Female tourist accused of being harassed by male tour guide

Quang Binh: A female tourist accused a tour guide of arbitrarily opening her tent three times to "ask to sleep with her" but the matter was not satisfactorily resolved for a month.

Speaking to VnExpress on the evening of May 9, female tourist Huong Ly confirmed that she was harassed by a male tour guide when she joined the 3-day, 2-night Pygmy Cave trekking tour of Jungle Boss Company on April 9. The male tour guide opened her tent and "seduced" her at midnight.

After Ly reported the tour operator’s behavior to the male tour guide, on April 10, the company’s CEO apologized and said he would clarify the matter. The company representative announced that the male tour guide admitted his mistake and was disciplined with a 15-day suspension and a pay cut.

However, when Ly asked hotels and acquaintances in Phong Nha to verify, she discovered that the male tour guide still went to work as usual on April 19. "I showed the evidence, but the CEO avoided it and said he would only explain when the company made a final decision and both sides sat down together," the female tourist shared.

Not accepting the "faint apology", Ly posted a public complaint on April 21. The company's CEO at the time said that "the tour guide only came to Ly's tent once to give instructions and discuss the trip". Meanwhile, the female tourist confirmed that he approached and opened the tent 3 times with the words "Please sleep together". Someone in the group witnessed it.

Ly said she panicked and chased the male tour guide out but did not shout loudly because she did not want to affect the other members.

Pygmy cave campsite in Quang Binh. Photo: Hoang Tao — Campsite in Pygmy cave in Quang Binh. Photo: *Hoang Tao*

After a month, because she had not received a thorough and satisfactory resolution, the female tourist made the incident public for the second time.

VnExpress reporters contacted the male tour guide, but he said he was not comfortable sharing and refused to be interviewed.

On the afternoon of May 10, Mr. Le Luu Dung, CEO of Jungle Boss Company, admitted the incident. "We apologize and take full responsibility for the incident that occurred, and at the same time refund all costs to customers who purchased the tour as a way to minimize mental damage," Mr. Dung said in a press release, admitting that the incident was a lesson for the entire company.

After receiving an apology from the tour operator, Ly expressed her goodwill towards the way the company representative handled the situation. However, she said that from now on she will not take tours with this company. In addition, she advised female tourists on adventure tours who encounter similar situations to shout loudly so that everyone knows.

Jungle Boss is a company specializing in organizing programs to explore caves and primeval forests in Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park and neighboring areas. The company's two adventure tours that are currently being booked by many tourists are Pygmy Cave Exploration, the fourth largest cave in the world , and Kong Collapse, one of the deepest sinkholes in the world.

Bich Phuong

* The female tourist's name has been changed.

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