政壇：睇社論學英文：整治水貨亂象 紓緩中港矛盾

源於中港兩地的物價差異，近年愈來愈多水貨客在香港購買貨物，以「螞蟻搬家」形式運往內地轉售圖利。尤其內地開放個人遊後，部分內地人加入，既搶了本地水貨客的生意，亦加劇社會問題，激化中港矛盾。以重災區上水為例，儼然已淪為「水貨集散地」，大量水貨客在火車站附近聚集及活動，以致出現霸佔街道、阻塞交通、加重出入境負荷、亂拋垃圾、抬高物價等亂象，引起區內居民極大不滿。

特首梁振英日前親身前往北區視察，承認水貨活動對新界居民的正常生活和社會秩序造成影響，已向中央政府反映情況，要求內地當局協助處理問題。港府更召開跨部門會議，宣布採取六項措施，包括警方打擊水貨客阻街行為、入境處加強核實入境人士身份、海關增加人手搜集情報等，務求令水貨活動收斂。然而，要做到港深兩地邊境「長治久安」，單靠這些措施恐怕未必足夠。

目前最令人憂慮的是，面對水貨亂象，港人的反抗情緒日益高漲，甚至出現非理性的「排內」行為。日前的「光復上水站」行動，便有示威者高呼「還我家園、中國人滾回中國」的激烈口號，令人擔心中港矛盾進一步惡化。

Grey goods trading must be handled properly in order to soften Mainland-Hong Kong antagonism

In recent years, due to the price gap of goods between the Mainland and Hong Kong, more and more grey import traders buy goods in Hong Kong and trickle them to the Mainland for sale so as to make a profit. In particular, after the launch of the Individual Visit Scheme, some Mainlanders joined in the trade and have snatched the business away from local parallel traders, intensifying social problems and conflicts between the two places. Take Sheung Shui, a seriously affected district, as an example: it has already been reduced to a distribution centre for grey goods. Numerous grey import traders gathering around the railway station encroach on pavements and roads, block traffic, add pressure to immigration control points, dump rubbish everywhere and force up commodity prices, arousing the resentment of local residents.

The Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying visited the North District in person a few days ago and admitted that the trading of parallel goods had impacted on New Territories residents' normal life and social order. He has already reflected the situation to the Central Government and has asked the relevant Mainland authorities to help tackle the problem. After an inter-departmental meeting on the issue, the Hong Kong Government announced six measures to clamp down on the practice; these include: the police will take enforcement action against the parallel traders that cause obstructions, the Immigration Department will more stringently check the identity of people entering the territory and the Customs and Excise Department will enhance manpower to collect more intelligence in order to dampen the trade. However, if the Hong Kong-Shenzhen boundary is to achieve lasting stability, mere reliance on such measures may not be enough.

The gravest concern now is Hong Kong people's escalating animosity amidst the grey goods turmoil. Some people even have an irrational opposition to everything Mainland. In the “recovering Sheung Shui station” movement several days ago, certain protesters even chanted radical slogans such as “Return my home to me; you Chinese scram back to China!”. It is indeed worrisome that the Mainland-Hong Kong antagonism may further worsen.

重要生字

grey goods, parallel goods 水貨

encroach on roads 霸佔街道

obstruction 阻街