Hong Kong pro-democracy demonstrations

[Romero]

Hong Kong police arrest 74 at pro-democracy demonstration



http://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.2027443!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_620/image.jpg">



Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators at Hong Kong government headquarters braced for a second night of confrontations with authorities Saturday after police arrested dozens during a chaotic protest against Beijing's refusal to allow genuine democratic reforms in the semiautonomous city.



The standoff follows a weeklong strike by thousands of students demanding China's Communist leaders allow Hong Kong fully democratic elections in 2017. University and college students who had spent the week boycotting classes were joined Friday by a smaller group of high school students.



Ingrid Sze, a 22-year-old student at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, said she joined the demonstrators after seeing the police take action.



"I didn't participate in the boycott all week. But I saw what was happening to the students live on TV and I thought what the police were doing was so outrageous I had to come out tonight to support the students and my friends," she said.



Organizers estimated that 50,000 people had flooded the streets around the government complex.



China, which took control of the former British colony in 1997, has promised that Hong Kong can have universal suffrage. But tensions over the Asian financial hub's political future boiled over after China's legislature last month ruled out letting the public nominate candidates, instead insisting they be screened by a committee of Beijing loyalists similar to the one that currently picks the city's leader.



Hong Kong's young people have been among the most vocal supporters of full democracy in recent years, fueled by anger over widening inequality. They also fear that Beijing's tightening grip is eroding the city's rule of law and guaranteed civil liberties unseen on the mainland such as freedom of speech.



"We really want real democracy, so we'll stay here and fight to get what we want," said Jo Tai, a 28-year-old teacher. "We don't want everyone else to decide our future; we want the right to decide our future for this generation and the next generation." She and others said they were prepared to be arrested.



http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/hong-kong-police-arrest-74-at-pro-democracy-demonstration-1.2027438">//http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/hong-kong-police-arrest-74-at-pro-democracy-demonstration-1.2027438

An authoritarian regime fears nothing more than the wishes of its own people.

[Anonymous]

^Really? Why is it Western media is not interested in reporting the pro-Beijing side? Hmm....

Pro-Beijing activists take to Hong Kong streets to protest against the pro-democracy Occupy Central movement

Organised by pro-government the Alliance for Peace and Democracy, the rally saw tens of thousands of people take to the streets to protest against the "threat" posed by those who want to paralyse the government by demanding democratic reforms and universal suffrage in the election of the chief executive in 2017.



In the aftermath of the march, reactions were mixed as the usual discussion over numbers got underway. Some put the number at about 80,000. Other sources said that at more than 100,000 took part.

http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Pro-Beijing-activists-take-to-Hong-Kong-streets-to-protest-against-the-pro-democracy-Occupy-Central-movement-31919.html">http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Pro-Beij ... 31919.html">http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Pro-Beijing-activists-take-to-Hong-Kong-streets-to-protest-against-the-pro-democracy-Occupy-Central-movement-31919.html

[Romero]

the rally saw tens of thousands of people take to the streets to protest against the "threat" posed by those who want to paralyse the government by demanding democratic reforms and universal suffrage

Democracy is a threat, eh? How sad you would be against democracy and freedom for others when you and your family came here to enjoy just that.

Other sources said that at more than 100,000 took part.

Sure! Beijing can claim whatever it wants. And bribe whoever it wants.

In separate reports on local television news channels, unidentified people were seen handing out cash to marchers — on a tour bus, on the street and in a park. One of the television stations reported a man telling marchers to keep quiet about the money they received.



Besides these tales of money changing hands, anecdotes circulated about clueless marchers bused in from the Chinese mainland, including a woman speaking in Mandarin and heavily accented Cantonese who told Hong Kong's Cable TV that she was in Victoria Park to "shop" before a man grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the camera, saying, "We don't accept interviews." The man was later identified as the chief executive of a publicly-traded Hong Kong manufacturer that has five factories on the mainland.



