Understanding Gender-based Violence of Girls of South Asian Ethnic Groups in Hong Kong Survey Report 《香港少數族裔少女對於性別暴力知識與觀念硏究報告》

According to the 2011 Hong Kong Population Census, ethnic minority groups constituted a total population of 451,138. Leaving out Indonesian and Filipino population who are mostly domestic helpers, the major ethnic groups residing in Hong Kong would be Indians, Pakistanis and Nepalese. According to the 2016 Hong Kong Population By-Census, the above-mentioned groups have a total population of 76,073, whereas there were 63,176 in 2011. There was 20% increase in the above-mentioned groups when it is compared with 2011.

In this research, we will only focus on studying Indian, Pakistani and Nepalese ethnic groups in Hong Kong for the purpose of advocating to the Government to formulate policy for ethnic minority communities, as they face most challenges in terms of economic and social integration and their population were steadily increasing in the past five years.

Gender-based violence (GBV) is “an umbrella term for any harmful act that is perpetrated against a person’s will, and that is based on socially ascribed (gender) differences between males and females” 1. GBV is one of the greatest challenges that the whole world is facing. Globally, GBV is the leading cause of death of women between the ages of 19 and 44.

The number of reported GBV cases is far below the reality. Due to various cultural, social, religious and economic factors, especially the poverty situation of ethnic minorities’ communities , women and girls of South Asian ethnic groups in Hong Kong were exposed to higher risk of GBV than that of local women and girls.

In view of the seriousness of sexual violence faced by the groups, RainLily started a project entitled “WE Stand” that provides education programs and support services to female migrant workers and women and girls from ethnic minority groups in Hong Kong from 2012.

This study report, “Understanding Gender-based Violence of Girls of South Asian Ethnic Groups in Hong Kong”, aims at gaining more knowledge about the understanding of and experiences on GBV of the girls of ethnic minority groups in Hong Kong as well as their help seeking tendency.

Based on the findings and discussion, the following recommendations are proposed for combating GBV as well as strengthening supports to the girls of ethnic minority groups who have encountered GBV in Hong Kong:

1) provide gender education in schools and communities;

2) as arranged marriage is a common cultural practice in South Asian communities, there is a need to construct a supportive and friendly environment for the ethnic groups to exercise free choice;

3) render cultural and gender sensitivity training to police and service providers;

4) set up specialized teams for handling GBV for ethnic minority groups;

5) provide more resources to conduct further study to enhance our understanding of the risk of GBV.

根據統計處2011年的香港人口普查據顯示，香港少數族裔社群的人口有451,138人。撇除外籍傭工後，較多的少數族裔的人口為印度、巴基斯坦及尼泊爾裔族群。根據統計處2016年的中期人口數據顯示，上述少數族裔社群的人口共有76,073人，比起2011年的63,176人，五年間上升了二成，人口持續增長，而且相比起其他族群會面對較大的經濟及社會融合挑戰。本研究以促使香港政府制訂與少數族裔社群相關的政策為目標，研究內容涉及的「少數族裔」只包括印度、巴基斯坦及尼泊爾裔族群。

性別暴力 (Gender-based violence, GBV) 是指基於性別差異，違背一個人的意願造成的任何傷害行為的總括定義 。性別暴力是全球面臨的最大挑戰之一。根據亞洲基金會的數字，性別暴力是19至44 歲女性的最大死亡原因。

整體而言，性別暴力的真正數字遠多於求助個案數字。因為文化、社會、宗教及經濟因素，更由於南亞裔群體較為貧窮，比起本地的少女和婦女，香港的南亞裔少女和婦女承受更大的性別暴力的危機。基於問題的嚴重性，風雨蘭自2012年開展「凝動計劃」，為女性外籍傭工及少數族裔少女及婦女提供性暴力教育及支援服務。

《香港少數族裔少女性別暴力知識與觀念研究報告》希望了解在港少數族裔少女對性別暴力的認知、經驗及求助情況。為反擊影響少數族裔社群的性別暴力以及加強對遭受性別暴力的少數族裔少女的支持，研究團隊就研究的結果提出以下改善建議:

1. 在學校及社群提供性別教育；
2. 包辦婚姻在南亞族裔社群之中甚為常見，一個對少數族裔社群友善的環境，能支援少數族裔少女體現「自主選擇」；
3. 向警方及服務提供者提供文化及性別敏感訓練；
4. 設立專門處理少數族裔性別暴力的隊伍；
5. 提供更多資源，加強對性別暴力的研究及了解。