HK protesters' relay hunger strike seen as meaningless

Protesters in Hong Kong have begun a so-called "relay hunger strike" or "28-hour strike," in an attempt to draw public attention to the dwindling Occupy movement and call on the government to resume talks on electoral reform.

After the three protesters from Scholarism, one of the main Occupy student groups, gave up their hunger strike because of health concerns last week, a group of other protesters initiated a separate "relay hunger strike" Saturday. Two people will fast for 28 hours each time and another two will join in on a rotational basis.

One member of Scholarism quit the indefinite fasting Monday night, with only one of the five continuing by press time, according to local media.

The Occupy movement started on September 28.

Hunger strikers have set up a Facebook page to call on more people to support their action. Strikers will fast in a tent outside Hong Kong's government headquarters in the Admiralty district, although they will drink fluids, including electrolyte drinks.

So far, more than 60 people have joined the campaign, according to the Facebook page.

"We want to continue the 28-hour strike until the Hong Kong government is willing to resume talks," said Wong Sin-yi, founder of the campaign, Hong Kong newspaper Ming Bao reported.

One hunger striker, who said his name was Johnson, told Hong Kong media that he wants to show his support for the members of Scholarism, two of whom are still continuing with their strike.

"As an adult, I don't want to see the young generation go on hunger strike while I do nothing," he said.

Some protesters, however, do not agree with the relay hunger strike campaign as they think that it will make no impact on the government and may even create a negative impression on the public.

"Joshua Wong Chi-fung, the leader of Scholarism, fasted for 108 hours but the government did not respond. Now hunger strikers are only fasting for 28 hours, a quarter of the time that Wong managed, so clearly, this won't put any pressure on the government at all," a protester surnamed Lai told the Global Times.

"Also, what's the point of fasting if hunger strikers are allowed to drink electrolyte drinks? This gives the public an impression that protesters fast just for fun and have no determination," he added.

Lawmakers also condemned hunger strikers for using fasting as a means to force the government to change its decision on electoral reform.

"Protesters should not think that they can use hunger strikes to pressure the government to change its decision on the 2017 chief executive election framework. This is stupid and will not draw sympathy from the public," Leung Che-cheung, a Hong Kong lawmaker, told the Global Times.

Another lawmaker, Alice Mak Mei-kuen, also told the Global Times that protesters should be pragmatic about the current political situation and should cease these hunger strikes.

"We clearly understand that protesters want to express their political attitude about electoral reform through fasting. What we need now is to sit down and talk about the electoral reform on the basis of the decision of the National People's Congress (NPC) on August 31," Mak said.

"There is a discussion area on that basis. But if protesters continue to demand open nominations or the withdrawal of the NPC decision, this will be unreasonable and unfair because all procedures prior to the NPC announcement have followed the Basic Law," Leung noted.

He advised that protesters should express their opinions through the upcoming second-round government consultation on electoral reform.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-yin said Saturday that it would be impossible to resume talks if protesters want to restart the political reform from scratch.

"If we have to restart the political reform, it means that we have to deny all our previous efforts since we launched the reform, including the NPC's decision on August 31," he said, adding that such demands reflect that protesters do not understand government operations and Hong Kong's Basic Law.

Leung has also called on the public to be prepared for a full clearance of the streets in the Admiralty district, which is expected to take place within the week.

Wong and fellow students began an indefinite hunger strike last Monday, but Wong halted his 108-hour strike Saturday on the advice of a doctor. Two other Scholarism members, Gloria Cheng Yik-lam and Eddie Ng Man-hin, have been fasting for more than 110 hours.

A temporary injunction covering several streets and roads in Admiralty district became effective Monday.

Bailiffs and police are expected to clear obstructions and prevent protesters from occupying the area this week.