Foes of Hong Kong democracy protests claim petition drive success

More than 1.8 million Hong Kong citizens – including the territory’s chief executive and his top aide -- have signed a petition calling for an end to a month of pro-democracy protests, a group called the Alliance for Peace and Democracy said Monday.

The claim was quickly met with skepticism as the group refused to publicly disclose the full roster of signatures, and opponents suggested many of the names were fake.

Robert Chow, spokesman for the anti-protest group, said Monday that he and his allies had collected 1,835,793 signatures online and in person over the last nine days. Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous Chinese territory, has about 7.3 million people in total.

The petition says that the signatories endorse “supporting our police, reclaiming our roads, restoring order and maintaining the rule of law.” It was handed over to Hong Kong’s chief secretary, Carrie Lam, who herself signed the document. Lam’s boss, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, also signed.

“Most Hong Kong citizens don’t want to see any casualties, but can no longer bear it. We have told Ms. Carrie Lam clearly that this is the will of the majority of Hong Kong’s society,” said Chow. “Most Hong Kong people want the police to make their move and clear up the [occupied] roads in an appropriate time.”

Chow said Lamb told him that the government would decide when to clear the sit-in, and that authorities would eventually resolve the deadlock.

Demonstrators in Hong Kong, a former British territory that returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a framework known as “one country, two systems,” have taken to the streets to demand open nominations of candidates for the chief executive’s election in 2017. But China’s central government in Beijing has rejected such a framework, insisting that all candidates be approved by a special committee.

A core group of demonstrators remains encamped around government headquarters in the Admiralty district, with smaller groups in the Mong Kok and Causeway Bay areas. But the protesters seem to be at a loss for what to do next.

Protest leaders have started talking with sympathetic lawmakers in the territory’s legislature about the possibility of a group resignation in order to trigger a by-election.

Advocates say such a move would essentially provide a referendum on protesters’ demands. But several Hong Kong officials have dismissed the idea as no way to solve the political crisis.

Hui is a special correspondent.