Rider under the Bridge
Johnson Au, 16 August 2015, Urban Nomads, Interview Story
We did not meet our interviewee the normal way as we usually do with other homeless citizens. In fact, we stopped him en route his bicycle ride to visit a friend nearby and started our interview in the Tung Chau Street Park near his “home” under the flyover. Let’s call him Uncle Bicycle.
Uncle Bicycle is not a Hong Kong indigenous. His hometown is Kaiping, Guangdong, which is known for its diaspora mainly consists of rich merchants. Yet he was not so lucky as his fellow compatriots, his Hong Kong story began when he migrated to the SAR, then newly established, in order to re-union with his father in 1997. His parents live in Kwun Tong, while his siblings are dwelling in various districts across Hong Kong. As a worker who washes dishes in Chinese restaurants, Uncle Bicycle actually can earn a decent pay nowadays. Restaurants are paying HKD$45 per hour (versus current statutory minimum wage of 32.5) for dish washers and so it is not a bad job for low income working class.
The road to homelessness
That left us the question why he has to stay under the bridge right now. It turns out that he was in captivity due to fighting in public place, he felt ashamed and so he is running away from his family and children.
I made mistakes，how could I stay with them? (「衰咗，仲點一齊住？」)
He lived in subdivided flat before he was in jail, when rent for a 70 square feet flat per month was around HKD$1800, now the price has skyrocketed to over HKD$3500.
Pragmatism rules in Hong Kong” (「香港地好現實架」)
Hong Kong’s established rental practice is to deposit two-month worth of rent and pay an upfront rent of a month when starting a new lease, so Uncle Bicycle has to shell out a good fortune, around HKD$12,000 for him to get back to a sheltered home. Although difficult for him, his aspiration is still having a home. If he could afford that money, he still wish to go back to subdivided apartment instead of staying out on the street.
Free lunch is not for everyone
Uncle Bicycle is well aware of lunchboxes distribution efforts by Ming Gor (明哥) of Pei Ho Chinese Barbecue Restaurant and also NGOs like Food Angel, praising quality and nutritional value of the food. However, he has a different view for the charitable act
People were becoming inactive and dependent if organisations keep giving them free lunchboxes (「有機構派飯，啲人咪仲懶」)
I don’t wish to rely on someone else (「我唔想求人」)
It is evident that there is still a fight in him, as opposed to other homeless citizens where all hope is gone. We wished him good luck for his ride back to a real “home”.
