(According to Vietnamese domestic press)

The duty of the bodyguard security officer is to ensure absolute safety for the security guard 24/24 hours during the operation in Vietnam, like a “human shield”, ready to sacrifice when performing the protection task.

Therefore, bodyguard police officers must be highly concentrated to promptly handle unexpected situations that may arise.

For Vietnamese female bodyguards, they must be intelligent, brave, proficient in martial arts, good at foreign languages and knowledgeable about the foreign policy of the Party and State of Vietnam, and must also have charm and exude beauty, gentleness, typical of Vietnamese women.

Captain Nguyen Thu Phuong (38 years old), Department 6 – Protection of particularly important events and international guests, Guard Command (Ministry of Public Security) is one such female guard.

She has gone through a process of training and striving to meet all the criteria to become a bodyguard security officer to approach heads of foreign state over the past time.

Captain Thu Phuong was born into a family with a tradition in the police force, her grandfather, father, and mother were all police officers.

So after graduating from high school, Ms. Phuong voluntarily wrote an application to join the People’s Police Force.

Being a female guard also requires strong physical strength like a male guard, having to practice martial arts, swimming, shooting, running, jumping, hurdles,,,.

In addition, because they are women, female bodyguard  officers must also be mothers, wives, housewives to serve the family, and in bodyguard work, be both strong, good at protection, and gentle, shows the beauty of Vietnamese female guards in the eyes of international friends.

Captain Thu Phuong has worked in the security industry for more than 15 years. And from 2017 until now, Ms. Phuong and female guard Major Dang Hong Nhung have been selected to perform the task of ensuring security and safety for female guards, the wives of visiting heads of state, visit and work in Vietnam.

Captain Thu Phuong remembers one time when she was on duty to protect the wife of Singapore President Halimah Yacob. According to research, Madam is Muslim, she requested that no one touch her, so during the protection process, Vietnamese female guards also need to pay attention, observe, and take protective measures of protection, ensuring safety, maintaining religious rituals, and not affecting the President’s activities.

But afterward, it was the wife of the Prime Minister of Singapore who proactively shook hands with Ms. Thu Phuong and said “thank you” in English.

In 2019, Captain Nhung was assigned to protect access to the Australian Prime Minister’s wife when he visited Vietnam.

One time the lady asked where the bathroom was.

This is an experience that all Vietnamese guards, as well as all guards in the world, must know. Both protecting the VIP, knowing where the toilet is, and knowing how to ensure absolute security for the VIP, when the VIP go to the toilet, is a very valuable and necessary experience.

For example, Comrade Hoang Quoc Viet, Politburo member, Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, told the story that when he went to attend a conference, he quietly went to the bathroom. The bodyguard did not detect it. The young bodyguard panicked and ran to find him.

When comrade Hoang Quoc Viet finished then came out, the bodyguard seemed annoyed and grumbled to Mr. Viet: “Sir, you have to tell me when you go to the bathroom.”

Mr. Hoang Quoc Viet smiled and said humorously to the clumsy bodyguard: “So where are you going, you have to tell me, so I can report to you !!!.”

The guard was embarrassed and said nothing.

In the case of Comrade Chairman of the National Assembly Truong Chinh, it is almost similar.

Nam Dinh’s hometown sent Comrade Truong Chinh’s family jackfruit, and Comrade Truong Chinh’s whole family happily ate jackfruit, inviting the young bodyguard to eat jackfruit too, but the guard probably kept his politeness, and did not eat it, and went to the outside room to let comrade Truong Chinh and his family eat jackfruit happily and comfortably.

Then, after comrade Truong Chinh finished eating jackfruit, he went down to the lower yard – there are a few steps leading down to the lower yard – to go to the toilet, perhaps, then he slipped, fell, and then died after that.

With this incident, it’s okay to blame the bodyguard, but it’s okay not to blame, because how can we know the situation of Comrade Truong Chinh living in that house all his life, going up and down that staircase every day, but fell and died on that day of eating jackfruit?

