SA teachers stranded without money for rent, food and medicine

The extension of SA’s lockdown has come as a blow to young South Africans trapped in Vietnam, with many saying they are psychologically and financially battered —  and now any glimmer of hope of getting home has been dashed as their funds run dry.

The young South Africans —  most of whom were teaching English in the Southeast Asian country — watched as their jobs disintegrated in January, shortly after schools closed for the Vietnamese holidays and remained shut due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

The teachers expected to be back in class three weeks later but, when Vietnam went into lockdown, they were let go and many have had no income for more than two months.

In addition to the financial strain, the youngsters feel bruised psychologically, saying they have had little help from South African authorities.

Though some of their Vietnamese neighbours have been kind, the South Africans say others view foreigners with suspicion, believing travellers brought Covid-19 to the country.

For Jethro Chad, 26, and Michelle Nell, 37, from Port Elizabeth and Durban, respectively, the frightening reality of being homeless is looming —  they have been told to vacate their home on Wednesday.

Nell said on Monday that they simply did not know what to do and would head for the SA embassy in Hanoi, more than 1,000km away. 

 “We will camp outside if we have to. What else can we do?” 

Nell said she had tried desperately to get help from the embassy.

But all she had received in response was an e-mail that read: “Many South Africans find themselves in a similar situation both in Vietnam and elsewhere in the world.

“The SA Embassy and the SA government have no immediate solution to this crisis.” 

She was told South Africans should send a copy of their passports and a description of their situation “so the embassy can sensitise the SA government [to] the gravity of the situation”. 

“We were told by embassy staff to ask friends or family to help or to ask community members, but the community is scared of us.

“They think foreigners brought the virus here. They run away when they see us.

“We simply cannot sustain ourselves any longer,” Nell said.

International relations and co-operation department spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele admitted there were major problems negotiating with some foreign governments.

He said the department was relying on flights into SA, chartered by foreign governments repatriating their citizens, to bring back South Africans.

But in countries such as Vietnam, where there was practically no air traffic to SA, this was a problem.

He said a 24-hour command centre had been set up so options could be looked at, but with many countries in lockdown it had become difficult.

Port Elizabeth resident Dale Contell, 25, said he, too, was stressed.

Contell, who is living in Nam Dinh City, said he had opted to work in Vietnam to pay off his Unisa fees.

He is studying to be a psychologist and believed teaching abroad would help pay the bills.

“Now we are on our own on the other side of the world.

“It’s scary. It definitely affects your mental health,” he said.

Contell said he was luckier than many because he still had enough money to sustain himself for about a month.

However, he did not know what he would do after that.

Contell said there were those who asked why people working overseas had not saved money but “it’s a global pandemic. You can’t plan for this.

“The little I had saved up, I have stretched over these months.”

He, too, had been treated with suspicion, he said, saying some smaller shops would not allow him to buy goods there and he was being given a wide berth by locals.

Trying to stay upbeat, Oudtshoorn resident Joshua Williams, 23, said he was taking things day by day and learning more about himself.

Though already behind on his rent, Williams said he was lucky because his Vietnamese landlord was a friend and had been understanding as he usually paid two months upfront.

“It’s hard on him too,” Williams said, adding that food was a challenge because he had no cooking facilities.

So though he could buy food, he could not cook and most restaurants and ready-made food outlets were closed.

Asked what the best-case scenario for him would be, Williams said financial assistance.

“But I think it would be naive to expect financial support as so many are struggling.” 

Williams, who lives in Bien Hoa in South Vietnam, said South Africans in Vietnam did not have to fear that they were unwelcome.

“[But] because they [majority of Vietnamese] don’t speak English, many will use hand gestures if you aren’t wearing a mask and that is sometimes taken badly.” 

What did worry him were the skyrocketing costs for those needing to extend their visas — they now cost almost three times more than before the pandemic.

Ngqengelele said the international relations department would negotiate with foreign governments for visas to be extended to avoid South Africans being arrested.

It would also ask governments to offer support to stranded South Africans where it could.

Businessman Paul Gasson, who returned to SA from Vietnam just before the lockdown, has started a fundraising campaign for the teachers.

He said the greatest need was for accommodation, food and chronic medication.

Gasson said at least 10 young teachers had been evicted from their lodgings.

“The only option is to hook them up with others who still have accommodation.

“We already have 10 teachers sleeping on the floor of other people’s one-bedroom apartments,” he said.

DA MP Darren Bergman, who has been co-ordinating and representing many South Africans abroad through the Home Away from Home initiative, said the situation in Vietnam was dire.

“This is a tragedy that can explode if not dealt with properly,” he said.

“These young South Africans went there with the hope of making money.

“They are now scrounging for food.”

Bergman said when the Home Away from Home initiative was started, the organisers had   envisaged helping about 200 to 300 people in dire situations abroad,  “but within four days it was 1,000 people and then 3,000”.