tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/extradition-bill-72118/articlesExtradition bill – The Conversation2020-06-04T12:27:13Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1396422020-06-04T12:27:13Z2020-06-04T12:27:13ZWhy Hong Kong’s untold history of protecting refugee rights matters now in its struggle with China<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339614/original/file-20200603-130907-13k3scv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5000%2C3308&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters in Hong Kong during demonstrations against China's draft bill to impose national security laws on the semi-autonomous territory. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/protesters-gesture-the-five-demands-sign-during-news-photo/1214941174?adppopup=true">Ivan Abreu/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>New <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/28/world/asia/china-hong-kong-crackdown.html">national security measures</a> proposed by China would significantly undermine the rule of law in Hong Kong, limiting freedom of speech, restricting the right to due process and curtailing other basic civil liberties. The stakes are high for the Hong Kong people, who’ve been fiercely defending their <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/27/world/asia/why-are-hong-kong-protesters.html">autonomy from the Chinese government</a> for years. </p>
<p>The greater respect for human rights and the rule of law that distinguishes this former British colony from mainland China stems, in part, from a little known chapter of Hong Kong’s history.</p>
<p>Between 1975 and 1997, almost 200,000 <a href="http://vietnameseboatpeople.hk/">Vietnamese sought refuge in Hong Kong</a>, fleeing from their communist government. The majority were eventually resettled in the United States, Canada and Australia, but <a href="https://www.routledge.com/The-Chinese-Vietnamese-Diaspora-Revisiting-the-boat-people/Chan/p/book/9780415704816">tens of thousands were stuck in Hong Kong camps</a>, often for years, waiting for their asylum claims to be processed. </p>
<p>Some Vietnamese activists in the camps accused Hong Kong of violating their human rights. In making their case in court, they actually helped define the terms of Hong Kong’s current struggle with China. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339605/original/file-20200603-130955-17y3k95.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Street demonstrations against China’s new security law in Hong Kong, May 24, 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/after-firing-teargas-towards-demonstrators-police-charge-to-news-photo/1216521574?adppopup=true">Tommy Walker/NurPhoto via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>‘Please help the boat people!’</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520343665/in-camps">“Have you ever lived under a communist regime?”</a> a Vietnamese man asked <a href="https://www.unhcr.org/">United Nations</a> officials in July 1989, when huge numbers of Vietnamese were arriving in Hong Kong. </p>
<p>“Look at the T.A.M.” he added, referring to the <a href="https://www.amnesty.org.uk/china-1989-tiananmen-square-protests-demonstration-massacre">Tiananmen Square Massacre</a>. </p>
<p>Weeks before, on June 4, 1989, Chinese soldiers had killed student protesters en masse at Tiananmen Square. For the man, who had just arrived in Hong Kong, citing this grim example to UN human rights officials in an effort to get refugee status must have seemed strategic. </p>
<p>Aware that Hong Kong people would be observing the crackdown in communist China, the Vietnamese might have imagined the government there would understand why he had fled a communist country. </p>
<p>Even as Hong Kong received an influx of Vietnamese people in the late 1980s, Great Britain was actually negotiating the return of the territory it <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-anniversary-history/chronology-timeline-of-156-years-of-british-rule-in-hong-kong-idUSSP27479920070627">had acquired in the 1840s</a> back to China. Hong Kong people worried they would lose their economic and political freedoms in that transition. </p>
<p>Their concern about life under communist rule did not, however, translate into much sympathy for the Vietnamese arrivals. Many Hong Kong people <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24491756?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents">resented that Vietnamese had been welcome as refugees</a> simply because they fled communism, when unauthorized Chinese border crossers were promptly returned back to China. </p>
<p>In 1988 Hong Kong changed its asylum determination process, requiring Vietnamese claimants to prove that they had faced targeted political persecution back home. This is what led to the lengthy detentions of thousands – and, consequently, to allegations of human rights violations.</p>
