This content was originally published by Radio Free Asia, and it is now being reprinted with permission.
More than a million persons have been living below the poverty line since the start of this yr, according to a new document from Oxfam, with one in every five people living there. In recent years, the population of Hong Kong has become poorer.
The city’s overall poverty rate topped 20 % in the first quarter of 2024, with 1.39 million people living in poverty, an increase of 42.9 % since the same period in 2019, according to the charity, which analyzed data from the city’s Census and Statistics Department, while the number of poor households rose by 22.7 % to 619, 000, compared with the same period in 2019.
The images come amid , poor economic performance , across the whole of China since the raising of pandemic restrictions in 2022, and after the town authorities , eliminated the democratic opposition , as part of an , continued crackdown , on opposition.
Hong Kong’s eateries and retail stores have also been hard-hit by the slump, with bargain-hungry visitors from Hong Kong , flocking to Japan , to stock up on cheap treats and household necessities, shoppers told Radio Free Asia in new interviews.
Hong Kong’s poverty line in the first quarter of 2024 was a monthly income of HK$ 5, 000 ( US$ 644 ) for a single-person household, HK$ 11, 300 ( US$ 1, 455 , for a two-person household and HK$ 25, 200 ( US$ 3, 245 )  , for a household of four persons.
Meanwhile, the gap between rich and poor has also widened, with the poorest 10 % of households earning more than 80 times less than the richest 10 %, the” Hong Kong Poverty Report 2024″ found.
The poorest 10 %’s median revenue has fallen by more than half since 2019 to just HK$ 1,600 per month, with the report citing a rise in the number of elderly people who are living in poverty.
” These figures have sounded a warning to the rest of society,” said Hong Kong Director General Kalina Tsang for Oxfam’s investigators on Wednesday. We anticipate that the Chief Executive may increase attempts to alleviate hunger for those living below the poverty line.
In addition, the generosity urged the government to take steps to improve the life of older people in the country’s rapidly aging population, including providing them with discounted job opportunities.
According to the report, subsidies for child care and a life income should also be top priorities in order to help raise families out of poverty.
‘ Stewed bean ‘
Poor person who used only the surname Kwan to avoid being called a “kwan” claimed to have lost his job at the beginning of the year and is now trying to make a living by working odd jobs in construction and maintenance.
” I even think public transport is expensive”, Kwan said. ” HK$ 500 ( US$ 64 ) on your Octopus]smart card ] used to be enough to get to work and back for a whole month, but these days, I have to top it up with another HK$ 500″.
A visually impaired person who used only the title Leung to avoid reprisals claimed to have a career as a data entry assistant for an IT company but found it difficult to make ends meet because of the rising rent in his divided house, which was essentially a cubby hole with a bed inside.
Leung was afterward given access to public housing, which now accounts for 20 % of his monthly income, but he claimed that the cost of food is also rising as the cost, perhaps at restaurant chains known for being affordable.
” Nowadays, even a meal at Café de Coral costs HK$ 50 or HK$ 60 ( US$ 7.70 ), and a meal at McDonalds costs more than HK$ 40 ( US$ 5)”, Leung said. ” I rarely spend everything now, and I cook anything myself, for just a few cents a meal. I’m living on boiled beans”.
The Census and Statistics Department announced a number of one-off relief measures on September 24 after the city authorities reported a 2.5 % increase in the Consumer Price Index for August, continuing a fall that had also been seen in July.
Rates of alcoholic beverages and tobacco rose by 20.8 % year-on-year, while electricity, gas and water bills saw a 4.8 % increase. The cost of housing rose by 3.3 % year-on-year, while transportation, meals out and takeaway food all saw increases of more than 2 %, it said.
” Most of the costs for dishes out and lesson food increased moderately over a year earlier, and those for basic food increased even more,” according to a government official.
Favoring the strong
The numbers, according to exiled labor campaigner Christopher Mung, were” staggering,” and demonstrated the failure of the Hong Kong government’s anti-poverty plans. He also attributed the lack of opposition tones in the city’s social life, which is a result of China’s continued crackdown on public opposition.
” The Hong Kong government is in a state of low tolerance]for dissent], so it will support the political and financial elite as part of the]Communist Party’s ] United Front”, Mung said. This implies that any guidelines it develops does unavoidably prefer the powerful.
It’s becoming increasingly difficult for anyone to manage any kind of social activity because the Legislative and the Executive Councils are dominated by powerful people, according to Mung.  ,
According to him, “life is vulnerable for anyone at the grassroots, and anyone who does have a job is worried they may lose it at any time.” He added that government figures even cover up the real number of homeless by ignoring those who have merely given up looking for work.
Mung, who agreed with the idea of a minimum wage, said the problem could fuel future social unrest if left unaddressed, describing it as” a ticking bomb” for social stability.
Hong Kong has lost its status as the world’s freest economy due to ongoing curbs on its civil and political freedoms,  , Canada’s Fraser Institute reported , last year, adding that many container ships are bypassing the once-bustling port in favor of neighboring Shenzhen.
According to a report from RFA Cantonese  in April, major shipping companies are leaving Hong Kong as a free, international container port, with experts blaming the recent political upheaval and structural changes.
14.3 million TEUs total, the lowest volume since 1998, were shipped through Hong Kong in 2023, the lowest total since 1998, a year after China’s transition.
