Social News
Written by: Chen Shuxia
2020-10-31 09:00
Last update date: 2020-10-31 09:00
The newspaper stall outside Gate 75 of Chung Mei Lao Uk Village in Tsing Yi has been in business for more than 40 years. Recently, it has been blocked by complaints one after another. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department visited the scene four times within two months.
The stall owner, Mr. Lei, questioned that there was something wrong. He had been in peace for many years. However, after applying for electricity from the meter a year ago and being blocked due to "feng shui problems", he has been complaining for months.
He frankly said that extending the gear is compelling because the existing laws are out of date.
District councillors who followed up on the incident pointed out that nearby stallholders also had illegal obstruction of the street, questioned the department’s double standards and the need to review the hawker policy.
The FEHD replied that since October last year, it had prosecuted the newsstand and the nearby obstructions once and four times, respectively. It also pointed out that it is not appropriate to expand the area of the newsstand at this stage because it will block the passage of fire. Getting worse.
Mr. Lei pointed out that newspaper stalls have been in business for decades and have been in peace, but after the application for electricity meters was blocked, one after another people complained about obstructing the street. He questioned something strange.
(Photo by Chen Shuxia)
The newspaper stall outside Gate 75 of Chung Mei Old House Village, Tsing Yi, was originally run by Mr. Lei’s maternal mother. For more than 40 years, "the elderly are getting older and have begun to do hard work." He took over the management two years ago, and also legally enforced it. I applied for an assistant license and have been in peace.
The owner of the newspaper stall, Mr. Lei, wanted to apply for electricity from an electric meter, but some people in the village blocked the project because of Feng Shui.
(Photo by Chen Shuxia)
The report was set up in a tent, and it was hot in summer. Mr. Lei’s mother-in-law had already applied to the department to install an electric meter more than a year ago, hoping to install an electric fan, etc., and had been approved by the FEHD. During the consultation period, there was no objection.
Everything was ready, and the CLP in charge of the project suddenly notified Mr. Lei that the project had not started. "Some villagers complained because of feng shui problems." As a result, the project has been shelved since March last year and construction has not yet started.
He once asked the district councilor for help, and Ji Ke intervened to mediate, but the village representative refused to meet, and the incident ended.
There are hawkers occupying the carriageway on Shanggaotan Street, and the villagers are used to it.
(Photo by Chen Shuxia)
He said that in the hot summer, there was no electricity supply in the stalls. "The whole body was wet from the inside to the outside, changing from light-colored shirts to dark-colored shirts." Every midnight, newspapers would arrive at the newspaper stalls. Mr. Lei needed Folding newspapers and sorting them into categories, "It's good to have a lighting system." As the power distribution project was suddenly stopped, he could only temporarily replace it with a mobile electric box and a rechargeable fan, "but the fan has no electricity for two hours."
The reporter saw at the scene that the food stall adjacent to the newspaper stall also placed goods and styrofoam boxes on the pavement.
(Photo by Chen Shuxia)
Regardless of the region, the size of the newspapers in Hong Kong has long been regulated by the law. They can only occupy 9 square feet of space (6 feet by 1.5 feet), and the area is smaller than a single bed, and only a few newspapers can barely be laid flat.
Mr. Lei’s report is no exception. He then placed a long stand for display without affecting others, and sold cigarettes in an upright iron cabinet.
However, since last month, law enforcement officers from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department have been on the scene several times, stating that they have received complaints about obstruction, requesting that the report be restored to the specified business size, otherwise a ticket charge will be made and a fine of 1,500 yuan will be required.
He had to put away the long platform and put the newspaper on folding chairs for display.
He pointed out that the sales of newspapers on Happy Horse Day were especially popular, and it was difficult to stack a large pile of newspapers. "It's really not convenient."
Many neighbourhoods also thought that the report was closed or even closed. "The business has fallen by 20%." Mr. Lei also pointed out that someone took the opportunity to inquire whether the stalls can be rented out and sold, but he refused, "If I do it, I will be unhappy. Pin the card."
Mr. Lei pointed out that he and his maternal family were non-indigenous residents and speculated that they might be embarrassed as a result. Some people might also covet the stalls, so they kept complaining.
He also pointed out that the reason for sabotaging Feng Shui was far-fetched. "Other shops are spreading electric wires."
The newspaper stall is located at the intersection of the open-air market in the village, adjacent to the food stall, and there is a footpath between the two stalls. The reporter saw at the scene that the food stall and other stall owners also put goods on the side of the road, beyond the scope of the stall. There were also hawkers who illegally occupied official land and sold them on the road. On the day of the visit, FEHD officers came to inspect the wet and dry stalls. The roadside hawkers dispersed immediately. After the law enforcement officers closed the team, they went out and set up again.
District Councillor: The current regulations governing reports are out of fashion
Kwai Tsing District Councillor Wong Chun-tat, who followed up on the incident, questioned that the department had double standards in its enforcement and believed that it was necessary to reorganize public health order.
He also pointed out that the current laws governing newspaper stalls are out of fashion and worry that newspaper vendors will be wiped out.
The FEHD replied that since October last year, the newspaper stall has received a total of 4 complaints, mainly related to the obstruction of pedestrians caused by items placed in public places. One prosecution was filed during the investigation.
The department sent personnel to inspect the scene twice in the second half of this month, during which no violations were found.
Even so, the staff of this department has issued a verbal warning to the person in charge, reminding not to place sundries in public places, otherwise they will be prosecuted.
As for the problem of obstruction in the vicinity of No. 75 in Chung Mei Old Estate, since October last year, there have been three complaints, during which four prosecutions were made for illegal hawking and/or obstruction, and 48 batches of hawker leftovers were seized.
The FEHD staff inspected again a few days ago (28th) and found no obstruction to the passage, but they have also issued verbal warnings to the shop owners in the area.
FEHD: Not directly expanding the area of newsstand
The spokesman said that there are currently 355 licensed newspaper stalls in Hong Kong. The streets occupied by newspaper vendors in high-density areas are often the main passages for other road users. Expanding the area of newspaper stalls will only make the problem of obstructing fire escapes even worse. Seriously, it will have adverse effects on fire safety and environmental sanitation.
However, the department stated that it will flexibly deal with the scope of business issues in daily management. As long as the stall does not cause obstruction or obstruction of the fire escape, and the stall is restored to the approved range after business hours, the hawker can put the goods in a limited amount during business hours. It is sold outside the scope of the approved stalls, but it is considered inappropriate to expand the area of the newspaper vendor stalls.
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