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Yat Tung Estate in Tung Chung.

Lantau development should not be driven by greed

On reading Pope Francis' denunciation of greed and exploitation, one wonders what he would make of the behaviour of Hong Kong's business elite.

If years of deception about property sizes, exploiting of legal loopholes and manipulation of prices have demonstrated anything, it's that this group is interested in little other than the satisfaction of their greed.

The notion that the rest of Hong Kong would benefit from this greed through the "trickle down" effect is nonsense.

It is therefore with foreboding that I read the Lantau Economic Development Alliance's (LEDA) intentions and its proposal to turn the island into a "holding area" for mainland visitors.

Much has been made of the benefits of mainland tourism, and it is true that their spending represents a significant source of wealth for Hong Kong. Yet it has become apparent that almost all this wealth is captured by corporate interests, making life harder for the majority.

In October, the Hong Kong Council of Social Service found that 22 per cent of Lantau residents and other outlying islands, mostly in Tung Chung, earned less than the median household income. Given that Yat Tung Estate is the most deprived in Tung Chung, that would make its residents the poorest in the city. They are cut off from society, high-value jobs or opportunities, and receive very few services.

Yet those same people are the ones best-placed to inform policies and strategies on development that would serve their needs. They have a wealth of ideas; what they lack is a voice.

It is not for Disneyland, the MTR Corporation or Swire Properties to dictate the path of development. The argument that they will be "providing jobs" for locals (just like LEDA's claim that it represents local communities) is insidious: they provide low-value, low-paid jobs while obstructing truly inclusive growth.

Instead, our government should adopt a bottom-up, people-centric approach. Participatory planning helps communities tailor their environment to serve their needs.

The effectiveness of empowering communities has been demonstrated in countries as diverse as Vietnam, Botswana and Ghana. It is therefore both absurd and ethically indefensible that the people of highly advanced Hong Kong are denied similar input into their own futures.

Hong Kong's development has for too long been steered to serve the narrow interests of a few, to the detriment of the majority. Lantau's residents, like those elsewhere, deserve better.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Lantau development must heed voices of people, not companies
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