'Occupy Central' verdicts uphold rule of law in HK: China Daily editorial

As the day when nine leaders of an illegal campaign launched in the name of "democracy" were convicted of criminal charges ranging from conspiracy to causing a public nuisance to inciting others to do so, April 9, 2019, can be seen as another important milestone in the history of Hong Kong's rule of law.

The convictions have once again proved Hong Kong's independent judicial system is capable of delivering justice where it is due, despite desperate attempts by political forces in and outside the special administrative region to exempt the nine of any responsibility for their crimes.

The three initiators of the illegal campaign — Benny Tai Yiu-ting, Chan Kin-man and Chu Yiu-ming — were found guilty because they told the public in a "manifesto" that they had the right to block traffic in the name of "civil disobedience". But as the presiding judge ruled, "civil disobedience" is no excuse for breaking the law. It is fair to say that the guilty verdicts, though widely considered long overdue, have given Hong Kong society further reason to trust the justice system.

The illegal occupation of the Central district, which the convicted instigated, started on Sept 28, 2014, and lasted for 79 days, causing an unprecedented disruption to the city's economic activities and people's daily lives, as well as posing a serious law and order challenge to the authorities of the special administrative region, especially its government, law enforcement agencies and judicial system.

The so-called Umbrella Movement finally ended with a whimper because the great majority of Hong Kong residents refused to support it. The verdicts reached on Tuesday are the climax of a series of trials by local courts which have found many participants of the "Occupy Central" campaign guilty of various criminal offenses in the past few years.

However, the nine leading figures in the Occupy Central illegal movement will no doubt appeal against their convictions. While the figures who financed the operation and used other resources, such as some local and foreign media, to back up the whole campaign are still at large. Which means the fight for justice is not over yet.

But to undo the negative impacts of the movement, upholding the law is just one imperative. The illegal campaign cast a long shadow over Hong Kong's younger generation — some of whom have been misled into believing the radical ideas they preached while others have lost hope in the future of Hong Kong — the government and the local community have to redouble their efforts to help youths differentiate right from wrong and give them the drive to carve out their futures not only in the SAR but also in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.