Benny Tai (戴耀廷), a leading Hong Kong activist who was jailed for his role in the 2014 pro-democracy “Umbrella movement,” says that campaign “revolutionized” youngsters and set the stage for the current protests in the territory.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the fifth anniversary of the start of the Umbrella movement, Tai said that he watched from jail in disbelief as 1 million people on June 9 thronged the streets of Hong Kong to launch the latest bout of pro-democracy protests.
“The young people, in some ways, they have been changed by the Umbrella movement,” Tai said.
“We have revolutionized, in some ways, the hearts of Hong Kong people in preparing them for fighting for democracy in a more persistent way,” he said.
To mark the anniversary today, thousands of people are expected to rally at Tamar Park near government headquarters.
Tai, who was released on bail last month, said that while leaders of the Umbrella movement were in some ways unprepared for the massive response at the start of the rallies that paralyzed parts of the financial hub for 79 days, they helped to sow the seeds for future protests.
The sit-in protests, also known as the “Occupy Central with Love and Peace” campaign, were first suggested by Tai in 2013 and were later led by a core group, some of who remain in prison. It became known as the Umbrella movement after activists used umbrellas to shield themselves from tear gas and pepper spray.
Colorful tents, art installations and music created an almost carnival atmosphere at times, in stark contrast with the current anti-government protests that have increasingly degenerated into running battles between activists and police.
“I think the tension now is how far we should go, especially the more radical protesters, how far they should go,” Tai said.
“Maybe after a few months the streets will become more quiet ... and when another triggering point [comes], you will rise again and the scale will be even bigger than the ‘Water revolution,’” he said, referring to activists using what they call a “be water” strategy that encourages them to be flexible or formless.
The current protests have no discernible leaders or structure, which Tai believes is a better strategy than the “top down” order of the Umbrella movement.
“It’s a more decentralized network way of coordinating action and it seems to be much more effective than the Umbrella movement,” the soft-spoken professor said.
Tai, who said that he read about 20 books during his three months in prison, said that he was hopeful about the future, although he expects more suppression from the government.
“Some protesters, they think this is the last battle, but I would say this may not be the last battle, because we have a long war to fight and no matter what happens to this particular battle, if we could not have democracy, the war will continue,” he said.
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