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151-456: Occupy Central with Love and Peace ( OCLP ) was a single-purpose Hong Kong civil disobedience campaign initiated by Reverend Chu Yiu-ming , Benny Tai and Chan Kin-man on 27 March 2013. The campaign was launched on 24 September 2014, partially leading to the 2014 Hong Kong protests . According to its manifesto, the campaign advocates for an electoral system in Hong Kong that is decided through

302-586: A secretary-general , and regular members. The chairman presides over the NPCSC, and presides and convenes its work. The chairman has conventionally been one of the top members of the Chinese Communist Party , ranking as either the second-ranking or third-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee since 1998. The chairman, vice chairpersons and the secretary-general collectively make up

453-517: A state of emergency throughout China or in particular provinces, autonomous regions or municipalities directly under the central government. When the NPC is not in session, the Standing Committee decides whether to proclaim a state of war in the event of an armed attack on China or in fulfillment of international treaty obligations concerning a common defense against aggression. The term of office of

604-436: A Political Tale from Hong Kong . United States: Pema Press. ISBN   9780997238532 . Civil disobedience Various forms of civil disobedience have been used by prominent activists such as American women's suffrage leader Susan B. Anthony in the late 19th century, Egyptian nationalist Saad Zaghloul during the 1910s, and Indian nationalist Mahatma Gandhi in 1920s British India as part of his leadership of

755-458: A by-election to be seen as a referendum on the plan, civil disobedience, and, finally, Occupy Central in July 2014. Tai repeated his plan at a forum held on 24 February 2013, emphasising the importance of the non-violence pledge. In an interview together with Ho on 6 March 2013, Tai spoke at length about his referendum and protest strategies to bring about universal suffrage in Hong Kong and stated: "This

906-622: A certain extent. With the abolition of the presidency in 1975, she effectively became the first female head of state in China by legal definition . In 1980, after the decision of the 5th National People's Congress , the "Committee for the Amendment of the Constitution of the People's Republic of China" was formally established, presided over by Ye Jianying , Soong Ching Ling and Peng Zhen , and including

1057-479: A civil disobedient who pleads guilty is essentially stating, "Yes, I committed the act of which you accuse me. I don't deny it; in fact, I am proud of it. I feel I did the right thing by violating this particular law; I am guilty as charged", but that pleading not guilty sends a message of, "Guilt implies wrong-doing. I feel I have done no wrong. I may have violated some specific laws, but I am guilty of doing no wrong. I, therefore, plead not guilty." A plea of no contest

1208-600: A democratic process and satisfies international standards of universal and equal suffrage. With the first three stages of the movement – dialogue, deliberation and citizens' authorization – the civil disobedience that follows must be non-violent. The campaign called for occupation of Hong Kong's central business district, Central , if the amendments were not made. Upstaged by the Hong Kong Federation of Students (HKFS) and Scholarism in September 2014, its leaders joined in

1359-470: A desired social goal (such as the provision of medication to the sick) while openly breaking the law. Julia Butterfly Hill lived in Luna , a 180-foot (55 m)-tall, 600-year-old California Redwood tree for 738 days, preventing its felling. In cases where the criminalized behaviour is pure speech , civil disobedience can consist simply of engaging in the forbidden speech. An example is WBAI 's broadcasting of

1510-429: A flurry of vitriolic editorials, preparatory police exercises and sophisticated cyber-attacks where strategies evolved over time. According to CloudFlare , a firm that helped defend against a "unique and sophisticated" attack, the volume of traffic was an unprecedented 500 Gbit/s and involved at least five botnets . OCLP's servers were bombarded with in excess of 250 million DNS requests per second, equivalent to

1661-456: A judicial one, and the functions are split so that the NPCSC provides legal interpretations while the Supreme People's Court actually decides cases. Because an interpretation of the NPCSC is legislative in nature and not judicial, it does not affect cases which have already been decided. The NPC Standing Committee has the power to supervise the enforcement of the Constitution. It supervises

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1812-462: A law that conscience tells him is unjust and willingly accepts the penalty by staying in jail to arouse the conscience of the community on the injustice of the law is at that moment expressing the very highest respect for the law." An early depiction of civil disobedience is in Sophocles ' play Antigone , in which Antigone , one of the daughters of former King of Thebes , Oedipus , defies Creon ,

1963-463: A maniac and disturber of the peace, and see if he can get over this obstruction to his neighborliness without a ruder and more impetuous thought or speech corresponding with his action. Some civil disobedients feel it is incumbent upon them to accept punishment because of their belief in the validity of the social contract , which is held to bind all to obey the laws that a government meeting certain standards of legitimacy has established, or else suffer

2114-520: A member of the NPC Standing Committee is the same as that of the current NPC, and is generally five years. It remains in power until the succeeding NPC elects its standing committee. It convenes the NPC once a year, and may do so when it finds it necessary or with a proposal from one fifth of NPC's members. The NPC Standing Committee usually holds a committee session once every two months, usually late in even-numbered months, with each session of

2265-416: A non-violent one, the choice of means will almost never be pure, and will involve such complexities that the simple distinction between violence and non-violence does not suffice as a guide ... the very acts with which we seek to do good cannot escape the imperfections of the world we are trying to change. Zinn rejects any "easy and righteous dismissal of violence", noting that Thoreau, the popularizer of

2416-544: A peaceful blockade or occupying a facility illegally, though sometimes violence has been known to occur. Often there is an expectation to be attacked or even beaten by the authorities. Protesters often undergo training in advance on how to react to arrest or to attack. Civil disobedience is usually defined as pertaining to a citizen's relation to the state and its laws, as distinguished from a constitutional impasse , in which two public agencies, especially two equally sovereign branches of government , conflict. For instance, if

