Immortal Love in Amnesia

Lloyd Duong

IMMORTAL
LOVE

IN AMNESIA

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The usual noise in the court room began to subside
when the Clerk announced: “All rise. The Superior
Court of Justice is now in session, the Honorable
Judge Nguyen Dan is presiding.”

The judge in a black gown appeared from the side
entrance, walked up to the bench and greeted
everyone: “Good morning.”

“Good morning, your Honor.” The audience
responded then began to sit down.

After citing the case on the Court’s docket for the
record, the Clerk called on each of the involved
parties to identify themselves. Attorneys
representing both sides stood up and confirmed
their client’s presence awaiting for the Court’s final
judgment to be rendered today after a lengthy
multi-day hearing with thorough examinations of
several key witnesses.

There were noises in the audience when the
litigating parties were identified prompting the
Clerk to ask everyone to refrain from talking.

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Today’s hearing attracted a large audience of
regular folks as well as journalists, including
foreign reporters, interested in the unusual facts
surrounding the Will of a well-known company’s
deceased owner.

The Judge put on his glasses and began to read the
decision:

“Today is April 30, 2019. After carefully
reviewing all evidence before me, I make the
following judgment on the validity of the
terms contained in the Will of Testator Tran
Bat Pham, who died of cancer on Palawan
island in the Philippines on January 31, 2019.

The Testator’s wife, Ly Yen Phuong, passed
away 20 years ago. Mr. Tran neither
remarried nor lived with anyone else in a
spousal relationship since his wife’s death. Mr.
Tran and Mrs. Ly had a child, namely Mrs.
Tran Hoai Niem, who is currently managing
their family’s TranSaigon Corporation and is
also the Applicant in this case.
The Respondent in this case is Mr. Gabriel
Nguyen, a citizen of the Philippines, whom Mr.

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Tran Bat Pham knew during the last 10 years
of his life. According to Mr. Gabriel Nguyen,
who was born and is still residing in Palawan,
he only knew Mr. Tran as a great benefactor,
who had wholeheartedly supported his
mother and his family for many years.

Mr. Tran Bat Pham’s assets are worth
collectively at least 1721 billion dong or
US$74 million on the valuation date of March
11, 2019 according to the audit ordered by
this Court.

Mr. Gabriel Nguyen does not make any claim
for Mr. Tran’s assets. However, the Attorney
managing the estate of Mr. Tran Bat Pham is
bound by the terms of Mr. Tran’s Will to divide
and distribute Mr. Tran’s assets equally
between two beneficiaries, Mrs. Tran Hoai
Niem and Mr. Gabriel Nguyen.

The Attorney for the Applicant questioned the
mental health of Mr. Tran at the time he made
the Will and expressed deep concern about the
potential undue influence from Mr. Gabriel

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Nguyen and his family because the division of
the assets appears to be extremely unusual
and, according to the eloquent argument of
the Applicant’s Attorney, to be
“unconscionably unjust.”

The Court is fully aware of great public
interest in this case. The media has played a
major role in reporting the facts as well as
attempting to prejudge the outcome by
extracting opinions from various sources from
legal professionals to social issue analysts.
Many well-regarded commentators expressed
views similar to that of the Applicant’s
Attorneyon on television, radio and in the
print media. The Court, however, can only
judge and decide on the basis of the evidence
as revealed by the documents and as
presented by reliable witnesses.

This ruling is based in part on the absence of
any evidence demonstrating that Mr. Tran Bat
Pham was mentally unsound at the time of
making his Will.

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Two signature witnesses named in Mr. Tran
Bat Pham’s Will testified that Mr. Tran did not
show any symptom of illness nor did he
appear to be under pressure or undue
influence at the time of making the Will.
According to them, Mr. Tran looked healthy,
conducted himself professionally and was very
sharp and highly intelligent when he
interacted with them.

Mr. Tran’s work schedule during the last
month before his death also proves that he
was of sound mind until the very last moment
in life. While fighting the losing battle with
cancer:

1. Mr. Tran continued to provide
strategic direction for TranSaigon
Corporation, especially regarding the
export plan aimed at the U.S. market.

