the place, where the meditation practitioners had gathered at noon. This is a very holy place. Here are many large open lawns and many rows of public houses, Some of the meditation practitioners had set up tents to stay in, some lived in those public houses. We were allowed to stay in rooms that were relatively sufficient and more comfortable.
That night, our meals were vegetable dishes. Everybody said that we should become vegetarians from now on. Even though the Supreme Master Ching Hai was busy with work, She still spared time to talk with us. At this time, the novelist Minh Ngu asked many questions relating to Her activities both in life and spiritually. The discussion continued until 2:00a.m. Every question was cleared up. Now everyone is aiming towards the same goal and that is fighting for the boat people, for the refugees. That night, due to the time difference along with the agitations in my mind, I could not close my eyes to sleep. Wide awake, I took a walk outside. I noticed that I was not the only one who was awake, but everyone had already been up since who knows when. Maybe they were just like me, couldn't find peace in their minds to sleep. On the vast green grass carpet still wet with the morning dew, the meditation practitioners sat still throughout the night. They continued to pray, they were confident in their minds, from a direct connection with God. The message of love has been transmitted. The sun still hadn't risen, there was no sign of dusk. I wanted to go inside to wake up Mai Han, Minh Ngu to chat and share with them my feelings. But they were tired and needed some time to rest.
Looking at the time, it was only 3:15a.m. in Hong Kong while it was 5:15p.m. in America. That means I still had some time to report some news to the listeners of the Saigon Radio. Quoc Bao answered on the other end of the phone line. Hoang Anh Tuan, Sao Bien, Thicn Kim, Tan Cuong were still busy working and the listeners were anxiously waiting to hear the current events in Hong Kong. I quickly dialed all the numbers on the hand-held phone and a few seconds later I was able to broadcast on the radio all the news of that day. At the same time, La Thoai Tan, Vu Xuan Hung, Ngo Ky thuy, Ha Cam Tam came, I waved as a signal and La Thoai Tan nodded his head. Even though his voice was strong, he still couldn't hide the emotions, therefore it resulted in some intermittence. We finished the report and promised the audience of Saigon Radio to continue tomorrow.
It's almost 6:00 a.m. now, everybody has lined up to get up on the bus. I barely had enough time to wake Mai Han, Minh Ngu and rushed them to get on the bus on time. The last bus took me, Mai Han, Minh Ngu to the White Head refugee camp. The whole view was nothing but fields of people with white funeral bands with the words "SOS" or "PRAY" written on them. They sat along the outside of the jail like camp. The number of people attending today's demonstration doubled that of yesterdays. I was informed that there were over 1000 people who had just arrived in Hong Kong last night. What separates the people and the camp is many layers of barbed-wire, stacked up high above. On the other side are rows and rows of countless houses with tin roofs. Yet, we still couldn't catch sight of any boat people. It seems as if they were locked up separately. There were some sounds coming from the houses, an outcry echoed out. It wasn't until more than an hour later that we could see those first boat people who climbed onto the roof, about 20 people. As they all cried, the group of demonstrators shouted together to the refugees: "We love you, please stay alive with us", "don't commit suicide, think of the children, relatives", "we are praying for your freedom." With a compassionate voice, the Supreme Master Ching Hai talked to the refugees... Try to save your lives... God will bless you... As long as you are still alive, you still have hope... The world will change... We have come to fight for you... The Hong Kong Government must give back your refugee rights... Don't use force on those who have no where to turn... Those are words that carried the omnipotent vibrations, soothing the pain of the body and mind of those refugees who voiced a call for help from these camps for many years. The hymn Hallelujah started up again, mixed together with the weeping, the 3000 hearts, the 3000 souls that lit an eternal flame today, radiating to the whole world, to all the people. Even the English policeman shed tears. The riot police troops that were called in, together with helicopters and tanks fully armed, ready to face the demonstrators were beginning to withdraw. They were helpless before these holy actions. They were ashamed of their previous intentions. They wanted to turn away and hide their inhuman act that happened on April 7, the day of the Au Lacese boat peoples' bloodshed. Hong Kong's history is again tainted with a bad mark. Let's listen to a small voice from one of the refugee boat people that ehoed out.
