The Refuge Union protest against ISS-HK was triggered by widespread dissatisfaction with food provisions, the only sustenance for refugees who are not allowed to work. Refugees continue to allege that the ISS-HK shops fail to deliver the entire food allowance scheduled by the government.

On 24 January 2014, the Social Welfare Department enhanced the Provision of Assistance for Asylum Seekers and Torture Claimants. With regard to food, SWD instructed ISS-HK, “To increase the average budget for food … to $1,200 per month … to instruct case workers to increase claimants’ food consumption with the additional budget …”

These instructions failed to reach case worker Ms. Helen Lee, who appears determined to starve into submission one of her clients. After being dragged into court for failing to lodge a homeless pregnant mother, Miss. Helen Lee is on a path of vengeance against Madam Lama and her family.

Refugees depend entirely on the services arranged by their case workers and Madam Lama has no recourse against an oppressor who determines her family’s assistance. It matters not what refugees selects on food sheets, because these are frequently reduced and replaced at the arbitrary whim of case workers.

Food assistance is arranged three times a month and refugees have to ration provisions until the next collection date, often more than ten days later. Every collection should be worth about $400, although refugees complain about receiving less than $700 for the entire month, as verified in this SCMP report.

Madam Lama is in a distressingly grim position. Ms. Helen Lee hasn’t taken a liking for her family and disregards the additional nutritional needs of the pregnancy. The food allocated is vastly insufficient and might be related to revenge for the embarrassing court incident.

For a 10 day period, Miss. Helen Lee approved this for Madam Lama:

2 catty cabbage
2 catty onion
2 catty tomatoes
1 chicken
100gr spices
475gr yogurt
6 small mango juice boxes
5Kg basmati rice
1lt oil

For a 10 day period, Miss. Helen Lee approved this for Lama’s husband:

2 catty cauliflower
2 catty choi sum
2 catty onion
2 catty tomatoes
475gr yogurt
6 small mango juice boxes
5Kg basmati rice

For a 10 day period, Miss. Helen Lee approved this for their son:

NOTHING!!!

Vision First is alarmed by the abusive treatment of a pregnant mother and family by a vindictive case worker who should be removed from this account for obvious reasons. At ISS-HK there is such a lack of oversight and due diligence that permits case workers to cause actual bodily harm to refugees.

Meanwhile, the Social Welfare Department failed to take action on repeated requests from Madam Lee and Vision First to change her case worker for reasons of conflict of interest. Thus Miss. Helen Lee remains in a position to take revenge against her nemesis to the detriment of the unborn baby.

Vision First urges the Social Welfare Department to investigate this complaint and take action.