2. Mr. Tran refused to return to
Vietnam and issued explicit and direct
instruction to his personal Attorney that
until his death, he would remain in the
house that he built for Mr. Gabriel

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Nguyen’s family.

3. Mrs. Tran Hoai Niem also confirmed
that during the final days of the
Testator’s life, even in pain, Mr. Tran
often told her and her children as well
as members of Mr. Gabriel Nguyen’s
family to be happy, to love life and care
for one another.

4. Mr. Tran carefully planned for his
grave beside that of his wife in Vietnam
with thoughtful construction details.

5. Mr. Tran constantly reminded his
personal Attorney that the terms of his
Will must be respected and followed
precisely.

According to Mrs. Tran Hoai Niem’s Attorney,
the Testator visited Palawan island after
hearing the news about a Vietnamese refugee
suffering from amnesia, Mrs. Thi Nguyen who
is Mr. Gabriel Nguyen’s mother. After the trip
Mr. Tran decided to relocate to Palawan and
built a beautiful home for Mr. Gabriel

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Nguyen’s family. The Attorney argued that
Mr. Tran’s relationship with Mr. Nguyen’s
family was simply of benefactor-beneficiary
nature and, thus as he asserted, it would be
highly unreasonable as well as
unconscionably unjust to gift half of a huge
fortune to a distant beneficiary such as Mr.
Gabriel Nguyen.

The Applicant’s Attorney advanced many
probable causes for such an unusual gift to a
foreigner from the Testator’s mental infirmity
to the beneficiary’s undue influence. The
Court, however, found absolutely no evidence
to support those speculations.

The Respondent Gabriel Nguyen also
confirmed that Mr. Tran Bat Pham and his
mother, Mrs. Thi Nguyen, were two elderly
persons helping each other in taking care of
his family’s fruit garden. They did not have a
spousal relationship. In fact, his mother paid
very little attention to Mr. Tran.

Mrs. Thi Nguyen lost her memory prior to the

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Respondent’s birth. Each day after caring for
the garden, Mrs. Thi Nguyen would sit alone
quietly looking out at the vast ocean and pay
little attention to anyone including Mr. Tran
Bat Pham.

After the death of Mr. Tran, the terms of his
Will were communicated by his personal
Attorney to Mrs. Tran Hoai Niem and Mr.
Gabriel Nguyen. Both parties were surprised
to learn that they share the residue of Mr.
Tran’s estate equally. This hearing was
initiated by the Applicant Tran Hoai Niem to
determine the validity of the said terms.

The Court has reviewed all documentary
evidence and witnesses’ testimony and hereby

concludes that there is no evidence suggesting
Mr. Tran Bat Pham was mentally incompetent
or under undue influence at the time of
making his Will. On the contrary,
documentary evidence and witnesses’
testimony demonstrate that Mr. Tran Bat
Pham was of sound mind until the final days
of his life.

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The Court determines that there is no valid
legal or ethical reason to interfere with or
amend the terms of Mr. Tran’s Will. The final
Will of Testator Tran Bat Pham must be
respected and honored accordingly.

The Judge stopped momentarily, reached for the
glass and drank a third of the water before
continuing on.

“The ruling today confirms that the terms of
Testator Tran Bat Pham’s Will are legal,
reasonable and must be honored and followed
accordingly.

The residue of Testator Tran Bat Pham’s
estate will be divided equally with a 50%
stake in TranSaigon Corporation to be
transferred to Mrs. Tran Hoai Niem and the
remaining 50% stake to Mr. Gabriel Nguyen.
The Testator’s real estate and personal
properties in Vietnam will be bequeathed to
Mrs. Tran Hoai Niem. The Testator’s real
estate and personal properties in the
Philippines will be bequeathed to Mr. Gabriel

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Nguyen.

According to the terms of the Will, if Mr.
Gabriel Nguyen refuses to accept his share, the
50% stake in TranSaigon Corporation would
be held by a Trust for Mr. Nguyen’s issues, i.e.
children, until they reach the age of majority.

