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Hong Kong protests: is there a silent majority yearning to speak out but intimidated by violence?
- Constant demonstrations and anti-police graffiti have become pervasive in the city, drowning out criticism of the recent movement
- Residents writing to the Post say they feel silenced by the dominant pro-protest narrative
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To all appearances, the civil unrest gripping Hong Kong seems all-pervasive, all-encompassing, giving the impression that almost the entire population could be rising up against the government.
Anti-China and anti-government protest slogans are plastered and spray-painted across the city, posters and graffiti abusing the police have become part of the landscape, and people can take to the streets in significant numbers at any time, defying bans on wearing masks at public assemblies and unafraid of participating in gatherings deemed illegal.
Voices in support of the protests, and against the police in particular over allegations of excessive use of force, tend to drown out any open condemnation of the lawless and violent aspects of the anti-government movement.
That could even suggest mass support among the peaceful majority of protesters for the radical minority who regularly block roads, attack police with petrol bombs and bricks, trash MTR stations, vandalise businesses linked to mainland Chinese interests and assault citizens who challenge them on the streets.
Or could it be that the majority of nearly 7.5 million living in the city are silent, even though they may disapprove of the excesses on the front lines of the movement?
That is the case a number of citizens have been presenting by contacting the Post over the past weeks, saying they want to speak out but feel intimidated because of the dominant pro-protest narrative on the streets.
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