Don’t sacrifice Discovery Bay boat families to greed of Hong Kong developers
Many of the 200 boat families in Discovery Bay are faced with going bankrupt, because the developer wants them to relocate within four months. But relocation is impossible, because there is simply no space in Hong Kong.
There are more than 9,000 registered pleasure vessels and less than 5,000 mooring places in Hong Kong. The Marine Department claims that liveaboard vessels are illegal unless a licence has been issued and there are currently only four such licence-holders. Yet, there are more than 400 liveaboards in Sai Kung, Aberdeen, Gold Coast, Tai Po and Victoria Harbour.
Moreover, all government correspondence (Internal Revenue Department, Election Committee, Marine Department, etc) are sent to their addresses. This has been going on for more than 15 years, maybe 20, and indicates that the status of liveaboards has been tacitly accepted by the government.