Stay for the cause

"We received instructions to go to Cambodia to implement the rubber planting project on Valentine's Day, February 14, 2011, on a 16-seat vehicle. Since then, the brothers have stayed to fight, sacrificed a lot, and worked too hard to get to where we are today," Mr. Trinh Van Hoang, Director of Dau Tieng - Kratie Rubber Joint Stock Company and Dau Tieng Cambodia Rubber Joint Stock Company, told us on the vehicle to the farm.

On the afternoon of September 27, the plantations of the two companies were covered in heavy rain. Since we were not able to visit the project, our group sat down and chatted with all the staff of the rubber company, and thus heard interesting stories about the journey of rubber development here.

Rubber project developed by VRG in Kratie province with 100% Cambodian workers

"We eat raw rice in the middle of the forest…"

In 2011, when we first started to go to Cambodia to implement the project of nearly 4,300 hectares of rubber, the problem of traveling in the project area was very difficult. Mr. Hoang recounted that because there were no roads, the staff had to spend half a day following the trails that people often used to go to collect firewood. On normal days, the rubber staff stayed in the center, and those who went to the forest brought their luggage, personal belongings, and tents into the forest to rest on the spot. If there was a lack of food and water, we had to go to the market more than 100 km away from the project. We joked, with such hardship, would anyone give up and return to Vietnam... Mr. Hoang said: "Because when we went, we had a purpose and an ideal, so we encouraged each other to stay."

After many efforts, the two companies Dau Tieng - Kratie and Dau Tieng Cambodia achieved their economic goals. The rubber plots planted since 2011 began to be harvested in 2018 and achieved high yields.

Talking to us, most of them were officers from the early days of project implementation. We heard about the times when it rained heavily, motorbikes could not enter the project area, officers and rubber workers had to go by bulldozer, climb on crawler vehicles. "We ate raw rice in the middle of the forest, hard but happy, trying to "live" the whole machine. I accept my job"... as if reliving a time of youth, everyone's eyes were filled with emotion, nostalgia when remembering.

Mr. Tran Van Anh, Deputy Director of the company, recounted that in 2011, the delegation of cadres who went to Cambodia had a clear ideology, and would only return after achieving results: "Back then, it was very difficult, not like now. However, we were only 30 or 40 years old, so we were very enthusiastic, doing all the hard and difficult things. At that time, Director Hoang did not have a family yet."

The company's workers' housing is cozy when the workers come home from work.

Although there is still no electricity grid system, the staff of the two rubber companies are still steadfastly sticking to their positions. The rubber staff find joy in sports activities, participating in workers' weddings, and attending village festivals. The staff (including Cambodian staff) are like a family, loving and united, putting the interests of the workers above all else.

Currently, the two companies do not have a factory. After harvesting latex, the two companies transport latex to Dong Phu Rubber Joint Stock Company, about 180 km away, for production. In 2022, Dau Tieng - Kratie Rubber Joint Stock Company will achieve an output of nearly 2,500 tons, and Dau Tieng Cambodia Rubber Joint Stock Company will achieve an output of more than 2,000 tons.

Priority given to building housing for workers

From 2021 to 2022, the two companies began to make a profit. However, the rubber workers still devoted all their money and enthusiasm to developing production and social security. It was not until 2021 that the temporary camps of the rubber workers were replaced by new, more spacious offices.

"It's a joy to be able to make a profit. For the past ten years, we have encouraged each other to keep trying. Only when we have enough economic capacity can we invest gradually, we cannot invest too much. We ensure social security for our workers, who are all Cambodian. We must build schools and houses for workers first, then build houses for staff," Mr. Hoang confided.

Dau Tieng - Kratie Rubber Joint Stock Company and Dau Tieng Cambodia share the same management and administration. Due to its location far from the center, the company wants to harmonize economic and social interests, so the area has not yet been electrified. Therefore, staff and workers are currently using solar energy. The male staff's room only has basic electrical equipment such as fans and lights. The female staff's room is given priority as it is equipped with a hair dryer and iron.

The two rubber companies currently have more than 700 workers. In the beginning, recruiting workers was difficult, so rubber officials went to densely populated villages every day to call for and promote the work. Later, the company mobilized by asking workers who had worked in the company to come back to call for and introduce jobs to their families, neighbors, etc. The company had a policy of recruiting Cambodian workers from the beginning of planting trees, so that workers could both learn the trade and work for a salary. However, the local workers rarely stayed long-term.

Stable life

It was getting dark when the rain stopped. This is the time when rubber workers live and eat, so we went to Mr. Tirso's grocery store to chat. Mr. Tirso is over 40 years old and has worked at the rubber company for nearly 10 years.

Previously, Mr. Tirso was a truck mechanic. Because of the low income of the job, sometimes he got some work and sometimes he didn't, so he was introduced to work as a worker at a rubber company. In 2012 and 2013, the rubber project began to take shape, Mr. Tirso was the leader in calling workers to work.

In 2013, the company supported Mr. Tirso to build a house and open a grocery store on the farm to sell to rubber workers. Every day, his wife stays at home to sell goods, and he is an agricultural worker at farm 2, Dau Tieng Kratie Rubber Joint Stock Company.

Tirso and his wife's grocery store

Around 5 or 6 p.m. is the time when Mr. Tirso’s grocery store sells the most. This is the time to cook dinner, so workers come out to buy vegetables, tubers, fruits, eggs, etc. busily. He and his wife often sell on credit to workers, record the debt, and pay the workers at the end of the month when they receive their salary. Since working as rubber workers, the couple’s income and life have been stable enough to take care of their family and children.

"My salary at the company is about 300 USD and I get it every month. The Vietnamese people are friendly and sociable. If I don't know something, I ask the Vietnamese staff for detailed instructions. People living in our country do not rely on power or influence, and always listen to what we say," Mr. Tirso told us. (to be continued)

Dau Tieng Cambodia Rubber Joint Stock Company was established in 2009; the project of planting and exploiting nearly 2,300 hectares of rubber in Kratie province, Kingdom of Cambodia in 2011, with registered charter capital of 450 billion VND. Exploitation output in 2022 is more than 2,000 tons.

Dau Tieng - Kratie Rubber Joint Stock Company was established in 2009; the project to plant and exploit about 2,000 hectares of rubber in Kratie province in 2012, with registered charter capital of 450 billion VND. The exploitation output in 2022 is nearly 2,500 tons.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/hanh-trinh-cao-su-viet-o-campuchia-o-lai-vi-ly-tuong-185231129203042421.htm