Five demands, not one less: What does Hong Kong protesters' renewed motto signify?

"Five demands" of Hong Kong protesters have become a powerful face of the protests that have choked the semi-autonomous region for few months now.

Ever since Chief Executive Carrie Lam agreed to withdraw the controversial extradition bill on 4^th September, a renewed motto has gained strength among protesters, that have vowed to continue demonstrations despite the assurances. “Five demands, not one less” is the new, powerful face of Hong Kong protests, that aim to make the government fulfill all of the demands and not just withdrawal of the bill (which was also not immediately withdrawn).

The extradition bill is what triggered the massive protests. If passed, it would have allowed the extradition of criminals to mainland China, which many fear would have been exploited by Beijing. The bill will actually be withdrawn when Legislative Council of Hong Kong resumes session in October.

Apart from the withdrawal, Carrie Lam said that 2 new members will be added to Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) and has pledged that government will follow the recommendations of IPCC reports after investigations of police brutality cases. She has also said that officials will reach out to people from all walks of life to address the discontent in society along with inviting community leaders, professionals and academics to work with the government in finding solutions.

The protests began in March and were massively strengthened in June, with protester-count crossing one million people at 2 instances of peaceful demonstrations in June. Back then, Hong Kong protesters were only demanding that Carrie Lam withdraw the extradition bill but the movement has now expanded into a wider pro-democracy call. Hong Kong protesters have put forward five demands and are determined that all of them be fulfilled.

• Full withdrawal of the extradition bill.
• Amnesty for arrested protesters.
• Retracting the classification of protesters as “rioters”.
• A commission of inquiry into alleged police brutality.
• Genuine universal suffrage (voting rights and the right to choose their political leaders).

What happened after June?

The protests were largely peaceful before June but the situation turned completely upside down within that month itself. Carrie Lam suspended the bill in June, instead of complete withdrawal, which further angered the protesters. This provoked protesters, and they put forward an ultimatum, initially with four demands, with a deadline of June 20 05:00 pm HKT.

The Hong Kong government didn’t fulfill the demands and the protests just kept on getting uglier in the coming days. There have been many instances of violence as the frequency of protests increased. The semi-autonomous region was choked due to demonstrations which even forced the administration to shut down the international airport more than once.

Both protesters and police have resorted to using force at various instances, but the protesters claim that police brutality forced them to resort to violence. Protesters claim that 3 people have been shot in the eye with rubber bullets, over 1,100 have been arrested, more than 100 have been charged and 2 “gangster attacks” have been supported by police since June.

Violent protests

Apart from the protesters’ claims, Hong Kong police have been to known to have fired hundreds of tear gas canisters at protesters (which many media reports claim were expired), rubber bullets, water cannons and have charged demonstrations with batons. But protesters haven’t been harmless either.

Protesters have thrown petrol bombs at police, leaving many injured, set barricades on fire, wrecked the Legislative Council, brought Hong Kong to halt more than once with massive violent demonstrations.

What’s ahead?

The fact that Hong Kong protests actually turned violent after assurances by administration failed to appease protesters says a lot. Protesters plan to storm the airport once again along with demonstrations in other parts of Hong Kong as well.

China’s interference in the protests has become an international concern as horrific memories of Tiananmen massacre still loom. The Chinese army is stationed in the bordering Shenzhen city and international groups fear that Beijing might be planning to interfere in the protests.

Protesters also claim that the assurances given by Carrie Lam are only meant to restore peace before the October 1 National Day celebrations in China. Serious questions have been on the new appointments in IPCC to investigate police brutality cases, protesters claim that Helen Yu Lai Ching-ping and Paul Lam Ting-kwok (new members of IPCC) are politically connected to Lam. Now that protesters feel that China is the guiding force behind the withdrawal announcement, they might not back down and Beijing will definitely try to quell protests, directly or indirectly, before the National Day.