Summary

Bus ticket for Cuc Lam (Tran Thi Cuc), which she used on 17 March 1978 to travel from Saigon to Can Tho, where she escaped from Vietnam in a fishing boat. Her husband Lam Huu Minh, who escaped with her, was already at Can Tho. Cuc and her husband spent time in a refugee camp in Malaysia before being granted refugee status by the Australian Government.

Physical Description

Cream paper ticket with brown printed text and hand written details in blue ink. Text in Vietnamese: XE CHO KHACH (refers to bus company); LO TRINH (bus route); SO GHE 4 (seat number 4); DEPARTURE DATE 17/05/1978; and ticket cost 1d 60xu.

Significance

Statement of Historical Significance:
This collection demonstrates the risk and desperation involved in the refugee experience. It is extremely rare to acquire objects from refugees, as by the very nature of the experience, people carry little if anything with them, and what they do is usually lost or thrown away. It helps tell the story of Vietnamese immigration, which has played a significant part in the history of immigration to Australia, and assists in representing the period post 1975, when Australia's new political and social policies of multiculturalism were being implemented. This collection also provides further insights into life in one of Melbourne's principal migrant hostels - Midway in Maribyrnong. Finally the collection traces a life beyond the immediate refugee and settlement experience to demonstrate how migrants find their way in a new country, establish lives and assume leadership roles in their local communities.

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