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Hong Kong chief vows to remain as tensions deepen with pro-reform protesters Hong Kong chief vows to remain as tensions deepen with pro-democracy protesters
(about 4 hours later)
HONG KONG — Hong Kong’s chief executive flatly rejected demands for his resignation by pro-democracy protesters on Thursday as the standoff threatened to spill into possible high-stakes confrontations with riot police deployed and demonstrators vowing to escalate pressures. HONG KONG — Staring down the student demonstrators who had demanded he resign by the end of the day Thursday, Hong Kong’s chief executive told a late-night news conference that his government was willing to talk with the protesters, but that he had no intention of quitting.
While Hong Kong’s chief, Lueng Chin-yin, dismissed the calls from the street that he step down by midnight, he offered one concession by assigning his second in command official to seek talks with demonstrators. It was a tough signal, reflecting Beijing’s unyielding stance in the face of pro-democracy protests that have roiled Hong Kong all week, but the promise to hold talks, however limited they might be in scope, appeared to be enough to blunt the protest leaders’ determination to act.
``I will not resign,’’ Leung Chin-yin told a news conference. They had threatened to occupy government buildings if Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying refused to step down by midnight, but by early Friday, in the face of disagreement among themselves and a show of force by police, they had refrained from escalating the conflict.
The declaration capped a day of fast-moving events as China made clear it would not compromise, protesters threatened to occupy government buildings and police brought in riot gear and vowed to stop them. In a minor, but perhaps telling incident, rifts among protesters carried over into early Friday morning as they scuffled over a plan to block traffic on one of the only main roads still connecting Hong Kong and Kowloon.
A swarm of officers made their way toward the besieged government headquarters at the heart of Hong Kong’s protest, carrying what appeared to be boxes of rubber bullets and tear gas. Hong Kong authorities warned in a statement that they would take action if protesters try to occupy government buildings. Tensions had been building all day and into the evening Thursday, as China made it clear it would not compromise. In Beijing, the People’s Daily newspaper warned against “chaos” in Hong Kong, and, as the official mouthpiece of the ruling Chinese Communist Party, it offered a full endorsement of Leung.
As crowds grew throughout the night, the sharper signals on both sides suggested that the showdown could be moving toward a pivotal moment. Beijing’s uncompromising stance is driven in part by fears that successful protests in Hong Kong could inspire dissent to bubble up elsewhere in China.
What began as outrage against plans by Chinese authorities to vet Hong Kong election candidates has broadened into a collision of two sharply differing visions about the former British colony. “Beijing is not going to lose,” Jeff Bader, the former top White House official for East Asia, said in an interview. “They’re just not willing to, and they have the power to make that stick.”
Protesters say they want the semiautonomous status China promised them when it took over Hong Kong in 1997. Leaders in Beijing have made clear they will not give up their grip over Hong Kong’s leaders and the way they are chosen. And Beijing’s uncompromising stance is driven in part by fears that successful protests in Hong Kong could inspire dissent to bubble up elsewhere in China. The police, in what may have been an attempt at intimidation, brought in riot gear and vowed to stop any attempt to occupy buildings. Shortly before dusk, a swarm of officers pushed their way through crowds to the besieged government headquarters at the heart of Hong Kong’s protest. Anger and fear rippled through the crowds as they realized police were transporting what appeared to be boxes of rubber bullets and tear gas.
In a bid to defuse the crisis, Leung appointed the No. 2 official, Carrie Lam, to meet with protesters to discuss possible reforms. He noted that police would exercise restraint, but warned that authorities would not stand by if demonstrators tried to enter and occupy state buildings. Yet the reaction may not have been what the authorities anticipated.
The mood grew palpably tense in front of government headquarters. Protest organizers asked those with children and pets to leave the area and began donning goggles and masks in case police deployed tear gas as they did Sunday night. As word spread online of a possible crackdown, jam-packed crowds returned by the hundreds to the protest site, where attendance had been waning over the past day. Many began donning goggles and masks in case police deployed tear gas as they had earlier this week. Volunteers rushed in trolleys full of water, food, umbrellas and masks.
Attendance at the pro-democracy demonstrations had waned over the past day, but as word spread online of a possible police crackdown, protesters returned by the hundreds to the protest site. Nonetheless, student organizers started backing down from their threat to occupy more buildings, telling the crowd to avoid provoking police action.
Volunteers rushed in trolleys full of water, food, umbrellas and safety goggles. But by that point, in any case, what had begun as outrage against plans by Chinese authorities to vet Hong Kong election candidates had broadened into a collision of two sharply differing visions about the former British colony.
