Hong Kong is a battlefield because Hongkongers want the rights they were promised – hard-line tactics won’t work

Hong Kong government officials should be the representatives of Hongkongers to Beijing, not the representatives of the central government to Hongkongers

After an honest assessment of the causes of the crisis, Hong Kong’s government must initiate a dialogue with protest leaders and reach a compromise

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A police officer clashes with a protester on a road in Wan Chai on October 1. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:45am, 19 Oct 2019Updated: 6:45am, 19 Oct 2019

Hong Kong and the rest of the world have been stunned by the bloody spectacles and violence across the city over these past months.

How did a peaceful society suddenly degenerate into lawlessness and chaos, with students, ordinary people and even policemen attacking one another like deadly enemies when, before this disaster, they were normal law-abiding citizens?

What has changed Hong Kong from a peaceful, beautiful international city into a battlefield within such a short time?

To answer these questions, the government must conduct an honest review of the recent unrest and its causes, without delay. It should immediately carry out a soul-searching exercise to examine what steps were taken and what decisions made that gave rise to the present crisis.

It must recognise that hard-line tactics and the use of excessive force have only angered the people and escalated the conflict, with both sides descending into greater violence.

The government should bear in mind that its primary responsibility is to Hongkongers, to provide leadership to them and to look after their interests and needs. It should listen to the majority who are not radical, but who wish to maintain the rights promised to them under the “one country, two systems” formula.