China appears unwilling to compromise in Hong Kong, as an official says punishment for those behind weeks of sometimes violent protests in the Chinese special administrative region is 'only a matter of time.'
A pro-democracy lawmaker in Hong Kong says protesters should target the city government rather than police officers who are “caught in the middle.”
Protesters in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory have increasingly challenged riot police who have employed tear gas to force defiant demonstrators to disperse. Protesters taking part in a general strike Monday started fires outside police stations and vandalized public property. The comments Tuesday by Yang Guang, spokesman for the Chinese Cabinet’s Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, appear to indicate Beijing will take a hard line against the protests and has no plans to open a dialogue on their demands for political reforms.
Yang also called on Hong Kong citizens to turn on the protesters by refusing to accept their promotional materials and opposing disruptions to public transport.Hong Kong protesters have condemned what they call the government’s “empty rhetoric” and instances of alleged police abuse in an inaugural “People’s Press Conference.”