2567-518: A permanent, bicameral body, in an attempt to change its image as a " rubber stamp ". Another committee member proposed to imitate the system used by the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union with one chamber composed of representatives from different regions and the other composed of representatives from different professional sectors . Opponents, led by Deng Xiaoping and Ye Jianying, argued that "if

2718-400: A person can act unjustly. When the government knocks on the door, it is a person in the form of a postman or tax collector whose hand hits the wood. Before Thoreau's imprisonment, when a confused taxman had wondered aloud about how to handle his refusal to pay, Thoreau had advised, "Resign". If a man chose to be an agent of injustice, then Thoreau insisted on confronting him with the fact that he

2869-633: A person or vehicle in a public place" under the Summary Offenses Ordinance. However, under the Public Order Ordinance, Occupy Central was considered as unlawful assembly , i.e., "when three or more people assemble... to cause any person reasonably to fear that the persons so assembled will commit a breach of the peace or will by such conduct provoke other persons to commit a breach of the peace, they are an unlawful assembly." The Hong Kong Secretary for Security Lai Tung-kwok stated that

3020-424: A plenary session, and then the legislative bill shall be further deliberated at group meetings. At the third reading, a report of the aforementioned committee on the results of its deliberation over the draft law shall be heard in another plenary session, and then the revised draft of the law shall be deliberated at group meetings for any final changes. After the revised draft law has been deliberated during sessions of

3171-638: A public oath-taking, at Statue Square , with members swearing to join in Occupy Central irrespective of the risk of arrest and imprisonment. Members of People Power , disparaging of the Democratic Party's failure to demand direct civil nomination of Chief Executive candidates in its platform, disrupted the ceremony. Deliberation days were organised by OCLP on 9 June 2013, 9 March 2014, and 6 May 2014, at which attendees were invited to exchange views on strategies to be adopted to achieve democratic reform. On

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3322-466: A rally to occupy and even paralyze Central for a universal suffrage model". He noted that it was "a mainstream idea" in the SAR not to resort to radical means to fight for democracy. Rita Fan Hsu Lai-tai , a National People's Congress Standing Committee member, feared the occupation would adversely affect Hong Kong's image. National People's Congress Deputy and Executive Councilor Fanny Law Fan Chiu-fan urged

3473-575: A range of legal measures and public practices that to them promoted ethnic, religious, and racial discrimination . Pro Public and typically peaceful resistance to political power remained an integral tactic in modern American minority rights politics. In Ireland starting from 1879 the Irish " Land War " intensified when Irish nationalist leader Charles Stewart Parnell , in a speech in Ennis proposed that when dealing with tenants who take farms where another tenant

3624-403: A statement condemning the Occupy Central movement arguing that the blockade could have an "adverse and far-reaching impact" on the local legal system, social order and economic development. Employees of the firms who called themselves a "group of Big Four employees who love Hong Kong" took out an advertisement saying their employers' statement did not represent their stance. Cardinal Joseph Zen ,

3775-474: A system to function. In this way, they might be considered coercive; coercive disobedience has the effect of exposing the enforcement of laws and policies, and it has even operated as an aesthetic strategy in contemporary art practice. Brownlee notes that "although civil disobedients are constrained in their use of coercion by their conscientious aim to engage in moral dialogue, nevertheless they may find it necessary to employ limited coercion to get their issue onto

3926-486: A while after establishment of the People's Republic , the power of the Standing Committee was limited to interpretation of its constitution and laws . At present, the NPC Standing Committee plays a key role in legislation and has the power to promulgate and amend most laws and decrees. Bills voted on by the National People's Congress are usually submitted by the Standing Committee after its third reading . During

4077-739: Is a people's movement; frankly speaking, the central government will have to accept [the referendum result] or reject it; if they reject it, we will block the streets." OCLP was launched at a press conference hosted by its three founders, Reverend Chu Yiu-ming , Benny Tai Yiu-ting, and Chan Kin-man , on 27 March 2013 at which they presented its manifesto. OCLP's manifesto stated that it would campaign for universal suffrage through dialogue, deliberation , civil referendum and civil disobedience (Occupy Central); it also demanded that any government proposal should satisfy international standards in relation to universal suffrage, i.e. equal number of votes, equal weight for each vote and no unreasonable restrictions on

4228-439: Is a whole class of acts, undertaken in the name of civil disobedience, which, even if they were widely practiced, would in themselves constitute hardly more than a nuisance (e.g. trespassing at a nuclear-missile installation) ... Such acts are often just a harassment and, at least to the bystander, somewhat inane ... The remoteness of the connection between the disobedient act and the objectionable law lays such acts open to

4379-432: Is distinct from other kinds of hacktivism in that the perpetrator openly reveals his identity. Virtual actions rarely succeed in completely shutting down their targets, but they often generate media attention. Dilemma actions are designed to create a "response dilemma" for public authorities "by forcing them to either concede some public space to protesters or make themselves look absurd or heavy-handed by acting against

4530-462: Is done by remaining in jail, or by evading it. To accept jail penitently as an accession to "the rules" is to switch suddenly to a spirit of subservience, to demean the seriousness of the protest ... In particular, the neo-conservative insistence on a guilty plea should be eliminated. Sometimes the prosecution proposes a plea bargain to civil disobedients, as in the case of the Camden 28 , in which

4681-425: Is known that Gandhi often quoted Shelley's Mask of Anarchy to vast audiences during the campaign for a free India. Thoreau's 1849 essay Civil Disobedience , originally titled "Resistance to Civil Government", has had a wide influence on many later practitioners of civil disobedience. The driving idea behind the essay is that citizens are morally responsible for their support of aggressors, even when such support

