Perseverance of protesters may be tested as sit-ins persist

Five days into the Occupy movement, sit-ins across the city are heading for a crossroads where protesters' perseverance will be put to a real test.

While many have vowed to stay on and keep the momentum until they get what they want, others are dealing with the competing pressures of school, work and business.

"As long as Occupy continues, I'll keep coming after classes," said Tang Ho-wan, 16, who has attended the protests in Mong Kok and Central since Wednesday. He would make his protest a daily routine because he was sick of how the government was shutting the public out, he said.

Kwok Tsz-chun, 17, said he could join only on holidays. "I'm still in school, after all," he said. "I may have extra classes after school ends, so I won't have time to come."

Secondary school teacher Tam Chun-yin, 46, vowed to join the protest whenever she was free but had no idea how long that could last. "I'll do as much as I can," she said. "Teachers have tremendous workloads … I don't even know if I'll be here tomorrow, because I can't abandon my professional duties. I'll come as long as I have free time."

Also worried about the movement's sustainability was 24-year-old welfare worker John Lam Ping-hin. "If no one comes, this could die down," he said. How can we sustain this after our office hours? I'm trying my best to come every day after work but I have to go home because I have to work the next day."