Rules of engagement that in July were consistent with best international practice have been thrown out of the window
middle of November, Hong Kong has been staring into the abyss. The violence attending its nearly six-month-old protest movement—both its participants, approvingly, and China’s central government, furiously, brand it a revolution—has stepped up a gear. Police have increased their use of tear-gas, rubber bullets and water cannon. Protesters who once carried nothing more offensive than an umbrella now wield bows and specialise in petrol bombs. Vigilante violence has flourished.
But around the time that Xi Jinping, China’s current leader, came to power in 2012, the rate of erosion quickened. The government in Beijing pushed for a highly unpopular programme of “patriotic education” at schools to engender loyalty—a push that did not succeed, but still self-defeatingly contributed to the radicalisation of some of the territory’s young people.
The frontliners’ early forays beyond previous norms—blocking roads with pavement railings and shouting taunts at the police—now seem, by their own admission, almost quaint. Direct clashes were few. The storming of Legco on July 1st, and the subsequent daubing of its chamber with slogans, shocked the authorities and some of the populace. But the writing on the walls was in paint, not blood.Other symbolic gestures were more aesthetically pleasing.
Police commanders express bewilderment that the mass of ordinary, peace-loving Hong Kongers are not repelled by such scenes on the streets. Many are. But they are repelled yet more by the police. A survey published on November 15th by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute found that 83% blame the government, and especially the police, for the increase in violence. In a separate poll, 51.5% reported zero trust in the police force, up from just 6.5% before the protests began.
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
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