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4832-432: Is more effective than open disobedience. This assumes that common morality does not have a prohibition on deceit in such situations. The Fully Informed Jury Association 's publication "A Primer for Prospective Jurors" notes, "Think of the dilemma faced by German citizens when Hitler 's secret police demanded to know if they were hiding a Jew in their house." By this definition, civil disobedience could be traced back to

4983-399: Is more effective, it is, other things being equal, more justified than less effective, nonviolent disobedience." In his best-selling Disobedience and Democracy: Nine Fallacies on Law and Order , Howard Zinn takes a similar position; Zinn states that while the goals of civil disobedience are generally nonviolent, in the inevitable tension accompanying the transition from a violent world to

5134-518: Is more of an active attempt to overthrow a government (or to change cultural traditions, social customs or religious beliefs). Revolution does not have to be political, i.e. "cultural revolution", it simply implies sweeping and widespread change to a section of the social fabric. Gandhi's acts have been described as revolutionary civil disobedience. It has been claimed that the Hungarians under Ferenc Deák directed revolutionary civil disobedience against

5285-500: Is much more destructive; therefore, the defects justifying rebellion must be much more serious than those justifying disobedience, and if one cannot justify civil rebellion, then one cannot justify a civil disobedient's use of force and violence and refusal to submit to arrest. Civil disobedients' refraining from violence is also said to help preserve society's tolerance of civil disobedience. The philosopher H. J. McCloskey argues that "if violent, intimidatory, coercive disobedience

5436-424: Is not necessarily right. In his 1971 book, A Theory of Justice , John Rawls described civil disobedience as "a public, non-violent, conscientious yet political act contrary to law usually done with the aim of bringing about change in the law or policies of the government". Ronald Dworkin held that there are three types of civil disobedience: Some theories of civil disobedience hold that civil disobedience

5587-454: Is only justified against governmental entities. Brownlee argues that disobedience in opposition to the decisions of non-governmental agencies such as trade unions , banks, and private universities can be justified if it reflects "a larger challenge to the legal system that permits those decisions to be taken". The same principle, she argues, applies to breaches of law in protest against international organizations and foreign governments. It

5738-500: Is required by law. In the essay, Thoreau explained his reasons for having refused to pay taxes as an act of protest against slavery and against the Mexican–American War . He writes, If I devote myself to other pursuits and contemplations, I must first see, at least, that I do not pursue them sitting upon another man's shoulders. I must get off him first, that he may pursue his contemplations too. See what gross inconsistency

5889-599: Is sometimes regarded as a compromise between the two. One defendant accused of illegally protesting nuclear power , when asked to enter his plea, stated, "I plead for the beauty that surrounds us"; this is known as a "creative plea", and will usually be interpreted as a plea of not guilty. When the Committee for Non-Violent Action sponsored a protest in August 1957, at the Camp Mercury nuclear test site near Las Vegas, Nevada, 13 of

6040-492: Is submitted to a vote by deputies. At the first reading, an explanation of the legislative bill made by its sponsor shall be heard in a plenary session of the Standing Committee and then it shall be preliminarily deliberated at group meetings by deputies in the period between sessions. At the second reading, a report of the Constitution and Law Committee on the revision of the draft law and main problems concerned shall be heard in

6191-459: Is the permanent body of the National People's Congress (NPC), the national legislature of the People's Republic of China. It exercises the powers of the NPC when it is not in session. The NPCSC is composed of a chairman, vice chairpersons, a secretary-general, and regular members, all of whom are elected by regular NPC sessions. The day-to-day operations of the Standing Committee are handled by

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6342-589: Is tolerated. I have heard some of my townsmen say, "I should like to have them order me out to help put down an insurrection of the slaves, or to march to Mexico;—see if I would go;" and yet these very men have each, directly by their allegiance, and so indirectly, at least, by their money, furnished a substitute. By the 1850s, a range of minority groups in the United States : African Americans, Jews, Seventh Day Baptists , Catholics, anti-prohibitionists, racial egalitarians, and others—employed civil disobedience to combat

6493-543: Is usually recognized that lawbreaking, if it is not done publicly, at least must be publicly announced to constitute civil disobedience. But Stephen Eilmann argues that if it is necessary to disobey rules that conflict with morality, we might ask why disobedience should take the form of public civil disobedience rather than simply covert lawbreaking. If a lawyer wishes to help a client overcome legal obstacles to securing their natural rights , he might, for instance, find that assisting in fabricating evidence or committing perjury

6644-434: Is whether to plead guilty . There is much debate on this point, as some believe that it is a civil disobedient's duty to submit to the punishment prescribed by law, while others believe that defending oneself in court will increase the possibility of changing the unjust law. It has also been argued that either choice is compatible with the spirit of civil disobedience. ACT UP 's Civil Disobedience Training handbook states that

6795-594: Is wrong. The resistance to authority in South Africa was well advanced before I got the essay ... When I saw the title of Thoreau's great essay, I began to use his phrase to explain our struggle to the English readers. But I found that even "Civil Disobedience" failed to convey the full meaning of the struggle. I therefore adopted the phrase "Civil Resistance." In seeking an active form of civil disobedience, one may choose to deliberately break certain laws, such as by forming

6946-572: The Hong Kong Economic Journal , entitled 公民抗命的最大殺傷力武器 ( Civil Disobedience's Deadliest Weapon ). Tai postulated a seven-step progression: 10,000 participants signing a declaration (taking a vow and pledge of willingness to occupy the streets), live TV broadcast of discussions, electronic voting on methods for universal suffrage, a referendum on the preferred formula, resignation of Super-Seat Legislative Council member (then former Democratic Party Chairman Albert Ho Chun-yan ) to be filled in

