Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
The Zubin Foundation
2023 Policy Recommendations to Mr John Lee, Chief Executive of Hong Kong
4th September, 2023
Email: ceo@ceo.gov.hk
1. Introduction to The Zubin Foundation
1.1. The Zubin Foundation (IR: 91/12344) is a registered charity committed to improving the lives of Hong Kong’s ethnic minorities by providing opportunities and reducing suffering.
1.2. We conduct outreach projects by providing training, counselling, and other well-being services to our service users, including managing the Call Mira helpline for women and girls and our scholarships programme Ethnic minority children and their parents are one of our key stakeholders, in particular, ethnic minority children in emotional distress, ethnic minority children with special educational needs and their parents, parents who lack parenting skills, parents and children who need immediate safety support, etc.
1.3. The following recommendations are based on our observations on our engagement with over 10,000 individuals within the ethnic minority community.
2. Preamble
2.1. From the latest Census (2021) released, we know that:
2.1.1. Ethnic minority (EM) community, excluding Foreign Domestic Helpers, has grown 52.9% in size vs HK general population growth is only 4.8%.1
2.1.2. The median age of EM is 38.5 vs the median age of Hong Kong General population is 46.3.2
2.1.3. Regular use of the English language of the EM population is 86.0% vs HK General population is 58.7% 3
2.2. Most ethnic minorities see Hong Kong as their home. Despite facing systematic issues, they try hard to integrate into society. They also want to contribute to and serve Hong Kong.
3.
Recommendations
3.1. Advisory and Statutory Bodies
1 Source: CENSUS (2023), 2021 Population Census – Thematic Report: Ethnic Minorities, p.20 (Table 3.1)
2 Source: CENSUS (2023), 2021 Population Census – Thematic Report: Ethnic Minorities, p.7 (Paragraph 2.6)
3 Source: CENSUS (2023), 2021 Population Census – Thematic Report: Ethnic Minorities, p.57 (Table 4.5)
The
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
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Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
3.1.1. Since 2016 the HKSAR administration has onboarded ethnic minorities with the relevant skills and experience onto Advisory and Statutory Bodies (ASBs). This has been one of the greatest achievements of this administration on racial inclusion. There have been many noteworthy ethnic minorities on ASBs who have dedicated time and created impact in different aspects of life in Hong Kong. The government is strongly advised to continue to include its existing ethnic minorities on ASBs and recruit young people from ethnic minority communities to serve on them.
3.1.2. Most ethnic minorities in Hong Kong see Hong Kong as their home, especially the young generation who were born and raised here. They have a great commitment to Hong Kong and want to contribute
3.1.3. We ask that the administration have an explicit target of at least one ethnic minority individual in each of the major committees of the HKSARG. This target setting is in line with being accountable for racial inclusion and equal opportunity and role modelling inclusion to the private sector, universities and schools, and NGOs. The administration already works towards a target of 35% women and 15% youth on ASBs, and therefore adding a racial inclusion target is in line with the HKSAR administration’s efforts to make Hong Kong more inclusive at ASBs.
3.1.4. Not all ethnic minorities who have the skills, experience, and background to serve on ASBs are fluent in the Cantonese language, but they speak English well, also an official language of Hong Jong. Therefore, as part of the HKSAR administration’s efforts to be inclusive, we suggest reasonable accommodation be made at ASBs so that language interpretation is provided for those who do not speak Cantonese,
3.1.5. We also ask the government to report on a yearly basis on the numbers of ethnic minorities (people of Non-Chinese descent) who are on ASB’s and the number of ASBs they sit on.
3.1.6. Bureaus and Departments should be reminded to include ethnic minorities on ASBs.
3.2. Steering Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs
3.2.1. We commend the administration for continuing its high-level internal Steering Committee for ethnic minorities chaired by the Chief Secretary. It is important for the bureaus and departments to continue to share knowledge internally and look at ways of working collaboratively to improve the lives of Hong Kong's ethnic minorities.
3.3.
