代貼︰我們在彌敦道上耕種 @ Very MK [ Nathan Road Farming by Very MK]

(English see below)
二零一四年十月十六日

爭取民主的人士、學生和街坊佔領旺角已有十八日。在這十八日，分隔彌敦道南北行線的觀賞植物擔當了人們橫過馬路的扶手，造成25棵植物被損害，15棵植物被連根拔起，剩下沒了植物、只有泥土的花槽。

隨著一些活動如打邊爐、打麻雀和打兵乓因被禁止而引起爭吵，當Very MK考慮將城市農耕的活動（一些表現上和佔領運動無關的舉動）帶進佔領區時，亦謹慎地注意自己的舉動會不會將佔領運動「嘉年華化」 。

本來因馬路封閉，沿著彌敦道的植物終於可呼吸到新鮮空氣。可是，馬路封閉卻同時阻礙了承辦商進入道路為植物澆水。有見及此，兩日前我們幾個志同道合的朋友便在午夜推著大水桶，為受佔領運動影響的植物澆水。我們初次的行動是謹慎低調、微不足道卻頗為重要的。之後，Very MK便承擔了每天為植物澆水的工作。我們希望現存的植物能繼續生存，甚至比本來長的更好。

今天下午，為了引起大眾對香港租金及農業問題的關注，一位叫Emily Wong 的城市農夫在金鐘佔領區栽種蕃茄。我們的第二步行動適時又巧合地與這個同是關注城市農耕的行動互相呼應。

打從Very MK 由2014年4月成立開始 ，Very MK就和市區重建局（市建局）就著土地（天台）使用的問題進行交戰。在我們眼中，市建局是一間追求營利的公司，它與政府和地產發展商合作，以一些充滿問題卻能獲取龐大利益的方向進行市區重建。受市建局影響而被逼搬遷的市民，雖然通常得到補償，卻要以社區鄰里關係作為代價。市建局的城市發展模式是侵害社區鄰里關係的罪魁禍首。

在灣仔利東街和旺角朗豪坊的重建計劃，我們見到所謂市區重建，只是透過清拆唐樓及破壞傳統社區，來為商業區的發展及興建地標性的大型購物中心開路。這種發展模式只是簡單地以仕紳及單調的環境取代本土特色建築、街頭文化及傳統手藝。原本相對開放及可供日常活動使用的天台，在重建後因保守的管理規條，而淪為在火災發生時的逃生空間。但一個開放且可供日常活動使用的天台是促進鄰里關係的地方，不少活動如晾衫、種花、做運動、燒野食、甚至打邊爐都可以在一個開放的天台發生。Very MK關切的是這些天台空間的損失及這些損失如何影響社區的鄰里關係。

Very MK一直在屬於市建局的棄置天台上耕種。這樣做是為了活化天台，促進可持續發展的城市、並製造一個討論香港農業問題的平台，以激發更多有關城市發展的討論。我們清楚知道，隨著市建局對圍繞VeryMK天台農場一帶的單位及地鋪進行收購，VeryMK天台農場總有一天會被逼結束，向社區公開我們天台的存在及種植活動，只能夠延長我們的信念。我們注定鬥不過龐大的發展商，但這種宿命卻把我們連繫到現時的佔領活動。

大專生佔領運動為香港民主發展打開了一條道路。改革選擇制度、實現普選及真正的民主社會能讓我們有力量重新定義城市的發展方向。追求民主、自決城市的未來發展讓金鐘、銅鑼灣及旺角的佔領區連成一線。

與其他佔領區比較，一直有描述指旺角的佔領人士，比較有生命力和關注民生。 進入旺角佔領區，你會見到各種人士，不論中年還是老年，男士還是女士，拿著麥克風，透過擴音器，振振有詞地表達他們的意見。瘋狂上升的租金及不受控制的地價經常是他們的議題，這些議題啟發了不少自發活動和創意海報，去支持受佔領活動影響而顧客減少，但租金卻不斷上升的本土小店及食肆。

因為市建局一直以來「不民主」、「不理會市民真正訴求」的城市發展模式 、官商勾結 、充滿問題的新界東北發展及彌敦道的路邊植物受到嚴重傷害，Very MK不得不作出一些行動 – 不是要把佔領運動變成嘉年華會，而是要讓社會大眾知道我們需要真正的民主，讓我們可以真正的選擇如何發展自己的城市。

在未來的日子，Very MK會繼續在午夜為路邊的植物澆水，並引入城市種植的方法去活化路邊的花槽（今晚，我們將會帶來薯仔及芥菜的種子）。

歡迎每位有興趣了解我們我人士，來到彌敦道看看我們的最新情況，如果你想參與我們的活動，即管告訴我們。木瓜樹、香草及太陽花等等，將會陸續登場。

Occupy Mong Kok
Nathan Road Farming by Very MK
Written 16th October 2014

Students, pro-democracy supporters and neighbours have occupied Nathan Road for 18 days. During these 18 days, the small ornamental trees that line the middle of the once-traffic-congested Nathan Road have been functioning as assistants to help people to climb up the concrete blocks. At present, 25 trees have been damaged and 15 have been uprooted, leaving a vacate plot of soil.

Following the arguable omission of activities such as hot pot, mahjong and ping pong, Very MK have been cautious in the “carnivalization” of the movement by introducing urban agriculture, a seemingly unrelated activity, to the Occupy Mong Kok space.