Besides the presence of marchers of mainland Chinese origin, many seen being unloaded into Victoria Park by the busload, another striking element was the ethnic diversity. Indonesian and Filipino domestic helpers were waving Chinese flags in the park, largely avoiding questions by reporters. (One told Oriental Daily that she been given 200 Hong Kong dollars to take part.) A group of Indian and Pakistani workers was on hand clad in the orange T-shirts of a Fujian Province association. One member of the group, who refused to give his name, said he "didn't know" what the march was for, while another said flippantly it was "for democracy," declining to answer further questions.



http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/anti-occupy-movement-feeds-suspicions-about-paid-marchers/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=tw-share&_r=1">//http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/anti-occupy-movement-feeds-suspicions-about-paid-marchers/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&smid=tw-share&_r=1

[Anonymous]

^Do you think the Occupy HK didn't have a little help from outside China? At least the people from the mainland are also Chinese not a pack of meddling Westerners.

Intense disputes over Hong Kong's constitutional reform continue among local people. But there is no question that certain foreign forces are also involved. They include foreign intelligence agents, instigators of "color revolutions" and financial speculators. They have colluded with subversive forces to hurt Hong Kong's economy and then profit from the chaos.



But the concern Hong Kong people feel about this was apparent when more than 1.5 million local residents signed the petition against "Occupy Central" recently. They clearly rejected this illegal campaign designed to paralyze Hong Kong's financial business district in the name of "true democracy" and "genuine universal suffrage". The unprecedented public rejection of "Occupy Central" proves Hongkongers are well aware of foreign powers' real intentions behind their support for the "occupiers". They are astute about these realities and used this as an opportunity to warn these troublemakers not to do anything which will hurt Hong Kong.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2014-08/28/content_18500309.htm">http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/20 ... 500309.htm">http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2014-08/28/content_18500309.htm

http://www.scmp.com/sites/default/files/styles/486x302/public/2014/09/25/a2dadd0d37a9ce5743025bda24032f20.jpg?itok=kvo2l2XX">

[Romero]

^Do you think the Occupy HK didn't have a little help from outside China? At least the people from the mainland are also Chinese not a pack of meddling Westerners.

The support and hope of Westerners. We have no way of forcing them to demonstrate. We want people in Hong Kong, China and all around the world to enjoy the same democracy and freedom that you have.

But the concern Hong Kong people feel about this was apparent when more than 1.5 million local residents signed the petition against "Occupy Central" recently.

"Sign here. Or else."

[cc]

I'd rather see them stay alive than have them give up life and / or liberty in a cause that cannot go anywhere

[Romero]

I cannot believe that you two of all people think citizens should just let big government tell them who they can vote for and what they can or can't do.



Since when is fighting for your rights "giving up liberty"? If a Canadian government decided who you could vote for and what you could protest against, you would just sit there quietly and let it happen?



History is full of examples of people fighting for their democracy and freedom. Many of them died, and we are all much better off compared to the alternative.



I'd personally take democracy, liberty and freedom over communism any day.

[Romero]

Hong Kong's 17-Year-Old 'Extremist' Student Leader Arrested



17-year-old Joshua Wong, a student protester and the leader of the "Scholarism" movement in Hong Kong, has reportedly been arrested by police during a student protest.



Wong was arrested along with four other demonstrators at Hong Kong government headquarters and has been accused of police assault, Yvonne Leung Lai-kwok, president of the University of Hong Kong's students' union, told South China Morning Post.



When Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997, it was agreed that the former colony would coexist with China under the principle of "one country, two systems," meaning that Hong Kong would have a high degree of autonomy and eventually achieve genuine democracy. Those promises have never materialized, much to the chagrin of Hong Kong residents.



