Beijing studying causes of Mong Kok riot, reveals Hong Kong Legislative Council president
Tsang Yok-sing says it is wise for the central government to determine whether there are social conflicts to be resolved
Beijing officials are conducting their own study into the causes of the Mong Kok riot earlier this month, according to the head of the city’s legislature.
The revelation was made as political and religious heavyweights associated the Mong Kok mayhem with governance issues and appealed for harmony in society.
READ MORE: Shots fired and bricks thrown: Hong Kong tense after Mong Kok mob violence on first day of Lunar New Year
“I learned from a friend that the central government is seeking to know what happened [that led to the riot],” Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing said.
He called it “calm and wise” for Beijing to focus not only on opposing violence but also seeking to find out whether “there are social conflicts to be resolved”.
Tsang’s comment came as pan-democrats continued to criticise Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying for failing to address the causes behind the violence.
Leung has turned down requests for a committee of inquiry to be set up. He has also asked reporters to seek comments from rioters, instead of him, on the reasons behind the violence.
But Tsang said it was inevitable for people vying for the top job to answer the question about what led to the riot and the earlier Occupy protests during election debates next year.
“If one candidate only insists on a forceful crackdown on the rioters … while the other can point out the social conflicts and governance problems” then the public would indicate their preference through opinion polls, Tsang said.
Commenting on the riot, Tsang told reporters in a media gathering that there should be a distinction between “separatists” – the label used by Beijing officials – and “localists”.
The latter, he said, come hand in hand with calls against “mainlandisation”, adding: “I think it is very natural for some to fear mainlandisation on things where Hong Kong is faring better than the mainland.”
READ MORE: Who is Ray Wong? Hong Kong Indigenous leader nabbed after Mong Kok riot rejected pan-democratic camp’s milder approach
Speaking separately, Liberal Party lawmaker James Tien Pei-chun, an outspoken critic of the chief executive, suggested that Beijing could be worried about the city being disharmonious under Leung’s rule in the wake of the Mong Kok mayhem.
Recommending alternatives for the top job, Tien said Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor were “quite good” candidates. “They can make society more harmonious, and they handled the localism issue quite well,” he said.
The call for harmony in the wake of the riot – and for the government to listen more proactively – was echoed in religious circles.
Speaking at a joint reception with Buddhist, Muslim, Taoist, Confucian and Catholic clerics, Christian Council chairman the Reverend Eric So Shing-yit said: “There was a serious and violent clash ... and the government should listen to the people, and relevant bodies should talk peacefully.”
Auxiliary bishop Michael Yeung Ming-cheung told the Post that rather than condemning anyone, “we are calling for calmness and a clear vision ... on causes of the clash.”
Leung has faced criticism within the legislature over the contentious copyright amendment bill, prompting pan-democrats to launch a filibuster.
Tsang said it was “not impossible” for the bill to face a delay towards the end of the Legco session in July. While Leung is constitutionally capable of ordering new meetings, Tsang warned of “significant political implications” as it would be contrary to the legislative tradition in an election year for lawmakers to stop their work as soon as electioneering starts.
