Winners of Miss Pinoyshot Princess 2014. Photo by Ju-chen Chen
2014年比諾依攝小姐選美皇后. 攝影: 陳如珍.
Currently, there are over 340,000 foreign domestic workers (FDWs) in Hong Kong. Most of them are women and from mainly the Philippines and Indonesia. Although many of them have lived and worked in Hong Kong for years, they are not eligible for Hong Kong citizenship due to Hong Kong’s immigration policies.
目前，在香港工作的外籍家務傭工總人數已經超過340,000人。當中絕大部分為來自菲律賓或印尼的女性。很多外傭雖然已在香港生活和工作多年，受限於香港的移民法規，他們卻無法落地生根，成為香港的永久居民。
Center member and anthropologist Dr. Ju-chen Chen has been researching on Filipino community in Hong Kong with a focus on pageants since 2011. She spent many Sundays with the organizers and contestants. “Domestic workers are actually very busy on Sundays – their only day off,” Dr. Chen said. “For beauty pageant participants, they have to create or order their costumes, arrange for make-up services, join photo-shooting sessions, and also continue to rehearse for the shows.” When Dr. Chen asked them why they spent so much time and money for these events, “I have talent and confidence. I want to show others that they can do it too,” they answered. Through beauty contests, these FDWs create a community for themselves and show themselves as well as the society that they are valuable, not merely dispensable temporary labor force.
本中心成員人類學家陳如珍博士從2011年起研究香港的菲律賓外傭群體。其中，她又特別關注菲傭群體所舉辦的選美活動。在週日時，她往往與比賽的組織者和選美佳麗們一起東奔西跑完成各項準備工作。陳博士說：「大家常說星期日是外傭的休息日。但是外傭們在星期天其實是非常忙碌的。對於選美比賽的參與者而言，她們要自行籌備服裝、安排髮型和化妝的服務、參加定裝照的拍攝，還要一再的參與走台步的訓練和選美表演的預演。 」當被問及為什麼要花錢花時間參加這些活動時，她們的答案是：「我有才華和自信。我想要讓別人知道我們一樣，都是有才華又美麗的人」。通過選美比賽，這些菲律賓外傭建立起自己的社群，同時努力讓自己和所處的社會明白她們的價值。希望主流社會不要再視她們為可有可無的短期勞工。
Dr. Chen’s research shows that FDWs, just like everyone else, have multiple identities, such as mothers, event organizers or beauty queens. We should see them as workers with personal life and not “just maids.”
陳博士的研究顯示出外傭與所有人一樣，有著多重的身份。她們是母親、活動組織者，也是選美皇后。我們應該視他們為有著各自不同個人生活的工人，而不只是幫傭。