No end in sight for Hong Kong protests after talks

HONG KONG // Hong Kong student leaders may shun further talks with the government, after accusing it of failing to make any meaningful offers to end weeks of mass democracy protests.

Wednesday’s comments were a blow to the city’s Beijing-backed leaders who had expressed hopes for fresh rounds of talks after their first meeting with students a day earlier.

The negotiations are widely seen as the only way to end nearly a month of protests without a police crackdown or further violence.

The two sides are at loggerheads over how the city’s next leader should be chosen in 2017.

Protesters want the public to have the right to nominate candidates, but Beijing ruled in August that only those vetted by a loyalist committee would be allowed to stand.

The first talks on Tuesday made little headway, with students calling the government “vague” in its commitment to finding a genuine compromise.

“About whether there will be talks in the future, this is something that isn’t decided,” said Hong Kong federation of students secretary general Alex Chow, adding protesters will not leave the streets any time soon.

Government negotiators insisted during talks that Beijing would never agree to civil nomination.

But they made a series of conciliatory offers including a promise to brief mainland officials on recent events and a suggestion both sides could set up a “platform” to discuss further political reform beyond 2017.

Student leaders were unimpressed.

If talks are abandoned, many fear a return to violent scuffles seen late last week with dozens injured after demonstrators battled police as they tried to clear barriers.

* Agence France-Presse