Organisers of the Occupy Central democracy movement have been accused in the latest state media commentary of lacking sincerity in finding ways to end the political impasse. A commentary published on the China News Service-affiliated chinanews.com yesterday criticised the pro-democracy protesters for indulging in street politics and basking in the Western media spotlight. "Their behaviour has shown they actually do not want, and do not need, to resolve the issue by having dialogue … [They don't have] the consciousness of following rules, or the concept of holding negotiations," read the article, authored by a person called Guoping. The commentary said the protesters did not represent the majority of Hong Kong people, only "the views of their bosses behind the scene", referring to Western powers that Beijing believes are orchestrating the campaign to stir up trouble for China. The piece also warned that the protests would cost the city some HK$350 billion in economic losses and tarnish its international image. State media have published many opinion pieces since Occupy began on September 28. The author Guoping has been among the most prominent of writers on the topic, with more than 10 articles under the name. On Monday, Xinhuanet and people.com.cn published two commentaries by Guoping that accused Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying of financing the civil disobedience movement. In Shenzhen yesterday, Chen Zuoer, former deputy director of the State Council Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, said the movement had not only affected Hong Kong's economy, but also harmed its rule of law. Chen, now chairman of quasi-official think tank Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, urged protesters to stop and "return the rule of law and democracy to Hong Kong". "[Hong Kong] is an international financial centre. But its reliability and sustainability is now under question," he said. He added that he was "very worried" after the University of Hong Kong estimated the city's gross domestic product would drop 2.2 per cent from 3.4 this year because of the movement.