Yes, it is true that the tycoons are not siding with Chief Executive Carrie Lam because of self-interest, but there is a fundamental difference between Occupy Central and this latest movement.

With regard to Occupy, the crux of the matter was about a proposal to give Hong Kong something it never had, that is, universal suffrage, but which some argued was not good enough. On the other hand, the extradition bill was about taking away something that Hong Kong had.

So there were genuine supporters of the proposal for universal suffrage, imperfect as it was, including yours truly. We believed the model, if it worked, would be at least one small step ahead for Hong Kong, and maybe eventually a giant leap for China.

The extradition bill, on the other hand, I really couldn’t support – I didn’t necessary oppose it, but there was really nothing in the bill that was beneficial to Hongkongers. Even if you put it in the most benevolent light, it would have meant shipping a few crooks back to the mainland and Taiwan – so what? This is the real reason this current issue is such a mess: hardly anyone in Hong Kong truly supported the bill.

Hongkongers are pragmatic; we may oppose sparks of violence that were ignited after what were supposed to be peaceful protests, but no one (including the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong) is about to stand up and say Carrie Lam did a good job in trying to push the bill through.

B. Leung, Mid-Levels