Today's ruling is based on all evidence before
the Court, the most important of which, in
addition to the Will, is Mr. Tran Bat Pham’s
handwritten letter addressed to Mrs. Thi
Nguyen and held by his personal Attorney to
be given to her once she recovers her lost
memory or to submit to the Court in case the
terms of his Will are challenged such as
during this lengthy hearing.

Mrs. Thi Nguyen was one of the boat people
who escaped Vietnam after April 30, 1975.
Her boat was capsized during a devastating
storm. She managed to hold on to a wooden
plank and somehow was washed ashore near
a remote village on Palawan island. Perhaps
due to traumatic stress, she lost her memory

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but persistently refused to leave the area
because, as she repeatedly told her Filipino
rescuers, “I have to be here to wait for my
husband.”

At that time Mrs. Thi Nguyen was in her third
month of pregnancy. Subsequently Mr.
Gabriel Nguyen was born with the loving
support of the Filipino family that rescued and
assisted his mother from day one.

Mrs. Thi Nguyen was visited by UNHCR
officials and invited to Palawan Refugee Camp
to be processed for resettlement in the West
but she flatly refused. She cried hysterically
citing the reason that “I have to be here to
wait for my husband.” The Filipino family felt
compelled to protect her so they petitioned
the Catholic Church to intervene so that Mrs.
Thi Nguyen could receive permanent resident
status through their sponsorship. Their
caring determination succeeded and helped to
shield Mrs. Thi Nguyen from further pressure
that could worsen her mental state.

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It is wonderful to note that Mr. Gabriel
Nguyen later married the youngest daughter
of the Filipino family that supported him and
his mother on Palawan island since day one.

Ten years ago the story of a Vietnamese
refugee, who lost her memory but continued
to wait for her husband’s arrival on Palawan
island, was reported by the Filipino press then
spread to Vietnam through social media. Mrs.
Tran Hoai Niem read the news to her father,
and Mr. Tran Bat Pham was so moved that he
subsequently flew to the Philippines to
investigate and then eventually decided to
relocate to Palawan island.

I am truly honored to be the first person to
open the envelope to learn the content of Mr.
Tran Bat Pham’s handwritten letter. In
accordance with the principle of judicial
openness and transparency, I will read this
letter because it provides important evidence
related to the Court’s judgement but, equally
important, the content of the letter affects
fundamentally the emotion of and the

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relationship between both parties involved in
this case. ”

The Judge stopped. He removed his glasses, slowly
wiped them with a handkerchief then put them
back on before reading Mr. Tran Bat Pham’s letter
addressed to Mrs. Thi Nguyen.

“My beloved Thi,

I wish you could somehow recover your
memory before I depart this world so I could
truly apologize for abandoning you and our
son on this faraway island for decades.

After our boat was capsized at sea, I managed
to stay afloat for a few days and was
eventually rescued by a ship en route to
Vietnam. I was imprisoned for two years and,
upon release, I immediately returned to
Saigon looking desperately for you and our
unborn child but my search was to no avail.

Life took me in a different direction and, by a
stroke of luck, I met a beautiful woman, Yen
Phuong, who loved me just as you loved me.

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We worked together so well as business
partners and were able to establish a highly
successful company exporting various
products to Europe and North America.

Yen Phuong knew about you and our unborn
child so she actively helped me to find out your
whereabouts. Yen Phuong refused to marry
me until all leads in Vietnam as well as in
various Vietnamese refugee communities in
the West were exhausted, and the only
reasonable conclusion was that you and our
unborn child perished at sea.

Your family in Vietnam considered you dead
and had your photograph on the altar at
home. Worry not about your parents whom I
consider an integral part of our extended
family. Yen Phuong and I took good care of
them with generous monthly financial
support, and they blessed our wedding and
took Yen Phuong in as their daughter in your
place. Your Mom is still alive. She is so
healthy given her advanced age. Your Dad
passed away recently and I took care of the

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funeral as a son-in-law.

