Cuong, a doctor of Vietnam’s L2FH Rotation 2, recalled that he had this second job – reporter, when he was tasked to record a treatment process for a British patient, an employee of the United Nations (UN) at the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The patient suffered from myocardial infarction and needed to be treated at a higher-level hospital. However, due to restricted conditions, he was transferred to the L2FH Rotation 2 in a critical condition, and he would have died if he had not received timely treatment. The hospital’s prompt consultation and emergency interventions saved the patient’s life and gained the hospital the appreciation and trust of the UN.
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"Special" reporter Truong Uyen Cuong |
“Witnessing those touching and challenging moments, I decided to write an article on the treatment for the People’s Army Newspaper and that was my first article for the newspaper,” said doctor Cuong.
Leaving Vietnam for the UNMISS in November 2019, Cuong was assigned to managing medical records and be a doctor at the Outpatient Department of the L2FH Rotation 2. More than two months later, the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in South Sudan, causing many difficulties for the hospital’s personnel to perform their missions, including the dissemination of information. Good at photography and writing, Cuong was entrusted by the hospital’s Party Committee and Directorate to be in charge of a four-person media crew including three doctors and one nurse.
“I know that journalism is a very difficult career that requires broad knowledge of different fields, the ability to make analyses and summaries, and high political sensitivity. I found that the job is not only to simply describe what is happening, but also to filter information and choose the right words to describe the events to help any readers understand the message that the writer wants to convey,” Cuong said.
In fact, it is not easy, it is quite risky to collect information in a special country like South Sudan because local people hate being filmed and photographed. They also do not like to appear in newspapers or on television.
“Once when the unit (hospital) was collecting information and filming outside the UNMISS’s base, we were confronted by an aggressive and armed group. However, after knowing that we are Vietnamese troops doing international duties in the country, they changed their attitude and did not cause any difficulties for us.” To this day, Cuong considers this one of his most unforgettable memories in his journalism career.
During more than 18 months of implementing international service in Bentiu, South Sudan, these “special” reporters wrote dozens of articles, filmed, and took hundreds of photos for domestic press and media agencies. Their articles and images have helped domestic and international readers learn more about Vietnamese peacekeepers’ activities and helped realize the UN’s peace creation and peacekeeping goals.
Translated by Mai Huong