"The Lord has created us so that we could live penned up in these jail houses. We could sing, as well as speak, but how can our words be voiced through the walls of barbed wire fences. We thank our fellow Au Lacese countrymen, we thank the friends from different countries, we thank Master Ching Hai's benevolent heart. I would like to ask once again from those of you out there to go to the other refugee camps to comfort and console them from their agonies and sufferings. At this moment, they are on hunger strikes and plan to tie their hands together to die in unison. Your being here at this moment in time is more than enough to warm our hearts. Right now, besides the workers, no one is able to flee outside to share it with you. This jail camp is a fierce enemy knife cutting us apart. Thank you, thank you so much. Now you must try hard to save the lives of boat refugees at the Tai Au Chau and High Island camps."
The parting moment was sad and tearful. We left at noon on the 29th of April to continue onto camp High Island camp. The road on the way out was filled with people walking. One by one, each car began to make it's way out leaving behind a feeling of sorrow of a certain bondage.
4 p.m. on the 29th, we arrived at High Island camp; the natural beauty of this place is wonderful but at this moment we did not have the artistic mind to compose the picture. From high above, we could see the boat people below on a hunger strike. The demonstration group hurried down the hillside that was more than one kilometer long; the path was carefully constructed by a skillful hand with many stair steps. After coming down from the hill, we still had to walk more than two kilometers before we could reach the refugee camp. It started to rain. The line of people stretched more than a kilometer long. It's more than any picture that could be drown, better than any film that could ever be produced by any talented director. No matter how hard the rain was pouring, the elderly, the young ones marched on together. The rain poured on their heads, damped their bodies, and soaked their souls. Could it be that the rain drops from above are tears from God weeping together with us? Crying along with the oppressed refugees that were about to die any moment now? Different from the White Head camp, thousands of boat people at High Island have been on a hunger strike there for many days. Separated by a couple layers of fences, they weren't too far from sight, only about a couple hundred meters away. They spoke up strongly but their bodies were exhausted. They tried sending us sounds of truth. With emptied milk cans, they've created a special sound system which echoed throughout the serene valley. We listened to them very clearly, very mournfully, they would rather die than to return to where they had fled from. The price that they are paying for freedom. The nebulous cloud will dissipate. The walls of humiliation that surrounds them will collapse. They will together with us, with the group of demonstrators out here, clutching tightly each other, give out the warmest and deepest love ever.
We heard about the fate of the refugees at the camps in Hong Kong for a long time now. But I would have never imagined it'd be like this. They are not any different from wounded animals that have been pierced with arrows shot by hunters. It came straight from the Hong Kong Government, the international powers who continuously hunt down these maimed animals. The 20th century will still have many more, many refugee camps, confining my brothers and fellow countrymen. I wanted to scream along with them, I wanted to cut up my flesh also and let it bleed, get infected, so that I could share their same feeling of agony. I'm sending them love, the love of more than 3,000 people from all over the world that have assembled here today. They came to listen and witness the truth straight from the surviving victims. The recent bloodshed of April 7, 1994, that had many injuries due to the oppression. Nineteen people have fainted from the hunger strike and were sent to the hospital for treatment. The next day, those 19 people were immediately imprisoned in Hong Kong's jail. Hong Kong's Victoria jail house, meaning a graveyard of victories for Hong Kong troops. It consisted of helpless boat people that were defeated in a battle where they had no weapons to defend themselves, or without any protection from the law. The 19 boat people thirsting for freedom, asking to be heard, wanting to awaken the people. They are returned to the camp with bruises all over their bodies. Starvation is not the final solution for the helpless to touch people's hearts. That must never occur in the forbidden Hong Kong refugee camps. I got all choked up thinking about this.
