Foreign residents in HK join fight against pandemic

Foreign residents in Hong Kong who believe that lending a hand to people in need is more important than personal health concerns are joining the city's legion of volunteers in combating the pandemic and doing their bit to help the city overcome its difficulties.

HandsOn Hong Kong, a local nongovernmental organization, said it witnessed a 300 percent increase in the number of young participants in voluntary work compared with the pre-pandemic figure.

These brave fighters against the invisible enemy said Hong Kong will recover soon with combined efforts from people of all walks of life.

Sarah－who wished to withhold her full name due to privacy concerns, a Jewish Hong Kong resident, had been serving as a general physician until October, when she switched to being a full-time volunteer helping the public, and especially the Jewish community in Hong Kong, grapple with the fifth wave of the coronavirus.

"In general practice, 40 percent of what general practitioners see in their patients has something to do with psychological or mental causes," she said, adding that the pandemic has elevated underlying mental issues to an alarming level.

Apart from holding seminars on vaccines with an aim to "address people's skepticism about inoculation", Sarah has invested in efforts to navigate the public, and especially the Jewish community, through bumpy mental and emotional struggles during the pandemic.

"I've seen people very seriously impacted by the pandemic, emotionally," Sarah said, adding that isolation is just one of the triggers, and that people's emotional breakdowns can be put down to the sense of "uncertainty" in the city.

While Sarah's contribution to Hong Kong's worst ever outbreak is largely behind the scenes, she said she's content to contribute backstage. "This too shall pass," she added.

Sanday Chongo Kabange, a business-risk manager from Zambia, said, "We as individuals must contribute our part and work together as a whole to combat the pandemic, otherwise we will be confined at home with surging cases for the rest of the year."

Out of love for Hong Kong and faith in creating an equal society, Kabange contributes his leisure time every night from Monday through Friday seeking out homeless people on Hong Kong Island and providing help.

Kabange said one of the challenges of being a volunteer faced with a formidable daily caseload is the worry of becoming infected.

"The status of the person that I aid, whether he or she is infected or vaccinated, is unknown," said Kabange, who has had three shots and uses self-test kits every day in order to continue his voluntary work.

"I take precautions myself so I can then offer protection to others. It is my duty to help somebody.

"I regard Hong Kong as my second hometown, and I want to give back to society," he said. "I decided to be one of the many people that help to make Hong Kong an equal and better place."