I: And did you witness any riots or fighting in White Head? Metal wasn’t allowed, but he was allowed tiles, toothbrushes and pots and pans. I still remembers they would come and bring us gifts. We were frequently visited by our friends and relatives at that time in Whitehead. But I remembered the best thing was that we were allowed to cook and we also had a lot of relatives who were granted refugee status who had been overseas for many years. PW: In Whitehead, we still needed to lock up during the night-time. I: What were the living conditions like at the camp? My father was one of the teachers at the school and he taught Chinese and mathematics. PW: The best thing was that we were allowed to cook for ourselves there was a classroom so we could go to school. I: Could you describe your life to me in Whitehead and Pillar Point? I: And how long were you at Pillar Point? Also I was screened as a refugee so he could leave the detention centre and move to Pillar Point. PW: Half a year, and then to Pillar Point. For one year and then went back to Whitehead. PW: After 2 years, we moved to High Island again. We stayed in Whitehead for around 2 years. I: And after that did you move to White Head? My father wasn’t a drinker and he seldom drank. For those who made the wine, they seldom drank it themselves but would sell it. For some people who were drunk, they would have made homemade wine inside the camp. If someone were drunk, and made some chaos, the camp management wouldn’t tolerate that. PW: In fact, the management didn’t bother to control us or interfere with the refugees much. I: How were you treated differently by the camp management? At Hai Ling Chau, we could have green trees and gardens inside the camp. PW: There were more trees inside the camp, but at Green Island there were more trees outside the camp. I: What was the difference between Green Island and Hai Ling Chau? When I asked people – because they knew some people working in the office at Hai Ling Chau – when I asked my friends why we needed to move on and off, we were told that the camp management didn’t want us to settle down, become friends and then perhaps form gangs and create a conflict of interest. But at the new camp, Hai Ling Chau and Whitehead, hI could see that there was more fighting and this made me and my family scared. PW: On Green Island, because the people who had come weren’t staying so long, there wasn’t much conflict there. I: What do you remember most about Green Island? It was not good, as it was just boiled in water. PW: The refugees weren’t allowed to cook themselves, unlike in Whitehead. I: Did the refugees cook their own food or did the camp management do it? PW: There would be food cooked in big quantities. I: Did you get to learn English? Were there any other people coming from outside to teach the children? And my father would give us private lessons under the trees. PW: So most of the time, we mostly played basketball and football. I: So when you were outside from 8am – 5pm, what would you do?
Just like being in a prison, we could go the playground but would need to be back by 5pm to be locked up in the hut. I: After those 15 days, where were you moved?
PW: Actually we were quite free to do anything we wanted to – we could go fishing and catch fish, and we would have to cook our own food. I: And during those 15 days, what did you do? They needed to make up their tents themselves and they actually lived on a farm where there were being grown, a chicken. I: Were you surprised when you were in Tai A Chau? PW: I didn’t really have any expectations or images, but my father told me that when we came to Hong Kong, everything would be better than China. I: Did you have any expectations of what it would be like when you came to Hong Kong?
PW: My father told me we were coming to Hong Kong. I: Did you know where you were going? Did your parents explain it to you? PW: Because the ship was very unstable, yes. I: Did anyone on your boat get hurt or die? All the men used to wake up at midnight to bail the water out. The boat was broken because there was a hole. I: How was the journey? Was it dangerous or scary for you?
I: How long did it take to get to Hong Kong? I: And when you first came to Hong Kong in 1989, where did you end up? In 1979, my parents went back to China from Vietnam. My parents are Chinese and were living in Vietnam. PW: My name is Paul Wong, I was born in 1981.
I: Could you please state your full name, your date of birth and where you were born? PW: Four people my mother, father and one younger brother. I: Did you come by yourself or with your family? I: I’d like to ask you when you came to Hong Kong? 3:00PM, Saturday September 14 2013, Paul Wong’s restaurant in Hong Kong I: Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak with you as a Vietnamese boat person in Hong Kong.