For example, children ages six and under are experiencing rapid physical and mental growth. A community living space that meets their needs would mitigate the developmental limitations caused by inadequate housing.
Physically, the limited space makes it difficult for young children to crawl and maintain balance, increasing the risk of falls. Psychologically, the poor soundproofing in partitioned apartments forces parents to encourage their children to speak quietly, suppressing their natural expressions of emotion, such as crying or laughing. In addition, many of these apartments are located above restaurants, where noise and poor air quality disrupt sleep.
Although communities like Sham Shui Po are socially vibrant, it is rare to find an environment that supports the education and development of children while providing caregivers with parenting knowledge and a support network.
To free caregivers from the daily stress of parents, services such as cafeterias and rest rooms could be offered. Most importantly, these spaces allow caregivers to raise their children in a safe and comfortable environment.
We need more purpose-built shared living spaces that respond to the diverse and specific needs of users, including children, and where they can spend the whole day, making the shared living space a true extension of their cramped living space.
Susan LeeManaging Director, PC Lee OneSky Global Center for Early Childhood Development
Be aware that napping in libraries is a problem
I’ve noticed recently that people in the city’s public libraries have been sleeping or just typing away on their phones instead of reading, especially on holidays. I didn’t care until I saw that they often occupy seats intended for readers.
Curious, I checked the Hong Kong Public Libraries website and found that sleeping in the library is prohibited. I wondered why, as a regular user of public libraries, I had hardly ever seen librarians reminding people of the regulations.
This question remained unanswered until I browsed through websites advertising part-time jobs and discovered that many library assistant positions in our libraries are outsourced and filled by logistics companies.
Libraries are quiet enough to read or study, but this feature should not be abused. Perhaps our public libraries could even require external library assistants to remind those who sleep or take a seat without having read anything on site of the rules.
The city’s public libraries would be a laughing stock if we saw another Instagram page with photos of “library sleepers”, similar to the famous Instagram account dedicated to “MTR sleepers”.
Lucas Lee, Sha Tin
Focus on helping the homeless, not on the city’s image
In the last few months, I have seen two library exhibitions on notable people and have gained some ideas about how to respond to people who believe that homeless people damage Hong Kong’s image as a modernised city.
Finally, I am inspired by Wu Xun, a drifter who founded schools and helped the poor through begging in the late Qing Dynasty.
In Hong Kong, many drifters contribute to our community by collecting drinks cans, for example.
We should all be looking at housing and employment solutions to help vagrants and homeless people, rather than focusing on what their presence says about the city’s image.
Fung Zhan Hong, Ho Man Tin
