Hong Kong Protests Victorious, For Now

Following three months of protesting a bill that included the extradition of criminals in Hong Kong to China, the bill was withdrawn by leader Carrie Lam.

In an address issued today Lam said, “After more than two months of social unrest, it is obvious to many that discontentment extends far beyond the bill. It covers political, economic and social issues.”

Saying that the bill was pulled to “fully allay public concern” was certainly a win for the protesters who had been demonstrating for months following its proposal. But many of the demonstrators are still unhappy.

According to CNN, this only addresses one of the five demands made by the protesters made during this summer. Here are the others:

1. Carrie Lam must step down

2. An inquiry into police brutality suffered by the protesters

3. The release of anyone arrested during the protests

4. Greater democratic freedoms for the people of Hong Kong

According to Carrie Lam, there will be an investigation into the use of force by officers involved with the protests. Although without Lam stepping down I suspect some protesters believe this investigation would not be handled properly.

With regard to their demand for the release of the protesters arrested, according to CNN over 900 people were arrested while protesting the extradition bill including some of the pro-democratic leaders. The youngest person arrested in this protest is 12 years old.

The names of the leaders arrested are as follows from CNN:

Rick Hui, pro-democracy politician from the Sha Tin District Council

Agnes Chow, former Legislative Council candidate of pro-democracy group Demosisto

Joshua Wong, 2014 Umbrella Revolution leader, and Demosisto leader

Andy Chan, founder of the outlawed pro-independence Hong Kong National Party

Ivan Lam, A chairman of the pro-democracy group Demosisto

Lam was listed on the charge sheet for the crime of “incitement to take part in an unauthorized assembly.”

The call for greater democratic freedoms in Hong Kong is a bell that has been ringing for a while. As of right now, Hong Kong does not have universal suffrage and hardly governs its own territory with Chinese sovereignty acting as a noose around its neck, strangling the city from having any movement toward liberalization.

My doubts are high that the protests will stop following the retraction of the bill; to me, the bill was just a catalyst, this discontent has been brewing for a while.