A MIDDLE-AGED man spits lychee seeds on the pavement, then punches the inspector who tries to fine him $600. On the same day, a 15-year-old student attacks his teacher instead of returning to the classroom as asked. Last year, domestic violence cases leaped to 2,433 from 1,009 cases in 1998.
'The people of Hong Kong are very short-tempered,' says Timothy Leung Yuk-ki, principal social worker of the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society (HKFWS), 'and they're becoming more so because of the stress and insecurity - both at home and at work - caused by the economic downturn.'
Leung believes he may have found a way to halt this worrying trend and to develop a more peaceful community. Last month, three international facilitators from the Alternatives To Violence Project (AVP) - an anti-violence programme already present in 26 countries - arrived in Hong Kong.
Although non-violence initiatives are not new here, Leung thinks AVP is different and is impressed with its core philosophy. 'AVP tackles the problem of violence, not by teaching skills, but by changing the way people live - it is a way of life,' he says. 'It is about the spirit of having peace and respect for yourself and others.'
AVP began in 1975 in a high-security prison in New York. With the help of the Quakers, also known as the Society of Friends which was founded in the 17th century in England, a group of inmates developed the programme to stop young criminals from re-offending. The programme teaches conflict-resolution skills through a series of 'experiential' workshops. For example, the participants are asked to pair up and say positive things about themselves for two minutes.
'The purpose of this exercise is to help us look at the state of our own relationships with ourselves,' says New Zealander Elaine Dyer, one of the three AVP facilitators. 'Many find this exercise difficult because we are used to being self-critical, but not to being positive.'