<p>As negotiations around the 1997 handover progressed, Vietnamese activists in the camps led <a href="https://hongkongfp.com/2017/01/01/hkfp-history-brief-history-hong-kongs-notorious-whitehead-refugee-detention-centre/">dozens of protests</a>, hunger strikes and <a href="https://calisphere.org/item/ark:/13030/hb4f59n8hh/">demonstrations</a>. In tense standoffs within the camps, Vietnamese shouted, “Protest against forced repatriation! Protest against the violation of human rights! The people of Hong Kong, please help the boat people!” </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339611/original/file-20200603-130917-1ig5ywd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Vietnamese who were refused entry into Macau arrived at Hong Kong’s Government Pier in Sheung Wan, June 1978.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/vietnamese-refugees-who-were-refused-entry-into-macau-news-photo/1092905308?adppopup=true">Yau Tin-kwai/South China Morning Post via Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>Habeas corpus</h2>
<p>As I recount in my new book, “<a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520343665/in-camps">In Camps: Vietnamese Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Repatriates</a>,” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/2002/apr/27/guardianobituaries">legal advocates for the Vietnamese</a> brought dozens of lawsuits before Hong Kong’s courts in the 1990s, pointing out the flaws in the asylum process. </p>
<p>Finally, in 1995, Hong Kong-based lawyers devised a new strategy to free clients who were still in limbo. They began filing <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/habeas_corpus">habeas corpus petitions</a>, invoking a bedrock principle in western law that protects individuals from indefinite detention or being detained without knowing the charges. </p>
<p>In one habeas motion, Hong Kong human rights lawyers representing three Vietnamese families who had been detained for more than four years said this was an “extraordinary” amount of time, and argued that the Hong Kong government must release their clients. </p>
<p>Pointing to the rapidly approaching handover to China, the lawyers told the <a href="https://www.scmp.com/">South China Morning Post</a> that the case had implications for “the future of civil liberties for everyone in Hong Kong after 1997.”</p>
<p>If Hong Kong leaders wanted guarantees that its people <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3017318/explainer-what-sino-british-joint-declaration-and-what-does">would maintain their civil and economic liberties</a> under Chinese rule, the lawyers suggested, the fact that Hong Kong itself was holding people “in administrative custody indefinitely” could set a dangerous precedent.</p>
<p>“Habeas corpus is not available in China,” a senior lecturer at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nihal_Jayawickrama">Hong Kong University</a> elaborated in Hong Kong’s English-language media. “With regard to what’s happening across the border, it’s something we should guard very jealously.”</p>
<p>In March 1996, the high court for the colonies <a href="https://www.casemine.com/judgement/uk/5b2898022c94e06b9e19edb9">ruled in favor</a> of the Vietnamese. It ordered the Hong Kong government to release over 200 Vietnamese. </p>
<p>“It’s a victory for people in Hong Kong as much as the people detained,” lead attorney Rob Brook said of the decision. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/339619/original/file-20200603-130912-1j7pxvb.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Vietnamese protest at a Hong Kong detention camp, 1990.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://calisphere.org/clip/500x500/cca6b9cd35c4a913bc323e40ab6c5408">Online Archive of California/UC Irvine, Southeast Asian Archive</a></span>
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<h2>Protecting the marginalized helps everyone</h2>
<p>Coming down so close to the July 1, 1997, handover of Hong Kong to China, the Vietnamese victory inadvertently solidified the rule of law in Hong Kong, leaving habeas corpus protections stronger than they had been before. </p>
<p>Today, habeas corpus and other legal rights are at the heart of Hong Kong’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/hong-kong-protests-against-extradition-bill-spurred-by-fears-about-long-arm-of-china-118539">ongoing protests</a> against <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/29/world/asia/hong-kong-protest-future-china.html">Chinese efforts to assert greater control over the territory</a>. Among the pro-democracy activists <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/18/world/asia/hong-kong-arrests.html">arrested this year</a> was Margaret Ng, a Hong Kong politician who more than 20 years ago <a href="https://www.scmp.com/article/195274/our-freedoms-must-be-writ-large">wrote eloquently</a> about the relationship between the rights of Vietnamese asylum seekers and Hong Kong’s civil liberties. </p>
<p>The case of the Vietnamese asylum-seekers is relevant, too, beyond Hong Kong’s current struggle with China. It demonstrates how fighting for the rights of a vulnerable minority in any country creates protections and civil liberties enjoyed by all. </p>