Meanwhile, Wong has been one of the leaders of the student movement since 2011. He began his activism at 15-years-old after the central government attempted to introduce pro-Communist "National and Moral Education" into Hong Kong public schools. In response, Wong started the student protest movement Scholarism. In September 2012, the movement rallied 120,000 protesters and 13 hunger strikers to occupy Hong Kong government headquarters. Hong Kong's leaders withdrew the proposal.



http://www.businessinsider.com/joshua-wong-reportedly-arrested-in-hong-kong-2014-9">//http://www.businessinsider.com/joshua-wong-reportedly-arrested-in-hong-kong-2014-9

Here's a pic of Joshua Wong "assaulting police":



https://pbs.twimg.com/media/ByeOEQfCQAAMNpP.jpg">



If it wasn't for this one teenager, all of Hong Kong's children would be learning nothing but communist propaganda in school now. Goes to show what just one fifteen year-old can accomplish.



Would you two allow your children to be taught communist propaganda?

[cc]

.... yada yada yada



...



I'd personally take democracy, liberty and freedom over communism any day.

Whoopy Fucking Do ... saying what all of us could say ... like it's something you appear to want credit for saying. You get no credit for that



They cannot change China. They can only die in a cause that is DOA.



You wouldn't put your life on the line for such a thing ... From your position, it's just CHEAP TALK



You moonbeamers love to encourage OTHERS to speak up in hopeless causes so long as THEY suffer the certain consequences.



I fight fights that can be won. I encourage others who fight fights that can be won. To encourage others to fights that cannot be won is both cowardly and cruel.

[Anonymous]

.... yada yada yada



...



I'd personally take democracy, liberty and freedom over communism any day.

Whoopy Fucking Do ... saying what all of us could say ... like it's something you appear to want credit for saying. You get no credit for that



They cannot change China. They can only die in a cause that is DOA.



You wouldn't put your life on the line for such a thing ... From your position, it's just CHEAP TALK



You moonbeamers love to encourage OTHERS to speak up in hopeless causes so long as THEY suffer the certain consequences.



I fight fights that can be won. I encourage others who fight fights that can be won. To encourage others to fights that cannot be won is both cowardly and cruel.

Bullseye CC.

[Anonymous]

I cannot believe that you two of all people think citizens should just let big government tell them who they can vote for and what they can or can't do.



Since when is fighting for your rights "giving up liberty"? If a Canadian government decided who you could vote for and what you could protest against, you would just sit there quietly and let it happen?



History is full of examples of people fighting for their democracy and freedom. Many of them died, and we are all much better off compared to the alternative.



I'd personally take democracy, liberty and freedom over communism any day.

Actually, China is one of the freest places in the world to live....if you have money. It is also in many ways, more in tune with what the people are thinking and feeling than any other government I have ever seen. If China allowed copied Canada's style of government, the country would break-up and be in another warring states period.

BEIJING — China warned against foreign meddling in Hong Kong's politics Saturday ahead of an expected announcement to recommend highly contentious restrictions on the first direct elections for the leader of the Chinese-controlled financial hub.



An article in the ruling Communist Party's flagship newspaper, People's Daily, said that some in the former British colony were colluding with outside forces to interfere in Hong Kong's governance.



"Not only are they undermining Hong Kong's stability and development, but they're also attempting to turn Hong Kong into a bridgehead for subverting and infiltrating the Chinese mainland," said the article.



"This can absolutely not be permitted," it said, citing an unidentified official in the Foreign Ministry's department for Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan affairs.



The article said Hong Kong's affairs are entirely a Chinese internal matter. China will refute and make "solemn representations" in response to statements and actions by foreign forces and demand that they "cease meddling in Hong Kong's affairs and Chinese internal political matters by any means," it said.

http://www.pressherald.com/2014/08/31/china-warns-foreigners-against-interfering-in-hong-kong/">http://www.pressherald.com/2014/08/31/c ... hong-kong/">http://www.pressherald.com/2014/08/31/china-warns-foreigners-against-interfering-in-hong-kong/

Sorry Romero, but Hong Kong is part of China and it's affairs are strictly for Chinese to decide. Beijing(Hell, all of Chinese people) will never tolerate Hong Kong being used as a staging point to undermine the stability of our government.

