A mockery of democracy

FACING HEIGHTENED PRESSURE TO END THEIR disruptive occupation actions, leaders of the Hong Kong Federation of Students (HKFS) and Scholarism - two student groups in the frontline of steering the illegal "Occupy Central" campaign - have been busy playing various political stunts over the past few weeks.

In yet another premeditated move, protesters stormed the city's key business district and laid siege to government headquarters in Admiralty on Sunday night and early on Monday. The radicals took action after HKFS leaders called for an escalation of their protests.

The declared intention of the latest stunt was to force the Hong Kong SAR Government to scrap the ongoing process of electoral reform so as to start the entire process again. More specifically, the "Occupy" leaders have demanded retraction of the National People's Congress Standing Committee's (NPCSC) Aug 31 decision. This landmark decision was made to set the legal framework for proposed constitutional reform for the election of Hong Kong's Chief Executive via universal suffrage in 2017. The NPCSC has the ultimate authority on such matters.