Thousands of Hong Kong students go on strike as China restricts voting reforms

Thousands of Hong Kong college and university students boycotted classes Monday to protest against Beijing’s decision to restrict voting reforms, and start a week-long strike that marks the latest phase in the battle for democracy in the southern Chinese city. The strike comes as dozens of the city’s tycoons and business leaders paid a rare group visit to Beijing to meet with China’s communist leaders, who want to bolster support from Hong Kong’s pro-establishment billionaire elites for the central government’s policies on the semi-autonomous city.

We demand the government responds to our call to endorse civil nominations.

Alex Chow, leader of the Hong Kong Federation of Students

Student organisers are dismayed over Beijing’s decision in August to rule out open nominations for candidates under proposed guidelines for the first-ever elections for Hong Kong’s top leader, promised for 2017. Many of the tycoons visiting Beijing are part of a similar body that selects Hong Kong’s leaders. Hong Kong’s democracy battle has led to increasing tension and division, with activists threatening to stage a mass “occupation” of the Asian financial hub’s central business district as early as October 1 as part of a civil disobedience campaign to press their demands.

At the minimum, they (the strikers) can provide a wakeup call to tens of thousands of university and secondary school students in Hong Kong.

Dixon Sing, a political science professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

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