Speakers lash welfare policies at summit
Anti-poverty groups line up to attack payment cuts and lack of social services
Anti-poverty groups yesterday criticised the government for its welfare policies, saying they made it impossible for the poor to get back on their feet and lead self-sufficient lives.
Speaking at the Poverty Summit 2004, representatives of the underprivileged - including abused women, the unemployed and single parents - took turns to denounce welfare cuts and what they said were insufficient social services either run or subsidised by the government. The event was organised by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service.
Hui Mei-king, a member of the Association for Survivors of Women Abuse, said most abused women had to wait six months to a year in shelter homes before they were allocated a public housing flat.
'Many of them have to leave their husbands without money or clothes. They really want to get a job to support themselves and their children but cannot do so because there is no inexpensive nursery service for them,' she said.
The two-day summit, held for the first time last year, aims to bring together social service organisations, anti-poverty groups, government officials and businessmen to discuss the way forward in the fight against poverty.
Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung, the newly elected legislator representing the social welfare sector, said no government officials or representatives from the business sector attended yesterday.
The council said some government officials had declined its invitation to be guest speakers.
A jobless man at the forum said he could not attend a job interview because he had no money for public transport.
'A few times I had to wear a pair of shorts and sandals to job interviews because I simply could not afford better clothes. It was logical that I did not get any job offers in the end,' he said.
Some single parents said they hoped the government could provide more education subsidies for their children. They also wanted to work fewer hours, so they could spend more time with their children.
A focus group study based on interviews with about 100 members of low-income groups was released at the summit.
The survey, conducted in the past few weeks, found many unemployed people hoped the government would provide transport subsidies to attend job interviews.
They called for an increase in Comprehensive Social Security Assistance benefits.
'Those who cannot afford to live in a proper place do not know what to write for a correspondence address in their job application forms. Should they write 'under the bridge on Waterloo Road'?' said Sammy Chiu Wai-sang, associate professor of social work at Baptist University, who headed the study.
