On 5 December, the EOC launched a bus body advertising campaign entitled ‘Open Your Doors to Tenants of all Ethnicities’. The campaign is part of the EOC’s continuous effort to promote racial equality and inclusion in Hong Kong, and serves to raise public awareness of the importance of avoiding racial bias and prejudice – whether as a landlord, real estate agent or neighbour.

Time and again, members of the non-ethnic Chinese communities have expressed difficulties in finding accommodation. From unwelcoming attitudes to outright refusal to provide service or lease the property, the discrimination against ethnic minorities in housing persists.

Under the Race Discrimination Ordinance (RDO), it is unlawful to discriminate against a person on the grounds of race in the disposal and/or management of premises. This includes the situation where a landlord refuses to lease a property to a prospective or existing tenant because of the tenant’s race. Making use of multiple formats and channels, the EOC has been educating the public on their rights and liabilities as a real estate agent, landlord, tenant or home buyer under Hong Kong’s anti-discrimination ordinances including the RDO. Among the initiatives are training for real estate agents in collaboration with the Estate Agents Authority, and the release of a series of explainer videos in nine languages on the rights protected under the RDO.

The latest bus advertising campaign features 50 buses of Citybus carrying the advertisement ‘Open Your Doors to Tenants of all Ethnicities’ on their bodies from 5 to 25 December 2022. This will be followed by advertisement on another 50 KMB buses from 25 December 2022 to 14 January 2023. Running on various routes across Hong Kong, the bus body advertisement will help spread the message of equal treatment of tenants of all races to the city’s commuters and passers-by.

• Read the press release on the campaign
• Read the EOC’s webpage on racial equality in tenancy