Hong Kong protesters to hold street vote

Hong Kong democracy activists will hold a two-day referendum starting Sunday to gauge protesters’ response to government proposals to end the monthlong street occupation. Protest organizers said late Friday they would register public opinion at the main downtown protest site, where thousands remain camped out, and two other satellite protest zones. Hong Kong’s government has offered to submit a report to the central government noting the protesters’ unhappiness with a Beijing-dictated plan to have a 1,200-person committee screen candidates for the city’s top leader in the inaugural 2017 election. Protesters say the committee is weighted toward the central government’s preferences and should be scrapped or at least reformed to better represent the Asian financial capital of 7.2 million people. Hong Kong officials have also offered to hold regular dialogue with protesters about democratic reforms if they end their occupation of three of the city’s busiest areas. The Hong Kong Federation of Students, one of the main organizers behind the protests, has already rejected the government offer but still called for the Sunday referendum.

Asia-Pacific umbrellarevolution