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| Beijing Warns of ‘Chaos’ if Hong Kong Protests Persist | Beijing Warns of ‘Chaos’ if Hong Kong Protests Persist |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| HONG KONG — The Chinese Communist Party on Thursday condemned the street protests that have engulfed parts of Hong Kong and gave its firm endorsement to the city’s beleaguered leader. In a front-page commentary, People’s Daily, the main newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, accused pro-democracy groups of threatening to drag Hong Kong into “chaos.” | |
| The commentary laid bare the chasm of expectations between the Chinese Communist Party and democratic activists in Hong Kong, and it left no room for compromise on the demonstrators’ main demands. | |
| Tens of thousands of protesters have occupied main roads in Hong Kong since Sunday, demanding an open democratic vote for the city’s leader, or chief executive, and many have also demanded the resignation of the current leader, Leung Chun-ying. | Tens of thousands of protesters have occupied main roads in Hong Kong since Sunday, demanding an open democratic vote for the city’s leader, or chief executive, and many have also demanded the resignation of the current leader, Leung Chun-ying. |
| Citing China’s national leadership, People’s Daily issued a resounding “no” to those demands. And it accused the groups that have supported the street protests of pushing Hong Kong toward dangerous disorder. | Citing China’s national leadership, People’s Daily issued a resounding “no” to those demands. And it accused the groups that have supported the street protests of pushing Hong Kong toward dangerous disorder. |
| “If matters are not dealt with according to the law, Hong Kong society will fall into chaos,” the paper said in its commentary. | |
| Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 and has preserved its own legal system, free press and civic rights not enjoyed by mainland Chinese citizens. The protesters’ demands have centered on how to elect the chief executive of the city, which China calls a special administrative region. | |
| The Chinese government has proposed that starting in 2017, the territory’s voters would be allowed to choose the chief executive by ballot. But it has stipulated that there can be only two or three candidates, and they must be approved by a nomination committee, which would be dominated by people heeding Beijing’s wishes. | |
| Democracy groups and parties in Hong Kong have demanded election rules that allow an “unfiltered vote,” and they have called Beijing’s proposal a fraudulent voting exercise. | Democracy groups and parties in Hong Kong have demanded election rules that allow an “unfiltered vote,” and they have called Beijing’s proposal a fraudulent voting exercise. |
| Joseph Cheng Yu-shek, a political science professor at the City University of Hong Kong and a longtime advocate for fuller democracy in the city, said the People’s Daily commentary was not a surprise. | |
| “All the protesters here and Hong Kong people know it is extremely unlikely the Chinese leaders will respond to our demands,” he said in an interview at the site of the protests outside Hong Kong’s main government complex downtown. “We are here to say we are not going to give up, we will continue to fight on. We are here because as long as we fight on, at least we haven’t lost.” | |
| The crowds of protesters in downtown Hong Kong were sharply thinner on Thursday morning than at the same time on Wednesday morning, with many having gone home to rest after days in the humid heat. Clumps of three to a dozen young people sat together quietly on the wide expanses of an avenue near the government headquarters that has been free of cars this week. | |
| The People’s Daily commentary accused Occupy Central With Love and Peace, the movement that has led pro-democracy campaigning in Hong Kong, of “blaspheming” the rule of law in the city. | |
| “The actions of ‘Occupy Central’ have flagrantly violated the laws and regulations of Hong Kong, severely obstructed traffic and disrupted social order,” the commentary said. “This has placed the political demands of a minority above the law, and has harmed the social stability and economic prosperity of Hong Kong for the sake of selfishly hijacking public opinion in Hong Kong.” | “The actions of ‘Occupy Central’ have flagrantly violated the laws and regulations of Hong Kong, severely obstructed traffic and disrupted social order,” the commentary said. “This has placed the political demands of a minority above the law, and has harmed the social stability and economic prosperity of Hong Kong for the sake of selfishly hijacking public opinion in Hong Kong.” |
| The paper said the Communist Party’s central leadership firmly backed Mr. Leung, the chief executive of Hong Kong, widely loathed by many democrats who accuse him of serving as a tool of Beijing. Student groups and democratic politicians who have supported the protests in Hong Kong have said that Mr. Leung must step down and take responsibility for the police force’s use of tear gas against protesters during the weekend, the confrontation that set off the even larger street demonstrations that erupted on Sunday. | The paper said the Communist Party’s central leadership firmly backed Mr. Leung, the chief executive of Hong Kong, widely loathed by many democrats who accuse him of serving as a tool of Beijing. Student groups and democratic politicians who have supported the protests in Hong Kong have said that Mr. Leung must step down and take responsibility for the police force’s use of tear gas against protesters during the weekend, the confrontation that set off the even larger street demonstrations that erupted on Sunday. |
| “The central government has full confidence in the Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, and is extremely satisfied with his work,” the commentary said. It added that Beijing would “continue unswervingly supporting him” in running the city and would “resolutely support the police force of the special administrative territory in dealing with illegal activities according to the law.” | “The central government has full confidence in the Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, and is extremely satisfied with his work,” the commentary said. It added that Beijing would “continue unswervingly supporting him” in running the city and would “resolutely support the police force of the special administrative territory in dealing with illegal activities according to the law.” |
| Leung Kwok-hung, an activist and lawmaker known as Long Hair, who was part of a group of about 125 protesters camped outside the chief executive’s office Thursday morning in an attempt to prevent him from coming to work, said Beijing’s support for him was a given, despite opinion polls that have long found him to be unpopular among Hong Kong residents. | |
| “It all comes back to the A B C’s of politics,” said Leung Kwok-hung, who is not related to the chief executive. “Any politician like C. Y. Leung, with such a low approval rate, should step down. But Beijing still backs him.” |