7097-546: The 1689 Bill of Rights was documented, the last Catholic monarch was deposed, and male and female joint-co-monarchs elevated—the English Midland Enlightenment developed a manner of voicing objection to a law viewed as illegitimate and then taking the consequences of the law. (For example, they might refuse to swear allegiance to the king, and, as a consequence, accept the prison sentence legally and normally meted out to people who refused to take this oath.) This

7248-455: The 1st National People's Congress was held in Beijing , which became the statutory parliament of the People's Republic of China. The Standing Committee was established as its permanent body. The 1954 Constitution of the People's Republic of China stipulates that "the National People's Congress is the sole organ that exercises the legislative power of the state" and that the Standing Committee of

7399-603: The Austrian government . Thoreau also wrote of civil disobedience accomplishing "peaceable revolution". Howard Zinn, Harvey Wheeler , and others have identified the right espoused in the US Declaration of Independence to "alter or abolish" an unjust government to be a principle of civil disobedience. The earliest recorded incidents of collective civil disobedience took place during the Roman Empire . Unarmed Jews gathered in

7550-661: The Baltic countries from the Soviet Union , and more recently with the 2003 Rose Revolution in Georgia, the 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2013–2014 Euromaidan revolution in Ukraine, the 2016–2017 Candlelight Revolution in South Korea, and the 2020–2021 Belarusian protests , among many other various movements worldwide. Henry David Thoreau 's 1849 essay "Resistance to Civil Government"

7701-675: The Book of Exodus , where Shiphrah and Puah refused a direct order of Pharaoh but misrepresented how they did it. (Exodus 1: 15–19) There have been debates as to whether civil disobedience must necessarily be non-violent. Black's Law Dictionary includes nonviolence in its definition of civil disobedience. Christian Bay's encyclopedia article states that civil disobedience requires "carefully chosen and legitimate means", but holds that they do not have to be non-violent. It has been argued that, while both civil disobedience and civil rebellion are justified by appeal to constitutional defects , rebellion

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7852-749: The British Empire ), in Czechoslovakia 's Velvet Revolution , in early stages of the Bangladeshi independence movement against Pakistani colonialism and in East Germany to oust their Stalinist government. In South Africa during the leftist campaign against the far-right Apartheid regime, in the American civil rights movement against Jim Crow laws , in the Singing Revolution to bring independence to

8003-717: The Chief Executive of Hong Kong and seats in the Legislative Council by universal suffrage is established in the Hong Kong Basic Law (see Hong Kong Basic Law Article 45 ). The chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall be selected by election or through consultations held locally and be appointed by the Central People's Government . The method for selecting

8154-518: The Council of Chairpersons , which handles the Standing Committee's daily affairs. Members of the NPCSC must not, at the same time, hold executive, judicial, or supervisory positions. Other members of the NPC do not have this restriction. The Standing Committee is elected by and from the NPC delegates during a NPC plenary session. The candidates for the NPCSC chairperson, vice chairpersons, secretary-general, and regular members are nominally nominated by

8305-471: The Council of Chairpersons , which is composed of the chairman, vice chairpersons, and the secretary-general. Although the parent NPC officially has superiority over the Standing Committee, and certain authorities are not delegated, the Standing Committee is generally viewed to have more de facto power, as the NPC convenes only once a year for two weeks, leaving its Standing Committee the only body that regularly drafts and approves decisions and laws. In 1954,

8456-508: The Indian independence movement . Martin Luther King Jr. 's and James Bevel 's peaceful nonviolent protests during the civil rights movement in the 1960s United States sometimes contained important aspects of civil disobedience. Although civil disobedience is rarely justifiable in court, King regarded civil disobedience to be a display and practice of reverence for law: "Any man who breaks

8607-631: The NPC Presidium , though the nomination process is effectively controlled by the CCP. Elections for the non-regular NPCSC members, along with all other NPC elections are not competitive, with a single candidate proposed by the Presidium. In contrast, the elections for the regular NPCSC members have been the only competitive elections in the NPC since 1988; there are more nominees than available seats. A number of administrative bodies have also been established under

8758-642: The Occupy Central protests . OCLP had originally planned to launch its protest campaign on 1 October 2014, the National Day of the People's Republic of China . OCLP stated that the ongoing protest was "the Umbrella Movement, not 'Occupy Central ' " and referred to themselves as supporters rather than organisers. OCLP was disbanded by the founders when they surrendered to the police in December 2014. Election of

8909-465: The Wall Street Journal and South China Morning Post , employees of corporations such as the major utility Towngas faced pressure to sign petition forms that were being circulated by their department heads. The APD claimed in excess of a million signatures were obtained. The organisers said they obtained signatures from many supporters including children, secondary school and university students,

9060-524: The class boycott campaign , students led by members of the Hong Kong Federation of Students (HKFS) and Scholarism occupied Civic Square, triggering a crowd to protest in support outside the Central Government Offices in Admiralty. On 28 September 2014, at 1.40   am, Benny Tai announced the official start of the Occupy Central with Love and Peace civil disobedience campaign on the stage of

9211-450: The head of government of a country were to refuse to enforce a decision of that country's highest court, it would not be civil disobedience, since the head of government would act in his or her capacity as public official rather than private citizen. This definition is disputed by Thoreau's political philosophy on the conscience vs. the collective. The person is the final judge of right and wrong. More than this, since only people act, only

