People say it is the final nail in the coffin. The enactment of the national security law certified the end of all sorts of freedoms and “one country, two systems”. At least that is what the anti-establishment has been telling us in sombre tones. This seems ironic, given that many sources say they had “lobbied” foreign countries to sanction Hong Kong and suspend the city’s special tariff status, hammering in this final nail. Beijing is responsible for whatever consequences the city faces, but pan-democrats should take their fair share as well, since they advocated for the sanctions and suspension of Hong Kong’s lifeline. Beijing was only granting their request. It was quite puzzling to see their reactions when the law was enacted on July 1. First of all, they had labelled themselves the mutual destructivists (laam caau pai). Now that Beijing is walking into their carefully laid plans, why should they be afraid? Secondly, by being so bold as to lobby the United States Congress and urging them to suspend Hong Kong’s special status , you would expect them to have a plan so Beijing will “burn with us”. We are now burning, no doubt, so why all of a sudden are they fleeing the city and disbanding their political parties ? It just does not add up, what they manifest and their actions. Of course, “mutual destruction” was supposed to be a means to achieve their political goals, not the end. But does anyone truly believe that what they do will change Beijing’s mind, in fulfilling the five demands and giving the city universal suffrage ? If it were that simple, why did the pan-democrats not do this earlier? Is it not a tad naive of the political leaders asking for our votes? Do not get me wrong. From the bottom of my heart, I admire their courage and perseverance in leading such a campaign, knowing what is at stake. What frustrates me is the lack of planning and determination from those who instigated this enterprise, for which every person in the city will suffer the consequences. As Slavoj Zizek once said: What makes a revolution successful is how ordinary people feel the difference the morning after. I truly hope that those who led the movement and made hundreds and thousands of youngsters believe in the same ideal will live up to their word and ensure that the sacrifices made are worth it, and not just a part of their calculations in this election cycle . Gordon Choi, Wong Tai Sin