Deep in the Mekong delta Damien meets with Mr Nguyen Van Be or 'Mr Be'.
In the Mekong Delta I manage to get an appointment with one of the country’s most renowned physicians. Nguyen Van Be, usually referred to as “Ong Ba Dat Phen”, translates as the “Man in the second position of the family in the acid land”.

After studying and eventually lecturing in Western medicine, Be moved to Dong Thap Muoi and set up the 1 000-hectare sustainable nature reserve from where he practises traditional medicine and runs a pharmaceutical company.

For the past 28 years he has transformed the area into a series of jungle canals, nurseries and balanced ecosystems between plants, animals and communities. The many laboratories onsite attract international guests studying traditional Vietnamese and Western medicine. Be claims to be able to accurately use all of the native plants in Vietnamese medicine and is leading efforts to rewrite ancient scriptures. He sleeps only four hours a day and has not personally utilised any form of Western medicine for almost three decades.

He drove us around the reserve explaining the many intricate ecological balances that revolve around each other. He spoke of previous issues similar to Africa’s: poaching, invasive species, fire and community resentment against a protected area – all issues he had eventually overcome.

I became increasingly uneasy as I struggled to think of how I would approach the issue of rhino horn with him. That the rhino horn trade is illegal is commonly known in Vietnam, yet it doesn’t restrict its use and if anything makes it a seemingly more desirable commodity.

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