Its up to the government now. This is the first step, but the pressure has to continue, commented Alex Chow, the leader of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, on the status of the Hong Kong Protests. Having seen that direct action to attempt to remove the protesters only resulted in the arrival of new crowds to bolster the students, Beijings approach now seems to be to simply wait. And while the protesters have not won their primary demands - the resignation of Hong Kongs current chief executive Leung Chun-ying and the direct nomination of candidates by the people for the election of the next chief executive - the city government has agreed to negotiate with student leaders in a public forum. What can they get out of these negotiations? Its hard to say but it does seem clear that the free elections they desire will not be on the table. On the one hand, it can be argued that with business starting to return to normal, the protesters have won nothing tangible. But looked at in another light, they have done something truly remarkable. After two weeks of protest that survived attempts by both the police and thugs to remove them, they have forced the government to have a public discussion with them - an implicit recognition that they do have a say in their own governance - something that, despite its worldwide fame, Tiananmen Square was unable to achieve. And the battle is not even over. With Chinas image in neighboring countries tarnished compared to just two weeks ago, the protesters have stated that they may resume protests if they are unhappy with the negotiations. And, for now, a reduced number of protesters still hold the field of battle.
Posted on: Wed, 08 Oct 2014 00:17:38 +0000
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