Mental health
3.3.1. We commend the administration for recognising the current gap in the provision of mental health interventions for the ethnic minority community and for funding, on a pilot basis over a two-year period, the mental health of ethnic minorities (as per John Lee's Policy Address 2022 para 107)
3.3.2. The severity of the mental health of EMs is disturbing. As per The Zubin Foundation’s Mental Health of Ethnic Minorities in Hong Kong research report launched in March 2023, the majority of those seeking mental health support in the ethnic minority community are assessed as
91/12344).
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
Tel
The
Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
‘severe to extremely severe’ in terms of depression, anxiety and stress levels. While the funding from the HKSARG through the ACMH (as per 5.1 above) to The Zubin Foundation's counselling services to ethnic minorities is an important and significant step, more needs to be done in three specific areas.
3.3.3. One, more outreach to EM communities so that those at risk know that there is cultural and language appropriate help available. The recent tragedy of the three young daughters murdered by their mother highlights the need for disseminating this information. This can be done using a district approach, assigning more resources to EM organisations or ICCMWs at district level, training more EMs to conduct outreach work, raising awareness of mental health and to identify individuals who may have mental health needs and refer them to appropriate services.
3.3.4. Two, greater links between NGOs and public sector psychiatric services. TZF is unable to provide counselling services to individuals who demonstrate moderate/severe suicidal risk, and these clients are advised to seek psychiatric help through either Accident and Emergency units in public hospitals or through ICCMWs. We have also seen clients who score ‘severe ‘in the depression, anxiety and stress scale and would greatly benefit from seeing psychiatrists but cannot afford. There are a few things that we would like to propose:
3.3.5. We would like a direct referral mechanism so that such ‘moderate’/’severe’ suicidal risk clients are seen promptly:
3.3.5.1. The Zubin Foundation's Ethnic Minority Well-being Centre to be included as a partner in the Community Psychiatric Services so that direct referrals can be made in the rare cases of involuntary admissions.
3.3.5.2. The Zubin Foundation's Ethnic Minority Well-being Centre to be included as a partner in the Integrated Mental Health programmes or other public sector psychiatric support services so that clients who require mental health-related medication can be referred directly.
3.3.6. Three, the talent pipeline for ethnic minority mental health providers is seriously lacking This poses an enormous risk to those in the EM community of they cannot access mental health provisions with the language and cultural know-how. We propose that the government helps in three specific ways:
3.3.6.1. Encourage all universities and tertiary educational institutions to offer places to ethnic minorities on counselling, psychology and social work degrees, and consider setting a target number. In 2018 to 2021, we know that fewer than five places went to EM individuals in the (post-graduate) counselling programmes of four HK tertiary institutions.
3.3.6.2. Provide financial Incentives for EM students to study mental health-related degrees at universities Because of the need for more EM mental health professionals, we propose the government provide financial bursaries to EMs to study the one-year full-time post-
91/12344).
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
grad in counselling and this is currently offered at the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Baptist University, City University of Hong Kong
3.3.7. Consider a fast-track entry for EMs qualified as mental health practitioners from reputable academic institutions abroad to come to HK and practice as counsellors.
3.3.8. The government to inform its social welfare and mental health service providers, NGOs and government units, about the availability of one-to-one counselling for ethnic minorities through the Ethnic Minority Well-being Centre.
3.3.9. The government to foster greater linkages and collaboration between The Zubin Foundation's Ethnic Minority Well-being Centre and ICCMWs.
3.4. Victims of family violence
3.4.1. In the 2019 Policy Address, the government noted that it would raise ethnic minorities’ awareness of domestic violence and sexual violence through community education programmes and encourage victims to seek help. The Zubin Foundation has noted an increase in domestic violence and more outreach to the ethnic minority community is needed to inform women and children about help that is available.
3.4.2. Funding for DV programmes in the EM community to help women victims of EM gain resilience.
3.5. Mandatory Reporting Requirements for Suspected Child Abuse Cases
3.5.1. The Zubin Foundation is an advocate of mandatory reporting of child abuse (MRCA). The government will need to ensure sufficient resources are provided to raise awareness to ethnic minority parents and the ethnic minority community at large, including engaging the religious leaders and business leaders in the community as well as other individuals like counsellors, teacher assistants (Tas) in the education sector and other programme/project workers in NGOs, tutorial centres, extra-curricular activities teachers and assistants, childcare providers, foreign domestic helpers, etc.