I truly treasure Yen Phuong’s love as I truly
treasure your love. Yen Phuong gave us a
beautiful daughter and I named her Hoai
Niem (nostalgia). However, perhaps I am
unlucky with love, Yen Phuong left me for
heaven twenty years ago due to illness. I
could no longer think about intimacy so I
devoted all my efforts to raise Hoai Niem to be
strong and gentle as Yen Phuong and you
while tirelessly expanded the company’s
businesses.

One day 10 years ago Hoai Niem informed me
about an article from the Philippines
describing a Vietnamese refugee who suffered
from amnesia but still insisted waiting for her
husband’s arrival on Palawan island. For
unknown reasons I could not sleep for days
after hearing the news so I booked the flight
to the Philippines to look for the woman with
amnesia and, thank God, I finally found you,
my beloved Thi, and our son, Gabriel.

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I thank God everyday for keeping you and our
son alive for all these years.

I thank God everyday for the opportunity to
take care of you, our son and his family before
I depart this world.

I thank God everyday for creating generous
individuals like the Filipino sponsors who
supported you and our son over the years and
eventually became a precious part of our
extended family.

Even with the love and caring of the Filipino
sponsors, I know how hard you had suffered in
a strange land trying to survive and raise our
son. Gabriel is a decent hardworking man
taking care of a beautiful family with three
young children. I am so surprised to find out
that our daughter-in-law is the youngest child
of your Filipino sponsors, who loved Gabriel as
their own son.

I feel so ashamed that I abandoned you and
our son for so long on this faraway island. I

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don’t even have the courage to tell Gabriel
that I am his long-lost father.

I truly apologize for my failure to take care of
you and our son in the past.

I truly apologize for my inability to continue
to take care of you for the rest of your life.

I am indebted by your gift of a son in this life.
I am indebted by your endless love for me. I
am indebted by your relentless wait for me on
this faraway island.

I owe you so much in this life. I owe you a
shoulder that you could rest when tired. I owe
you a warm hand that you could hold when
it’s winter. I owe you encouraging words
when you feel sad. I owe you congratulatory
cheers when you’re happy. I owe you a quiet
walk in the park as loving souls. I owe you
thousand kisses when you just want to be
showered with love… I hope to repay you all
these in the next life.

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I have to leave you now in this life. I never
failed to and will always remember our love,
forever and for eternity.
Goodbye my beloved Thi. I hope to see you
again, soon.
Your failed husband.
Tran Bat Pham”
The Judge stopped.
For a moment the court room fell into complete
silence.
Lloyd DUONG
April 11, 2019

________________ Ω ________________

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Tác giả . Author

Lloyd Duong

Author, Attorney, Humanist

B.Comm Honours, Juris Doctor

(Univ.

of Ottawa), MBA (Univ. of

Toronto)

Member, Law Society of Upper

Canada

Founder, Vietnamese University
Students’ Federation of Ontario

Formerly Financial Analyst,

Economic

Forecasting & Strategic Planning

Photo @ 25-1-2021 Formerly Crown Prosecutor

Publications: Boat People: Imprints on History, Western Political

Philosophies, Eastern Political Philosophies, etc.

Formerly President of Vietnamese Abroad PEN Centre (2018-2020)

Vịnh Thanh Dương Thành Lợi
Tốt nghiệp danh dự ưu hạng Cử nhân Thương Mại Danh Dự, Tiến sĩ

Luật (ĐH Ottawa), Thạc sĩ Quản Trị Kinh Doanh (ĐH Toronto)
Sáng lập Tổng Hội Sinh Viên Việt Nam TB Ontario
Nguyên Chuyên gia Dự phóng Kinh tế & Kế koạch Chiến lược
Nguyên Biện Lý, Bộ Tư pháp TB Ontario
Thành viên Luật Sư Đoàn Vùng Thượng Canada, Viện Quân Lực

Hoàng Gia Canada, v.v.
Tác phẩm: Thuyền Nhân:Ấn Tích Lịch Sử, Triết Lý Quốc Trị Đông
Phương, Triết Lý Quốc Trị Tây Phương, v.v.
Nguyên Chủ tịch Văn Bút Việt Nam Hải Ngoại (2018-2020)

Ω _________________________________________________ Ω

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