Cheung Man-kwong: Young protesters give new life to fading optimism

A day after the historic talks between top government officials and student leaders on October 21, former Democratic Party lawmaker Cheung Man-kwong published his last commentary in Ming Pao, after writing for the opinion page of the Chinese-language newspaper since August last year.

"I was saddened by Beijing's decision in August to impose a restrictive framework on the 2017 chief executive election. I decided to stop writing commentaries because the decision has dashed hopes for genuine universal suffrage," he said.

"But on the eve of my break, I was pleasantly surprised to witness an inspiring student movement. It reinforces my belief the city's future is in the hands of the young generation. My blessing [is] for the youngsters who fight for a better future for Hong Kong."

Since the Occupy Central movement began on September 28, the massive protests have paralysed streets and sparked unprecedented passion for democracy. The heavy use of pepper spray and the firing of 87 tear gas canisters by police, seemed to encourage rather than repel the protesters.

Yet Cheung's optimism started to fade days after the first face-to-face dialogue between top officials and activists in the city's history.

In televised talks on October 21, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor told leaders of the Federation of Students that the government would submit a report to the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office to reflect public sentiment since the pro-democracy protests.