Xi Jinping gives Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying a gift over Occupy demands

The Occupy movement has always fought on two fronts: "real" democracy and the collapse of the Leung Chun-ying administration.

But it's now clear, even to its own leaders, that the immediate goal of full democratisation is unreachable, at least for the 2017 chief executive election.

So there has now been a tactical shift. The student leaders are seeking what they hope is achievable: the de-legitimisation and collapse of the government.

In that sense, the movement has morphed into the long-standing goal of the pan-democratic camp from the first day that Leung took over as chief executive - to expose his political illegitimacy.

The pan-dems' campaign of total non-cooperation must be understood in this context, though it risks the ire of the public, which may well blame them as much as the government for doing nothing.

In recent weeks student leaders have made more conciliatory statements towards Beijing. This includes saying their goal was never to challenge the authority of the central government; and blaming the first round of "biased and defective" political reform consultation on Leung's government, so Beijing might not have really understood Hong Kong people's wishes when it issued the August 31 edict on reform. Consequently, it is necessary for student leaders to hold direct talks with the central government. The real goal is to bypass Leung's government and demonstrate its irrelevance.