[Anonymous]

Discontent, especially among the young, is driven by a widening wealth gap and many resent the influx of free-spending mainland Chinese visitors to the city who buy up everything from apartments to baby milk formula.

A survey released on September 21 said that one in five people were considering emigrating.



An opinion poll conducted this month by Chinese University said that 46% did not support the Occupy Central campaign, while 31% backed the civil disobedience movement.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/27/world/asia/hong-kong-five-things/">http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/27/world/asi ... ve-things/">http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/27/world/asia/hong-kong-five-things/

These Western-backed stooges do not even enjoy widespread support among the people of Hong Kong, let alone all of China. Even among supporters of Occupy Central, a lot of it is based on wealthy, "uncooth" mainlanders pricing everything out of reach for average people in HK.

[Romero]

I'd personally take democracy, liberty and freedom over communism any day.

Whoopy Fucking Do ... saying what all of us could say ... like it's something you appear to want credit for saying. You get no credit for that



They cannot change China. They can only die in a cause that is DOA.



You wouldn't put your life on the line for such a thing ... From your position, it's just CHEAP TALK



You moonbeamers love to encourage OTHERS to speak up in hopeless causes so long as THEY suffer the certain consequences.



I fight fights that can be won. I encourage others who fight fights that can be won. To encourage others to fights that cannot be won is both cowardly and cruel.

Geez, is it too much trouble for you to simply want people to have democracy and freedom? You seem to have no problem taking the time for not wanting them to have it.



Do you really believe communism is best for anyone?

[Romero]

Actually, China is one of the freest places in the world to live....if you have money.

Ha ha, that's really considering the wishes of its citizens... if they have enough money. In reality, China is quite well-known as being one of the least free countries. There's not much freedom under authoritarian rule. Which other "free" countries have an authoritarian regime? North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Somalia...



In China, all the money in the world can't buy the right to vote, freedom of the press, freedom of religion... yes, the Chinese people do want it. "In tune with the people" really means cracking down on anyone who dares to even think about what they really want.

Sorry Romero, but Hong Kong is part of China and it's affairs are strictly for Chinese to decide. Beijing(Hell, all of Chinese people) will never tolerate Hong Kong being used as a staging point to undermine the stability of our government.

What foreign meddling? No Western nation has the guts to rattle Beijing's chains. It's not like anyone in the West is forcing and paying Hongkongers to protest, like how the Chinese government is forcing and paying outsiders to protest the protest. The Western media is only reporting what's going on.



But that's just it, isn't it? For a communist authoritarian regime, simply reporting what's going on and citizens posting pics on Twitter is called "foreign meddling".



It's up to the Hongkongese to decide. China promised universal suffrage by decree and now it's going back on its word. Since when is tricking people and breaking promises proper? I can only imagine what else Beijing would like to take away.



Capitalism and freedom made Hong Kong an economic powerhouse back when the Great Leap Forward was starving millions.

[Anonymous]

Actually, China is one of the freest places in the world to live....if you have money.

Ha ha, that's really considering the wishes of its citizens... if they have enough money. In reality, China is quite well-known as being one of the least free countries. There's not much freedom under authoritarian rule. Which other "free" countries have an authoritarian regime? North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Somalia...



In China, all the money in the world can't buy the right to vote, freedom of the press, freedom of religion... yes, the Chinese people do want it. "In tune with the people" really means cracking down on anyone who dares to even think about what they really want.

Depends on how you define freedom I guess. Personally, I think giving idiots the right to vote is the dumbest thing a country can do. The candidate with the best haircut can win elections promising to waste my money on useless tards who should have never have been given the vote in the first place.



The Chinese government has a real vision unlike the West which only looks to the next election when the leader will have to get another expensive haircut and pander to the same idiots with my money all over again.



As for free press, the West abandoned real journalism long ago. Hell, your links to MJ, HP anf TYEE are proof of that. The West only reports on China what they want to report. It seldom represents the true nationalistic nature of everyday Chinese people as your links clearly show the biased nature of the West's "free press".