Eleven weeks of unrest, more than 2,000 rounds of tear gas, - these are the important numbers of the Hong Kong protests so far, as the city gears up for another day of mass protest.
But as the protests move towards the end of their third month - with no signs of slowing down - and hundreds of Chinese army vehicles appear near the Hong Kong border, ?
While the unrest first began in response to a now dropped extradition bill that would allow people from Hong Kong to face trial in China, protesters are now demanding something bigger.
They're demanding democracy.
A man reacts as policemen with riot gears ask him to move during a protest in Hong Kong. Source: AP
To this end, the protesters have issued five formal demands:
- the complete withdrawal of the proposed extradition bill
- the removal of the use of “riot” concerning the protests
- the release of arrested protesters
- an inquiry into alleged police brutality
- and, genuine universal suffrage
Hong Kong-born international student and Jared Fu told SBS News the current protests could be seen as a continuation of the 2014 umbrella movement, a sit-in protest that saw more than 100,000 protesters gather in the streets at any one time in opposition to proposed restrictions on Hong Kong’s electoral system.
“First Hong Kong protesters, their demands were really simple. They just wanted a full withdrawal of the extradition bill amendment and they wanted Carrie Lam [the Chief Executive of Hong Kong] to step down and be held accountable,” Mr Fu, 20, said.
Protesters stage a sit-in rally at Hong Kong's airport on Tuesday. Source: AP
“But now the movement has evolved into a call for genuine democracy, for universal suffrage, which Hong Kong, unfortunately, could not achieve in 2014 due to the last administration's ignorance and oppression.”
According to Dr Lai-Ha Chan, an expert on China at the University of Technology Sydney and former employee of the Hong Kong government, the protesters don’t want anything that they didn’t previously have.
“They simply want to ask for something they have been holding, they have been growing up with for a very long time, to not be taken away,” she told SBS News, referencing Hong Kong’s freedoms.
“What they want is to keep the autonomy of Hong Kong and keep Beijing’s promise of ‘one country, two systems’.”
While there is a small group of people calling for complete independence from China, Dr Chan said it was not fair to say they represent the majority of protesters.
How the protests started
On 9 June, protest organisers estimate that one million people took to the streets in Hong Kong in peaceful opposition to the extradition bill.
The protesters, who wore white, used social media to connect and show up on mass.
Protesters march along a downtown street against the extradition law on June 9. Source: AP
While China and Hong Kong have technically been one country since 1997, when the region was handed back by Britain, the two regions operate under separate legal systems.
Because of their unique history, much of it under British rule, many people from Hong Kong do not see themselves as Chinese.
They also enjoy privileges not offered to those on mainland China, like freedom of assembly.
“Because of Hong Kong's over 150 years of British colonisation or governance, it has given Hong Kongers a different liberal kind of value system,” Mr Fu said.
Riot police fire tear gas near a shopping center. Source: SIPA USA
The extradition bill gave rise to fears that Hong Kong’s separation from China was threatened, after years of what Hong Kongers saw as the Chinese government gradually attempting to take away their autonomy.
“In Hong Kong, we can’t say that we have a full democratic system because some of the politicians they were not elected by the citizens, but we have half the characteristics of a democracy, like freedom of speech, freedom of expression and most importantly the independent judicial system,” Dr Chan said.
“Independent judicial system - that is the root of this conflict because of the view that if they pass the bill, that means our judicial system will be integrating into the Chinese system. That is not what Hong Kong people want.”
Riot policemen face off with resident at Sai wan Ho. Source: AP
The day after the 9 June protest, the Hong Kong government vowed to push ahead with the bill despite the huge opposition. Two days after that, police fired rubber bullets and 150 canisters of tear gas at protesters - marking the beginning of the city’s largest and most violent protest in decades.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam eventually after more violent protests - but it was too late.
According to organisers, another two million protesters gathered on the streets for the second time in a week, leading to a written apology from Ms Lam.
In the weeks since, protesters have continued to take to the streets, debilitating the city’s public transport networks and most recently forcing hundreds of flights to be cancelled.
‘There is no turning back’
Despite alarm from around the world to the release of images appearing to show up to five hundred , just across the harbour from Hong Kong, Dr Chan believes it is unlikely China will launch a military attack on the protesters.
“I’m not optimistic about the situation and what will happen, but if you are thinking about whether or not the army or PLA will intervene in Hong Kong, I think it’s unlikely the Chinese government will do that because the cost to Beijing will be too big,” she said.
A satellite image captured on Monday appears to show Chinese security force vehicles in Shenzen. Source: Getty
“The whole world is looking.”
Dr Chan believes the violence will increase, however, as the Chinese central government puts increased pressure on the Hong Kong government and police force to “finish the job”.
But as experts and world leaders place their bets on how and when the protests will come to an end, Hong Kongers in the Sydney expat community remain divided.
Richard, who was born in Hong Kong but is now an Australian citizen, was brought to tears talking about the unrest in his home country, which he believes will end “like Tiananmen Square”.
"I feel bad for the future, I can't see any future for Hong Kong. You just can't imagine the CCP will [take their] hands off Hong Kong,” he told SBS News.
Others remained optimistic that a peaceful solution would be found.
"The whole world is looking at Hong Kong right now, so I think in a way, it's a success," university student Jonathon said.
"We stand with them, but it's hard for us because we are overseas at the moment."
Jonathon grew up in Hong Kong but moved to Australia when he was in high school. Despite his optimism, he said often he can't sleep due to concerns for the people protesting and his friends back home.
"It's definitely heavy because we have plenty of friends from Hong Kong and every night we just can't sleep sometimes," he said.
Mr Fu doesn't know what the future holds for Hong Kong but also said he didn’t believe it was up to the protesters to answer the question of what happens next.
“I think the government should be answering this question,” he said.
A protester holds a placard reads "Democracy now" during the demonstration in the airport. Source: SIPA USA
Many, including Dr Chan, now believe Ms Lam is not in a position to answer the demands of the protesters or make any big decisions herself because she is under the control of the Chinese Communist Party.
When asked by a journalist on Thursday whether she had the power to entirely withdraw the extradition bill, Ms Lam did not answer.
“We are still capable of resolving this crisis,” she told reporters.
“In response to the various demands we have heard, we have considered all factors.”
On whether the threat of the PLA assembled near Hong Kong’s border would lead to protesters backing down, Mr Fu said he didn’t see that as an option.
“The moment Carrie Lam's administration, or an extension of her administration - the Chinese government - decided to ignore one million people and then proceeded to use the police as a way of violently suppressing peaceful protesters, since that moment there is no turning back,” he said.
