Vietnamese couple mourns toddler son's death, continues fight for justice

Tran Anh Dong, left, and son Tran Viet Bach celebrate the New Year in their home, Jan. 1. Courtesy of Tran Anh Dong

By Kim Se-jeong

When Vo Thi Nhung got married in 2018, she was a teacher at a daycare center in Vietnam. In 2020, Vo got pregnant and quit her job to join her husband, Tran Anh Dong, who had moved to Korea.

In March 2021, their son, Tran Viet Bach, was born in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, and in November 2022, the couple sent the 18-month-old boy to a daycare facility. Five days later, the child died at the facility.

An autopsy showed the boy had suffocated to death. As the police investigation unfolded, the parents learned that a daycare teacher wanted the child to get more sleep and applied excessive force on him for 15 minutes.

Prosecutors sought a 30-year prison term for the teacher, claiming the death was the result of murder due to gross negligence, while the defendant claimed it was an accident. The presiding judge sentenced the teacher last month to 19 years behind bars.

The couple appealed the ruling, claiming the sentence was not harsh enough.

“Nineteen years makes no sense. She killed a baby and only gets 19 years in prison? Something is very wrong,” Tran, the father, told The Korea Times. “We are fighting to get her more than 19 years of imprisonment.”

Tran still remembers how healthy son was.

“He was totally fine and well. He ate well and slept well. And he's suddenly dead. It is hard to accept.”

Korea has notorious child abuse records. Abuses take place mostly at home, according to experts, but abuses by childcare teachers are also frequent.

The couple lives under the guilt of having sent their son to the daycare center.

This undated photo shows Vo Thi Nhung, right, with his son Tran Viet Bach. Courtesy of Tran Anh Dong

“I had surgery on my back and my wife had classes to attend. We needed help and saw the daycare facility as an opportunity. When we look back, we were selfish. I could have postponed the surgery. My wife could have gone to the school later.”

Almost six months onward, they still have problems sleeping without sleeping pills and attend counseling programs. “We feel like we killed him,” he said.

Kang Hee-soo, who runs a non-profit organization geared toward free meals for the elderly and helps the couple with the legal process, said the boy could have been saved if the staff had been more careful.

He went on to insist that the current laws must be revised to provide parents regular and easy access to CCTVs.

“Only this way, employees at childcare facilities will become more careful with the children they care for,” Kang told The Korea Times.

The couple has not informed their parents about what exactly happened.

“We told them he died, but didn't tell the truth about why he died. We don't want to tell the truth because it will make them worry and ill,” Tran said.

Korea has been tough to them on many levels. Tran was injured at work, but his Korean employer refused to pay for his treatment. He paid for the surgery using his own money.

Now, they rely on the wife financially, who is on a student visa and earns a small amount of money through a part-time job.

“We still want to settle in Korea and make a family. But not now. And when we have a baby, we will not send him/her to a facility until she or he is able to speak,” Tran said.