Coronavirus pandemic has left hundreds of Hongkongers homeless, NGO survey finds
- Some 500 homeless people say border closures upended their previous lifestyle of travelling between the city and mainland China to live and work
- NGOs say government’s approach of simply driving street-sleepers away from public spaces is not addressing the problem
The Hong Kong Homelessness Census 2021, a snapshot of the issue compiled by seven NGOs via an overnight headcount in early July, put the number of people in the city without a fixed residence at 1,532 – 64 per cent of whom were sleeping in the streets, with nearly a quarter staying in non-profit hostels, and 14 per cent living in temporary accommodation such as guest houses.
Releasing their findings on Tuesday, the NGOs behind the survey criticised the government’s practice of evicting homeless people from public places, including by sealing off underpasses, closing stadiums at night, sprinkling disinfectant in parks and discarding street sleepers’ personal belongings in snap clean-up operations.
“This approach is ineffective,” said Olivia Chan Man-shan, of the Christian Concern for the Homeless Association. “Instead, [the homeless] will become more reluctant to seek help. Some also choose to move to remote places, which makes it more difficult for social workers to find and contact them.”
The NGOs further warned that authorities’ recent decision to mandate the use of the “Leave Home Safe” Covid-19 exposure-notification app at government buildings would discourage the poor from using public facilities, as many did not own a smartphone.