Chan Kin-man blames government inaction on sincere dialogue with students for the flare-up in tensions

Tony Cheung
tony.cheung@scmp.com
PUBLISHED : Saturday, 18 October, 2014, 3:13pmUPDATED : Saturday, 18 October, 2014, 5:43pm


Occupy Hong Kong leader Chan Kin-man. Photo: EPA

Occupy Central co-founder Dr Chan Kin-man said he was saddened by the clashes overnight in Mong Kok and criticised the police for “arousing conflict”.

“Many Hongkongers are saddened by what happened in Mong Kok,” he said on Saturday. “We don’t want policemen and young people to get hurt because this is not a public order problem, it’s a political problem ... It’s a problem with the government’s response and should be solved by political means.”

At least 26 people were arrested after the violence erupted in the later hours between Friday evening and Saturday morning, which saw officers use pepper spray and batons to push back demonstrators.

Thousands of people – police estimated 9,000 – surged into the streets and helped Occupy supporters carve out new protest zones, including parts of Nathan Road and Argyle Street.

“Last night was weird because the police knew that they couldn’t ... stop people from gathering by using pepper spray, but they still used it, so it was only arousing conflict,” Chan said.

Chan said police should know that Mong Kok is different from the Causeway Bay and Queensway occupation zones. The latter two have a small number of protesters during the day and night, while Mong Kok crowds grow during the evenings, he said.

He criticised police officers for “violently and crazily” hitting protesters’ umbrellas with their batons in Mong Kok on Friday night. He added that Police Commissioner Andy Tsang Wai-hung's condemnation of Occupy Mong Kok today - in which he described the movement as "radical", "unlawful" and "violent" - was an excuse to "legitimise" the force's heavy-handed approach.

"It was a bit strange that the police chief has remained silent until this morning ... Maybe Tsang wanted to legitimize the government's tough approach," Chan said,

"Vut no one wants to see what happened in Mong Kok on Friday, everyone is saddened by it, but the origin of the problem is that the government is putting the police and protesters on opposing fronts," he added.

In an article published in newspaper Ming Pao on Saturday, Chan urged protesters not expand occupy zones outside of those in Admiralty, Mong Kok and Causeway Bay.

“I know, in the last few nights, many people want to occupy more places. I just want them to think about how to choose between advancing and retreating, how many people can we get to stay there?

“Let’s think: are we falling into the trap of those who wanted to suppress the movement with public discontent? In the face of vigorous offensives, would we lose control and respond with violence? If we do, the moral foundation of the whole movement would collapse,” he wrote.

Asked if the movement was deviating from its non-violent stance, Chan said: “Most people did not intend to attack the police. They either used umbrellas to protect themselves or raise their hands [to show they are peaceful], but the police’s clearing action would only make the protesters and officers lose control and put them on opposing fronts. So I call on everyone to show restraint.”

Chan, a sociology associate professor at Chinese University, blamed the escalation in tensions on the government.

“The biggest responsibility is on the government ... because it has taken 21 days and officials are still not talking to students,” Chan said. “Many people are expecting an upcoming dialogue that will bear fruit and solve the problem.”

"The government must respond as soon as possible and talk, the students are sincere ... But I wonder whether the government is sincere too," he said.

Chan also reiterated that the Occupy organisers and pan-democrats would turn themselves in when the movement ends.

“If this occupying act comes to an end, we will sit here and get arrested. If the police don’t arrest us, we will queue up quietly to turn ourselves in. We have to tell the world that we are but challenging the rule of law – instead, we embrace it.

“If the charge is reasonable, the Occupy trio and some others would not defend ourselves in court, we won’t hire any lawyer, and we will only make our political statement, to explain about the origin and developments of the occupying act,” he wrote.

He added that Cardinal Joseph Zen, Democratic Party founding chairman Martin Lee Chu-ming and many pan-democratic lawmakers also planned to turn themselves in at the end of the movement.

But Chan emphasised this would only be after the demonstrators decide it is over.

“We will turn ourselves in if protesters decide to leave peacefully after an official dialogue with students,” Chan added. But if a dialogue is unsuccessful, the Occupy co-founders would not do anything to end the movement.

He also declined to say whether the organisers’ decision would end all occupations.

“We don’t know whether the people will agree with our choice, and they will make their decisions,” he said.