World
Hong Kong pro-democracy protests that brought tens of thousands on to the streets last week dwindled to a few hundred on Wednesday after activist leaders agreed to talks with the government which are all but certain to go nowhere. Reuters reports:
Hundreds of protesters remained camped out on the main road leading into Hong Kong's main government and business districts, the last holdouts after more than a week of rallies that attracted tens of thousands on to the streets at their peak.
Student-led protesters began lifting the blockades of government offices and retail areas on Monday as preliminary, behind-the-scenes talks meant to lead ultimately to formal negotiations showed modest signs of progress.
Over the past week, the protesters have demanded that the city's Beijing-appointed leader, Leung Chun-ying, quit and that China allow Hong Kong people the right to vote for a leader of their choice in 2017 elections. China wants to screen the candidates first.
While there were signs on Monday that Hong Kong's protests might be coming to a low ebb, their visual impact looks likely to last for a while. The Washington Post writes:
"This is the most well-designed protest in recent memory," says Colette Gaiter, an Associate Professor of Art at the University of Delaware who has done extensive research on protest art.
"Unlike the U.S. Occupy movement three years ago -- which featured rough hand lettered signs on torn cardboard representing the grass-roots nature of the protests and economic status of the protesters -- the Hong Kong protests have attracted professional designers," Gaiter explains. "There is an elevated aesthetic sensibility even in the ubiquitous handwritten signs and Post-it notes."
Art can be seen all over the protests. Outside Hong Kong's government offices, for instance, protesters created a wall full of Post-it notes. Some of the colorful messages simply read "I love Hong Kong."
Others depict sketched umbrellas which have become the symbol of the revolution. As my colleague Adam Taylor explained last week, "any visitor to Hong Kong will tell you that umbrellas are already a fixture of life in the city, essential not only for keeping yourself dry during the rainy spring and summer but also providing much-needed shade from the sun."
