Hong Kong has long been one of the most unequal places on Earth, but the pandemic has brought the divide into the open. Poorer residents who live in extremely crowded quarters have suffered the brunt of the outbreaks and the lockdown.
After an outbreak in the densely populated neighborhood of Jordan, officials locked down 10,000 residents, most of whom live in tenement apartments, where spaces are so tiny and restrictive that they are called cages or coffins.
Residents worried about missing a day of work or feared being trapped in poorly ventilated hotbeds of transmission. It was the first such lockdown in the territory since the pandemic began.
Discrimination also compounded the problems. Some blamed the government for allowing the conditions for an outbreak to fester and then imposing measures on a group that can least afford to bear them. Wealthy Hong Kongers have caused outbreaks of their own, without similar consequences.
Details: More than 160 cases were confirmed in Jordan from Jan. 1 to the end of last week, out of about 1,100 citywide. Similar areas saw SARS outbreaks that spread through defective plumbing. The government promised reforms after SARS but has acknowledged that the situation remains perilous.❐
