By: Azhar Azam
*This is one of my opinion pieces (unedited) that first appeared at "China Global Television Network (CGTN)":
https://news.cgtn.com/news/2019-10-06/The-U-S-role-in-fueling-violence-in-Hong-Kong-Kz94MrCOGc/index.html
Western media is roasting Carrie Lam for activating “sweeping colonial-era” emergency law after the chief executive of Hong Kong invoked Prohibition on Face Covering Regulation in the Chinese Special Administrative Region (SAR).
In other words, the prejudiced western mouthpieces backed the violent protestors’ acts of using face masks to conceal their identity while they hurl petrol bombs against life and property; attack police officers, police stations, and vehicles; and vandalize MTR stations and government offices.
On Friday, the months-long outbreak of violence forced MTR Corporation to suspend its operations in Hong Kong as the public transport giant announced to shut down its Mass Transit Railway (MTR) services involving the Heavy Rail, Light Rail, and MTR bus.
Courtesy of violent protests in the Chinese autonomous state, MTR ridership has taken a severe toll as it became one of the biggest casualties. The patronage of its High Speed Rail (HSR) was sadistically downed by 30% to 36,900 per day in August as compared to last month.
MTR’s other services such as domestic, airport express, cross-boundary, and inter-city light rail and bus services have also plunged significantly. This would inevitably mean that Hong Kong’s tourism sector, one of the largest job providing industries, will be harshly wedged, resulting in enormous job losses to the local Hong Kongers.
As MTR is the most common source of transportation in Hong Kong with about 90% of the population travels through it, targeting the mass railway system alongside wide use of inflammable materials for protests show the radicals’ malevolent approach to trigger bedlam in the city.
Latest round of protests opposing the mask ban are absurd over the fact that if the protestors were peacefully organizing the rallies and assemblies (which they aren’t), they should have welcomed the newly imposed law to isolate the radicals from ordinary protestors.
But because the rioters have plans to wreak havoc in Hong Kong, they are differing with the proscription. Additionally, the raids and splinters of public properties and trains by dozens of black-clad protestors in August give a glimpse of where the fanatics are heading gradually.
The United States is certainly banking on the opportunity to coin angsts among the people of Hong Kong towards the Mainland China. Last month, two of Hong Kong-based “pro-democracy activists” Joshua Wong Chi-fung and Denise Ho Wan-see testified before US Congressional-Executive Committee on China (CECC) to seek support by passing the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act.
Republican senator Rick Scott’s recent accusation on Lam and establishment leaders “who are nothing more than puppets for Beijing and President Xi (Jingping)” – in response to Lam’s letter that conveyed her grievances about the controversial Act as an amendment to US-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 - spells out more profounder doubts about US intervention in Hong Kong.
Scott’s remarks were outrageous as Lam invited his attention to the fact that the amendment would hurt the US interests as well given that US had trade surplus of $297 billion with Hong Kong over the past decade as well as there were about 1,400 American firms and 85,000 US citizens in the city.
Earlier in July, the US sent a defiant signal to Beijing by arranging several high-level meeting of media tycoon and “democracy advocate” Jimmy Lai with US top officials. Lai met national security advisor John Bolton (now sacked), vice president Mike Pence, secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Republican senators Ted Cruz, Cory Gardener, and Rick Scott. He is now pushing the Hong Kongers to trigger further chaos by chanting “They are determined to fight and some of them are prepared to die for it (dream of universal suffrage).”
While Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi also welcomed Wong and Ho to the Capitol in September, lauded them “for challenging the conscience”, and urged the US government not to let “commercial interests” to drive foreign policy in the region – the series of the events strongly ratifies China’s claim of foreign intervention in its internal matters.
However despite all these provocative steps, the Hong Kong campaign lacks the legitimacy that is fundamentally required for a popular movement. For any rights movement to succeed, it requires an upright leadership, support from broad segment of the society, and peaceful pursuance of the cause.
But the Hong Kong “pro-democracy” campaign gravely lacks all the three crucial and basic components. While protests have never been peaceful and a large majority of the people has rebuffed the violent calls – the “pro-democracy activists” have largely relied on foreign countries, which for the people of Hong Kong is no less than an act of treachery. In the given conditions, the movement for democracy is largely counterfeited and evil-driven with foreign interference hence its fate is bound to nosedive.
After arrived back in late September, Ho accused police for turning down his requests even though “it is in our rights to peacefully assemble” but the subsequent incidents and the retrieval of inflammable and dangerous explosives wholly described their subversive veiled intents.
While the supposed “pro-democracy activists” insisted that their plea was neither a petition for a foreign interference nor was it for Hong Kong independence but for human rights, democracy, and freedom to choose – flinging of petrol bombs, interruption of Mass Transit Railway stations, and injuries to at least 25 policemen enlightened the plan that was devised in Washington to trigger mayhem in Hong Kong.
Foreign handlers of “pro-democracy activists” are desperate to fuel the violence in Hong Kong so that they could openly meddle in China’s internal affairs. The latest recovery of explosive weapons and dangerous implants by the city police tells their veiled plans to disrupt the Chinese national day celebrations.
