Occupy Central", given its predetermined illegal nature, is expected to land any number of participants in prison. Hong Kong, though a modern city, is still a traditional and considerably conservative society where family always occupy a central role, and where family values are still of the utmost importance. Law-breaking is never ingrained in our families' DNA. But instigating and intriguing individuals to act against the law, is anti-family. It is good for nothing but messing up society as a whole.

Unfortunately, that is exactly what Benny Tai Yiu-ting, University of Hong Kong law professor, is doing. He admitted in his elaborate "Occupy Central Manifesto", the illegal campaign actually counts on the arrest and prosecution of as many participants as possible to advance from "paralyze Central" to "paralyze the police headquarters" and hopefully to "paralyze the courts" by encouraging them to violate various provisions of the Public Order Ordinance and Crimes Ordinance.

Those found guilty in a court of law may receive sentences of up to five years in prison with large fines to boot. That means the defendants may lose most of their personal freedoms and be separated from their families for extended periods of time if they are convicted and duly sentenced. Normal life as they know it will be gone for good once they have the ex-con stigma on their backs in addition to the psychological damage they will sustain behind bars. Apart from the emotional burden their imprisonment puts on their families, the cost of the judicial processes will also take a heavy toll on them for years on end.

In a society under the rule of law, no one is above the law, which means that a rap sheet can make one's life very difficult. Once convicted, a person will have a criminal record kept by the police as well as the court. According to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Ordinance, a criminal record means a person can never become a lawyer, accountant, civil servant, insurance agent, board member and/or CEO of a bank and a host of other job positions specified in the Insurance Companies Ordinance and the Banking Ordinance.

Apart from the above-mentioned detrimental impact of a criminal record, a convicted person is also expected to suffer major repercussions in their personal life. For example, one may find it extremely difficult to apply for a business license or renew an existing one. The same may be true for many other permits, waivers, registration and/or its extension, buying insurance policies, joining the Mandatory Provident Fund scheme and becoming a foster parent, to mention just a few.

It has been a proven theory since time immemorial that draconian law is necessary to maintain social order during turbulent times. Since the handover 16 years ago many older Hong Kong residents have noticed one particular difference between now and the colonial era, which is that there are more protest rallies and marches than ever before. Hardly a day has passed without a demonstration somewhere in this town. That's not all. The protests have shown a tendency to be more dramatic or even highly-charged, to the point where some protesters behaved as if the law and police meant nothing to them. How have things turned so bad, one might ask? Many members of the older generation believe it is because the law enforcement department and judiciary have not done their jobs as well as they should. The police did not pursue protesters who broke the law during demonstrations, or the courts were too lenient on those they did pursue. In some cases the presiding judges gave the defendants merely a slap on the wrist when a prison sentence was in order. In others, the defendants were simply let go without punishment. Before long those "career demonstrators" became not only full of themselves but also more aggressive, from refusing to follow police instructions to deliberately challenging and provoking police officers.

Laws are made to keep peace and justice. If the guilty are not punished appropriately there is no justice or rule of law for that matter. Some political daredevils recently declared a plan to "Occupy Central" illegally. The government must be fully prepared to handle them, with proper means and strategy on the law enforcement's part to keep them in check. Apart from sufficient police numbers to maintain order, the judiciary must do its job adequately, too. The idea is to serve a strong enough warning to would-be offenders that no crime will go unpunished any more.

For whatever reason, by any criteria, "Occupy Central" is too simple, too naive a move to strive forward on the path to democracy. Hong Kong citizens should be awakened to the truth that such an ill-conceived political campaign would neither create a winner-takes-all result, nor a win-win situation for both pan-democrats and the pro-establishment camp.

The author is a current affairs commentator.

(HK Edition 06/18/2013 page9)