1962 — Page 27

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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

Page 27 of 150

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Resettlement

I see no justification in the resettling of the farmer in a shop in any resettlement estate when his farming land is taken back by the Crown. Being a husbandman all his life, he would not know how to be a tradesman. He would, more likely than not, ask others to run his business which would lead to complications, or sub-let his premises to others which would defeat the purpose and aim of Government. Shop rents in resettlement estates should be re-assessed. The rent of shops in some estates such as in Kwun Tong, which is not fully developed, should not be valued as high as those in other more populous areas. Shop- owners in such areas consider themselves under-privileged. Shops in areas where less people live are bound to do less business and should be assessed accordingly.

Means of Communication for the Public

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Many views have been voiced on this controversial subject. believe the congestion of passengers at bus or tram stops can only be solved by the addition of an adequate number of conveying vehicles. The public utility companies enjoy a franchise amounting to almost a monopoly from which they make a handsome profit annually, and it is their duty to provide an adequately satisfactory service to the public whose rights should not be ignored.

Smoking

We are all aware that smoking is not recommended by the medical profession, and there is at present an international campaign against it. I am not qualified to say that it is harmful, but I do feel smokers should be segregated in theatres, cinemas and public conveyances in order that non-smokers may enjoy unpolluted air.

With these observations, Sir, I have the pleasure to support your Statement of Progress and Policy. (Applause).

MR. WILSON T. S. WANG : ---Mr. Chairman, my concern at this time is with our Resettlement Programme. Government has done much that is praiseworthy in as much as a good 500,000 have already been re- settled, and the work is being accelerated to aim at resettling 100,000 people a year i.e. about 300 a day. Indeed, the speed and imagination with which the government tackled resettlement have gained for the Government of Hong Kong well-deserved world-wide acclaim and recognition.

However, I feel, that more is required than merely the speed in construction. There are indeed many loose ends that must be gathered up and secured firmly. It would indeed be a pity if the government,

after having spent heavily and after having accomplished the difficult tasks involved in constructing these estates, should consider the job done once the people in question have been housed. For the truth re- mains that little thought has been given to the social and economic aspects of our resettlement programme and these are the loose ends which I am referring to.

The present method of allocating shop space merely by ballot re- quires improvement. Although the original intention was to play fair, this system contains many unattractive elements, one of which is the unavoidable result of having to see many people being allocated shops at localities unsuitable for operating the kinds of business or trades of their own choice. Many shop-keepers thus suffer losses in their business while others, who venture into new trades in order to fit into the locality, find it necessary to employ someone else to manage the shops for them, thus defeating our purpose of rehabilitating the settlers themselves.

Many settlers lack the "know how” of shop keeping. Many are ignorant of the requirements needed to comply with regulations for starting a business;--for example, licensing. Many have no knowledge of assessing the local demand for certain types of business. They tend to follow what others are doing, thus inflicting loss in business not only on themselves but also on others. This being the prevailing condition in the resettlement estates, vocational guidance and counselling are very much needed.

Many of us who visit the resettlement estates are immediately aware of the large number of children roaming around all hours of the day and can at once see the urgent need for more schools for them. At present educational facilities in these estates comprise mainly of schools operated on rooftops; these are hardly choice edifices of learning, for anyone of us can see the handicaps and unsatisfactory conditions under which they must operate. While I fully appreciate the fact that the Education Department has a heavy task on the Educa- tion Problem of the colony as a whole, I feel that it is not out of place to call for special attention of the Department on the urgent need for more educational facilities for the children in our resettlement estates, and to suggest that a solution be sought to improve the operating standard of the existing rooftops schools by way of effective government assistance. Illiteracy is sufficiently grave in these estates at present,—— but, when one contemplates a new and rising generation of further illiterates, one quails at the thought of the hidden dangers which the present indifferent policy portends.