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Road deadlock fails to break spirits as village work begins

Chloe Lai

Construction of a new eco-friendly village to house 47 families displaced by the HK$66.9 billion high-speed railway connecting Hong Kong with the mainland started yesterday.

But about 100 mostly young volunteers had to carry building materials by hand to the Tsoi Yuen New Village in Yuen Kong, Pat Heung, because the only access road available has been blocked by its owner.

No vehicles are allowed to reach the site because negotiations on using the private 500-metre road - connecting the new village to the main road - are deadlocked.

Leung Kam-ting, a relative of Heung Yee Kok chairman Lau Wong-fat, and four other people sought HK$500,000 from the 47 families to use the road. But that jumped to HK$5 million last month because someone else claiming to be a middleman wanted more money.

'We don't have the ability to make the Heung Yee Kuk help us to resolve this deadlock. Government intervention is our only chance,' said activist Chu Hoi-dick, who helped yesterday.

Mostly in their early 20s, the young people took up spades and hammers to clear weeds and put up fences on 188,000 square feet of land in Yuen Kong. The Tsoi Yuen New Village is three kilometres away from the 47 families' current home in Shek Kong.

But before the young volunteers could start work, they had to carry all the construction materials to the site.

Chinese University student Chen Wing-wai joined the work because Tsoi Yuen Tsuen was iconic for the civil rights movement. 'For most people, the Tsoi Yuen Tsuen issue is over. The villagers got the compensation and the railway has [started] construction. But I don't agree. For me, the movement is the people's right to preserve their way of life.'

Chen's first taste of politics was a year ago. He joined thousands of young people in Statue Square as lawmakers were debating funding for the railway project.

Pan-democrats' tactics held up the government's funding approval until January 16 last year. Thousands of young protesters angered by the eventual approval laid siege to the Legco building. The campaign against the rail line marked the emergence of youth activism that gave rise to the post-80s label.

Chapman Cheng, 21, was another young volunteer. 'I didn't join their activities last year. But it was my political awakening. They demonstrated what civil disobedience was about.'

Li Yeung Mui-yuk, a villager, said: 'The weather is good. We started the construction eventually. I don't know what will happen to us. But I'm happy today.'

As a result of the row, the villagers remain in Tsoi Yuen Tsuen despite the passing of the government's October deadline.

The original village is to be bulldozed for a depot forthe Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Link. Bulldozers have already started work at Tsoi Yuen Tsuen, prompting clashes between construction workers, villagers and activists.

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