<p>[<em>Like what you’ve read? Want more?</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=likethis">Sign up for The Conversation’s daily newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139642/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jana Lipman does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The cherished legal rights that Beijing seeks to suppress in Hong Kong were established, in part, by Vietnamese asylum-seekers who fought for their freedom in court in the 1980s.Jana Lipman, Associate Professor of History, Tulane UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1240072019-09-30T19:45:26Z2019-09-30T19:45:26ZWith no end in sight and the world losing interest, the Hong Kong protesters need a new script<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/294725/original/file-20190930-185403-74dmjl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=255%2C14%2C1568%2C953&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Over the last 100 days, the violence between the police and students has escalated in Hong Kong.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jerome Favre/EPA</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Today is the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and protesters in Hong Kong intend to upstage Beijing’s celebrations. They will build on the global solidarity protests from the past weekend, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/09/thousands-asia-pacific-march-solidarity-hong-kong-190929093753935.html">staged in 60 cities across the world, including in Australia</a>. </p>
<p>On Sunday in Hong Kong, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ugly-clashes-as-hong-kong-protesters-battle-police-ahead-of-china-anniversary-11569756811">tens of thousands took to the streets</a> even though no protest permits were granted by the police. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-protests-idUSKBN1WE027">Riot control weapons</a> were deployed against the protesters and those near the protests were subject to random searches.</p>
<p>While it might look like these are the same kind of protests that have dominated global headlines for months, Hong Kong is changing. It is moving closer towards crisis. The local government’s previous strategy of “wait them out” is failing, and advised by mainland Chinese officials, the government is <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3024980/hong-kong-brink-declaring-emergency-rule-deal-anti">exploring legal tools - like the state of emergency provisions - as a response</a>.</p>
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<p>Over the past 100 days, the violence between police and students has escalated. Always an asymmetric war, students initially responded in self-defence - using umbrellas, helmets and masks to hold their position on the streets. </p>
<p>As the police’s weapons have become more excessive - tear gas fired in train stations, rubber bullets shot into faces, sponge grenades, water cannons - the students’ responses have become increasingly indignant. They have engaged in targeted actions like street fires, petrol bombs and vandalism to public infrastructure and government sites, like the city’s mass transit system. </p>
<p>Two weeks ago, police representatives argued that <a href="https://www.hongkongfp.com/2019/09/16/hong-kong-police-group-warns-live-ammo-may-used-protesters-throw-petrol-bombs/">live ammunition was justified</a> in response to Molotov cocktails. About the same time, the protesters collectively decided to fight back against police, and not just use self-defence. </p>
<p>It is spiralling. So, where does this end?</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/hong-kong-is-one-of-the-most-unequal-cities-in-the-world-so-why-arent-the-protesters-angry-at-the-rich-and-powerful-123866">Hong Kong is one of the most unequal cities in the world. So why aren't the protesters angry at the rich and powerful?</a>
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<h2>Maintaining local support</h2>
<p>The Hong Kong police have tried to turn off the tap of mass support to the young protesters, who are called the Braves. Initially they used images of property damage or acts of aggression on television and social media to try to sway public opinion against the younger members of the movement.</p>
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<p>More recently, they’ve shut down the right to mass protest. The police have been increasingly denying permits to protest, limiting the space where people can protest, or revoking permission within hours of a march starting. </p>
<p>None of these tactics has worked. Most Hong Kongers continue to support the “five demands” and the protest movement, while disapproving of Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s handling of the situation. (<a href="https://www.pori.hk/pori_release20190924_eng">Her approval rating now sits at just 24.9%</a>). </p>
