Women from Permanent Impressions in 2021
CARINA HOANG - Interviewed by Carmen Jenner
Many of you know Carina Hoang for her relentless advocacy of the refugee crisis. Others will have celebrated her international success as an award-winning publisher and most notably for her book titled ‘Boat People.’ Fans of the TV series ‘The Heights’ have fallen in love with her feisty character Iris. Regardless of her commercial and personal endeavours, Carina has touched the lives of thousands of individuals through her generosity and compassion. We had a chat with Carina and discovered what drives her passion for helping others and her integral role in Permanent Impressions.
Since having your portrait painted by Jana in 2013 for the Permanent Impressions collection, what have you been up to?
My activities were a bit reduced during Covid-19, but I continue to volunteer my time by helping raise funds and giving a voice to other refugees. I speak at schools and I’m working on a project for the 50-year commemoration since the fall of Saigon.
You can add acting to your list of achievements as Iris on the locally produced TV series The Heights. Iris is quite the character and what is it like seeing yourself on the screen?
Amazing, surprising and embarrassing. It was an incredible experience and I’m very grateful for the opportunity. I’d love to keep acting and it’s already opened up more doors for me including a short film called Hold-Up, which is going to be featured at the International Short Film Festival, hopefully this year.
You’ve received international acclaim for your Boat People book, plus you’ve published several books over the years for other people. What else is in the pipeline?
I’m planning on publishing two more books and one is about the survivor stories of Vietnamese women after the fall of Saigon and secondly, a book about Vietnamese Australian boat people. I’m currently developing a TV series based on my personal journey. I’m considering publishing a couple of new manuscripts and also producing some oracle cards to help others hone into their spiritual side.
Did you ever think your book Boat People would have such an impact?
The most valuable thing for me is how it has opened up people’s minds, so they have a greater understanding of not only boat people but refugees in general and why people are willing to risk their lives to flee their homes. They’re ordinary people who need protection because of their circumstances. Once they feel safe, they become wonderful citizens and contribute to society, so they aren’t a burden like some people assume they are.
As part of your own journey as a boat person, you spent almost a year on an uninhabitable island in Indonesia where your cousin died after he contracted malaria. You returned many years later to find his remains and then several times later to help other families find their loved ones.
For me personally, returning to Kuku Island is incredibly healing and rewarding knowing that I can help other people who are suffering from the loss of their loved ones. There are many Vietnamese people, especially in Vietnam who never knew what happened to their loved ones and this process helps them find peace.
It must be an incredibly difficult journey reliving your harrowing experiences in the jungle. What drives you to keep going back and helping other families?
It’s my way of giving back for what I have received. I’m motivated by helping others ease their pain and by survival guilt. I feel so guilty for being alive while so many died. There was another girl who escaped on the same boat as me who was the same age, so whenever I come to the jungle and see her abandoned grave, I feel an overwhelming sense of loneliness. I feel it’s not fair that I survived and have this wonderful life that she could have had.
Do you think you will ever get past that survivor guilt?
Yeah, eventually but not because of the trips but because I know I need to accept life and not just all the good things, but also the bad things. In this life, we can only do the right things and be kind to other human beings.
Do you have a message for other refugees out there?
Don’t give up, you’re already brave for taking that path, so don’t give up.
What do you think your life would have been like if you hadn’t left Vietnam during the fall of Saigon?
I know that I would have survived but living in Vietnam, I wouldn’t have had the same opportunities to do all of the amazing things that I can do now. I also wouldn’t have had the chance to further my education like I have now.
Was that part of the motivation to finish your PHD?
That’s one of the reasons I’ve gone as far as I have and the other is because growing up in a country at war and the way we were persecuted after the war ended, I realised that anything could be taken away from me, even my loved ones. Education and knowledge are the only things that can’t be taken away from me as they are mine, and mine to keep. So, I treasure it and although we all understand the importance of education, from my perspective it has additional value.
So Dr Carina, how did you find the process of having your portrait painted?
At first, I thought that I would accept the invitation to help Jana complete such a meaningful project that is servicing the community. But then once the portraits were done and there was the opportunity for me to produce the Permanent Impressions book, the project became so much more special to me.
Apart from winning an IPPY award (your first of three IPPYs) in the Independent Book Publishers awards in 2014 in New York City, what else came out of the book Permanent Impressions: a salute to contemporary heroines?
I think several things came out of it. To encourage society to do good things, to show that people facing adversity can survive and for young women to read the stories and be inspired.
Would recommend having your portrait painted?
Absolutely. Do it for yourself and your family so there is always a memory for your family to treasure. An artist can bring out unique things in a person like certain personality traits that a photo just can’t capture.
What was it like seeing your portrait for the first time?
I was shy about it at first especially during the public exhibitions. But not only does Jana have a gift, she is totally committed and very disciplined. Many people think of artists as free spirits and just going with the flow. But to be as successful as Jana is, she has an outstanding work ethic, talent and the discipline to acquire the skills and to continue honing those skills as an artist.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I hope there will be more stories like the ones in Permanent Impressions because there are so many incredible stories out there that have not yet been told.