*This is one of my opinion pieces (unedited) that first appeared at "China Global Television Network (CGTN)":
https://news.cgtn.com/news/2019-10-06/The-U-S-role-in-fueling-violence-in-Hong-Kong-Kz94MrCOGc/index.html
Western media is roasting Carrie Lam for activating “sweeping colonial-era” emergency law after the chief executive of Hong Kong invoked Prohibition on Face Covering Regulation in the Chinese Special Administrative Region (SAR).
In other words, the prejudiced western mouthpieces backed the violent protestors’ acts of using face masks to conceal their identity while they hurl petrol bombs against life and property; attack police officers, police stations, and vehicles; and vandalize MTR stations and government offices.
On Friday, the months-long outbreak of violence forced MTR Corporation to suspend its operations in Hong Kong as the public transport giant announced to shut down its Mass Transit Railway (MTR) services involving the Heavy Rail, Light Rail, and MTR bus.
Courtesy of violent protests in the Chinese autonomous state, MTR ridership has taken a severe toll as it became one of the biggest casualties. The patronage of its High Speed Rail (HSR) was sadistically downed by 30% to 36,900 per day in August as compared to last month.
MTR’s other services such as domestic, airport express, cross-boundary, and inter-city light rail and bus services have also plunged significantly. This would inevitably mean that Hong Kong’s tourism sector, one of the largest job providing industries, will be harshly wedged, resulting in enormous job losses to the local Hong Kongers.
As MTR is the most common source of transportation in Hong Kong with about 90% of the population travels through it, targeting the mass railway system alongside wide use of inflammable materials for protests show the radicals’ malevolent approach to trigger bedlam in the city.
Latest round of protests opposing the mask ban are absurd over the fact that if the protestors were peacefully organizing the rallies and assemblies (which they aren’t), they should have welcomed the newly imposed law to isolate the radicals from ordinary protestors.
But because the rioters have plans to wreak havoc in Hong Kong, they are differing with the proscription. Additionally, the raids and splinters of public properties and trains by dozens of black-clad protestors in August give a glimpse of where the fanatics are heading gradually.
The United States is certainly banking on the opportunity to coin angsts among the people of Hong Kong towards the Mainland China. Last month, two of Hong Kong-based “pro-democracy activists” Joshua Wong Chi-fung and Denise Ho Wan-see testified before US Congressional-Executive Committee on China (CECC) to seek support by passing the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act.
Republican senator Rick Scott’s recent accusation on Lam and establishment leaders “who are nothing more than puppets for Beijing and President Xi (Jingping)” – in response to Lam’s letter that conveyed her grievances about the controversial Act as an amendment to US-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 - spells out more profounder doubts about US intervention in Hong Kong.
Scott’s remarks were outrageous as Lam invited his attention to the fact that the amendment would hurt the US interests as well given that US had trade surplus of $297 billion with Hong Kong over the past decade as well as there were about 1,400 American firms and 85,000 US citizens in the city.
Earlier in July, the US sent a defiant signal to Beijing by arranging several high-level meeting of media tycoon and “democracy advocate” Jimmy Lai with US top officials. Lai met national security advisor John Bolton (now sacked), vice president Mike Pence, secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Republican senators Ted Cruz, Cory Gardener, and Rick Scott. He is now pushing the Hong Kongers to trigger further chaos by chanting “They are determined to fight and some of them are prepared to die for it (dream of universal suffrage).”
While Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi also welcomed Wong and Ho to the Capitol in September, lauded them “for challenging the conscience”, and urged the US government not to let “commercial interests” to drive foreign policy in the region – the series of the events strongly ratifies China’s claim of foreign intervention in its internal matters.
However despite all these provocative steps, the Hong Kong campaign lacks the legitimacy that is fundamentally required for a popular movement. For any rights movement to succeed, it requires an upright leadership, support from broad segment of the society, and peaceful pursuance of the cause.
But the Hong Kong “pro-democracy” campaign gravely lacks all the three crucial and basic components. While protests have never been peaceful and a large majority of the people has rebuffed the violent calls – the “pro-democracy activists” have largely relied on foreign countries, which for the people of Hong Kong is no less than an act of treachery. In the given conditions, the movement for democracy is largely counterfeited and evil-driven with foreign interference hence its fate is bound to nosedive.
After arrived back in late September, Ho accused police for turning down his requests even though “it is in our rights to peacefully assemble” but the subsequent incidents and the retrieval of inflammable and dangerous explosives wholly described their subversive veiled intents.
While the supposed “pro-democracy activists” insisted that their plea was neither a petition for a foreign interference nor was it for Hong Kong independence but for human rights, democracy, and freedom to choose – flinging of petrol bombs, interruption of Mass Transit Railway stations, and injuries to at least 25 policemen enlightened the plan that was devised in Washington to trigger mayhem in Hong Kong.
Foreign handlers of “pro-democracy activists” are desperate to fuel the violence in Hong Kong so that they could openly meddle in China’s internal affairs. The latest recovery of explosive weapons and dangerous implants by the city police tells their veiled plans to disrupt the Chinese national day celebrations.