A new action group plans to change the face of hawking in the city and at the same time help threatened vendors.
The group of designers, artists, academics and activists, called the Street Design Union, or SDU, wants to design better street markets.
'We want to improve the hawkers' business, improve the street market environment and maintain the social and cultural value of markets,' said Chan Ka-hing, chairman of the Hong Kong Design Community.
Hawkers are under increasing pressure from the authorities in the wake of the deadly blaze in Fa Yuen Street market, Mong Kok, late last year that claimed nine lives. Soon after the fire, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department put forward a series of proposals and ordered stallholders to remove awnings and reduce their stock.
And last week the government launched a series of proposed changes to the way markets operate. Proposals include forcing hawkers to dismantle stalls at night, installing sprinkler systems, moving stalls away from building entrances, relocating street markets away from residential areas and asking hawkers to voluntarily surrender their licences to reduce the size of street markets.
Public consultation on the proposals will run until May 7.