3.5.2. We know there are a significant number of ethnic minority children who attend religious places (Mosques, Madrassas, Churches, Temples, Sikh temples, etc.) very regularly, sometimes every day. Given the event concerning a 13-year-old boy by a religious studies teacher in Quarry Bay at a Madrassa in early August 20234 , the compulsory reporting should cover settings like this which often host a large number of children. And most importantly, any training needs to be made compulsory for teachers and religious leaders in these settings.
3.5.3. We are very concerned that in the event of an ethnic minority child being taken into government custody in a suspected child abuse case, that the foster care system and group homes (ie institutional care) may not adequately understand the cultural nuances of placing an
4 Source: SCMP, “Hong Kong religious studies teacher charged with slapping 13-year-old boy during lesson”
https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3230901/hong-kong-religious-studies-teacher-chargedslapping-13-year-old-boy-during-lesson
The
91/12344).
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
The
Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
ethnic minority child in care. It is important that the Social Welfare Department consider including ethnic minority representatives on their governance committees
3.5.4. The drafted bill will need to also provide clear examples from children of all backgrounds, including ethnic minority backgrounds.
3.5.5. Many of our service users who are ethnic minority parents wish to learn more parenting skills It appears that some parents may consider corporal punishment because they may lack education and knowledge about other tools to discipline their children and may have their own anger management issues
3.5.6. We urge the government to invest in and fund research and programmes on different researchbased parenting which are developed with a lens of cultural perspective and have a specific programme supporting parents with children with special educational needs.
3.6. An integrated approach for Special Needs for Ethnic Minority Children is needed
3.6.1. The government has increased its support to SEN children in Hong Kong over the past 4 years and this needs to be commended.
3.6.2. The New Service Protocol for ADHD is commended but at present does not cover ethnic minority SEN children. Ethnic minority children are still not able to gain access to much of this because the service provision is in Cantonese.
3.6.3. Most children have mild to moderate SEN, and they do not need medication. Therefore, they can receive various interventions immediately and do not need to wait to see a psychiatrist to begin accessing support The government should consider funding NGOs who are able to offer services to ethnic minorities to help with early intervention, particularly in primary and early years.
3.7. The Care Teams in 18 Districts
3.7.1. We commend the government’s consideration of the needs of ethnic minorities when formulating the idea of the Care Teams in the Policy Address 2022 (Para 93). We urge the government to ensure each Care Team hires ethnic minority individuals which could facilitate support in the outreach to ethnic minorities.
3.7.2. It is important to set KPIs or service targets, we urge the government to set specific KPIs related to solving the needs of ethnic minorities when they evaluate the Care Teams in 18 Districts.
3.8. Tendering service from the government across bureaus and departments
3.8.1. We urge the government to take the lead that any tendering activities to give priority / extra points to the vendor organisations who provides job opportunities / provide targeting services to ethnic minorities.
91/12344).
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
3.8.2. Social services, in particular, should include a specific requirement focusing on serving EM. Also, it is always important to have a mandatory requirement for periodic cultural sensitivity staff training. In addition, there should be a service indicator for clients from different backgrounds for different public service providers to report on.
3.9.
Housing Authority, Hospital Authority, LCSD
3.9.1. We see the improvement in the visibility of ethnic minorities in the vast majority of government-related media. However, there are still improvements to be made: for example, in the recent advertisement by the HK Tourism Board, not a single darker skin person. It is important to send a message to the world that Hong Kong is an inclusive and welcoming city while the administration has spent a lot on the “Hello Hong Kong” campaign, it is urged the administration to keep an eye on the end product to ensure it sends the correct message to the rest of the world.
3.9.2. Posters and notices on Housing Authority, Hospital Authority and LCSD venues including premises, lifts, entrance areas and notice boards should be in all of Hong Kong's official languages, including both Chinese and English. Many ethnic minorities can speak Cantonese but are unable to read Chinese. It is critical that they understand the notices which may contain important information so that they are aware of any latest updates.
