The HKSAR Government today (October 3) announced that it was taking active measures to engage the protestors in dialogue and, to that end, is doing its utmost to arrange a meeting with student representatives. The Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong (BPA) welcomes the announcement and urges the government to settle on a time and place for holding the meeting as soon as possible.
We firmly believe that calm and rational communication to be the only effective means to narrow differences and break the impasse that has ensnared Hong Kong. It also serves a morally responsible purpose of preventing the present situation from worsening further.
The occupation movement has entered into its sixth day proving that it is of little use in resolving disagreements on political reform. Instead, it has inflicted social and economic distress. In Mongkok, there have been heated exchanges between anti- and pro-occupy protesters who have come to blows over their differences. The situation is particularly worrying because widespread violence has become a distinct possibility.
The BPA implores protesters in the various districts to disperse peacefully as soon as possible to allow order to be restored and to avoid exacerbating an already volatile situation, which could result in unwanted bloodshed. The BPA also calls upon all parties to practice restraint and patience so as to enable the police to maintain social order through the effective enforcement of the law.
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