Abstract
The ‘right to housing’ incorporates at least five different dimensions which are all indispensible for the minimum satisfaction of such right, namely, housing that is adequate and affordable, enjoyed without arbitrary interference or forced eviction, and the right of choice to opt for rent or home-ownership as well as neighbourhood. ‘Equal right to housing’ essentially means equal opportunity or non-discrimination in the fulfillment of all dimensions of ‘right to housing’. In Hong Kong, for those with economic means, the extent of their ‘right to housing’ are largely satisfied; however, this may not be the case for those from the lower socioeconomic strata, especially members of disadvantaged groups from the latter, who are doubly deprived. This paper will examine the views on ‘equal right to housing’ in Hong Kong housing policy from four disadvantaged groups, namely, single-parent families, ethnic minorities, homosexuals and Mainland New Arrivals, by drawing on information from in-depth interviews with members of these groups, representatives of organizations serving these disadvantaged groups, property sector practitioners, Equal Opportunity Commission representative and members of the general public. On the whole, the members of the disadvantaged groups, especially those from the lower socioeconomic strata may not enjoy equal opportunity to different dimensions of the ‘right to housing’ in Hong Kong, mainly due to discriminatory selection of tenants on the part of private landlords as well as the limited economic means of some of them. These may be, to some extent, magnified by some biased practices in public housing policy. This paper will end by examining some of policy implications of ‘equal right to housing’.
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Notes
For more detailed discussion on the ‘right to housing’, please refer to Yung and Lee (2012) which focuses on such discussion. The focus of this paper is the discussion of the ‘right to housing’ in relation to ‘equality’, i.e., ‘equal right to housing.’
Originally, it was planned that an interview would be conducted with a government official for this research project. However, the government replied that she would give a written response to the interview questions, instead of having an interview.
Such residence requirement rests on the rationale that only those who have resided in Hong Kong for not less than 7 years (except those who are born in Hong Kong) are qualified to be ‘permanent residents’ of Hong Kong according to the Basic Law (the mini-constitution of Hong Kong), thus enjoy the full social citizenship, with eligibility to receive CSSA (social security safety net in Hong Kong) and be allocated public rental housing, if met the means-test requirement.
It should be noted that not all ethnic minority groups are low income groups, for example, the whites have a median income of $45,000 in 2006, much higher than that of the entire working population of $10,000 (Census and Statistics Department 2006a, b). Thus, the whites in Hong Kong generally can satisfy their own housing needs and have their ‘right to housing’ assured.
However, homosexuals can apply for PRH not as a couple, for example, as individuals, as unmarried siblings of applicant etc.
This information was provided in the written reply from the Housing Department to interview questions on December 8, 2010.
In this survey, the family types (as portrayed in the vignettes) by degree of acceptance by students in descending order of acceptance were age-discrepant parents, a family with the mother in the Mainland, a female-headed single parent family, a male-headed single-parent family and the reconstituted family (Ibid.) Thus, single-parent family is commonly viewed as problematic in Hong Kong.
Most single-parent families are female headed as females tend to get the custody rights of children in a divorce.
As for ethnic minorities, those whites usually live in self-contained flats, nuisance tend to be minimal. Even for South Asian ethnic minorities living in self-contained flats, they tend to face minimal nuisance.
Arbitrary forced eviction are less common among the whites as ethnic minorities since they tend to be high-income groups and more highly educated [about 76.5 % attained post-secondary level in 2006 (Census and Statistics Department 2006a, b)]. Thus, they are more likely to be conscious of their rights and seek ways to protect them in case of facing an unjustified eviction.
As for ethnic minorities who belong to the high-income group, such as the whites, their choice of district according to their needs and preference is open and they are not especially discriminated against in any particular district. The same applies for better-off homosexuals.
They are the minority, thus will lose to the majority (who generally discriminate against them) if put to a vote. Furthermore, they are poorly represented in the small-circle election of the Chief Executive and the election of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong.
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We would also like to thank Dr. Sima Sengupta for critical reading and editing of this paper.
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This paper and another paper [Yung, B. and Lee, F-P (2012) “‘Right to Housing’ in Hong Kong: Perspectives from the Hong Kong Community” Housing, Theory and Society, 29(4), 401–419] rest on the same research project. There may be some overlap of content, though the focus of the 2 papers differs significantly.
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Yung, B., Lee, Fp. ‘Equal right to housing’ in Hong Kong housing policy: perspectives from disadvantaged groups. J Hous and the Built Environ 29, 563–582 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10901-013-9365-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10901-013-9365-2