<p>Most older residents feel they have let the young generation down. They not only support the Braves, many are also part of <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/you-dont-have-to-face-it-alone-hong-kong-protests-propelled-by-hidden-support-network-11568989967">growing support networks</a> providing them with assistance. For example, drivers pick up stranded protesters around the city and volunteers set up makeshift underground hospitals for students afraid to use state-run services. </p>
<h2>The perils of self-righteousness</h2>
<p>But there is a problem. The rest of the world is turning away from the weekly battles. The thing that made the protests initially so captivating was their novelty and bravery. But what began as original is now predictable. And this brings danger.</p>
<p>The first danger is increasing violence. The need to hold the world’s attention brings the risk of spiralling into greater violence. There is also a dark recognition that if lethal violence was to occur during a protest - if a protester was shot by live ammunition, for instance, or a brick killed a police officer - it would utterly change the dynamics.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-research-shows-vast-majority-of-hong-kong-protesters-support-more-radical-tactics-122531">New research shows vast majority of Hong Kong protesters support more radical tactics</a>
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<p>The second, less obvious danger lies in self-righteousness. For most protest movements, there is an inherent tension between the ideals and commitment to the ambitious goals that brought people to the streets en masse and the capacity to negotiate with the powerful to achieve them. </p>
<p>This tension is a universal frustration. Protesters are loathe to be considered “sell outs,” but not making a deal risks not winning anything. </p>
<p>The social movement led by Martin Luther King Jr. in the US, for instance, didn’t achieve civil rights in a single boycott. Waves of different movements over decades, using varied protest tactics, and the art of compromise, <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/titles/7294.html">brought change incrementally</a>. Push, negotiate, make a deal – repeated as a pattern for victory.</p>
<p>Every night, Hong Kong protesters shout their motto, “Five demands, not one less”, referring to the five concessions they are demanding from the government. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294735/original/file-20190930-194829-1nsnxhd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The five demands include universal suffrage and an inquiry into the heavy-handed police response to protesters.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jerome Favre/EPA</span></span>
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<p>But this righteous ritual conceals a growing fear. Hong Kongers, including leaders I interviewed, worry that all they could win from this movement is the permanent withdrawal of the controversial extradition bill that sparked the unrest, which <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/04/hong-kong-lam-to-withdraw-extradition-bill-say-reports">they’ve already achieved</a>. </p>
<p>With the end of “one country, two systems” model in sight in 2047, the stakes are high. Locals are terrified they might not get closer to universal suffrage and that Beijing will continue to encroach on their political freedoms. </p>
<p>That said, this isn’t a simple battle - and winning a “deal” that doesn’t provide a pathway to democracy won’t be good enough. It’s all well and good for distant observers to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/17/opinion/hong-kong-protest.html">casually comment</a> that Hong Kongers need to do a deal, but the “five demands” are not an ambit. This was a “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/hong-kong-leader-expected-to-fully-withdraw-extradition-bill-a-demand-of-protesters/2019/09/04/b3ca1dec-cee0-11e9-87fa-8501a456c003_story.html">joint consensus</a>.”</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/trust-me-im-an-expert-why-the-hong-kong-protesters-feel-they-have-nothing-to-lose-122031">Trust Me, I’m An Expert: Why the Hong Kong protesters feel they have nothing to lose</a>
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<p>In contrast to the authoritarianism in China (not to mention elsewhere), Hong Kongers hope they can be a beacon for democracy and enlightenment. <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/taiwan-rallies-for-hong-kong-to-resist-beijings-might-11569767886">Taiwan</a>, for one, is certainly seeing Hong Kong as a source of inspiration in their its battle against Beijing’s push for reunification.</p>
<p>The Braves see it as nothing short of a life or death battle for their identity, and unless they believe they are moving towards a more independent future, they plan to keep fighting. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/294723/original/file-20190930-185407-cdffmb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Tens of thousands of people in Taiwan demonstrated in support of Hong Kongers on Sunday.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ritchie B. Tongo/EPA</span></span>
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<h2>What Hong Kongers can learn from the French Revolution</h2>
