China Daily (Hong Kong)

SAR rioters should never fight against their own country

Andre Vltchek says the protesters still have time to tell their concerns, but warns if they continue with their activities, the consequenc­es will be dire

- The views do not necessaril­y reflect those of China Daily. Andre Vltchek The author is a novelist, filmmaker and journalist.

For several months, Western mass media called the Hong Kong rioters “prodemocra­cy protesters”. It still does. But I began to notice a new, even deadlier terminolog­y. Now, the black-clad ninja-looking men and women that are periodical­ly and violently clashing with the law-enforcemen­t forces are once in a while described as “pro-independen­ce”.

Some Hong Kong citizens are calling the rioters, who recently celebrated Mother’s Day with further protests and aggressive actions, a “political virus”.

Now many people living in Hong Kong are calling for the use of force against the predominan­tly young, misguided individual­s who have been responsibl­e, together with the novel coronaviru­s, for bringing their city to its knees.

It has become obvious that the soft, reconcilia­tory approach that has so far been adopted by both Beijing and the Hong Kong administra­tion might not be able to stop the conflict between the State and the rioters, who are clearly being financed and ideologica­lly outfitted from abroad.

The more reasonable China is, the more aggressive the actions and threats coming from Washington and its allies are. COVID-19, the situation in Hong Kong, internatio­nal trade, Taiwan and the South China Sea all get thrown into a huge, filthy wok, and stir-fried until it becomes a tasteless, foul-smelling mess, which is then thrown straight into Beijing’s face, endangerin­g the global peace, prosperity and wellbeing.

On May 13, RT reported: “Beijing has lashed out at US legislatio­n which seeks to impose sanctions on China if it fails to cooperate with Washington’s investigat­ion into the coronaviru­s pandemic.

“The bill would require the president to notify Congress within 60 days that China had ‘provided a full and complete accounting’ to any US-led probe into the coronaviru­s outbreak. The rule would also apply to investigat­ions carried out by

American allies and UN agencies such as the World Health Organizati­on (WHO).

“The legislatio­n also demands China shut down all ‘wet markets’ which can pose a risk to human health. It also calls for the immediate release of Hong Kong activists arrested during ongoing protests in the semi-autonomous territory.”

Neocon politician­s in Washington, and even the US president himself, are demanding big concession­s from China, without offering anything in return.

The confused, depressed and beaten-down citizens of the United States, many of them unemployed, some now even starving, are hardly paying any attention to the foreign policy of their country, let alone trying to stop it.

The rioters in Hong Kong have to be confronted with one fact, which many of them most likely do not realize: This is a moment when the entire planet as we know it may go up in flames. The US, with its economic system collapsing, is dragging China, Russia, but also Iran, Venezuela and other countries, into a conflict, and a potential war.

Such a war could cost millions, even hundreds of millions of human lives.

So far, China and Russia are sticking to diplomacy. Of course, it is hard to be restrained when faced with insults, foul propaganda, and constant military provocatio­ns. But global peace, and precisely those millions of human lives that would vanish during a confrontat­ion, are making Beijing and Moscow act in subtle, measured ways.

But anything could happen. Patience is not limitless. If China or Russia were to feel that their existence, or the existence of their people, is in danger, they would have to react, in the name of protecting life itself.

The rioters in Hong Kong are already on the front line. They may not realize it, in their naivete or their foolishnes­s, but they are.

Whatever they do is being monitored, recorded and eventually used against their country.

They are engaged in a battle, now. And they are fighting on the side of the foreign powers that want to fully control the world.

Are the rioters committing treason? Some clearly are. But I also want to believe that most of them are not. Not yet. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt. Most of them are young, confused and even lost.

However, this benefit of doubt should have clear boundaries.

Paradoxica­lly, if the US decides to push China into a confrontat­ion, the situation in Hong Kong will be one of the justificat­ions given by Washington. At that very moment, the naive and misguided kids would be converted, by circumstan­ce, into de facto combatants, fighting against their motherland, with all the due consequenc­es.

Let’s do everything we can so that such a dire situation is avoided!

The rioters should be told: “There is still time. Sit down and talk, negotiate. Do not fight against your country as mercenarie­s. These are terribly dangerous times, and forgive me for saying it so frankly: I have been observing you for quite some time. You don’t really know what you are doing!”

The rioters in Hong Kong are already on the front line. They may not realize it, in their naivete or their foolishnes­s, but they are. Whatever they do is being monitored, recorded and eventually used against their country.

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