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9362-601: The Alliance for True Democracy, a group comprising 26 of the 27 pan-democratic lawmakers, won the unofficial referendum by securing 331,427 votes, or 42.1 per cent of the 787,767 valid ballots. A joint blueprint put forward by Scholarism and the Hong Kong Federation of Students came second with 302,567 votes (38.4 per cent), followed by the People Power proposal, which garnered 81,588 votes (10.4 per cent). All three called for

9513-486: The Alliance for True Democracy, had urged their supporters to vote against the Alliance. Snubbed Civic Party lawmaker Ronny Tong Ka-wah , who had seen his moderate plan soundly marginalised in the poll believed "the Occupy Central movement has been hijacked by radicals". He believed that the poll results would make it harder to find a reform package agreeable to Beijing. He thought Occupy Central's plan to block streets in Central

9664-488: The Chinese Government Legal Information Network for public comment. When voting, the NPC Standing Committee session adopts the absolute majority system, that is, more than half of the committee members present in a session thus producing a quorum, and more than half of the committee members voted in favor, then the bill can be passed. When an affirmative vote and an abstention vote are equal,

9815-637: The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and the Hong Kong Bahrain Business Association, the Canadian, Indian and Italian chambers of commerce in Hong Kong together published an advertisement on newspapers that said the demonstrations may "cripple commerce in the city's central business district". The statement was directed at the "organisers of Occupy Central". In late June 2014, Hong Kong's four biggest accounting firms issued

9966-643: The Legislative Council joined in establishing the Alliance for True Democracy , adopting a more determined and confrontational stance than its recently failed and disbanded compromise-leaning predecessor, the Alliance for Universal Suffrage . On 24 March 2013, Qiao Xiaoyang , then chairman of the Law Committee under the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) startled Hongkongers by announcing that Chief Executive candidates must be persons who love

10117-453: The NPC is not in session, laws enacted by the NPC, provided that the basic principles of these laws are not contravened. As a result, day-to-day legislative work is conducted by the Standing Committee. Although the NPC has the power to revoke "inappropriate decisions" made by the Standing Committee, so far this power has never been used. As a result, the NPC Standing Committee often has a greater say in legislative deliberations. The NPCSC has

10268-633: The NPCSC set rules for the election of the chief executive of Hong Kong, a decision that was widely opposed by the pro-democracy camp and led to the Umbrella Revolution . In 2016, the NPCSC ruled that Hong Kong lawmakers who take their oath improperly could be immediately disqualified. In June 2020, the NPCSC created and passed the Hong Kong National Security Law , legislation that was kept secret until shortly before it took effect. In November 2020, Carrie Lam sought help from

10419-450: The NPCSC to give authority for the Hong Kong government to disqualify 4 pro-democracy lawmakers from the Legislative Council. In December 2020, it was reported that the NPCSC would move to diminish opposition from district councillors , by unseating those who "breached the red line" and also by removing the 117 seats belonging to district councillors in the chief executive election committee . Earlier in December 2019, Carrie Lam said that

10570-476: The National People's Congress (or the committee chairmen of these). Ten or more deputies of the Standing Committee may also sign and introduce a bill. After the bill is introduced, the Chairman's Council shall decide on the agenda of the ongoing session of the Standing Committee. The Chairman's Council may refer the bill to the relevant special committee for deliberation and submit a report before deciding to put it on

10721-588: The National People's Congress Law Committee officially ruled on the issue of universal suffrage in Hong Kong: that the election of the fifth chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in the year 2017 may be implemented by the method of universal suffrage; that after the chief executive is selected by universal suffrage, the election of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region may be implemented by

10872-408: The National People's Congress has only the power to "interpret laws" and "enact decrees". However, because the number of delegates to the National People's Congress is in the thousands and non-full-time, only one meeting is held annually, and the meeting period cannot be too long. The 2nd NPC authorized its Standing Committee the power to exercise legislative power when the NPC is not in session. For

11023-615: The National People's Congress vetoed the Organic Law of the Urban Residents Committees of the People's Republic of China (Draft) due to different opinions on the wording of the provisions of the bill. For example, in 1999, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress rejected the Highway Law of the People's Republic of China (Amendment) with 77 votes in favor, 6 against, 42 abstentions and 29 people not participating in

11174-447: The Occupy Central plan in his church's newsletter. Ng wrote that while "some Christians are advocating...occupying Central to force the governments to give in to their demands...civil disobedience is acceptable biblically only...when people's rights to religion and to live are under threat". He exhorted believers to pray for those in authority, in an act of "active subordination" to "relatively just governments". On 26 September 2014, after

11325-424: The Occupy Central protest. In June 2014, with pressure building in view of the original plan for July 2014 occupy action, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying warned that the Occupy Central movement was bound to be neither peaceful nor legal and that actions will be taken to maintain law and order and Secretary for Security Lai Tung-kwok warned that radical elements of Occupy Central may cause serious disturbances like

11476-569: The Roman Catholic leader in Hong Kong, gave his conditional support to the campaign, stating that it must have well-defined goals and deadlines. The incumbent bishop Cardinal John Tong Hon expressed that he did not encourage followers to join the movement, suggesting that both parties should debate universal suffrage through dialogue. Reverend Ng Chung-man of the Protestant Evangelical Free Church of China publicly denounced

11627-462: The SAR since 2005 and, on that occasion, in the highly exceptional situation of quelling violent Korean farmers bent on disrupting a WTO conference . The excessive use of force by Hong Kong Police in dispersing Hongkongers antagonised and frustrated the general public and did not deter the protesters; rather, it gave impetus to thousands more to begin occupation of other major thoroughfares of Hong Kong, namely, at Mong Kok and Causeway Bay . On Monday,