<p>So how do you push and negotiate in this context? </p>
<p>Perhaps history can provide some inspiration. In the battle to win democracy in the <a href="https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=22667234725&searchurl=an%3Dmignet%26sortby%3D17%26tn%3Dhistory%2Bfrench%2Brevolution%2B1789%2B1814&cm_sp=snippet-_-srp1-_-title1">French Revolution</a>, for example, two important strategies were prosecuted simultaneously. </p>
<p>In Paris, the protesters fought street battles and built barricades, but the leaders also built for themselves the kind of state they envisioned living in. They constructed their own National Assembly, which advanced the idea of universal male suffrage. </p>
<p>This idea of crafting what is known as a “pre-figurative form” might be useful for Hong Kong. Imagine if Hong Kongers, crippled with an undemocratic Legislative Council, created their own Legislative Assembly - a model for their goal of a parliament elected by everyone. The idea has been tried in Hong Kong before; the Occupy Trio who helped lead the Umbrella movement <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/25/hong-kong-unofficial-pro-democracy-referendum-beijing">held a people’s referendum calling for universal suffrage in 2014</a>.</p>
<p>The natural inertia of any movement means that a continuation of street battles is likely, which ultimately leads to an escalation of violence. However, if the protesters can channel their energy in a more lasting, organised way, they may be able to achieve even more than the “five demands”.</p>
<p>As well as singing their protest anthem, “<a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/do-you-hear-the-people-sing-hong-kong-students-sing-in-protest-at-school-assembly">Do you hear the people sing?</a>”, the protesters should borrow more ideas from successful democracy movements of the past. This may provide new energy to surprise Beijing and sustain the momentum of frustrated Hong Kongers. </p>
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<p>Author Amanda Tattersall hosts the ChangeMakers podcast series which explores the long history of Hong Kong and its protests. The first episode is available here:</p>
<iframe src="https://omny.fm/shows/change-makers/tiananmen-to-the-hong-kong-protests/embed?style=artwork" width="100%" height="180" frameborder="0" title="Tiananmen to the Hong Kong protests"></iframe><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/124007/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amanda Tattersall receives funding from Halloran Trust.</span></em></p>If the protesters can channel their energy in a more lasting, organised way, they may be able to achieve even more than the “five demands”. Could the French Revolution be a source of inspiration?Amanda Tattersall, Postdoc in Urban Geography and Research Lead at Sydney Policy Lab. Host of ChangeMakers Podcast., University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1225312019-09-01T19:48:48Z2019-09-01T19:48:48ZNew research shows vast majority of Hong Kong protesters support more radical tactics<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/290047/original/file-20190829-106512-1bgs0d6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The biggest difference between the current protest movement and the 2014 Umbrella Movement is the striking solidarity among the various groups of demonstrators. Everyone feels they are 'in the same boat' together, new research shows.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Roman Pilipey/EPA</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Three months on, there’s still no end in sight for the Hong Kong protest movement. What started as a demonstration against a bill to amend the city’s extradition laws has now morphed into a broader movement challenging the legitimacy of the government and seeking fundamental political reforms. </p>
<p>Every weekend, hundreds of thousands of protesters – sometimes more than a million – are still taking to the streets. The protests draw Hong Kongers from all walks of life: students, doctors, lawyers, journalists, teachers, civil servants, and, most recently, <a href="https://www.scmp.com/video/hong-kong/3024356/hong-kong-police-relatives-call-inquiry-protest-clashes">family members of police officers</a>. The discussions on internet forums and encrypted messaging apps remain vibrant, with innovative ideas for new protest actions emerging frequently. </p>
<p>To better understand who the protesters are, as well as why and how they are protesting, I’ve conducted a <a href="http://www.com.cuhk.edu.hk/antielabsurvey-eng/">series of large onsite surveys</a> at 19 demonstrations since June 9, with researchers from other universities. We have so far surveyed more than 8,000 protesters with a response rate of over 85%.</p>
<h2>What the protesters are angry about</h2>
<p>Our data show protesters tend to be young and highly educated. On average, half of our respondents are aged between 20 and 30. Around 77% said they had a tertiary (higher) education. </p>
