This is a fantastic personal account of what's going on. I really appreciate that she's not making a huge deal about the triads and being overtly bitter about it, and focusing on the students themselves.
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Photos from day 6. Sweat, blood, and tears. What's happening, friends ask, from faraway. What's happening will make your heart bleed for us. Anti-Occupy thugs descended upon Mongkok this day, wreaking havoc and causing a maelstrom of violence, threatening to sexually harass female protestors (these are but young girls, mostly students), in attempts to rouse anger and instill fear. Scuffles ensued. There was blood. Cries for justice were unheard as the police stood on by and watched, no action from their side. My cousin Lucky helped form a citizen vigilante team, encircling thugs, demanding police arrest. Lucky saw the *same* thugs released around the corner with not so much as a pat on the back. Reports streamed in, police were even politely escorting these thugs into cabs, the outrage!! Firsthand accounts, videos, photos of police rallying "Blue Ribbon" strong arm support meant only one thing: Beijing had shifted its strategy. And this one's as old as Sun-Tzu's "Art Of War". These "Blue Ribbon" thugs from the triad (and off the street, some appeared to be addicts taken from the methadone clinic) were hired by Mainland forces, the CCP. Playing dirty. But cover their tracks they did not: circulating online was a breakdown of the dollars that these thugs would earn for their dog work. Peaceful protestors could hold on no longer. We've lost Mongkok, retreat! They asked us to fortify Admiralty, the main site, regroup, and come up with counter insurgency measures to better protect our students. We could no longer guarantee their safety. The Hong Kong Federation of Students expressed they would NOT negotiate with the government under these conditions, feeling betrayed. Hong Kong now had a taste of Mainland brutality. Instead of feeding our fears we decided to feed the students hearty, healthy meals donated by a local restaurant gathered by Daniel, Dylan and I. The downpour had protestors in ponchos sat in puddles, huddled under bridges, unconcerned about their own welfare, they were even hesitant to take our food, saying: "Give it to those who need it more than me." I have never seen such selflessness in Hong Kong. A group of students waved us over, pointing at a friend who was lying supine, saying: "Give it to him, please, he hasn't eaten in days." We passed off a box of chicken salad to this pale boy, under an umbrella canopy. Finally, more arms reached for food, and they even broke in cheer as we left. They were so grateful. Their main fare had been dry biscuits. "It's delicious", a women turned to me and said, "Thank you." Once we were done passing food around (as if karma was instantaneous), we were fed sausages made by the famous BBQ guys doing their rounds. No tear gas, just BBQ smoke in the air. There were some other small battles we won that evening, like the expelling of triad agents in our midst at Admiralty's main protest site, but the night was a long, dark one. When we left there were still calls for first aid reinforcements, as Admiralty prepared for the worse. It is darkest before dawn. We need to keep the faith. May the world come to our aid, may these voices be heard. "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." Martin Luther King, Jr.
LOVE over fear, always.
Stay rooted in your truth, HONG KONG."
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Yan Sham-Shackleton Online 