HK protesters urged to stop occupying roads

HONG KONG - The Occupy Central protests has entered their forth week, causing more impatience among the members of the public in China's Hong Kong, with district councilors presenting a co-signed open letter to demand resumption of social order.

Mong Kok, an offshoot site across the Victoria Harbor from the main demonstration area in Admiralty where the Government Headquarters is located, was relatively quiet on Sunday evening, comparing to the previous nights.

Violent clashes between protesters and police were seen on Friday and Saturday night, leaving dozens of people injured, including 22 police officers; four people were arrested for assault.

About 400 district councilors from all 18 districts in Hong Kong jointly signed an open letter on Monday, urging student-led protesters who have been blocking key thoroughfares in various busy districts since Sept 28, to retreat to have the city's social order restored.

The councilors expressed their respect for the students' wish for a better Hong Kong, as well as the hope that they could also consider the serious effect of their occupation on people's lives and economic activity, local media reported.

Occupy Central organizers were sued on Monday, when a restaurant owner and a supermarket proprietor filed claims in the Small Claims Tribunal against them, saying the movement had caused losses to their business. The cases will be heard on Dec 10.

Meanwhile, a group of taxi drivers also sought for banning the protesters from blocking the roads. They filed an application in the High Court for an injunction to seek an order to prohibit participants in the ongoing movement from occupying roads in Mong Kok.

Chief Secretary Carrie Lam announced last week that the city's government is going to have formal talks with representatives of the students participating in Occupy movement this Tuesday.

Convenor of the Executive Council W K Lam said on Monday that it was too ambitious to expect government officials and student representatives to reach an agreement on political reform during the meeting. But he hoped the two sides could agree on a platform for continuing the talks while restoring social order in Hong Kong.

Lam added that he was sure that Beijing was fully aware of the views of Hong Kong people on constitutional development.

Chief Superintendent of Police Public Relations Branch Hui Chun- tak on Monday told a press briefing that clashes in Mong Kok are likely to escalate into riots, urging protesters to stop expanding the protest areas.

He also condemned those who brought along their children to the protest area in Mong Kok. He also warned that those who make use of the internet to stir up others to involve in unlawful activities should be ready for the criminal consequences of their actions.

Thousands of protesters, most of whom are students, joined the Occupy Central movement to express their discontent with the framework set by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on electing the region's next leader through universal suffrage.

Under Hong Kong's Basic Law and the top legislature's decisions, more than 5 million Hong Kong voters could have a say to who will become the chief executive in 2017 through the "one man, one vote" election, which had never been realized under the British colonial rule.