At the end of 2020, a group of 4 military doctors and nurses of Military Hospital 4 of the Logistics Department of Military Region 4 volunteered to take on U.N. peacekeeping duties in South Sudan. They were Major Nguyen Cong Long from Department C7, non-commissioned Captain Ha Thanh Minh from Department A4, non-commissioned First Lieutenant Nguyen Manh Dung from Department A10, and non-commissioned Senior Captain Bui Thi Thuy Hang from Department C8. With tanned skin and confident eyes, all of them showed their pride after fulfilling their international duties in South Sudan.
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Leaders of the Logistics Department and the Board of Directors present certificates of merit to four military medical officers who have completed the U.N. peacekeeping missions in South Sudan. |
According to Major Nguyen Cong Long, the Republic of South Sudan is a country in Northeast Africa. The political and security situation remains unstable and people live in extreme poverty. Participating in peacekeeping missions in South Sudan, he joined training courses on U.N. peacekeeping operations, including anti-kidnapping, measures to deal with robberies and other emergency situations. Meanwhile, he also took part in emergency aid in the armed conflict, and engaged in humanitarian assistance and relief and activities to provide medical examination for local people in South Sudan, to name but a few.
Additionally, he and his comrades took advantage of free time to learn the dialect and other languages, as well as study South Sudan’s customs and practices to well communicate with local people and peacekeeping delegations from other countries, while joining production activities and guiding local people to grow crops and raise livestock and prevent common diseases.
Sharing with reporters of the People’s Army Newspaper, non-commissioned First Lieutenant Nguyen Manh Dung said that in order to well perform U.N. peacekeeping missions, apart from good professional qualifications, the core factor is that participants must be good at English as the requirements of language training courses are very strict. If you have no idea about English, you will not pass the tests.
Moreover, the time difference, extremely hot weather, and the malaria epidemic exerted negative effects on their task performance. Regardless of difficulties, the Vietnamese medical staff provided local people with information about how to keep scientific eating and hygiene habits; gave them health counseling; and participated in voluntary activities, including presenting gifts, books, and clothes to locals, among others. These activities contributed to consolidating South Sudan people and international friends’ trust in Uncle Ho’s soldiers.
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UNMISS Force Commander Lieutenant General Mohan Subramanian presents the medal “For the U.N. peacekeeping cause” to First Lieutenant Nguyen Manh Dung at the Level 2 Field Hospital (L2FH) Rotation 4 in Bentiu, South Sudan. |
Participating in the U.N. Mission in South Sudan was an honor; however, it also posed many difficulties for participants, especially female officers. Non-commissioned Senior Captain Bui Thi Thuy Hang was the only woman of Military Hospital 4’s delegation in South Sudan.
She shared that before leaving, she felt a little worried because her children were still small; her husband was away on business; and her parents-in-law were old and weak. However, with the encouragement of her family, leaders of the hospital, and especially her comrades in the unit, she felt more secure to head for South Sudan for international duties.
Spending nearly three years in Africa with numerous difficulties and hardships, Hang had unforgettable memories in this faraway land. Returning to Vietnam, she sometimes had a feeling that she was still undertaking peacekeeping duties in South Sudan. She would like to volunteer to go there again to help local people raise their living standards and guide them to prevent and control common diseases, grow crops and raise livestock.
For Senior Colonel Tran Van Hien, Director of Military Hospital 4, this was the first time the hospital’s medical staff had participated in the U.N. peacekeeping missions. During nearly three years, with a strong will and high responsibility, the medical staff successfully fulfilled all assigned missions.
This was an honor for himself in particular as well as for medical staff of Military Hospital 4 and the Logistics Department of Military Region 4 in general. The participation of the medical staff in the U.N. peacekeeping missions contributed to accomplishing international duties of the military and the country.
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Non-commissioned Bui Thi Thuy Hang giving medical examination and treatment to people at the L2FH Rotation 4 in Bentiu, South Sudan. |
After returning to Vietnam, he hoped that the doctor and nurses would continue their tasks in the unit as soon as possible and share acquired experience while performing international duties with other medical staff in the hospital.
On the occasion, the Party Committee and the Board of Directors of Military Hospital 4 presented certificates of merit to four military medical officers who have excellently completed U.N. peacekeeping duties in South Sudan.
The four military medical staff’s good deeds left a deep impression of a friendly Vietnam in the hearts of the U.N. peacekeeping forces and local people in South Sudan, contributing to beautifying the glorious traditions and good virtues of Uncle Ho’s soldiers.
Translated by Quynh Oanh