This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/hong-kong-protest-sees-biggest-crowds-yet-on-holiday-celebrating-communist-party/2014/10/01/4b7b795e-494b-11e4-891d-713f052086a0_story.html?wprss=rss_world

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Hong Kong protest sees biggest crowds yet on holiday celebrating communist party Hong Kong protest draws biggest crowds yet on holiday celebrating Communist Party
(about 3 hours later)
HONG KONG — On a holiday meant to celebrate the birth of China’s Communist Republic, Hong Kong residents instead swarmed the streets to protest Beijing’s iron grip over their government and demand democratic reforms. HONG KONG — On a holiday meant to celebrate the birth of China’s communist republic, Hong Kong residents instead swarmed the streets Wednesday to protest Beijing’s iron grip over their government and demand democratic reforms.
The massive crowds appeared to be the biggest yet amid a week of demonstrations that have brought large parts of the city to a standstill.The massive crowds appeared to be the biggest yet amid a week of demonstrations that have brought large parts of the city to a standstill.
Throughout Hong Kong, it was a day of jarring images and symbolism as authorities tried to carry on with National Day celebrations only to have protesters respond with acts of emotional though peaceful defiance.Throughout Hong Kong, it was a day of jarring images and symbolism as authorities tried to carry on with National Day celebrations only to have protesters respond with acts of emotional though peaceful defiance.
Hong Kong’s top official Leung Chun-ying began the morning sharing a champagne toast with other Chinese officials while demonstrators nearby booed and jeered. At the ceremony as organizers played the Chinese national anthem, a group of student protesters turned their backs on a Chinese flag being raised and crossed their hands in silent protest. Hong Kong’s top official, Leung Chun-ying, began the morning sharing a champagne toast with other Chinese officials while demonstrators nearby booed and jeered. Then, as China’s national anthem played, a group of student protesters turned their backs on a Chinese flag being raised and crossed their hands in silent protest.
For many in Hong Kong — who have remained ambivalent about the demonstrations — the day in some ways boiled down months and even years of debate about their government, Chinese rule, and the future of Hong Kong into this simple choice: to join the protest or not. A ceremony planned later to honor Hong Kong war heroes appeared to be canceled. And an afternoon event at Victoria Park drew sparse attendance, even as massive crowds began converging near government headquarters, the heart of protests in recent days.
Four days into protests that have brought large parts of the city to a standstill, both sides appeared to be carefully plotting their next move. Some pro-democracy leaders demanded a meeting with Hong Kong’s chief executive and threatened new acts of civil disobedience if the demand is not met. For many who have remained ambivalent about the demonstrations, the day was in many ways the culmination of months — and even years — of debate about their government, Chinese rule and the future of Hong Kong, a former British colony turned over to China in 1997. It all boiled down to this simple choice: to join in protest or not.
The main actors in Wednesday’s drama were the protesters and authorities of Hong Kong, but the mainland Chinese leadership will be following events closely. Huge public protest is an anathema to Beijing, and what happens in Hong Kong over the next day or two could shape the Chinese response. It was a decision that weighed heavily on some.
Both sides are trying hard to woo the middle because Hong Kong is home to a substantial silent majority — residents who do not wish to engage or pick sides in Hong Kong’s fight with Beijing and are largely focused on their jobs, businesses and other more immediate concerns. One medical student on the streets said he had spent every night since the protests began Sunday arguing with his father, who called the student-led protests not just illegal but pointless.
“Most people in Hong Kong are not political animals, and most people also realize Beijing will not change its mind” in tightening its grip over Hong Kong’s politics and government,” said Willy Lam, an analyst at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. “That’s what makes these protests so surprising and spontaneous.” “He told me, ‘This changes nothing.’ He said, ‘These people occupying the streets are breaking the law.’ And I agree with him,” the student said of his decision to finally join the protests. “But I also feel more proud to be from Hong Kong than I’ve ever felt before.”
But despite the numbers, Beijing has traditionally been loath to give in to such public pressure. President Xi Jinping has spent considerable political capital consolidating his power and fostered some resentment among party officials by cracking down on corruption. Giving in to democratic demands in Hong Kong could make him look vulnerable, some experts say. The student, who asked to be identified only as Lau for fear of embarrassing his father, said: “Maybe nothing will change after all this, but at least we can say we stood up for ourselves.”
And as Xi’s subordinate in Hong Kong, Leung has limited options to defuse the situation. In his statement Tuesday, Leung did not lay out any plan for quelling the protests and refused to say whether his officials would meet with demonstrators. Another student, Timothy Huk, 23, said his parents also urged him to stay away.
Beijing, Leung argued, will not bend. “The Chinese government won’t give in to threats asserted through illegal activity,” he said Tuesday. “There is a generational difference for many families in how we think about this,” he said. “They lived through the era of June 4 [the Tiananmen Square crackdown]. We did not. They worry about what happens if we do this. We worry about what happens if we don’t.”
As a result, he may not be able to do anything to appease protesters and can only wait for their momentum to run out. Other parents not only supported the protests but brought their school-age children with them.
“That’s why,” said Michael Davis, a law professor at the University of Hong Kong, “the end game right now is winning hearts and minds of Hong Kong people. Both sides need the public on their side to win.” “I wanted my son to see for himself, this is what democracy looks like,” said Carman Mok, 46, his sixth-grade son in tow.
With Wednesday beginning a two-day holiday, many Hong Kong residents were freed by their jobs and family schedules to join the demonstrations. But others throughout the city remain opposed to the protests, including some who agree with its aims.
All week long, Shan Cheung, 37, said she has watched the demonstrations unfold from her job in a nearby building. “It’s made me so sad. The goal is good, but this is not the way to achieve it,” she said.
“The protesters keep demanding that [Hong Kong Chief Executive] C.Y. Leung step down. Who is China going to send to replace him? Just another puppet of Beijing,” she said.
“The reality is that Hong Kong belongs to China,” she went on. “If you want to change the system, do it from the inside. Get into government. Do it step by step. Don’t try to do it by sleeping in the streets and singing songs.”
As the demonstrations drag on, Shan said she fears all sides are facing a lose-lose scenario. Hong Kong’s government is losing credibility. Beijing is facing increasing pressure to crack down on the demonstrations. And in the end, she believes, protesters will not get the reform they want.
With a foot in both camps of Hong Kong’s political divide, former chief secretary Anson Chan is part of Hong Kong’s older generation, but he has joined activists in lobbying for electoral reform.
For months, she has tried to push both sides toward compromise.
“I don’t have the answers. But to break this impasse the government needs to make the first move,” she said in a phone interview.
Many — including her — feel betrayed by Hong Kong’s leaders and increasingly angry at Beijing.
“If I knew what Hong Kong would be like today,” she said Wednesday, as hundreds of thousands took to the streets in a defiant plea for democracy, “I would not have been so enthusiastic 17 years ago in helping with the handover.”
“Today may be China’s National Day,” she said, “but for a lot of Hong Kong people, there’s very little for us to celebrate.”
Ishaan Tharoor in Hong Kong and Xu Jing in Beijing contributed to this report.