Near the government headquarter’s harbor-side entrance, which has become a flashpoint for confrontation, dozens of protesters sat down in front of metal barricades guarded by police. Protesters say they want the semi-autonomous status China promised them when it took over Hong Kong in 1997. Leaders in Beijing have made clear they will not give up their grip over Hong Kong’s leaders and the way they are chosen.
The swift change in mood marked a sharp contrast from previous days, when the protests at times had been almost festive. After a police attempt to disperse crowds by using tear gas backfired, drawing even greater numbers of protesters out of sympathy, the police had largely withdrawn from the scene, while the government adopted a waiting strategy. Leung’s 11th-hour declaration, with the promise of talks, eased the tension, and there was no confrontation.
By holding off, authorities appeared to be betting that the protests would lose steam and that public sentiment would gradually turn against the demonstrations in the absence of conflict. At the news briefing, Leung said, “I will not resign because I have to continue my work on electoral reform.”
Until Thursday night, that bet seemed to be paying off. He announced he was sending Carrie Lam, his government’s second-highest ranked official, to talk with students about constitutional reform. But he also said that there would be no compromise on Beijing’s recently announced election rules, which essentially give China’s Communist leaders the power to choose all candidates in the 2017 election.
At the same time, however, Hong Kong’s ultimate rulers in Beijing made clear through messages in state media that they were leaving no room for compromise. Changing those rules, however, is the whole point of the protests.
An editorial Wednesday in the People’s Daily newspaper called the demonstrations illegal and said ominously that if they continue, the “consequences will be unimaginable.” “All he’s doing is trying to buy time,” said C.K. Wong, 22, a student protester who has spent the past week occupying streets east of the protest site. “No one is fooled by his proposed meeting.”
The paper, considered the flagship mouthpiece for the ruling Communist Party, followed up with front-page editorial Thursday warning that continued protests would drive Hong Kong into “chaos.” Students also called for the meeting to be open to the public — a detail the government said Thursday still needs to be negotiated.
The editorial also expressed full support for Leung, the chief executive. A faction of students among the demonstrators has threatened to escalate protests if Leung does not resign by the end of the day Thursday. Time is on Leung’s side. As the demonstrations have dragged on, increasing signs of dissension have emerged among protesters. Not all protesters agreed with the threat by some to occupy more buildings.
The editorial said the protesters were not engaged in communication but rather “confrontation.” It said, “These activists ought to be held legally responsible for this unlawful behavior.” Some still insist that Leung must resign. Others argue that Beijing would replace him with another puppet leader and that the protest should focus on electoral reforms.
An escalation by protesters or use of force by police could change the trajectory of the week-long demonstrations. Up to now, the demonstrators have scrupulously avoided giving authorities reason to move beyond the protesters’ barricades. Signaling China’s intractable stance, the People’s Daily ran an editorial Tuesday calling the demonstrations illegal and said ominously that if they continue, the “consequences will be unimaginable.”
But the lack of centralized leadership among the protesters could test their unity. Various factions have set different priorities. Some seek Leung’s resignation as the first goal, while others favor concentrating on forcing China to roll back the election rules. It followed up Thursday with a front-page editorial that said the protesters were not engaged in communication but rather “confrontation.”
“Right now, as protesters decide what to do next, decentralization is the weak link that Leung’s government can exploit to sow dissension,” said Willy Lam, an analyst at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. One key concern for authorities — and one likely reason they mobilized anti-riot gear — is the fear that protesters might block access to government buildings on Friday, when most of Hong Kong returns to work after a two-day holiday.
Meanwhile, the patience shown by the authorities, including in Beijing, could quickly vanish if signs emerge that Hong Kong’s democratic fervor was spreading to the mainland, analysts said. As protesters settled into their makeshift sleeping areas early Friday morning, it was unclear even to them how long the protests might last. Among their ranks, those in high school had classes starting back up on Friday. Others had jobs and college classes to maintain.
If the protests endure for weeks or months, they said, Chinese President Xi Jinping could look weak and open himself to criticism among party rivals that he has lost Hong Kong. “You may see fewer and fewer of us over the next few days,” said Smith Liu, 22, as he secured water supplies near the edge of the protest site. “But there are also many hardcore protesters who I know will stay until the very end. As long as they are here, this will continue.”
Already, China’s censors have been working overtime to keep images and news of the protests from reaching a Chinese audience. Some experts estimate that deleted posts on social media have reached record highs since Saturday. Xu Jing in Beijing contributed to this report.
CNN and other foreign news channels have gone black in China at the mere mention of Hong Kong.
At least 20 people in China have been detained and 60 called in for questioning for posting online messages of support for the protests, Amnesty International said Wednesday.
Deane reported from Rome. Xu Jing in Beijing and Brian Murphy in Washington contributed to this report.