Hong Kong domestic helpers set up tents at bus terminuses during Labour Day golden week
Helpers say they have nowhere else to go on their days off as social media posts mistakenly blamed mainland tourists for camping
L'essentiel
- Tents set up inside Hong Kong bus terminuses during Labour Day golden week have sparked online complaints, with some social media posts suggesting mainland tourists were camping.
- However, visits found the tents were used by domestic helpers who have been gathering at locations including Tai Po, Central and Tseung Kwan O intermittently for about two years due to having nowhere else to rest on their days off.
Résumé généré par IA
Pourquoi c'est important
Many domestic helpers in Hong Kong have limited options for spending their days off, as they often live in cramped quarters with their employers. Bus terminuses and public spaces provide rare areas where they can gather and rest.
Tents inside Hong Kong bus terminuses that have drawn online complaints during mainland China's Labour Day "golden week" holiday are being used by domestic helpers, who say they have nowhere else to go on their days off. Images of tents lining streets across the city, from Tai Po to Central and Tseung Kwan O, have circulated widely on social media in recent days. Some posts suggested mainland visitors were camping, as tourist numbers have surged during the holiday. However, visits by the South China Morning Post found that those resting were domestic helpers, many of whom said they had been gathering in the areas intermittently for about two years. "We come here because it's near where we live, and there isn't really anywhere else we can stay," said a domestic helper who identified herself only as Cecilia at a bus terminus near Lohas Park's Hemera Topaz block in Tseung Kwan O. "Sometimes we go to Central if there's a party, but mostly we just stay here."
Questions ouvertes
- How will the government respond to the situation?
- Are there plans to provide alternative resting spaces for domestic helpers?
- Will the online misinformation be addressed?