<p>Few said they were unemployed, unlike protesters in other mass demonstrations around the world, like the <a href="https://theconversation.com/fading-hope-why-the-youth-of-the-arab-spring-are-still-unemployed-60588">Arab Spring</a> uprisings and <a href="https://www.thelocal.es/20160514/five-years-on-spains-indignados-have-shaken-up-politics">Spain’s Indignados movement</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/like-shooting-water-why-the-hong-kong-government-must-accept-that-compromise-is-the-only-way-forward-122382">Like 'shooting water': why the Hong Kong government must accept that compromise is the only way forward</a>
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<p>Most respondents identified themselves as either democrats or <a href="https://journals.openedition.org/chinaperspectives/8044">localists</a>. However, in the early stages of the protests, it is also notable that nearly 30% of respondents said that they were centrists or had no political affiliations. This dropped to around 15% by early August.</p>
<p>When asked why they were protesting, the vast majority of respondents (more than 90%) cited two main motivations: the complete withdrawal of the controversial extradition bill and an independent inquiry into excessive use of force by police against the protesters. </p>
<p>Interestingly, from July onwards, police violence has become a more pressing concern for respondents, with those who see it as “very important” rising from 85% to over 95%. Protesters have also increasingly said they are fighting for Hong Kong’s democracy, with those who see it as “very important” rising from 83% to 88%. </p>
<p>The resignation of Chief Executive Carrie Lam and other major officials was considered the least important reason for protesting. This suggests that a change in leadership is not viewed as a solution to the political crisis – unlike in 2003, when half a million people <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/02/world/security-laws-target-of-huge-hong-kong-protest.html">marched against</a> changes to Hong Kong’s national security laws and demanded the resignation of then-leader C.H. Tung. </p>
<p>Instead, the protesters are seeking a fundamental reform of the entire political system. </p>
<p>For many of them, the extradition bill is just the surface of a rotting system. It merely exposes the underlying problems that have been swept under the carpet for many years: the lack of democratic representation in the policy-making and legislative process, the declining accountability of the government, the blatant domination by a small clique of business and pro-Beijing elites, the increasing unimportance of public opinion, and the steady encroachment on people’s political rights and civil liberties.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/290050/original/file-20190829-106504-1w4p1pk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Most of the Hong Kong protesters are young, well-educated and employed.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Roman Pilipey/EPA</span></span>
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<h2>Strong solidarity and acceptance of radical tactics</h2>
<p>These same long-standing problems are what <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/china-quarterly/article/street-politics-in-a-hybrid-regime-the-diffusion-of-political-activism-in-postcolonial-hong-kong/FEF8107574306D4ADC7D65A3D562B2BF">prompted the Umbrella Movement in 2014</a>. But unlike the Umbrella protesters, who were <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14742837.2018.1434501?journalCode=csms20">intensely split over protest tactics</a>, the current protest movement is exhibiting much stronger solidarity and resolution in achieving their demands. </p>
<p>The majority of respondents see themselves as “in the same boat” (that is, sharing the same fate) with one another. More 80% believe the protests should go on if the government refuses to offer anything other than the suspension of the bill. Among them, more than half support escalating the protests.</p>
<p>This extraordinary level of solidarity is striking. Part of this is because people have learned from the mistakes of the Umbrella Movement. Instead of pointing fingers at each another, protesters are this time using the phrase “do not split, do not sever our ties” to deal with conflicts. Misdeeds and transgressions are not condemned, but are now dealt with through collective reflection and friendly reminders. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/trust-me-im-an-expert-why-the-hong-kong-protesters-feel-they-have-nothing-to-lose-122031">Trust Me, I’m An Expert: Why the Hong Kong protesters feel they have nothing to lose</a>
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<p>Fuelling protesters’ solidarity is their strong feeling of desperation. Our survey results show the majority of respondents do not expect any concessions from the government. This has remained steady from early on in the protests, and explains the emergence of slogans like “I want to perish together”. </p>
<p>We also found a high tolerance for the more radical and militant tactics of some of the younger protesters, even among those who consider themselves moderates. </p>
