F E AT U R E 專 題 故 事
THE OTHER ONE PER CENT 個別的百分之一 Hong Kong approves less than one per cent of asylum claims, making it one of the most challenging places to seek protection in the developed world. 在香港，只有不到1%的酷刑／免遣返聲請申請獲得確立，是全球發達地區中 最難以確立聲請的地方之一。
Words 文 Karen Cheung | Illustrations 插畫 Stella So
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avigating Chungking Mansions in Tsim Sha Tsui is an exhilarating experience. A labyrinth of boarding houses and shops, the halfcentury-old Kowloon landmark is a hub of activity where thousands of individuals from all corners of the world eat, sleep, shop, socialise, and conduct business. But to a particularly marginalised population in Hong Kong, Chungking Mansions is also a sanctuary. On the 17th floor of one of the building’s many tower blocks, sits the Centre for Refugees – the only drop-in service centre for asylum seekers in the city. Run by Christian Action, a local non-profit that strives to help Hong Kong’s most disadvantaged communities, the centre provides everyday essentials, food, language classes, training programmes, counselling, and several community activities. A whiteboard lists upcoming activities: football training, art and poetry classes, even a seminar on globalisation by Professor Gordon Mathews of The Chinese University of Hong Kong. These services fill a much-needed gap in a city where legal hurdles often send asylum seekers into a perpetual state of limbo. A lot can, and does, go wrong as asylum seekers wait for their fates to be decided. “We have over 20 counsellors providing different types of therapies as many clients go through a great deal of trauma. I know one man who just gets worse and worse every week. He feels discriminated against and believes there's no hope," says Andrews. "Imagine an individual who's been waiting for their case for 10 years. What can they do?” 118
ARIANA 2019
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走在尖沙咀重慶大廈中，會叫人目眩神迷。這 幢位於九龍半島、已有半世紀歷史的標誌性建 築裡，擠滿了賓館和商店。數以千計來自世界 各地的人會在這裡吃飯、睡覺、購物、交往和做生意。 但對於一些活在香港的邊緣群體而言，重慶大廈 也是一處避難所。由基督教勵行會營運的難民服務中 心就設在 17 樓，而這裡也是來港尋求庇護的人唯一獲 得救濟的地方。勵行會是一個本地非牟利組織，致力 幫助香港最弱勢的社群，而中心則為尋求庇護者提供 每日的基本所需、食物、語言課程、訓練課程、諮詢 和多種社區活動。 一塊白板上寫著即將舉行的活動：足球訓練、藝 術和詩歌班，甚至還有香港中文大學教授麥高登關於 全球化的講座。香港的法律障礙讓尋求庇護者長期陷 於前路未卜的困頓裡，而中心的服務便填上了這亟待 填補的空白。當尋求庇護者等待命運裁決的時候，許 多事情往往未如人意。 「我們有超過 20名輔導員提供不同類型的治療， 因為很多受助人都經歷過嚴重創傷。這裡有一位男 士，一個禮拜比一個禮拜糟糕，他覺得自己被歧視， 覺得沒有希望。」在勵行會中負責幫助尋求庇護者渡 過難關的社工 Jeffrey Andrews說。「你試想一下一個人 在這裡等待申請批准 10年，期間甚麼都不能做。」
