My Take | Why young rebels welcome a societal collapse
- Some radical groups believe the only way to destroy the central government and Communist Party is by destroying the city first. They even have a term for it, lam chao, which roughly means ‘self-destruct together’, as a way to ‘liberate’ Hong Kong.
There are not one but two protest movements in Hong Kong. They may be linked but have vastly different goals, aims and strategies. Most discussions, especially in the foreign press, conflate the two, and make judgments and conclusions on the Hong Kong government and police as if the official responses only apply to a single movement of peace.
The protesters and pan-democrats have played their cards well. They know the most violent and egregious acts could be condoned and excused – and their suppression condemned – so long as this confusion is kept up.
The latest message from ProgressUST, formed by radical students and graduates of the University of Science and Technology, is pulling back the veil. It seems to have shocked some people, but its secessionism is nothing new.
ProgressUST wants Hong Kong to: officially “cut ties” with the mainland; repatriate all mainlanders from the city; revoke the licences of mainland companies and enterprises; and build a physical border between the city and the mainland.
Such demands are regularly posted by radicals and extremists in their online circles. ProgressUST, however, has been careless and let them reach the mainstream media. Their bigoted and irrational demands don’t play so well with an international audience and threaten to overshadow the so-called five demands from the more moderate protest groups, which have been used effectively in the past three months to justify the violence.
Lest you think the ProgressUST’s demands are unrealistic, those in their camp have thought long and hard about how to achieve them. Here’s a manifesto speech that has been widely circulated: “Real democracy can only happen with the overthrow of the Communist Party. We are now opening the door to their destruction. Hong Kong is [China’s] most important living organ. If Hong Kong collapses, it’s immediately “game over” for the communists.
“We must spread this message so that foreign forces ‘will go crazy’ to support us. There is no turning back for us. If we fail, Hong Kong will become a concentration camp like those in Xinjiang.”