Breastfeeding exhibition in Hong Kong seeks to build support for nursing mothers
NGO also calls on government to extend maternity and paternity leave as more women in city turn away from baby milk formula soon after giving birth
Clutching a baby doll and sitting atop an open toilet in one of Hong Kong’s commercial hubs on Saturday, eight-year-old Galatea Ma Sze-lok sampled what breastfeeding mothers feel in a city short on public nursing facilities.
The “washroom” depicting yellow stains in a sink and toilet formed part of an art installation at an exhibition set up by local NGO Mamamilk Baby Alliance at Times Square in Causeway Bay to promote public and official support for breastfeeding.
Held just before World Breastfeeding Week takes place from August 1 to 7, the exhibition also invited the public to view breast milk under a microscope to encourage a fuller understanding of its advantages over baby milk formula.
Alliance spokeswoman Ceres Kam hoped the experiential activities would “raise public awareness and support for breastfeeding and that together we can build a breastfeeding-friendly community”.
The NGO called on the government to extend maternity and parental leave as well as set up regulations to better serve nursing mothers in the workplace.