‘We won’t halt Occupy Central’: Benny Tai says era of civil disobedience is here to stay
Occupy co-founder says his 'we failed' comments in interview did not tell full story
Occupy Central co-founder Benny Tai Yiu-ting came out fighting yesterday after he shocked many with his pessimistic assessment of the pro-democracy movement in an interview.
Tai said he was confident that as many as 10,000 people would join the upcoming mass sit-in in Central, a day after he suggested that public support for Occupy was waning.
Tai said the interview with Bloomberg, released on Tuesday, in which he also admitted Occupy had failed "up to this point", had only told half the story.
The movement had hoped the threat of civil disobedience would convince Beijing to allow genuine universal suffrage in Hong Kong for the 2017 chief executive election.
Tai said in the interview the tactic had failed, as Beijing on Sunday set down tough restrictions on the 2017 vote, insisting only candidates approved by a committee dominated by Beijing loyalists would be allowed.
That hard-line decision meant action was now needed rather than words, Tai said.
"We won't stop Occupy Central just because of [Beijing's] decision," he said. "Hong Kong people should be prepared that the fight is for the next five to 10 years."