<p>Consistently, over 80% agree that peaceful assembly should combine with confrontational actions to maximize the impact of protests. In June, slightly less than 70% agreed that radical tactics were understandable when the government refuses to listen. That percentage rose to over 90% in the August 4 protests. </p>
<h2>Where the protests are heading</h2>
<p>No one knows what the “endgame” of the Hong Kong protests will be. The government is now hoping that mass arrests, coupled with the new start of the school year and the possible introduction of emergency regulations, may clear out the streets in the next few weeks, ideally before China’s National Day celebrations on October 1. </p>
<p>The strategy may work, but likely only in the short run. If the Hong Kong government continues to refuse to heed what people are legitimately asking for, the people will undoubtedly return to the streets. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-chinese-and-hong-kong-students-clash-in-australia-the-patriotic-v-the-protest-movement-122405">Why Chinese and Hong Kong students clash in Australia: the patriotic v the protest movement</a>
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<p>As <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/power-in-movement/E9FC85E59075F0705549710D6A8BD858">research</a> from other social movement studies has taught us, protests take place in cycles. The current protest movement in Hong Kong may eventually quiet down after a while, but another one may be brewing on the horizon. </p>
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<p><em>The other researchers in the team include Francis Lee from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Gary Tang from Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, and Edmund Cheng from the City University of Hong Kong.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122531/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Samson Yuen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A survey of 8,000 Hong Kong protesters shows that participants increasingly feel that radical protests are the most effective way to make the government heed public opinion.Samson Yuen, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Lingnan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1185912019-06-13T04:26:42Z2019-06-13T04:26:42ZHong Kong in crisis over relationship with China – and there does not appear to be a good solution<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/279281/original/file-20190613-32321-17twegn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mass pro-democracy demonstrations over recent days have underscored the fact that Hong Kong residents are fearful of creeping mainland control.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/EPA/Vernon Yuen</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When Britain ceded its control of Hong Kong in 1997 – after its 100-year lease expired – concerns were raised that a 50-year “one country, two systems” formula would be insufficient to protect citizens’ rights.</p>
<p>Britain’s last governor of Hong Kong, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/28/i-should-have-done-more-chris-patten-leaving-hong-kong-without-democracy-china">Chris Patten</a>, was among those warning about the risks to the territory’s autonomy under Chinese control.</p>
<p>However, it was argued at the time the “one country, two systems” deal was the best outcome that could be struck under the circumstances.</p>
<p>Twenty-two years later, not quite halfway through a 50-year transition to a notional end to a “two systems” arrangement, it is clear that the relatively benign outcome envisaged in 1997 is under unusual stress.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/12/world/asia/hong-kong-extradition-protest.html">Mass pro-democracy demonstrations</a> over recent days have underscored the fact that Hong Kong residents are fearful of creeping mainland control that will obliterate their relatively unfettered rights under the 1997 formula.</p>
<p>Their immediate concern is an extradition bill, before Hong Kong’s legislature, that would enable Beijing to extradite alleged criminals. The legislation invites understandable <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/13/hong-kong-protests-extradition-carrie-lam-riot-police">concerns that it could be misused</a> to secure the extradition to the mainland of China’s critics under the pretext these individuals had engaged in criminal activity.</p>
<p>Hong Kong’s relatively free media are alarmed at threats to press freedom inherent in the bill.</p>
<p>Beijing has done little to assuage these concerns. It has accused “foreign forces” of misleading Hong Kongers as part of an attempt to destabilise China.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/thirty-years-on-china-is-still-trying-to-whitewash-the-tiananmen-crackdown-from-its-history-118178">Thirty years on, China is still trying to whitewash the Tiananmen crackdown from its history</a>