With the road closed and carbon emission-free, the trees are finally able to breathe effectively. However the road closures prevent the government landscape contractors from accessing the trees and watering them. Our first intervention was discreet, minimal but significant. Two days ago, a few of us decided to push a bucket full of water and hand water all the trees within the Occupy Mong Kok area at midnight. Very MK has since taken on this daily responsibility and hope that the existing trees will look healthier than ever before.

Our second intervention is coincidently well timed, in that it echoes another urban agriculture intervention that happened this afternoon in Admiralty. An urban farmer named Emily Wong has started growing tomato plants at the Occupy Central (Admiralty) location to highlight the rental and farming issues in Hong Kong.

Since the beginning of Very MK in April 2014 , we have confronted land (rooftop) issues with the Urban Renewal Authority (URA), a Hong Kong profit-making company that works on urban redevelopment projects with the government and property developers in questionable and lucrative ways. People who are affected by the URA are compensated and displaced, often in the erosion of neighbourhood communities.

In URA projects such as Lee Tung Street (Wanchai) and Langham Place (Mong Kok) we have seen the demolition of tradition tong lau buildings making way for commercial spaces and a monumental shopping mall, respectively. Both examples supersede local architecture, street culture and traditional craftsmen with gentrified and sterile environments. Both examples see informal and accessible rooftops replaced with modern rooftops under conservative management, relegated to being fire evacuation sites. Informal rooftops encourage daily activities such as laundry, exercise, gardening, barbeques and even hot pot. Very MK is concerned about the loss of these rooftops and how this affects neighbourhood communities.

Very MK continues to farm on the rooftop of an idle apartment purchased by the URA. We do this to revitalise the rooftop, encourage a more sustainable city, create a platform to discuss larger farming issues in Hong Kong and stimulate debates on urban development. As the URA continues to collect apartments and ground floor shops around our rooftop farm, we understand that we are only simply prolonging the process by opening up our rooftop and farming activities to the community. The developers’ forks outweigh our handheld tools and it may seem defeatist to admit the inevitable future; but this brings us back to the Occupy movement.

The Class Boycott and Occupy movement have opened up paths to a more democratic future for Hong Kong. Electoral reforms, universal suffrage and genuine democracy, will redefine how our city develops. This focus aligns all Occupy sites together, Admiralty, Causeway Bay and Mong Kok.

Occupy Mong Kok, has been described to have a more organic and neighbourhood demographic compared to the other two remaining Occupy sites. Visiting Occupy Mong Kok, you will see middle-aged and elderly men and women picking up the microphone and voicing their opinions eloquently on the loud speaker. The astronomical rent increases and uncontrollable land value are frequent topics at Occupy Mong Kok, and has inspired many handwritten posters and initiatives to support local shops, cafes and restaurants that are affected by a fall in customers coupled with relentlessly increasing rental contracts.

Following the questionable redevelopment of farmland in the North East North Territories highlighted this year, the continuous “undemocratic” approach to urban redevelopment by the URA, alleged government and developer collusion , and the mistreatment of Nathan Road’s roadside trees, it is inevitable that Very MK intervenes – not with carnival intentions, but with aims to directly communicate to the public that we need genuine democracy to have real choices on how we develop our city.

Very MK will continue to water the roadside trees daily at midnight and to revitalise the vacant plots through urban farming interventions (today and tonight, we brought in sweet potatoes and planted Chinese kale seeds).

Please walk down Nathan Road to see our updates and let us know if you would like to contribute. Papaya trees, edible herbs and sunflowers coming soon.

Footnote:

1 CHEN, Holok, Hotpot, Gods, and "Leftist Pricks": Political Tensions in the Mong Kok Occupation, 15th October 2015, http://libcom.org/blog/mk-hotpot-tensions

2 Staff reporters, Occupy Central Live, 16th October 2014, South China Morning Post, http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1617448/live-night-anger-scuf...

3 Very MK, Very MK, 6th September 2014, https://medium.com/@studio_leung/very-mk-49163e162cc9

4 URA website, Lee Tung Street / McGregor Street Project, 26th September 2009, http://www.ura.org.hk/en/projects/redevelopment/wan-chai/lee-tung-street...

5 URA website, Argyle Street/Shanghai Street Project (Langham Place), 10th September 2011, http://www.ura.org.hk/en/projects/redevelopment/yau-tsim-mong/argyle-str...

6 CHAN, Bernice, Revival of Hong Kong’s tong lau buildings hits many hurdles, 13th August 2013, http://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/1296139/bring-past

7 KWOK, Kristine, Never retreat, a Mong Kok state of mind, 12th Octiober 2014, South China Morning Post, http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1614747/never-retreat-mong-ko...

8 North District Random, Northeast Villagers Call for Help to Defend their Homeland, 11th February 2014, http://ndrandom.wordpress.com/2014/02/11/northeast-villagers-call-for-he...

9 HUANG, Shu-Mei, A Sustainable City renewed by “People”-Centered Approach?
Resistance and Identity in Lee Tung Street Renewal Project in Hong Kong, 4th December 2009, p.7, http://www.iar.ubc.ca/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=teMnbC2Pxd8%3D&tabid=101

10 法團出絕招玩謝市建局, 21st July 2014, http://the-sun.on.cc/cnt/news/20140721/00407_061.html