Hong Kong home to hundreds of elderly cage dwellers

Years ago, I saw the documentary on people living in 'cages' in HK and I didn't know what to expect. It sounded horrifying but after watching the program, I thought differently. These places looked like youth hostel dorms but with cages around the beds so the people can lock up their possessions when they go out, and they do go out during the day to communal areas, and on outings. The people living in these places seem no happier or unhappier than people anywhere, actually happier than many because they are not lonely and they help each other. The people are widowed or never married, are childless or their children are elsewhere, so their 'communities' are everything to them. The worst thing seems to be the heat in summer and lack of windows, but the rents are so cheap that people just cope. Mostly, the people seem accepting and grateful for what they have. I don't have enough knowledge of HK and Shanghai housing to judge, but I think I'd rather be poor in HK.

Two photo collections on the subject of accommodation in these cities are '100 x 100', photographs of residents in their flats in Hong Kong's oldest public housing estate: 100 rooms, each 100 square feet in size:

http://www.photomichaelwolf.com/100x100/index.html and 'Shanghai Living', photos of Shanghai residents from all walks of life in their homes:

http://china.shanghartgallery.com/galleryarchive/archives/artist/name/huyang

When I left Hong Kong in 2002 - there were only supposed to be one or two buildings left of those (they were really remnants of the 1960s and 70s shantytown mudslides + fires) - and they were supposed to have been done away with in the next few years (after 2002) apparently not.

Zhonghuarising - that is where she 'lives' - many of the people in cage housing are either on public assistance - or living on the smallest wages imaginable (like $10 HKD a day made recycling cardboard boxes or hauling trash for wetmarket stall owners)

I've never actually seen these "cage houses" for myself, but from this picture, it appears that commenter Adam's Not Here is right. She doesn't actually sleep in that thing, does she? It just looks like that's where she keeps all her stuff when she goes out.

I used to see these cage houses on HK TV drama back in the early 90s. Very sad for the elders. Every big city has such stories, even NYC and London, just different "cages".

More: http://www.hkbu.edu.hk/~tyrej/37_2/37_2_n05.htm

"In Hong Kong, 15,000 families face the same problem as the Tans, living in the so called “cage” houses. Government statistics show that 20 per cent of these cage housing residents are elderly over 60 and 7.9 per cent are children under 18. "

Shanghai doesn't have low income housing planned? I've heard it mentioned here and there...

i think this touches on a larger issue though...the fact that shanghai has no low-income housing factored into its urban development plans, which is unprecedented in the world for a city of this magnitude.

I dunno, this seems like an example of headline hysteria. Sure those conditions don't look great. But throw the word 'cage' in there and everybody freaks out. Looking at the picture and it looks to me like the 'cage' is there so that this woman can lock up her valuables when she goes out. Put the same thing around one of the beds at a hostel and I don't see much difference. Not that I'd want to trade places or anything...

I am aware that the average Shanghainese person lives in housing that lots of people would consider substandard -- many of my neighbors, in a pretty nice part of town, still use chamber pots, for example. And I am also aware that there are a number of people in the city with no homes at all. But cages? I think most people would rather live in a half-demolished lane home than cages stacked on top of each other.

"...making us wonder if this is a sign of things to come for Shanghai."

Things to come? I think there are plenty of people in Shanghai that would think, if they were to see those pictures, "wow, that's a damn fine cage."

A whole lot of the population lives in a lot worse.