Meet the ethnic minorities breaking through Hong Kong’s race barrier

When Filipino Jonnet Kudera Bernal moved to Hong Kong in 2004, she took up a job in a restaurant.

Despite having a degree in international studies, her friends suggested it was one of the few employment options open to her.

“I was told if you were Filipino, there was a list of jobs you could do here, namely performing in a house band, being a domestic worker or working in the food and beverage industry,” she said.

But the mother-of-two, who now offers support to refugees in her role as centre-in-charge for Christian Action’s Centre for Refugees, said she quickly felt bored and frustrated in her old job.

“There was something in me that was rebelling. I was not using my brain much before. So I quit my job after one year and started expanding my network, handing out my CV to charities. What surprised me is that ethnic minorities had just accepted their position here.”

Bernal has since supported various vulnerable groups, including refugees, victims of human trafficking and migrant domestic workers, by working for NGOs in Hong Kong.

She is among 22 highly successful non-ethnic Chinese Hongkongers nominated by Hong Kong based think tank the Zubin Foundation for government advisory roles.