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Hong Kong outcry after masked thugs launch attack

54 points by isaaafc 7y ago

nutcracker46 7y ago
The China Klux Klan is alive and strong in Hong Kong, as strong as in any labyrinthine town across the border with the PRC. It is inconvenient, perhaps, but if HK is to enjoy freedom, HK must forcibly defeat and remove those gangsters. Just remember how big the fight really is: the thugs in white shirts exist with the implicit permission of the Party. There is no defeat of triads or chegguan without defeat of the Party thugs in Beijing.
fareesh 7y ago
Sadly this seems to be becoming a common far-left tactic of the police being ordered to stand down while masked assailants attack a crowd of people espousing incorrect opinions.
- malcolmgreaves 7y ago
  Far left? There's no far left actors in this story. China is an authoritarian, single political party country with a mixed socialist and capitalist economy. If you want to link them to a two-dimensional, simplified political spectrum, they're closest to fascism.
- bfrog 7y ago
  I suppose Stalin was far left as well in your mind.
NicoJuicy 7y ago
This is actually smart of mainland China, but it's ethically totally wrong. Trying to sway people's opinions by blaming it on the protestors and forcing their own violent protestors into that group. It's something I haven't thought about before.
- thinkingemote 7y ago
  It's literally the play book of police to infiltrate groups and if necessary cause havoc. This occurs the world over. Some police have rules similar to the rules of entrapment for more embedded actions (see the police in UK green groups recently) where they can't directly cause trouble but they can provoke and supporting. And this is what's documented and legally allowed! Ethically the world thinks it's right. Where it gets shady is where they cross the line. There is often reports of protestors being arrested and showing their badge and going free... Protestor groups do not have strategies to identify infiltrators especially non violent groups. Some groups explicitly allow trouble makers to flourish like the black bloc where everyone wears black and mask to hide any trouble makers.
  - NicoJuicy 7y ago
    Is there a place to read the playbook, if documented?
    - clydethefrog 7y ago
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_provocateur https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_provocateur
hker 7y ago
Thugs-for-hire is actually a common tactic for suppressing dissent in China [1] [2], and was used in the 2014 Umbrella protest [3]. [1]: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322488668_Thugs_and_Outsourcing_of_State_Repression_in_China https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322488668_Thugs_and... [2]: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/thugsforhire-subcontracting-of-state-coercion-and-state-capacity-in-china/C53871B8B259B893E1D0B4E1985B764E https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-poli... [3]: https://www.hongkongfp.com/2018/11/04/chinese-govt-need-hire-thugs-exert-social-control/ https://www.hongkongfp.com/2018/11/04/chinese-govt-need-hire...

54 points by isaaafc 7y ago

The China Klux Klan is alive and strong in Hong Kong, as strong as in any labyrinthine town across the border with the PRC. It is inconvenient, perhaps, but if HK is to enjoy freedom, HK must forcibly defeat and remove those gangsters. Just remember how big the fight really is: the thugs in white shirts exist with the implicit permission of the Party. There is no defeat of triads or chegguan without defeat of the Party thugs in Beijing.

fareesh 7y ago

Sadly this seems to be becoming a common far-left tactic of the police being ordered to stand down while masked assailants attack a crowd of people espousing incorrect opinions.

malcolmgreaves 7y ago
Far left? There's no far left actors in this story. China is an authoritarian, single political party country with a mixed socialist and capitalist economy. If you want to link them to a two-dimensional, simplified political spectrum, they're closest to fascism.
bfrog 7y ago
I suppose Stalin was far left as well in your mind.

NicoJuicy 7y ago

This is actually smart of mainland China, but it's ethically totally wrong. Trying to sway people's opinions by blaming it on the protestors and forcing their own violent protestors into that group. It's something I haven't thought about before.

thinkingemote 7y ago
It's literally the play book of police to infiltrate groups and if necessary cause havoc. This occurs the world over. Some police have rules similar to the rules of entrapment for more embedded actions (see the police in UK green groups recently) where they can't directly cause trouble but they can provoke and supporting. And this is what's documented and legally allowed! Ethically the world thinks it's right. Where it gets shady is where they cross the line. There is often reports of protestors being arrested and showing their badge and going free... Protestor groups do not have strategies to identify infiltrators especially non violent groups. Some groups explicitly allow trouble makers to flourish like the black bloc where everyone wears black and mask to hide any trouble makers.
- NicoJuicy 7y ago
  Is there a place to read the playbook, if documented?
  - clydethefrog 7y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_provocateur https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_provocateur

hker 7y ago

Thugs-for-hire is actually a common tactic for suppressing dissent in China [1] [2], and was used in the 2014 Umbrella protest [3]. [1]: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322488668_Thugs_and_Outsourcing_of_State_Repression_in_China https://www.researchgate.net/publication/322488668_Thugs_and... [2]: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/thugsforhire-subcontracting-of-state-coercion-and-state-capacity-in-china/C53871B8B259B893E1D0B4E1985B764E https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-poli... [3]: https://www.hongkongfp.com/2018/11/04/chinese-govt-need-hire-thugs-exert-social-control/ https://www.hongkongfp.com/2018/11/04/chinese-govt-need-hire...