My TakeNow is not the time to ramp up rhetoric or stoke tensions

Name: After a horrific attack on a policeman, Hong Kong needs vigilance and calm
Uploaded: 2021-07-03T13:14:34.000Z
Duration: 4 min 24 s
Description: After a horrific attack on a policeman, Hong Kong needs vigilance and calm

The authorities were quick to characterise the stabbing of a police officer as ‘domestic terrorism’. There is a danger this will become a self-fulfilling prophecy

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Police gather evidence at the crime scene outside Sogo in Causeway Bay. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Cliff Buddle

Published: 9:14pm, 3 Jul 2021Updated: 6:08pm, 6 Jul 2021

The cold-blooded stabbing of a policeman in a well-known shopping district in Hong Kong last week was a shock to a city long regarded as one of the safest places in the world.

Any such assault would be a cause for concern. But this one is being viewed through the prism of Hong Kong’s political divide. There are fears of further attacks. This is not a time to ramp up the rhetoric or stoke tensions. There is a need for vigilance but also calls for calm.

The circumstances of the attack were horrific. A police tactical unit officer was stabbed in the back by a lone assailant while on duty outside the Sogo department store on July 1. The attacker then turned the knife on himself and died. It is a tragedy for all concerned. Serious injuries were inflicted on the officer when the blade pierced his lung. He was in critical condition and needed surgery. Thankfully, he is now recovering.

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After a horrific attack on a policeman, Hong Kong needs vigilance and calm

The authorities have been quick to characterise the attack as “domestic terrorism”. But we should not jump to conclusions. There is a need to establish the facts. The attacker, 50, was single and lived with his parents. He has been described as reclusive and introverted.

Five suicide notes were left by the assailant declaring his hatred of police, opposition to the national security law and intention to kill an officer. Police also found “propaganda material”.

Hong Kong is still experiencing the fallout from months of often-violent anti-government protests in 2019. At that time, there were frequent clashes between demonstrators and the police.

Demonstrations have effectively been outlawed by social-distancing restrictions since the outbreak of Covid-19. The sweeping security law has further limited the scope for Hong Kong people to express their feelings or vent their frustrations. Permission was not granted for the traditional July 1 march this year and there was a heavy police presence in some parts of the city.

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} The authorities were quick to characterise the stabbing of a police officer as ‘domestic terrorism’. There is a danger this will become a self-fulfilling prophecy

The authorities were quick to characterise the stabbing of a police officer as ‘domestic terrorism’. There is a danger this will become a self-fulfilling prophecy