From within the camp, together they shouted: "Happiness, freedom, forever." They expressed their gratitude towards everyone, especially to the Supreme Master Ching Hai. Respectfully, words from the bottom of their hearts echoed: ";Supreme Master Ching Hai the greatest saviour of the Au Lacese's boat people. Your great help and deeds are imprinted deep within our hearts." It was getting dark, time to depart, everyone was moved, crying and sad. The group was solemn like in a funeral procession, a dreadful sight. The sky was dark gray with its storms. I became like a wounded soldier, dragging my feet. We returned to the church at about 8:00a.m., just in time for the vegetarian meal that has been prepared for us. With a little bit of food ingested, I slept soundly. At 11:00p.m., there was knocking on the door and it sounded as if the Supreme Master Ching Hai was calling us, but no one could get up; please excuse us. At 3:00a.m., I turned over and woke up like a sleep walker and stepped outside. Just like yesterday, many fellow practitioners were still in meditation, they had been up a long time. They probably didn't even sleep. They came here just to meditate, to light up the flame of eternal love. They have an endless compassionate heart. I was so impressed, especially with the Formosan, they never seemed to tire. Our bodies were tattered and worn within a couple of days while theirs remain strong through many nights like that. They stayed wide awake the whole time to meditate, to pray for the well-being of my fellow countrymen. If it weren't for them, for the initiative of the Supreme Master Ching Hai, there would be a mass burning of the 70 Au Lacese boat people with hands tied together sacrificing themselves for their country.
On the morning of April 30, according to the plan we were to protest at the Tai Au Chau camp, but the Hong Kong's police wouldn't allow it. The Supreme Master Ching Hai quickly diverted into a different tactic. She rounded everyone up at the Mekong pier, the place where tourists gather, where streets are crowded with people shuffling back and forth in Hong Kong. Here signatures were collected on letters and then sent to the Governor's Office in Hong Kong, the United Nation and countries with power. The day before, the demonstrators came and personally hand delivered 10,000 letters of protest to the Governor's staff, asking the Hong Kong Government to stop the ruthless repatriation of the Au Lac refugees.
The demonstrators spread out everywhere, from Hong Kong to Mekong to collect signatures. The city of Hong Kong was packed with people, yet at every corner, every street intersection, the meditation practitioners could be spotted some place. As if it was a miracle, for the two days of collecting signatures, Saturday and Sunday, no one was lost even though the streets of Hong Kong were unfamiliar to most of them. They went in small groups of two's or three's covering every inch of Hong Kong. They dismissed and reassembled all on schedule. As a result, over 100,000 signatures were accumulated. The Supreme Master Ching Hai informed us that at this very instant other fellow practitioners, in Formosa, as well as in America and in many other countries were also protesting, and in Formosa alone, a million signatures were collected. She would continue with this work, along with many other ways to fight for the Au Lac refugees. When asked if her work would bring any hope for the Au Lacese boat people, the Supreme Master replied: "It's like a knife with two blades. We are bringing hope to the refugees, however it is only a token, if no actions are taken, and we would in turn make them feel even more disappointed, desperate. The responsibilities of a human being, voicing our hearts is the least thing that we could do. If we just sat there with hands tied, then how could we know the work we're doing is not effective in influencing others on the issue of repatriation. Many countries have already signed a repatriation agreements." Months ago, the lives of the camp representatives and the boat people were threaten, but still they continued to fight in a non-violent manner. The Supreme Master Ching Hai negotiated with the Hong Kong Government that She would provide a funding of $US300,000 dollars each month for the boat people, so that they could continue stay for a period of time until 1997. In the mean time, She would try to organize with other countries to buy a small island, or a piece of land for the boat people to settle in. She also offered $US5 million dollars to any third country that would accept the Au Lac refugee. The work of Supreme Master Ching Hai and Her Meditation Association is overflowing with love and good deeds. In the past, the Supreme Master Ching Hai also has contributed millions of dollars to charitable services and for relief of victims of natural disasters, in America and the Philippines. The estimated cost for these demonstrations here today is approximately $US5 million dollars and all of Her disciples had to pay their own on this trip. They still have many other places to go yet. The boundless hearts of Supreme Master Ching Hai and Her disciples from all over the world, have done a grand meaningful job.
On the plane back to America, I felt that I was so small and insignificant, images from the past few days have been imprinted deeply in my heart. From now on, I think I will do something that's more meaningful and beneficial to my life.