VietNamNet Bridge – The story about a woman who was differentiated by a fashion shop on Hanoi’s Hang Be Street has caused a stir in the online community.

 

 

The shop where the woman was discriminated on March 18. 

According to this woman’s words shared on her Facebook, at around 6:30 pm on March 18, she caught a xe om (motorcycle taxi) from Trang Tien Street to Yen Phu Road to see her friend. On the way, she saw a pretty nice white shirt hanging in a fashion store on Hang Be Street. She asked the xe om driver to stop and entered the shop.

Barely nodding her head and smiling like a hello to the seller, who was enthusiastically introducing products to two foreign customers, she just touched the shirt for several seconds when she was “dismissed” from the shop.

She recounted that the salesman, around 40, said curtly: "We do not sell anything here. Please get out."

It is very strange that the salesman had just served the two foreign customers very thoughtful but within only a minute he completely changed his attitude to a Vietnamese customer.

When she asked: "Why don’t you sell?" The man continued with an imperious tone: "This shop does not sell goods. That’s the instruction of the shop owner. I do not know. Please go out immediately!"

The woman asked for a card of the shop owner, but was refused. When she took her phone out to take photo of the card, the salesman aggressively shouted: "What are you doing? I’ve told you that we do not sell goods here. You are not allowed to take photo the card…" He then spoke a lot of rude words.

This Facebook account owner said that day she dressed properly and it is clear that the salesman previously sold goods to two foreign customers. When she told her friends about the incident, it turned out that some of her friends were also treated similarly at that shop.

After the woman posted her story on Facebook, it immediately drew hundreds of comments and caused a stir in the online community. Many people criticized the stigma of that Vietnamese store.

Member Tuan Tuong commented below the article: "Three years ago I and a group of my friends were also treated badly at that store. We were cast out because that shop did not sell goods to Vietnamese customers."

Another member, with nickname Chi Mac, wrote: "Heh, is that the store facing the DTH kindergarten, at the Hang Be-Hang Bac intersection? That day I picked up a shirt to see. I loved the shirt that was hung in the shop and was also kicked out just like you one year ago. But it was at noon so I thought perhaps the store closed at noon."

Member with nickname Luong Thien commented: "It is true that we should not use the word uncultured but emotionless and extremely ignorant! Are they Vietnamese? I propose to make comments on it on the websites in English to inform foreign visitors about it."

Meanwhile, member with nickname Hana Hanhhan called to boycott that shop.

In early March, the Golden Sand Restaurant in Phan Thiet City, Binh Thuan Province was also criticized to refuse serving Vietnamese customers.

Mrs. Dinh Thi Thu Hau, from Binh Thanh District, HCM City said the Golden Sand Restaurant on 81 Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street in Phan Thiet Town did not serve her family who had gone there during their vacation to Phan Thiet on Lunar January 11 because they were Vietnamese.

After receiving this feedback, Ngo Minh Chinh, director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Binh Thuan Province, along with staff and police approached the restaurant owner, Nghiem Phuc, for refusing to serve Vietnamese people for the last two years.

The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism promised a harsh penalty on the restaurant, so as to prevent similar acts of discrimination from taking place.

Na Son