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<p>In China, authorities have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/12/street-protesters-dig-in-for-hong-kong-last-battle">blocked foreign news sites</a> to prevent the dissemination of reports and images from the streets of Hong Kong. This is no doubt out of concern that street demonstrations might become contagious on the mainland.</p>
<p>The fact these demonstrations coincided with the <a href="https://theconversation.com/thirty-years-on-china-is-still-trying-to-whitewash-the-tiananmen-crackdown-from-its-history-118178">30th anniversary</a> of the June 6 1989 Tiananmen massacre in which hundreds, if not thousands, died in a government crackdown will have fuelled Beijing’s nervousness about developments in Hong Kong.</p>
<p>What distinguishes the latest mass protests against Chinese attempts to circumvent its 1997 “one country, two systems” undertakings from <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/29/hong-kong-democracy-protests-china-umbrellas-police">protracted disturbances in 2014</a> is that this time it reflects increasing alarm about Beijing’s stealthy attempts to extend its control.</p>
<p>In 2014, demonstrations against Beijing’s violation of its commitment to autonomous local elections lasted months. This was the so-called “umbrella movement”, distinguished by the symbolic carrying of umbrellas by demonstrators.</p>
<p>In 2019, and judging by events characterised by fairly heavy-handed use of tear gas, water cannons and other methods to break up the demonstrations, the authorities have resolved to try to nip in the bud this challenge to Beijing-dominated Hong Kong rule.</p>
<p>Whether this works remains to be seen.</p>
<p>The disturbances pose a challenge to Western governments at a particularly fraught moment in global affairs. Relations between the US and China are on a knife’s edge over <a href="https://theconversation.com/stakes-are-high-as-us-ups-the-ante-on-trade-dispute-with-china-116985">trade and other issues</a>. This includes sales of sophisticated weaponry to Taiwan, tightening sanctions on Iran’s oil exports, moves to bar the telecommunications supplier Huawei from building 5G networks of US allies, including Australia, and a confrontational approach to China in Washington more generally.</p>
<p>Ill will over Hong Kong will not be helpful.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/stakes-are-high-as-us-ups-the-ante-on-trade-dispute-with-china-116985">Stakes are high as US ups the ante on trade dispute with China</a>
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<p>From Australia’s standpoint, the Hong Kong disturbances come at an awkward moment as a newly elected government in Canberra wrestles with China policy.</p>
<p>Foreign Minister Marise Payne’s initial response to events in Hong Kong was <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-06-11/hong-kong-extradition-law-change-petition-in-australia/11198690">too meek</a>. Through a spokesperson, she said:</p>
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<p>The Australian government is taking a close interest in the proposed amendments […]</p>
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<p><a href="https://dfat.gov.au/trade/resources/Documents/hong.pdf">Australia’s interests in Hong Kong</a> deserve something more forthright than this.</p>
<p>Not only does Hong Kong absorb A$11 billion worth of Australian merchandise exports annually, services trade at A$3 billion is significant, and total investment in Australia of A$116 billion puts the former British territory in the top 10 foreign investors.</p>
<p>On top of that, about 100,000 Australians are resident in Hong Kong. This is not a small number in a population of 7.5 million.</p>
<p>While it is true <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2014/09/30/why-hong-kong-remains-vital-to-chinas-economy">Hong Kong is less important</a> economically than it was in 1997, when its GDP was 16% of China’s (it’s now 2%), it still remains an indispensable financial conduit and testing ground for financial reforms.</p>
<p>Hong Kong provided the financial platform for China’s cautious experimentation in its move towards making the yuan a global currency. Hong Kong’s stock exchange is an important vehicle for capital-raising for Chinese companies.</p>
<p>The events of recent days have placed Beijing’s woman in Hong Kong, Carrie Lam, who was selected by Beijing as chief executive two years ago, in an invidious position. If she yields to the protesters and withdraws the extradition law, she will run foul of her controllers in Beijing.</p>
<p>If she pushes ahead in the Legislative Council with the support of 43 pro-Beijing lawmakers out of 70, as she insists she will, she risks further disturbances.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/118591/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tony Walker does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Protestors have taken to the streets over an extradition bill that could see alleged criminals extradicted to China, and Beijing is doing little to assuage their concerns.Tony Walker, Adjunct Professor, School of Communications, La Trobe UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.