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'Hong Kong people can show Beijing that we will stay strong': protests may last for days
Sydney Morning Herald - September 30, 2014
After failing to disperse crowds despite firing 87 volleys of tear gas at nine different locations during a tense night of confrontations on Sunday, police mostly refrained from engaging directly with demonstrators on Monday as they converged on protest sites across the city. A stand-off involving a few hundred protesters outside police headquarters shaped up as the main potential flashpoint as the night wore on.
While organisers did not immediately provide estimates, crowds appeared considerably larger than previous nights, where turnouts reached 50,000 at their peak. Many new arrivals said they were motivated to join the protests after being angered by the police's deployment of tear gas on demonstrators.
While crowds ebbed on Sunday night, before swelling again the next day, larger numbers of protesters stayed out overnight Monday, anxious that police would move in the middle of the night to reclaim the roads.
In a tacit acknowledgement that the public resistance would likely stretch on for days, the Hong Kong government cancelled Wednesday's scheduled fireworks display to mark China's National Day. Schools in areas affected by protests would remain closed on Tuesday.
Chan Kin-man, a leader of Occupy Central, hinted the protest movement would escalate on Wednesday, and urged demonstrators to hold firm until then.
"We wish Hong Kong people can show Beijing that we will stay strong," Mr Chan said. "We wish people can keep on till at least October 1, and we might have to fight for a longer time."
Beijing's decision to deny calls within Hong Kong demanding fully democratic elections for the city's leader in 2017 are considered the major impetus for the demonstrations. Under China's proposed electoral framework, candidates will be vetted by what critics say is a Beijing-friendly nomination committee, effectively enabling it to screen who is able to run.
While there is an undercurrent of distrust toward the Communist Party and its growing influence in Hong Kong, much of the protesters' anger has been directed at under-fire chief executive Leung Chun-ying, with persistent calls for the leader to resign.
"In the short run, it is unrealistic to expect Beijing to withdraw their plan," Occupy's Mr Chan said. "It is more possible that they ask C.Y. Leung to step down. He is the major barrier for constitutional reform."
Asked whether China retained confidence in Mr Leung at a regular press briefing, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying responded, without using his name.
"We have every confidence and support for the government of Hong Kong," she said. And as Chinese authorities continued to restrict and censor reporting within the mainland of the pro-democracy rallies, Ms Hua lashed out at foreign support for protesters.
"We are opposed to any foreign and external interference in China's internal affairs by any country," Ms Hua said.
The White House on Monday indicated support for the protests. "We support the aspirations of the Hong Kong people," spokesman Josh Earnest said, adding that the legitimacy of Hong Kong's chief executive would be enhanced "if the election provides the people of Hong Kong a genuine choice of candidates."
British deputy prime minister Nick Clegg said in a tweet that he "sympathises a great deal with the brave pro-democracy demonstrators taking to the streets of Hong Kong".
Demonstrations held in solidarity occurred in cities worldwide, including Canberra, Sydney, New York, London and Tokyo.
At the main protest site outside Hong Kong's government headquarters in Admiralty, where predominantly younger university and high school students congregated, the lighter police presence helped contribute to a more relaxed, and at times festive atmosphere, for much of Monday night.
While face masks and cling wrap were in less demand, volunteers handed out free water, snacks and towels to protesters. Others helped collect rubbish, while dutifully sorting out recyclables, while there were even designated smoking areas and improvised toilets. A large cardboard cutout of Leung Chun-ying daubed with vampire fangs was paraded by protesters, eliciting pantomime boos.
"It might feel like a carnival, but deep down there is a lot of anger," Reverend Ralph Lee, the President of the Methodist Church in Hong Kong said. "Freedoms in Hong Kong have regressed more and more."
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