To truly tackle poverty, Hong Kong must end
discrimination against all minorities
The Hong Kong
government’s HK$10 billion (US$1.29 billion) welfare package has garnered mixed
feedback, from harsh
criticism to hearty
praise for trying to tackle the deep-rooted problem of poverty. The fundamental
question is: why are certain communities struggling with poverty more than
others, and how does discrimination and social exclusion come into play?
Hongkongers
living below the poverty line reached a 10-year high of 1.4 million in 2018, and without policy intervention,
may rise amid an ageing population and global economic uncertainty. But the
fight against poverty is futile if discrimination is sidestepped or remains
unresolved.
Denying anyone
an equal opportunity to learn, fulfil his or her potential, get a job or
develop a career because of gender, disability, race, family responsibility or
other qualities is discrimination, which breeds social exclusion – a straight
road to economic disempowerment.
Worse, poverty
can become a stigma, equated with a lack of talent, initiative or ambition,
creating a vicious circle where marginalised communities internalise these
labels.
Ethnic
minorities, for instance, are disadvantaged by structural
problems in the
education system, such as the lack of a fully
fledged Chinese curriculum for second-language learners or support and training
for teachers.
An Equal
Opportunities Commission study earlier this
month revealed that, for subjects other than the Chinese language, only 54 per
cent of teachers are confident about helping ethnic minority students reach a level
comparable with that of their Chinese counterparts. There is also little
information on how universities convert test scores in alternative Chinese
exams – often taken by ethnic minority students – for use in admissions.
These policy
gaps mean ethnic minorities face a disproportionate
struggle in accessing tertiary education. The 2016
population by-census shows that the school attendance rate among ethnic
minorities aged 18-24 years, excluding foreign domestic workers, is 43.3 per
cent, much lower than 52.6 per cent for the overall population. Impoverishment
ensues – one in five people of ethnic minority live below the poverty line.
Poverty and
exclusion are no less
noticeable among people with disabilities. The latest government figures about
their employment, from 2013, reveal an unemployment
rate
of 6.7
per cent, compared to 3.7 per cent for the overall population.
Many employers also baulk at the idea of
employing people with disabilities, remaining unaware of their different
abilities or overanxious about accommodating their needs, when the Social
Welfare Department, for example, provides subsidies for employers to retrofit the workplace or buy assistive devices.
This is a loss
for people with disabilities as much as for businesses. According to
Accenture’s survey of 140 American companies from 2015-2018, businesses that
seek to employ people with disabilities report 28 per cent higher revenues,
twice as much net income and 30 per cent better profit margins than those that
do not.
Of equal
concern is employer bias against pregnant women and people with family
responsibility, such as carers. Last December, the District Court ruled
in favour of a woman represented by the Equal Opportunities
Commission, who was pressured to
resign from her job
because she was pregnant.
From offering
disability awareness training for organisations and calling for the statutory
right for women to return to their jobs after maternity leave, to launching
the Racial Diversity and Inclusion Charter for Employers and urging an overhaul of ethnic-minority education
policy, we work on multiple fronts to promote an inclusive society – not only
because it is a basic human right to be free from discrimination, but also
because the path out of poverty depends on it.
Social theorist
Eli Khamarov said: “Poverty is like punishment for a crime you didn’t commit.”
This is especially true for marginalised groups who fall victim to social and
cultural forces beyond their control. All too often, they are denied a fair
chance at imagining a better life, let alone living it.
As we continue
to push for systemic change, we appeal to every member of society to express
greater empathy for minorities – they are working hard; it is just that they
should not have to work harder than everyone else because of who they are.
Ricky CHU Man-kin
Chairperson
Equal Opportunities Commission
(Note: A version of this article was published in The
South China Morning Post on 2 February 2020.)