Multiculturalism in Action:
Nepali Culture Workshop
Session 1: Employment for South Asians in Hong Kong: The case of the
Nepalis
Guest Speaker: Prof. Leung Yuk-Ming, Lisa
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| Prof. Tam giving an introduction on the situation of Nepali women in Hong Kong. |
As a sequel to the “Multiculturalism in
Action: Indian Culture Workshop” in 2013-14, Prof Maria Tam organized the
“Multiculturalism in Action: Nepali Culture Workshop” in the academic year
2014-15. The aim of the Workshop is to raise the awareness of cultural
diversity among tertiary students, and to bring about mutual empowerment
between Chinese and Nepali participants. With the theme social marginalization,
discrimination, and empowerment, a series of talks and visits are planned. In
the first session of the Workshop on September 27, 2014, Prof. Tam gave an
introduction to the general situation of the Nepalis in Hong Kong. It was
followed by a talk by Prof. Lisa Leung, Cultural Studies Department, Lingnan
University. Based on her recent publication Understanding
South Asian Minorities in Hong Kong (2014 Hong Kong University Press) and
her research done over the years, Prof. Leung discussed issues of employment of South Asians, especially the Nepalis,
in Hong Kong.
According to the Population Census, the Chinese
make up 93.6% of the total population in Hong Kong. Among ethnic minorities, the
biggest groups consisted of foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong, who mainly came
from Indonesia and the Philippines. The Nepalis only consist 2% of the minority
population , and therefore are the
minority of minorities.
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| Prof. Leung discussing with Workshop participants |
Yet, Nepalis helped shape Hong Kong’s
colonial history. A large portion of Nepalis in Hong Kong are descendants of the
Gurkhas or ex-Gurkhas. Gurkha soldiers have been fighting for the British Army7.
Their reputed bravery, loyalty, and fierceness led the British colonial
government to deploy them at the Chinese borders to deter increasing illegal
immigrants entering Hong Kong.
The Nepalis stationed in Hong Kong until
the Handover in 1997, and had resided in the barracks in Jordan, Sek Kong, Yuen
Long, and Wan Chai. . After the Handover, some of the Gurkhas remained in Hong
Kong as residents, while others moved to Malaysia and Britain, and some
returned to Nepal. For those who stayed in Hong Kong, most were faced with a
lack of upward social mobility, because with very limited Chinese language
proficiency and other job-related skills, a lot of ex-Gurkhas could only find semi-skilled
or non-skilled work. Because of their military background, they were commonly
employed as security guards, watchmen e and construction workers. Nepali women,
on the other hand, mostly worked in the catering and hospitality sector because
of a perceived sexual division of labor..
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| Prof . Leung receiving a souvenir from Prof. Tam |
Some Nepalis started their own businesses, mostly
in the Yau Tsim Mong area, especially in Jordan and Tsim Sha Tsui. An
interesting observation is that in these shops the owners usually stayed in the
store in most of the opening hours, and on the name plaques of the store one
usually finds the Nepali name and phone number of the store. These measures were
intended to assure customers that the store was owned by a Nepali, and the
goods were authentically ethnic. Other than grocery stores, computer cafés and beauty/hair
salons were also popular business choices. In one of the computer cafés in Jordan
where Prof. Leung visited for her field work, she found that it was also a nursery
where Nepali parents would drop off their kids when they went to work. Prof.
Leung suggested that these commercial spaces indeed served multiple purposes.
This reflect how commercial spaces were also ethnic communal
spaces, allowing the Nepalis in diaspora to find a sense of belonging and security.
