Silver linings amid fear, anguish

DEVIATION INTO VIOLENCE

Protesters involved in the occupation at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University as well as subsequent clashes with police have deviated far from the protests' original intent, said a young protester who was involved in the chaos in November.

In an exclusive interview with Ta Kung Pao, a Chinese-language newspaper published in Hong Kong, 21-year-old protester Hak Tsai (not his real name) said he had heard from other front-line protesters that rioters were paid to conduct violent acts.

Hak Tsai said he participated in the occupation, during which thousands of radical protesters used the campus as a stronghold to launch assaults on police officers with such lethal weapons as gasoline bombs, bows and arrows, metal balls and bricks. Police officers who retook the campus discovered about 4,000 gasoline bombs and a large number of other dangerous items that radical protesters had left behind.

Hak Tsai, who acted as a sentry at one entrance of PolyU to watch for police, said he used a walkie-talkie to provide updates on police deployments to a person he did not know, who would only answer, "Copy that."

When he and some other protesters said there was no equipment to use and they wanted to leave the campus, one protester in his 30s prevented them from leaving and gave them a bucket of equipment, Hak Tsai said.

"He asked us to attack and clash with the police, which I totally did not want to do. I was scared." Hak Tsai said he refused the request and escaped with the others.

Hak Tsai said he was apolitical until a demonstration on June 9 to protest the now-withdrawn extradition amendment bill aroused his curiosity. After June 12, the first time he experienced tear gas, he often participated in illegal assemblies and gradually turned from a peaceful, rational and nonviolent protester to a supporter of the "warriors", the term violent protesters use to describe themselves.

"It's easy to be moved (by the feeling of unity) on the front line," Hak Tsai said. He added the atmosphere at the scene made it easy to rush to the front line and commit crimes without giving it any thought.

Hak Tsai said he refused to hurl gasoline bombs, though fellow rioters repeatedly tried to persuade him to do so.

He said he had heard from front-line protesters that those who hurled gasoline bombs could earn HK$8,000 ($1,030) a day, while those who attacked police officers could earn HK$10,000.

Hak Tsai conceded there has been no line drawn between peaceful, rational and nonviolent protesters and the "warriors".

"I think they have deviated too far from the original intention," he said.