Address... Hong Kong park: How city's homeless are able to register to vote citing playgrounds and public spaces as home

Like many other Hongkongers, Ah Sun is a registered voter – only the address he uses  is a playground in Sham Shui Po, where he has lived for nine years.

The 58-year-old is one of the three voters who cited public space in Sham Shui Po – Shun Ning Road Playground, Tung Chau Street Park and Lei Cheng Uk Playground – as their residential addresses, according to a check of the electoral roll by the South China Morning Post ahead of November’s district council elections.

Two of the voters could not be found  at their listed residences on Monday evening, but Ah Sun was at the playground. He asked not to be referred to by his full name, or have the playground where he lives identified. “Homeless people should enjoy the same voting rights as others as we are also Hongkongers,” he said.   

Ah Sun first used the playground as his residential address when he registered to vote in 2013, encouraged by social workers. Without any email address, he has not received anything from the Registration and Electoral Office since he signed on.

He has been using the office of the Society for Community Organisation   as his correspondence address when dealing with other applications or banking.

“Using this address is closer to reality. After all, I am in fact living here,” he said of the playground.

Ah Sun’s situation highlights a dilemma: how to balance homeless people’s right to vote while not opening a loophole for exploitation in voter registration.