From the initiation of these protests everyone has been eager to remind everyone of the hostile nation China is and their track record with Human Rights and actions. We have been flooded with thousands upon thousands of pictures, articles and videos but NOT ONE news outlet has attempted to make it clear WHY Hong Kong protests are happening. Since the MSM globally won’t tell you why WE will and tell you why it’s complicated.
In short, the reason for the protests that kicked off 10 weeks ago is EXTRADITION. Yes. A new law allowing extradition of Hong Kong residents to mainland China. Hong Kong is part of China, they are the same country but they have two different government systems.
To simplify this, imagine that Alaska had their own set of FEDERAL laws that were different to that of the Lower 48. At some point Alaska decides to pass a law that says criminals that fled the lower 48 can now be extradited to the lower 48 to be tried for their crimes. That is exactly what is happening in China. Two Governments – One Country.
Almost 2 million citizens of Hong Kong flooded the streets in protest of a new law that will allow the extradition of wanted persons or persons suspect of crimes in mainland China to be extradited. Apparently they feel that this law will allow all activists, deviants or people who oppose Hong Kong policy makers the excuse to send them off to Mainland China for punishment for things that are not crimes in Hong Kong. They also believe this law will be the ultimate tool for the Chinese government to extradite people to mainland China for political reasons. This is a valid fear and indicates that any hopes for Hong Kong achieving total independence from China in the future is dwindling since the Hong Kong government is seeking to merge their governance with mainland China.
As far as “misusing” the law to punish protesters and people who oppose Hong Kong government officials both Hong Kong and Beijing deny such allegations. Though, having said that, if that was their intention it’s not like they would tell you.
When the protesters began to grow in numbers and disrupt businesses, daily operations and government functions the local Hong Kong Police began to use force in hopes of dispersing crowds. They started by using rubber bullets, tear gas and water canons in an attempt to break up the protests and minimize the crowd size that is millions upon millions of times larger than the size of all police and armed forces in Hong Kong combined.
Protesting is something any citizen of any nation should feel free to exercise, but when the size of your protesting population significantly outnumbers your nation’s ability to protect you what can a government do to ensure the safety of the police, government officials and the citizens that are not partaking in the protests? Hong Kong has a population of 7.4 million. The protest began with 500,000 people and now has grown to over 2 million.
In the video below you see protesters beating a Hong Kong Police Officer defending the airport until he was rendered unconscious and possibly dead! This man who chose this career to protect the citizens of Hong Kong possibly beaten to death for doing his job.
Hong Kong International airport was shut down on August 12, 2019, after the ever expanding crowd of protesters caused disruption and threatened the incoming and outgoing passengers in the airport.
We interviewed a passenger traveling from Germany on a connecting flight headed to Australia for vacation.
We got off the plane and had about four hours to eat, relax and recharge our phones. It was very scary. Protesters had overrun the security checkpoints, breaking everything in sight. The shops closed down and we were told to get back on the plane. My son was in the bathroom and the security guard went in to get him because he said “We cannot protect anyone, there are too many of them”. It was very scary. We were simply there to catch another flight, yet we were being attacked and assaulted. I saw a pilot who was a few gates down rushing to get to his plane while security cards were trying to fend off protesters. The pilot was black not Chinese. I don’t know what happened to the security guards. There were at least 100 people against two guards. I would hate to think how they ended up. These protesters were vicious.
Marion H. Hamburg Resident
The airport shutdown is the result of a slowly growing crowd of protesters that began 10 weeks ago when this extradition order was announced and has since grown to millions. They were opposing this new law and in turn demanding a free and independent Hong Kong.
It’s important to understand that the government of Hong Kong REQUESTED the help of mainland China. Hong Kong IS a part of China it is not an independent nation as some people think. Government facilities, businesses, offices and bystanders are being violently attacked and overrun by protesters. What was a protest weeks ago, is now a full blown, continuously escalating riot.
The attacks by police, armed forces and Chinese reinforcements are horrific and appalling but to be fair there are 100 cops to 100,000 protesters. The numbers don’t favor them and the police who are doing their job are literally fighting for their life at this point. History reminds us that all revolutions have casualties.
