Protests In Hong Kong Unlikely To Wane As Sides Yet To Reach Consensus

Anti-government mass demonstrations in Hong Kong are continuing for the 12th week in a row and are expected to proceed as the opposition feels that its demands remain unmet by the authorities of China's special administrative region

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd August, 2019) Anti-government mass demonstrations in Hong Kong are continuing for the 12th week in a row and are expected to proceed as the opposition feels that its demands remain unmet by the authorities of China's special administrative region.

The protests began more than two months ago after the local legislature opened debates on a bill that would have allowed extradition to mainland China. The city's chief executive, Carrie Lam, has since declared the bill "dead." The protesters are demanding that it must be withdrawn completely. Locals also want the city authorities to implement universal suffrage and retract criminal charges against the protesters. Beijing has condemned radical and illegal demonstrations and has stressed the need to counter vandalism by some protesters. It has also urged everyone to respect the law and has condemned what it called foreign meddling in support of protesters.

On August 31, a new rally will take place in Hong Kong, the Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), one of the organizers of the protests, told Sputnik. The organizers noted that they specifically selected August 31 as on this day, five years ago, Beijing rejected Hong Kong's proposal to introduce universal suffrage.

The rising tensions between the opposition and the authorities of one of the most prominent business and financial hubs in the world are sparked by failed expectations on both sides, Chunjuan Nancy Wei, the chair of East Asian and Pacific Rim Studies, School of Public and International Affairs at University of Bridgeport, told Sputnik.

"Given how radicalized the youths are, I don't foresee that the beginning of school will stop them from protesting. As the movement develops to now, it is no longer about the extradition bill. I am pessimistic of the future of Hong Kong as an international financial hub because of the worsening geopolitical and geo-economic confrontations. Hong Kong's 'one country, two systems' framework was set up during the Cold War, as part of the reconciliation between China and the West. Then the West had hopes that Hong Kong could help bring Mainland China to open up its political system and Beijing wanted to gradually bring Hong Kong closer to China. Now both sides see their hopes lost. In addition, the life of average Hong Kongers has deteriorated in many aspects. I don't anticipate they will stop protesting," Wei noted.

At the same time, the opposition believes that a key to de-escalation in Hong Kong would still be the introduction of universal suffrage.

"From July 1, when the protesters stormed into legislature's building, they have slightly changed their demands from resignation of Carrie Lam into 'we want universal suffrage.' Because that is the ultimate goal. With universal suffrage, we can choose our chief executive and then everything will change. And speaking of universal suffrage, it is not only chief executive, it is also the legislature. Because currently we have half of the legislature elected by the people, and the other half is called functional Constituencies, where professional, business group choose their representatives into the legislature. And with universal suffrage, we can choose our legislature and our government and that will solve the problem," Wong Yik-mo, the CHRF vice convener, told Sputnik.

Beijing has ruled out yielding to universal suffrage demands, stressing that its 2014 decision to have a nomination committee handle local elections resolved the matter once and for all.

It has also appealed to the "silent majority" of Hongkongers who are, in fact, satisfied with the current system.

The treatment of protesters by the city's law enforcement has also fueled the uprising in Hong Kong, according to the opposition.

"It is actually the police brutality, how the treated peaceful protesters, for example, they used rubber bullets, they used head shots, even now. They used tear gas in residential areas, where elderly live and where people bring their babies down to the street for a walk. And they even used tear gas indoors, inside of metro stations. Tear gas is strictly used for outdoors only, because for indoor environment it would become a death chamber," Wong noted.

The CHRF went on to call for an independent probe into the treatment of peaceful protesters at the rallies.

COULD TRUMP HELP IN RESOLVING CRISIS?

US President Donald Trump in a Twitter post has offered China's President Xi Jinping to meet in order to settle the Hong Kong crisis. In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has called on the US side to refrain from interfering in China's internal affairs. Beijing has also accused the United States of meddling in Hong Kong's affairs as media reports indicated that the US diplomats in the special administrative region had met with the representatives of the opposition.

As for whether the Trump-Xi summit could help in easing tension in Hong Kong, the CHRF vice-convener said that it would depend on the US president's ability "to convince" his Chinese counterpart.

On the other hand, the professor at the University of Bridgeport is skeptical that a Trump-Xi summit would even take place.

"Such a meeting between Trump and Xi over Hong Kong is unlikely to occur. Although President Trump may enjoy it, President Xi would not allow it to happen for fear of domestic backlash. China has accused of the U.S. for stoking discontent in Hong Kong," Wei noted.

Trump has also claimed that the US intelligence data indicated China was deploying military forces on its border with Hong Kong, but the expert believes that Beijing is unlikely to use the military option.

"Although Beijing has publicized its deployment of armed police forces at the border, it is unlikely to adopt a Tienanmen-style crackdown in Hong Kong because the latter is a sensitive spot from both geo-political and geo-economic perspectives. In addition, Beijing has non-military options to put pressure on the island. Hong Kong's food, water, and electricity all depend on Mainland China. HK's economy, which heavily relies on trade and finance, relies on its stability. If the protests drive out businesses, HK will lose its bargaining chips. Beijing has also prepared Shenzhen to replace it," Wei added.

Hong Kong became a part of China in 1997 after being a British colony for some 150 years. On August 31, 2014, the China's Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC) ruled that a candidate for the position of Hong Kong chief executive has to be nominated by the nominating committee and also has to get an approval from the Chinese State Council. According to the decision, such a candidate "shall be a person who loves the country [China] and loves Hong Kong." The decision led to large-scale protests in Hong Kong the same year, also known as "the Umbrella Movement."