Deep wounds arising from social unrest are yet to be healed
- Sweeping reforms under the national security law and the jailing of pro-democracy figures have only further divided Hong Kong, and Carrie Lam has to address long-standing grievances if the city is to move on
The changes and rulings are controversial and may not be welcomed by everyone; but they are necessary processes for the city to re-emerge from the bitter episode.
No less important is the need to address the grievances of the people and the underlying issues that gave rise to the turmoil, without which the city cannot truly move forward.
Developments on the legal front have been put into perspective in an update by the government.
Of the 10,242 arrested so far, only 2,521 have undergone or are undergoing judicial proceedings, including 720 charged with rioting.
The rest involve unlawful assembly, arson, desecrating the national flag, possession of an offensive weapon and assaulting a police officer.
More than 880 have had to bear the legal consequences – including 614 convicted, 261 bound over, four subject to a care or protection order and four punished in civil proceedings for contempt of court.
The charges against another 50 were withdrawn and another 186 acquitted after trial.