Just when you thought Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing apparatus couldn’t possibly contrive another group to oppose the pro-democracy Occupy Central movement, one more is unveiled. The timing, coming on the heels of the Alpais Lam/Mongkok/police drama, is unhelpful from a social-harmony point of view; maybe that’s unfortunate and unintended, or maybe the string-pullers behind the scenes are beyond caring. Either way, the basic message is: we’re so desperate that we’re going to have a stab at being halfway subtle or sophisticated.
With a depressing lack of originality, this lot style themselves the Silent Majority – a label that invariably means they’re neither. They claim to have no connection with the Chinese government’s local Liaison Office, which of course means they do. The fact is that the pro-democrats’ planned campaign of civil disobedience, while high-minded and potentially attention-grabbing, poses no serious threat to civic order beyond the re-routing of some bus services. Any assemblage of people saying it will cause chaos and billions of dollars of losses are lying. The reason they are lying is because someone has pressured them to do so.
Still, this latest bundle of puppets – sorry-looking and unconvincing though they may seem – are a sort of step forward. So far, the numerous bodies dutifully yelping about Occupy Central have been predictable business chambers, loyalist political parties or quasi-grassroots groups. These guys, however, are heavy on the academic/media/tech side. In other words, they are intended to appear cool and groovy, just like Professor Benny Tai and the other intellectual funky hipsters threatening to sit down in the central business district next year. You might laugh…
…but compared with the grubby New Territories heavies in the Heung Yee Kuk, the obedient, grinning clones in suits from the HK General Chamber of Commerce or the creepy mouth-frothers of the Voice of Loving Hong Kong, these dudes are amazingly trendy and with-it, daddy-o. Really.
The more recognizable ones are probably Robert Chow, radio host and would-be boss of RTHK and Ho Lok-sang of Lingnan University. Most have served as appointees to the usual government boards and shoe-shiners’ clubs, notably the Central Policy Unit. Fung Ka-pun is a Liberal Party member up to his neck in Mainland business interests. Peter Wong is on the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference – the pinnacle of shoe-shiners’ clubs – and appears about a fifth of the way down the lengthy list of patriots who signed up to the exciting HK Association for the Peaceful Reunification of China.
You don’t expect the United Front to do ‘urbane and bohemian’ well – you’re just amazed to see them do it at all. I declare the weekend open with the fairly amazing thought that this is how unnerved Beijing’s officials are by Occupy Central.
They look like out-of-work taxi drivers mostly, some like out-of-work janitors. Very, very ugly.
The silent majority – a cornerstone Nixon phrase. I wonder why.
Personalities don’t matter. They are already raising my steam just looking at them.
Twenty five years – and this Government makes me really sick. I used to laugh at the others. This one now makes me throw up. It’s so crooked.
The only hope for Hong Kong is a nice honest administrator who has not done a deal with all the crooks in town to get in power like Mr Leung. The stronger half of me though wants a tycoon – to really bring about the cataclysm. I know of one who is going around canvassing right now.
Occupy Central has already acheived its aim — to urge someone (woefully not the lame Wolf) to expedite the political reform consultation or something of that sort.
They can’t be really really desperate — just at still another “crossroads” — since they haven’t yet enlisted Zeman, RTP or Akers-Jones so as to reduce the median age.
I hate to be a quisling, but their half-truths may even become trueish up to a certain point. That most people here just want a quiet life may easily be the case. With fickle public opinion, peaking at the right time is important, so maybe we can go another week or two without another shock horror corruption dishonesty megascandal.
Bela, I am disconcerted that a socialist such as yourself finds out-of-work taxi drivers and janitors to be “very, very ugly”.
Grass Roots. Lovely euphemism. Bottom of the food chain. Eaten by herbivores who in turn are preyed on by carnivorous predators. Standard ecological population distribution is about the same as income distribution in our glorious city. Like Bela I too have started to feel sick to the stomach by our small-minded self absorbed political class.
Bela IS right to pick up on the name “Silent Majority” though. It’s a time-hallowed right-wing trope.
Sojourner…
Just an observation.
I’m a working class lad and beautiful.
Class has nothing to do with beauty. Look at the British Royal family. Or all the gorgeous prole girls in Hong Kong.
Technically, I’m in that “silent majority” but no ones ever asked me what I want or for that matter, if its okay for them to step up and speak for me.
Gosh, thank God its the weekend…..
According to their press conference this group is going to organize 100,000 people to oppose the estimated 10,000 Occupy Central crowd. And in the process, no doubt, bring Central to a standstill. So Occupy Central need not actually do anything, just leave it to their opponents to ‘occupy.’ This is all rather Kafkaesque.
Kafkaesque indeed.
If Occupy Central will cause billions in losses, then I’ll definitely join.
If ‘Occupy Central is losing some non-descript persons millions of dollers, then on balance (assuming they are not burning dollar bills in public or otherwise) ?who is benefiting from this loss?
Maybe the not so silent majority could inform us.
Before groups meet or do something, anything, for a price the Societies Ordinance requires groups to first be assessed by the Hong Kong Police Force for criminality. The Registered Trustees Incorporation Ordinance, administered by the Registrar of Companies free, however, does not.
@ probably
…who is benefiting from this loss? …..
The Revolution will benefit.
In a society where property owners, and a property developing kleptocracy in particular, sponge off the efforts of non-property owners, something is fundamentally wrong. And wrongs have to be righted.
The sight of Uncle Four dangling from a lamppost…….