11778-399: The Standing Committee to provide support for the day-to-day operation of the NPC. These include: The NPC and its Standing Committee jointly exercise the power to enact laws in China. The legislative functions of the Standing Committee constitutionally include: drafting and revising laws except those to be enacted only by the full congress of the NPC; partially supplementing and amending, when

11929-559: The Standing Committee, the Constitution and Law Committee revises it in accordance with the deliberation opinions of the Standing Committee members and prepares the final version to be voted on. The Council of Chairpersons then refers the legislative bill to the Standing Committee for a vote. If the Standing Committee fails to reach an agreement on the bill during the third reading, it shall convene joint group meetings and additional plenary sessions for further discussion, or invite relevant personages, experts and scholars to hold hearings regarding

12080-504: The Tamar government headquarters to endorse the central government's plan. Users of the mainland-controlled messaging application WeChat observed that Occupy Central content sent by them was filtered out of their messages as viewed by their addressees. Social media such as Weibo came under never-before-seen levels of censorship. Usually accessible Instagram was blocked entirely. In February 2013, Civic Party lawmaker Kwok Ka-ki said he saw

12231-577: The University of Hong Kong, published an article in the Hong Kong Economic Journal in which he proposed an act of civil disobedience be carried out in Central, the business and financial centre of Hong Kong if the government failed to announce reforms introducing genuine universal suffrage. He set no specific timetable for such action. Reflecting increased polarisation, disaffection and frustration with government inaction and Beijing intransigence, on 21 March 2013, all 27 democratically inclined lawmakers of

12382-433: The activist community, that a suspect's talking to criminal investigators can serve no useful purpose and may be harmful. Some civil disobedients are compelled to respond to investigators' questions, sometimes by a misunderstanding of the legal ramifications or a fear of seeming rude. Also, some civil disobedients seek to use the arrest as an opportunity to make an impression on the officers. Thoreau wrote, My civil neighbor,

12533-436: The agenda of the Standing Committee either for the current session or in forthcoming sessions. It also has the right to vote to reject the bill proposed by the above-mentioned body. When the Chairman's Council rejects a bill, it shall explain the reasons to the Standing Committee and the bill sponsor. A bill put on the agenda of a Standing Committee session shall be deliberated by the Standing Committee for three times before it

12684-552: The average volume of legitimate DNS requests for the entire Internet. Before the referendum, the State Council issued a white paper claiming "comprehensive jurisdiction" over the territory. "The high degree of autonomy of the HKSAR [Hong Kong Special Administrative Region] is not full autonomy, nor a decentralised power," it said. "It is the power to run local affairs as authorised by the central leadership." Michael DeGolyer, director of

12835-431: The bill before either the whole of the Committee or within groups. After reaching an agreement, it is sent for the vote in a plenary session. For a bill that has been put on the agenda of the session of the Standing Committee, after each deliberation of the session of the Standing Committee, the draft law and the explanation of its drafting and amendment will be published on the website of the People's Republic of China or

12986-463: The bit " Filthy Words " from a George Carlin comedy album, which eventually led to the 1978 Supreme Court case of FCC v. Pacifica Foundation . Threatening government officials is a way to express defiance toward the government and unwillingness to stand for its policies. For example, a supporter of some tax deniers in New Hampshire , Edward and Elaine Brown , was arrested for allegedly telling

13137-445: The cause is more important than my freedom" and not incorrectly believe themselves to have legal immunity or feel a sense of entitlement to break laws without being subject to the ordinary legal punishments for breaking those laws. Some disciplines of civil disobedience hold that the protester must submit to arrest and cooperate with the authorities. Others advocate falling limp or resisting arrest , especially when it will hinder

13288-409: The chairman has no right to cast a decision vote, and the bill is vetoed. In fact, although most of the bills deliberated by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC) have been agreed upon at the third reading, there are still some bills that have been rejected at the voting stage in the history of the Standing Committee of the NPC. For example, in 1989, the Standing Committee of

13439-515: The charge of ineffectiveness and absurdity. Bedau also notes, though, that the very harmlessness of such entirely symbolic illegal protests toward public policy goals may serve a propaganda purpose. Some civil disobedients, such as the proprietors of illegal medical cannabis dispensaries and Voice in the Wilderness, which brought medicine to Iraq without the permission of the US government, directly achieve

13590-459: The chief executive shall be specified in the light of the actual situation in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and in accordance with the principle of gradual and orderly progress. The ultimate aim is the selection of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage upon nomination by a broadly representative nominating committee in accordance with democratic procedures . In December 2007,

13741-404: The command of its medic, marshal and supplies teams to the student groups. On 3 December 2014, the Occupy Central trio, along with 62 others including Democratic Party lawmaker Wu Chi-wai and Cardinal Joseph Zen , then Bishop Emeritus of Hong Kong, turned themselves in to the police, admitting taking part in an unauthorised assembly. The police declined to arrest them and no charges were laid at

13892-440: The committee lasting a week. It may also hold interim sessions if there is a special need. The meetings are convened and chaired by the chairperson. The chairperson may delegate a vice chairperson to preside over a committee session on his or her behalf. Sessions of the Standing Committee may not be held unless a quorum is met of more than half of the members of the Standing Committee present. The Council of Chairpersons shall draft

14043-463: The concept of civil nomination, which the mainland authorities had already flatly rejected as not compliant with the Basic Law. The three chosen proposals were thus considered to be the more radical, leaving moderate pan-democrats in the cold, laying the ground for friction and division among democrats. The League of Social Democrats and People Power lawmakers, notwithstanding their common membership in