It’s 2019 and we have yet to learn to resolve conflict with peace, not because we are neanderthals but because we know that the power which lies in the hands of few can cause utter destruction and pain. For all those calling out to President Trump to help the people of Hong Kong how do they suppose that happens? How do you subdue chaos and looting on an island with almost 7.5 Million people without the ability for law and order? A resident of Macau on Weibo said:
I fled Hong Kong on ferry to Macau early Tuesday morning. I think that both sides are to blame. Many are saying that the protesters that are hurting people and looting places are Chinese operatives doing it on purpose but I don’t see how that would help them. This would only end with blood on their hands and the world would condemn the mainland again for using excessive force.
Kelly Su
Intervention from any nation would be seen as a threat to China’s sovereignty. Hong Kong is PART of China. If Hong Kong wishes to secede, (like many of us wish California did since they drain our federal tax money) then they will have to figure that out. For now all we can do is observe.
President Trump made it clear over a week ago that what was going on in Hong Kong are not protests but riots. President Trump also said that the situation is a very big problem and at some point they are going to have to put a stop to it. Question is how do they do that?
The United States of America is the land of the free. A nation that promotes democracy and supports the basic innate rights of man including free speech. Hong Kong is not an independent nation but a state of China. It’s up to the people of Hong Kong and the Chinese Government to figure out how to stop this. There is no way our nation condemning or getting involved helps the situation.
As Americans, we should all support and hope that the people of Hong Kong find the resolution they want – not what we want, or China wants or what the EU wants. Intervening will not solve anything. Imagine if the Chinese or the EU intervened in a dispute between the lower 48 and Alaska!
The only possible resolution that can deescalate the situation is for the law to be quashed right? Wrong the law was quashed and it is obvious that the people of Hong Kong are now seeking to gain full independence from China. I find it incredible for anyone to believe that after the destruction, shame and blood shed that has occurred to date in Hong Kong is something that China will “let it go”. Quashing the law doesn’t stop the Chinese to potentially round up all the protesters and throw them into some prison camp in mainland China. The law was the excuse the goal was independence.
Needless to say, the Chinese will not abandon their interests in Hong Kong easily. They would mostly likely rather see a full blown civil war – bloodshed and destruction before they retreat. That is because this is a revolution and if mainland China observe their leaders withdrawing to citizens that are deemed dissidents, to avoid scrutiny, by foreign governments and even for the sake of the people, it will inevitably be interpreted as weakness.
The government of mainland China has a population that is pushing 1.5 Billion people which is almost 20% of the whole planet’s population. The last thing you want to show a population that size that you control is weakness.
Many foreign governments have taken the chance to scrutinize and condemn what is going on in Hong Kong putting foreign pressure on the Chinese government. This doesn’t help the situation it escalates it.
Unsurprisingly, Michel Bachelet, the head of the UN High Commission for Human Rights(UNCHR) , expressed concern about the suppression of pro-democracy demonstrations. The UNCHR called for an “impartial investigation” into Hong Kong. UNCHR never has “impartial investigations”. Their last investigation lead to the creation of the Muslim Brotherhood- backed GNA army in Tripoli, holding Libya in war limbo, and being the ONLY entity on the planet aside from Qatar and Turkey that recognize Tripoli and the GNA as the legitimate “Libyan Government”.
As Americans and simply observers of the dire situation in Hong Kong we must remember the Ferguson riots. At first, Black Lives Matter protests (whose founder was arrested for Child and Human Trafficking) were organized, civil and exercising their right to protest. Do you remember how the National Guard was mobilized? Were you angry that they ruined it for everyone else because they were setting the whole city on fire and killing people?
Now imagine if the size of the “protesters” part of the riots were about 2 million. That’s what you need to envision when you think of Hong Kong.
All revolutions throughout history have tales of tragedies and bloodshed. The United States of America did not gain its independence from the United Kingdom without conflict and bloodshed. Why would we expect anything different of Hong Kong?
Meanwhile, the unhinged radical leftists are blaming President Trump because the people of Hong Kong are demanding their independence.
Tore is a nationally syndicated talk radio host that airs live M-F 12-2PM EST on Red State Talk Radio .
Haley Kennington, contributed to this report.