3.10. Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau (CSTB)
3.10.1. Hong Kong's sports teams have included members of the Non-Chinese community for a number of years. This is wonderful as sports are a platform to foster social harmony and integration.
3.10.2. Many ethnic minority children are good at sports and have great potential to develop further. However, currently most of the classes organsied or subsidised by CSTB are in Cantonese. CSTB should ensure that all activities provided or supported are available to children who do not speak Cantonese. As in the case of the provision of health services through the Hospital Authority, translators should be made available in the English language at a minimum (and as an official language of Hong Kong). Children should not be excluded from cultural and sports activities because of language.
3.11.Housing Bureau
3.11.1. Because ethnic minorities have larger family sizes and are growing in number, they tend to wait for a much longer time than the average of 5 - 6 years. The existing waitlist for most ethnic minorities for public housing is 7 - 8 years; some have been waiting for even longer. We urge the administration to consider building more big size flats or measures when they plan the building of new public estates.
3.11.2. More and more ethnic minority families are able to move to light public housing, transitional housing and public housing estates. We urge government to help promote racial inclusion in
The
91/12344).
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
these newly built estates (whether these are short term or not) through different inclusion programmes for all residents there to promote a harmony and inclusive environment.
3.12. Education Bureau
3.12.1. Developing EM professionals – we need to build a diverse workforce. It is very important to build EM professionals (EM social workers, EM counsellors, EM psychologists, EM nurses, EM doctors, etc.) to handle more severe cases with treatment-related casework. To do so, the government must encourage universities to admit EMs into these courses. We need these talents to slowly and eventually build a diverse workforce.
3.12.2. We also urge the government to support NGOs in conducting life and career planning for EM students in Hong Kong. Most students lack of visibility of what their future could be in Hong Kong given they see Hong Kong as their home, they do not see much hope here.
3.13. Anti-Race Discrimination Public Awareness
3.13.1. The Zubin Foundation has seen a steady increase in racial discrimination against ethnic minorities over the last year. This manifests itself in schools, in the rental of homes, in public transport and in daily life.
3.13.2. School-aged children are seeing our counsellors and are traumatised by the daily abuse at school and race discrimination from teachers and students alike.
3.13.3. In addition, discrimination complaints from ethnic minority teachers and teacher assistants have increased with many complaining that their school has discriminated against them for their dress and their ethnicity.
3.13.4. Furthermore, we have seen an increase in discrimination against potential ethnic minority tenants on the grounds of race with rental accommodation being denied to ethnic minorities.
3.13.5. We strongly recommend that the government enhance public awareness of inclusion and acceptance of ethnic minorities as fellow Hong Kong people. The government is urged to take a very strong stance against race discrimination.
3.14. Mandatory Training for frontline staff DoH, EDB and SWD on unconscious bias
3.14.1. We commend the government for improving the Adminstrative Guideline on Promotion of Racial Equality (Guidelines) in April 2020. Alongside the guideline, the government is strongly encouraged to begin training frontline staff in the Department of Health, Social Welfare Department and Education Bureau. This should apply to those who work directly in the community and those who are in public relations.
3.15. Statutory Children's Commission
The
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
Tel電話: +852 2540 9588 E-mail電郵:
Improves the lives of Hong Kong ethnic minorities by reducing suffering and providing opportunities
3.15.1. We urge the administration to consider the setting up of an independent statutory commission for children in line with international best practice. It is critical that the lives of children are considered as fundamental to policymaking in Hong Kong and that the needs of children are considered all the time.
4. Enquiries:
4.1. For further information and discussion, please contact:
Shalin Mahtani, Founder and CEO, email at mummy@zubinfoundation.org
Sandy Chan, Operations Director, email at sandy@zubinfoundation.org
91/12344).
小彬紀念基金(香港註冊慈善機構IR 91/12344)。
Room F, 5/F., High Fashion Centre, 1 – 11 Kwai Hei Street, Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
香港新界葵涌葵喜街1-11號達利國際中心5樓F室。
Tel電話: +852 2540 9588 E-mail電郵: info@zubinfoundation.org Website網址: www.zubinfoundation.org