One of Asia's most prosperous cities, in Hong Kong, for many of the most wealthy person, home is a mansion, from Victoria peak height expansion view. For some of the most poor, such as LiangZhuoYan, home is a metal cage.
The 67 - year - old former butcher pay hk $1300 ($167) a month probably has several similar rabbit cage with the barbed wire cages plug into a shabby apartment in perseverance, working near the west Kowloon.
Cage, piling up in each other top, measuring 15000 square meters (160000 feet). To keep bugs, liang and his roommate the cage board, not thin mattress pad, bamboo mat, even old roofing.
"I always bite so much, I'm used to it," said a beam, rolled up his sleeves and large blue wool coat, show the red mark of his hand. "Nothing can be done, I have lived here, I have to survive," he said, he gave up the phlegm cough.
In the former British colony, about 100000 people living in what is called the housing shortage, community organizations, social welfare organizations association. This category includes apartment broken into the cubicle, or full of wood and metal coffin size of sleep tank and the roof of the hut. China's southern city of the famous rich material life, they are a serious para.
Under prices soaring, live in crowded, dirty and unsafe conditions, their situation also highlight Hong Kong unpopular Beijing to support the leaders are faced with is the most headache: more and more public anger in the city's housing crisis.
LiangZhenYing as chief executive of Hong Kong SAR in July last year, in an attempt to the cooling of the anger, commitment to provide more affordable housing. House prices rose 23%, in 2012 the first ten months doubled, in 2008 in the global financial crisis has hit bottom rebound, the international monetary fund (IMF) last month in a report said. Rent follow a similar path.
The soaring cost will be live coverage of a large part of the population, and incite government, control all the land development, rich real estate developers and clique dissatisfaction. Housing costs have benefited from the loose credit thank of ultra-low interest rates policy makers can't improve, because the currency to the dollar. In mainland China and foreign investors seek higher returns money flood, intensifies the rise.
In his inauguration January policy address, the chief executive said cannot afford housing middle class a threat social stability, and make a promise, to solve the housing shortage, its priority.
Many families have move to smaller or older units, even factory, "he said." "The crowded living space, in a cage house, board room and the isolation unit has become hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong people reluctant choice," he said, because he announced plans to improve public houses in the period of supply, from the current 15000 per year the level of the apartment.
His comments mark a significant shift from the former Donald tsang, who ignored the problem. The legislative council and activists, but the lack of measures to increase supply in the short term, with a bang bright. About 210000 people queuing public house, from 2006 in two times. About a third of Hong Kong's 7.1 million people live in the rental housing units. When the government subsidies to buy the apartment were included, this number rises up to nearly half.
Anger, housing price is a common theme, in an increasingly frequent anti-government protests. The legislative council von inspection group members warned that there will be more, such as fruit this problem cannot be solved. Laboratory experiment, he compared the effect is not good.
"We in the middle school, we have some experiments, we put a lot of mice in a small box, said:" they will bite each other chicken. "It is so crowded living space, they can let a person feel uneasy, despair," and the government feel anger, he said.
Beam, the inhabitants of the cage, a little confidence, the government can do nothing to change this situation people all like him.
"This is not whether I believe him, but they always say this, what hope is there?" Leung said, he has been living in a cage house, because he stopped work, in a market stall twenty years ago lost part of the fingers. He did not apply for public housing, because he doesn't want to leave his roommate living alone, and expected his living in cages for the rest of my life.
He is the only income for HK $4000 ($515) a month in the government's aid. To pay his rent, he the rest of the $2700 ($350), or about HK $90 ($11.60) a day.
"It is impossible for me save, said:" beam, who did not get married, have children rely on support.
Beam and his roommate, they all single, older men, and wash his clothes, and in the bucket. The bathroom facilities including two toilet stalls, one of the connected squat toilets, shower room and make. Have the kitchen, only a small room, a receiver. The wall of corridor into brown, and for many years has accumulated dirt.
Although the cage house, emerged in the 1950 s mainly from mainland China to single man, in order to meet more and more less, other types of board room standard housing, such as increasing, more and more families in poverty. Almost 1.19 million people live in poverty, in the first half of last year from 2011 in 1.15 million, according to the Hong Kong council of social service. Have the official poverty line, but it is usually defined as the city the average incomes of the half.
Many poor people to apply for public housing, but face years of waiting. 500 low-income families questioning, oxfam Hong Kong in a recent survey showed that nearly three-quarters have been in the list of more than four years did not provide plane.
LiDaFang, is those who wait. Hope that the 63 - year - old she and her two grandchildren can get them to share their wan chai nearby board room apartment, but she didn't know how long it takes.
Li, who have diabetes and back has a problem, need to take care of Amy, 9, and Stephen, 13, because their father disappeared, their mother - her daughter - can't get license, from mainland China to Hong Kong. An uncle occasionally add his hand.



Other News:
Hong Kong poor living in cages and cubicles
Aussie court clears Google in deceptive ad case
European match-fixing probe: 380 suspicious games
Ireland dissolves 'bad bank' in midnight debt move
Feds: 18 charged in $200M global credit card fraud
Pakistan tries new way of tackling corruption
Hot Wheels: Chevrolet Cruze diesel
8 dead, 38 hurt as tour bus crashes in California