(synopsis of meeting at the ward offices. apologies for length)
The meeting commenced at 2:00 yesterday, as scheduled, at the ward office.
At one side of a long table sat my GF and I, next to her the ward leader, then a clerk who read details of the proceedings, and lastly a stenographer.
At the head of the table sat the ward's police chief/commander.
Directly opposite from my GF and I sat the dog owner. Next to him sat a high ranking uniformed police officer (4 stars) for the entire Cua Duong ward, then two uniformed officers assigned to our ward's group (formerly, villages), and lastly, near the head of the table next to the chief, sat a man in civilian clothes (no idea what his role was. GF suspects it had something to do with my involvement. Dunno', really).
GF's deposition was read by the clerk.
The dog owner countered with his version. It was at about 4 or 5 minutes into his spiel that the police chief politely interrupted him and advised him that all parties of the hearing had viewed the unedited video of our 3 interactions. Further, the group leader stated that when he went to the dog owner's home to serve him the papers to attend the meeting, that the dog owner's dog had tried to bite him.
The dog owner was stopped in his tracks, slack-jawed, realising his goose was cooked. I learned later that it was incumbent upon the dog owner, at his expense, to immediately assist my girlfriend with getting medical assistance. This he did not do.
Much back and forth between the chief and the dog owner, with my GF whisper-translating as best she could. "Dog owner is poor", "Sells banh mi and snails at a street-food stall", "Has 10 y.o. daughter to care for, no mother" (I know his young daughter to see her. Very polite, always smiling and waving). "Wants to make payment, 1 million now, and 100K/month for 5 months".
Then it was over to us. My GF explained that we could accept the repayment offer, or reject it in which case it would then be escalated to the district level. I was aware that this might result in some harsh repercussions to the dog owner. My GF also told me that we could now decide whether we wanted the dog put down.
I thought about this for less than a minute, and then had my GF translate what I said, one line at a time.
I told them that there was no reason to have the dog put down. I know this dog, passing it every time I leave my home to reach the main road. It was always a calm dog. The reason for its aggressiveness was due to the owner placing the dogs new litter of pups right next to the gate to his property. The dog was naturally aggressive to anyone who approached the gate because of this, and when the gate was open the dog did what one might expect. I asked that the police chief ask that the dog owner to move the pups closer to the home and away from the gate. No need to kill the dog.
With regard to repayment of the 1.5 million VND for the S.O.S. rabies shots for my GF, I rejected the dog owner's offer (it was here I paused, for maximum effect. heh!).
What I proposed was...
- Move the pups to the back of his garden
- Have the dog vaccinated for rabies
- Buy a collar and chain for the dog for when the owner's gate is opened, until such time as the puppies are weaned.
- Instead of paying 1 million VND today with 5 payments of 100K per month, pay me only 750K today as full and final payment. The money I wilfully forfeit can be used to help with the cost/care of the dog and its litter.
What happened next, frankly, astounded me. The three uniformed officers and the ward leader all uttered the VN equivalent of "Wow!", the senior officer and the ward leader began clapping, two of the officers giving me approving and exuberant thumbs-ups, smiles all around. The police chief himself grinning from ear to ear. Then the questions to my GF, "Where is he from? Which country?". It was truthfully a bit embarrassing.
The reaction from the dog owner? Zilch. Nada. Nothing, not even a thank you.
The monies were immediately transferred into my GF's account by the dog owner.
All in all I can say that the fairness of the meeting, and the polite attitudes shown by all involved (to both my GF and I, and to the dog owner) have reinforced my respect for VN's rule of law.
