Violence still mars Hong Kong's luster

On Sunday afternoon, violence returned to Hong Kong's central district as a police-approved gathering in Chater Garden, Central, soon descended into mayhem as some of the masked, black-clad rally participants attacked police officers trying to disperse the crowd. Since June last year, such unsavory scenes have become common in the special administrative region on the weekends.

The Hong Kong police had approved Sunday's rally, but not a march that the organizers had planned, and the police ordered an end to the rally hours before the preapproved finishing time after the violence erupted.

The police are entrusted with the mission to protect and serve, and no civilized society would tolerate such blatant violence against police officers, yet there are those who harbor ill-will toward China, who are only too happy to condemn the police for what they claim is the use of excessive force and praise the rioters for their actions which are destroying Hong Kong's reputation for being one of the safest cities in the world.

And it is not just the city's image that is being marred by the violence, the months of unrest have taken their toll on the economy of the Asian financial hub, especially its tourist and retail sectors. The Hong Kong Tourism Board said on Wednesday that the number of visits to Hong Kong in 2019 witnessed a year-on-year drop of 14.2 percent.

Which of course is having a knock-on effect on people's livelihoods. One Hong Kong newspaper reported last week that 60 small and medium-sized shops planned to close after the Spring Festival's shopping season, which would mean the loss of at least 1,000 jobs.

Hong Kong's image as a vibrant world city was attained through the hard work of generations of Hong Kong residents, whose efforts are being undone and torn apart by the blinkered arrogance of those who offer nothing but violence, prejudice and self-appointed privilege as their vision for Hong Kong's future.

Those who hold Hong Kong dear and truly care for what it rightfully is are not deceived by the brainwashed bravado of those willing to sell Hong Kong's birthright to Washington's agenda out of vainglorious delusions that their actions are somehow noblesse oblige.

Luo Huining, head of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, who reiterated last week the central government's stance that ending violence and chaos, and restoring social order remain the most pressing tasks for the Hong Kong administration, rightfully said that those who cherish Hong Kong will treasure it.

What happened on Sunday shows those radical elements in Hong Kong who still count on the tricks of using violence to advance their manipulated and manipulative agenda do not treasure this pearl of the orient.