Embarrassing Guests
а
54
great labour of persuading the world to rescue it.
The refugee problem is still a large and serious one for this Colony. In addi- tion to the Rennie's Mill
population, it is estimated that nearly half a million
The community sympa- thises with the unwilling- ness to return to Com- munist When the refugees from
China though the
Mount
some of this reluctance is Davis camp,
not genuine fear of hard- having made themselves a
ship under the Reds. Hun- nuisance to the residents dreds of millions of people of that district, were moved to Junk Bay, it was pre- and, whatever their lot, no have remained in China, sumed that this was a tem-
case for special treatment
more or less destitute people porary arrangement
of the thousands who have In spite of all efforts, there have come to Hongkong. presumption the more rea- sonable for the fact that made out.
fled to Hongkong can be is no noticeable diminution thes homeless people were declare that they wish to does the Hongkong Govern-
The refugees
of their numbers: neither largely Chinese Nationalist soldiers. They are still in tionalist authorities there, go to Formosa. The Na-
ment show any convincing residence in their huts at
sign of despite repeated approach Rennie's Mills, and, to judge by the Hongkong Govern-
coping with the squatters who are to be from the reports published ment, are peculiarly averse
seen in congested settle- this week, there they hope to accepting them. Taipeh plight of these unfortu- ments everywhere. The to dwell for а long propaganda boasts fre- time. They appear to
quently of the resent any encouragement ciency of the administra- to find employment or totion and of the liberal and return to China. An offi- responsible policies cial census to classify them being followed. as to places of origin led to also that the Nationalist rumours that they were to Government is acutely con- be repatriated, whereupon scious of its duty towards a thousand of them em- the population, not only of barked upon a "hunger Formosa but of the main- strike", and protest meet- land too. The persistent ings have been held. They refusal to permit refugees apparently consider that the to enter Formosa heavily Colony is bound to accom- discounts the grandiose pro- modate and maintain themfessions. According to re- a proposition to which cent oratory, the Generalis- the taxpayer cannot ac- simo does not hope to be cede. These refugees, num-back in Nanking bering nearly seven thou- than
three years
new effi-
now
It claims
sooner
nence.
sand, are costing this Meanwhile the party ap- Colony two million dollars pears to have neither time money which, nor effort to spare from its
а year
most people will agree, could be more construc- tively spent upon public service.
SOUTH CHINA MORNING
POST
MORNING PRE
14/9/50.
X
re-
nates cannot but excite for their accommodation are commiseration: but plans
frustrated on
every side. Well-meaning social workers hardships tend rather to who try to alleviate their
complicate the basic prob- them, for "squatter men- lems than to dispose of
tality" is being cultivated, The Government receives much criticism and much free but useless advice. It has done much, but is caught in a vicious round of lacks of sites, of water, of drainage, and of other essential require- ments. The position is well illustrated by the frequency with which squatters must be moved from land quired for house-building, for defence, or other urgent purposes. There would ap- pear to be only two effec- tive courses the harsh and objectionable one of deporting all squatters and the expensive and equally difficult one of transferring them en masse to country districts. As has been said many times, the problem is not fairly imposed upon Hongkong: it is a world problem, calling for United Nations attention. Our London correspondent, Mr L. D. Gammans, M.P., sug- gests that the World Bank be approached. We prefer that the United Nations accept the primary responsi- bility and to that end our humanitarian social- worker visitors might well use their influence.