14194-409: The country and love Hong Kong, and who do not insist on confronting the central government. The statement was taken as setting out new, vague pre-conditions for candidacy as a means of screening out candidates not sympathetic to Beijing's goals in Hong Kong, denying the promise of genuine democracy. OCLP was convened three days later. On 16 January 2013, an article by Benny Tai Yiu-ting was published in

14345-581: The current King of Thebes, who is trying to stop her from giving her brother Polynices a proper burial. She gives a stirring speech in which she tells him that she must obey her conscience rather than human law. She is not at all afraid of the death he threatens her with (and eventually carries out), but she is afraid of how her conscience will smite her if she does not do this. Conrad Grebel and Anabaptists advocated civil disobedience to oppression. Étienne de La Boétie 's thought developed in his work Discours de la servitude volontaire ou le Contr'un (1552)

14496-421: The defendants were offered an opportunity to plead guilty to one misdemeanour count and receive no jail time. In some mass arrest situations, the activists decide to use solidarity tactics to secure the same plea bargain for everyone. National People%27s Congress Standing Committee Democratic Parties and Independents Vacant The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress ( NPCSC )

14647-552: The elderly, office staff, celebrities and maids . Official endorsements were received from Chief Executive CY Leung and other top Hong Kong officials. The APD organised a "march for peace" on 17 August intended to undermine the Occupy movement. It was attended by tens of thousands of marchers including those bused in from mainland China by pro-establishment organisations including the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions . There were widespread claims that organisations had paid people to attend

14798-453: The formulation of a single all-encompassing definition of the term is extremely difficult, if not impossible. In reviewing the voluminous literature on the subject, the student of civil disobedience rapidly finds himself surrounded by a maze of semantical problems and grammatical niceties. Like Alice in Wonderland , he often finds that specific terminology has no more (or no less) meaning than

14949-546: The government will "take robust action to uphold the rule of law and maintain safety and order." OCLP also published a "manual of disobedience" to inform protesters what to do in the event of being detained. On 21 March 2013, in an apparent response to reports of Tai's statements early that month and the formation that day of the Alliance for True Democracy , Commissioner of Police Andy Tsang Wai-hung said that any attempt to block major thoroughfares in Central would not be tolerated and warned people to think twice about joining

15100-524: The government withdrew the riot police, leaving the three regions occupied by protesters, and there were massive traffic disruptions as all traffic had to be diverted. The scale and scope of the three main occupations was unprecedented, involving many pressure groups as well as many citizens not associated with any group at all. What had been formulated by the OCLP organisers was now much bigger than OCLP and completely beyond their or any single group's control. Hence,

15251-460: The ideas as "the last resort" to pressure Beijing and the SAR administration to introduce universal suffrage. "If Beijing breaks its promise of universal suffrage," he added, "we will have no option but to launch such a civil disobedience movement." Albert Ho Chun-yan of the Democratic Party undertook to resign his legislator post to enforce a de facto referendum on universal suffrage just as

15402-419: The individual orator intends it to have. He encourages a distinction between lawful protest demonstration, nonviolent civil disobedience, and violent civil disobedience. In a letter to P. K. Rao, dated 10 September 1935, Gandhi disputes that his idea of civil disobedience was derived from the writings of Thoreau: The statement that I had derived my idea of Civil Disobedience from the writings of Thoreau

15553-552: The local city councillors to "Wise up or die." More generally, protesters of particular victimless crimes often see fit to openly commit that crime. Laws against public nudity , for instance, have been protested by going naked in public , and laws against cannabis consumption have been protested by openly possessing it and using it at cannabis rallies. Some forms of civil disobedience, such as illegal boycotts , refusals to pay taxes , draft dodging , distributed denial-of-service attacks , and sit-ins , make it more difficult for

15704-473: The main leaders of the democratic parties , social organizations and jurists. It was responsible for amending and establishing the new constitution . During the discussion on constitutional amendment, Hu Qiaomu , secretary general of the Constitution Revision Committee, proposed cutting the number of NPC deputies to 1,000 and setting up two chambers of 500 each under the NPC to make the NPC

15855-411: The method of electing all the members by universal suffrage... The Asia Times wrote in 2008 that both proposals for the Legislative Council (LegCo) and for the chief executive were "hedged in with so many ifs and buts that there is no guarantee of Hong Kong getting anything at all... " After another six years of government inaction, on 16 January 2013, Benny Tai, then an associate professor of law at

16006-612: The opposition camp to show respect for each other through a rational and pragmatic debate over the issue. She added that there was no need to resort to "extreme action" and claimed that it was not too late to begin consultations in 2014. In mid-July 2014, after the civic referendum, the APD, under its spokesman Robert Chow , initiated a petition against the occupation, with signatures to be gathered from 18 July to 17 August. There were criticisms that no identity checks were carried out and that there were no steps to prevent repeat signings. According to

16157-452: The opposition district councillors would be treated the same as those from the pro-Beijing camp, and that "There is no question of the government's commitment to continue to respect the roles and functions of the district council." In March 2021, the NPCSC approved changes to Hong Kong's electoral system , allowing only "patriots" to serve in the government, and also reducing democratic representation. In December 2022, after John Lee asked

16308-402: The organs of state power of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government that contravene the Constitution, other laws or administrative regulations of all levels of government, especially national. When the NPC is not in session, the Standing Committee examines and approves partial adjustments to the plan for national economic and social development or to

16459-461: The pan-democrats had done by triggering the by-election in 2010 . Not all democrats' reactions were supportive. Wong Yeung-tat , of Civic Passion , for example, was strongly opposed to the movement. Cheung Kwok-kwan , vice-chairman of the pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong , questioned whether Hong Kong could "afford the negative impact of people staging

