Economy, livelihood stranded as HK's Occupy Movement extends to new month(2)

Recently cases of disputes among family members often turn up in newspapers. Some couples broke up because of different standpoints; some friends who had kept friendship for tens of years quarreled for the movement and ended up in enemies.

Secretary for Transport and Housing Cheung Bing-leung said this movement had a great negative impact on Hong Kong's image, which would take its toll on its development and international comparative edge.

As the movement went on, the opposition from Hong Kong residents piled up. An increasing number of people appealed to the occupiers to end the movement as soon as possible.

The Alliance for Peace and Democracy launched a signature campaign amongst all Hong Kong people last Saturday to support the police to restore social order and safeguard rule of law, while demanding the protesters to end the movement.

Hong Kong residents reacted warmly with long queues waiting for signing. Until 7 p.m. on Tuesday, over 980,000 signed.

The protesters occupied roads in Admiralty, Causeway Bay and Mong Kok which had disrupted normal traffic and threw severe impacts on the daily life of Hong Kong people, said Robert Chow, spokesman for the Alliance for Peace and Democracy.

Chow said that signing campaign aims to let the government gain adequate public mandate to support the police enforcing the law.

Seventy percent of respondents didn't support the movement, according to a recent survey conducted by the Hong Kong Research Association. The attitudes the respondents held towards the Occupy movement's organizers and participants worsened further, with 64 percent of the respondents insisting the protesters' acts are " totally unacceptable."

In recent days, the whole Hong Kong society has appealed repeatedly to the protesters to leave the occupied areas as soon as possible. A group of 40 Legco members issued a joint announcement that the protesters should return the occupied roads to the public for Hong Kong's overall interests and its future. Hong Kong deputies to the National People's Congress also called on the protesters to respect rule of law and stop the occupying movement for the interests of Hong Kong.

Hong Kong media also urged the protesters to retreat, claiming a movement cannot last long without the support of the majority of Hong Kong people. The protesters should let the suspended traffic resume and social order restore.

As Lai said, the Hong Kong people have witnessed the movement becoming a dangerous train running out of control.

Hong Kong is a place under rule of law, he said, but the acts of the protesters including defying court rulings and flouting disciplines are undermining the cornerstone of rule of law, which was established by generations of Hong Kong people and has lasted for over 100 years.