Letters | Hong Kong may be the new Tiananmen Square – the centre of the democratic movement in China
- The 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown, rather than the extradition bill, may have triggered Hong Kong’s protests
- Beijing has underestimated the protesters’ resolve and failed to fully understand their motives
The accepted trigger for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy demonstrations was the government’s introduction of the extradition bill. However, the extradition bill may not have been the spark that set off of the pro-democracy demonstrations, though it served as a focus for pro-democracy sentiment.
Today we are possibly witnessing Hongkongers serving as proxies for pro-democracy supporters in China. Hong Kong may now be what Tiananmen Square was 30 years ago. It is the centre of the democratic movement in China. The Chinese government underestimated the resolve of the Hong Kong protesters and did not fully appreciate their motives. It now finds itself with potentially limited responses.
Its options include taking no action that might embolden pro-democracy movements in other Chinese cities, holding Hong Kong under military occupation and ending its unique status in the world, or talking with the protesters, which might be tantamount to acknowledging that they have a point and that democracy could work. If so, could it then be restricted to Hong Kong?