I felt sorry for that guard. After that incident, he was fired from his job and returned to his hometown of Thai Binh to work in the paddy fields.

Same thing about the toilet, but in America, it’s like this.

In 2006, Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai visited the US, the first visit to the US by a Vietnamese leader, after normalizing US-Vietnam relations. That’s why the group of Vietnamese journalists following Prime Minister Khai is very large, both female and male journalists.

Then when Vietnam delegation arrived in America, got off the plane, and the whole group was waiting for a quite long time to go through immigration procedures, two Vietnamese female journalists had to urinate so hard, their faces were distorted and pale because they had to hold it back in for a long time.

Then the quick-witted English translator rushed to speak to the American bodyguards, then two tall, muscular American bodyguards rushed over and pulled and almost carried the two female Vietnamese journalists walk like running, go to the toilet which is quite far away.

When the two Vietnamese female journalists returned, they smiled brightly and thanked the two American bodyguards, and thanked the group’s quick-witted English translator.

So, being a guard means knowing where the toilet is, knowing how to protect the safety of VIP going to the toilet, and knowing how to serve the delicate needs of VIP when going to the toilet is also a very important task of a bodyguard soldier, as Captain Thu Phuong said, or as the two American bodyguard story above.

In addition, bodyguards must also know how to drink alcohol.

In fact, Vietnam’s Guard Law does not have a law prohibiting bodyguards from drinking alcohol while on duty, which is a major shortcoming of the Vietnamese Guard Law.

Because according to female National Assembly Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong talking to the domestic press, the two bodyguards who approached Ms. Tong Thi Phong must not only be good bodyguards, but also good knowing how to drink, to drink to help the Deputy female Phong.

When the Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Phong visited localities, she was always invited to drink alcohol.

I – W. Minh Tuan – used to drink alcohol with Ms. Phong, so I know that “help leaders to drink” culture in Vietnam very well.

When I visited Tuyen Quang in 1999, in the delegation of the People’s Council of Hanoi, to visit the People’s Council of Tuyen Quang province, at that time Ms. Phong was Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and member of the Party Central Committee.

That day, the female Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Tong Thi Phong did not drink, but assigned a young, beautiful secretary, just like the saying “Thai tea, Tuyen girl” to drink and compete in making wine with the Ha Noi team. That day the group of General Director of the Northern Airport Cluster Pham Duy Hien also participated.

Mr. Hien drank very hard, we also tried to drink, but we lost to Ms. Tong Thi Phong’s female assistant.

Most of us returned to the living room of the Provincial Party Committee Guest House and “fed the dogs”.

So when Ms. Phong became Vice Chairman of the National Assembly, and according to the Guard Law, the position of Vice Chairman of the National Assembly had 2 guards, and comrade Phong confided:

“Those bodyguards have a very hard time, working as security guards and having to drink for me when visiting localities”.

So perhaps Vietnamese police officers should also know how to drink alcohol to help the VIP?

In addition, we know that the bodyguard is the protector of an important person, but the guard is also sometimes a double-edged sword, a potential perpetrator of the person being protected.

The President of Egypt and the President of Pakistan were once shot dead by security guards.

Vietnam is a one-party-led country with political and leadership unity, so the possibility of the bodyguards causing harm to the leaders is very low, up to now there is no such thing.

In 2019, when working as a bodyguard for the wife of the Australian Prime Minister, in addition to ensuring security for her, Captain Thu Phuong also had some small actions to help her, and was recognized by her, and she said “Why are you acting so cute?”

Before the group left, Ms. Nhung was shaken by the ladies, hugged and said thank you.

Last year, at the end of 2023, Captain Thu Phuong and female Major Dang Hong Nhung were assigned to protect access to the wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The image of two graceful and strong female bodyguards standing next to China’s first lady was widely published in the press.

Ms. Phuong said that after completing her duties and returning to her family, “I also spend all my time with my family and my children. These things are women’s jobs, no one can replace them.”

She said her superiors are always kind and create conditions for male and female guards to rest and recover after tiring work. ///