Hong Kong poor living in cages

In this Jan. 25, 2013 photo, Lee Tat Fong, 63-year-old walks at the corridor while her two grandchildren Amy, 9, and Steven, 13 sit in their 50-square-foot cubicle room in Hong Kong. Lee just like many poor residents have applied for public housing but face years of waiting. Nearly three-quarters of 500 low-income families questioned by Oxfam Hong Kong in a recent survey had been on the list for more than 4 years without being offered a flat. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

In this Jan. 25, 2013 photo, Lee Tat Fong, 63-year-old walks at the corridor while her two grandchildren Amy, 9, and Steven, 13 sit in their 50-square-foot cubicle room in Hong Kong. Lee just like many poor residents have applied for public housing but face years of waiting. Nearly three-quarters of 500 low-income families questioned by Oxfam Hong Kong in a recent survey had been on the list for more than 4 years without being offered a flat. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

Published Feb 7, 2013

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Hong Kong -

For many of the richest people in Hong Kong, one of Asia's wealthiest cities, home is a mansion on a hill. For some of the poorest, home is a metal cage.

A social welfare group estimates about 100 000 people in the former British colony live in what's known as inadequate housing. The category also includes apartments subdivided into tiny cubicles or filled with coffin-sized wood and metal sleeping compartments as well as rooftop shacks.

Skyrocketing housing prices have forced many poor to live in cramped, dirty and unsafe conditions. Their plight highlights one of the biggest headaches facing Hong Kong's unpopular Beijing-backed leader: growing public rage over the city's housing crisis.

The chief executive has promised to make it a priority to tackle the housing shortage. - Sapa-AP

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