Accompanying my daughter

Hua Thi Chinh, from Ba Vi District, Hanoi, has always worried about the risk of her daughter being sexually abused. Her daughter is 19 years old and has intellectual disability. As she said, there was a pervert in the neighborhood who always stalked families with childen with disabilities. Despite her worries, her family could not do anything due to the lack of evidence and solutions to get her daughter out of danger.

Finding no other way, she decided to quit her job in the city center and started raising cattles at home while taking care of her daughter. There are not many people in her family, so whenever she went out, she had to ask for her neighbors’ help to take care of the girl. She did not dare to tell anyone about her worries, just keeping an eye on the girl and protecting her.

“The project has changed the way I thought. I could share my story with the project staff.” Instead of hiding the truth, she took the initiative to share with trainers and project officers to find solutions. “At first, we heard the story from Chinh’s daughter. She was extremely worried and panicky when talking about that neighbor who always stalked her. However, Chinh always hid the truth whenwe had field trips in Ba Vi District to meet her. Only when she truly believed and participated in the project’s activities, she can tell the story, seek support and advice from the project’s experts and officers,” said Trinh Thi Le, project officer. 

“By attending the project’s training courses and Club meetings, I gained more knowledge about protecting my daughter from the risk of sexual violence. Besides, I proactively contacted experts to find solutions and learn about legal policies. The experts also gave me useful advice and helped me feel confident to protect my daughter,” said Chinh. She added “Having not found any better solutions to get my daughter out of danger, I asked for the project’s support to help her find a job. I was so thankful when the project officer said there was a free vocational training course and my daughter could get a job after graduation. I encouraged and persuaded her to attend the course. However, due to the lack of confidence and never staying far from me before, she came back home right after reaching the bus station. I will not give up and will continue to accompany her and make her more confident and independent.”

Source: When the silence speaks