16610-438: The penalties set out in the law. Other civil disobedients who favour the existence of government still do not believe in the legitimacy of their particular government or do not believe in the legitimacy of a particular law it has enacted. Anarchistic civil disobedients do not believe in the legitimacy of any government, so see no need to accept punishment for a violation of criminal law. An important decision for civil disobedients

16761-414: The police from effectively responding to a mass protest. Many of the same decisions and principles that apply in other criminal investigations and arrests arise also in civil disobedience cases. For example, the suspect may need to decide whether to grant a consent search of his property and whether to talk to police officers. It is generally agreed within the legal community, and is often believed within

16912-579: The political chaos of the Cultural Revolution , the NPC rarely held meetings and the Standing Committee virtually ceased to function. During this period, Chairman Zhu De and First Vice Chairman Dong Biwu had both died, which enabled Vice Chairman Soong Ching-ling , a member of the Revolutionary Committee of the Kuomintang , to exercise the functions and powers of Chairman of the NPCSC to

17063-497: The power of judicial interpretation of the constitution and law in the PRC, including the Basic Law of Hong Kong and Macau . In contrast to common law jurisdiction in which stare decisis gives the power of both final interpretation and adjudication to a supreme court , within mainland China constitutional and legal interpretation is considered to be a legislative activity rather than

17214-412: The protest." As civil disobedience is intentionally breaking the law, people engaging in civil disobedience can expect to be arrested , criminally charged , tried , and legally punished for breaking the law. Protestors have to make choices about how to respond to each of these results. Al Sharpton , a civil rights and social justice activist, says that civil disobedients "must be prepared to say

17365-661: The protesters attempted to enter the test site knowing that they faced arrest. At an announced time, one by one they crossed a line and were immediately arrested. They were put on a bus and taken to the Nye County seat of Tonopah, Nevada, and arraigned for trial before the local Justice of the Peace, that afternoon. A civil rights attorney, Francis Heisler, had volunteered to defend the accused, advising them to plead nolo contendere rather than guilty or not guilty. They were found guilty and given suspended sentences, conditional on not reentering

17516-409: The public and nominating committee only. 691,972 voters (87.8 per cent) agreed that the Legislative Council should veto any reform proposal put forward by the government if it failed to meet international standards, compared with 7.5 per cent who disagreed. The unofficial referendum infuriated Beijing. Mainland officials and newspapers called it "illegal" while many condemned Occupy Central, claiming it

17667-448: The public to be allowed to nominate candidates for the 2017 Chief Executive election, an idea repeatedly dismissed by Beijing as inconsistent with the Basic Law. The Alliance's provided for nomination by the election committee and by political parties, as well. The plan was not specific on method of formation of the nominating committee, only stating that it should be "as democratic as it can be". The two other proposals were for nomination by

17818-527: The rally or had given other inducements. and that busing had swelled numbers by some 20,000. An editorial in The Standard noted "it's obvious that Beijing spared no effort in maximizing the turnout... Beijing has demonstrated its ability to swiftly mobilize the masses over a relatively short period". A meeting held in October 2013 between members of the Occupy Central movement and Taiwanese independence activists

17969-402: The right to stand for election, and that the final proposal for electoral reform be decided by means of a genuine democratic process. The founders emphasised their objective of non-violent civil disobedience but, as their campaign had no leaders nor membership, what acts members of the public adopted was a matter for them to decide as individuals. On 5 February 2014, the Democratic Party staged

18120-508: The role of OCLP's volunteers was to provide support, for example, through its legal support team, for what had become a major, yet amorphous, movement. Moreover, although the movement initially gained broad support from the public, support started to wane around the third week of occupation as people became tired of the inconveniences to daily life. As the occupation ended its first month, Chan Kin-man and Benny Tai resumed their teaching duties at their respective universities and OCLP handed over

18271-407: The same time, Qiao Xiaoyang, chairman of the National People's Congress Law Committee, was quoted as accusing the "opposition camp" of "fuelling" the Occupy Central plan. Qiao said the plan was only "partly truthful", "complex" and a "risk-everything" proposition. The Occupy Central campaign was censored from mainland China news media and replaced by reports of government supporters gathering near

18422-647: The session agenda of the Standing Committee for the period pertaining and refer it to a plenary session of the Standing Committee for a decision. According to law, a bill may be proposed by the Chairperson's Council, or submitted to the Committee by the State Council, the Central Military Commission, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate and deputies of the special committees of

18573-479: The state budget that prove necessary in the course of their implementation. The Standing Committee decides whether to ratify or abrogate treaties and important agreements reached with other countries. It institutes systems of titles and ranks for military and diplomatic personnel, and other specific titles and ranks, state medals and titles of honor as well as the granting of special pardons. The NPCSC decides on general or partial mobilization, and on entering into

18724-449: The stirrings of a new form of social action . According to Ashton Nichols , it is perhaps the first modern statement of the principle of nonviolent protest. A version was taken up by the author Henry David Thoreau in his essay Civil Disobedience , and later by Gandhi in his doctrine of Satyagraha . Gandhi's Satyagraha was partially influenced and inspired by Shelley's nonviolence in protest and political action. In particular, it

18875-587: The streets to prevent the installation of pagan images in the Temple in Jerusalem . In modern times, some activists who commit civil disobedience as a group collectively refuse to sign bail until certain demands are met, such as favourable bail conditions, or the release of all the activists. This is a form of jail solidarity . There have also been many instances of solitary civil disobedience, such as that committed by Thoreau, but these sometimes go unnoticed. Thoreau, at

19026-418: The student protests. He proposed that the areas around the government headquarters be the occupation site in place of Central proper. On Sunday night, 28 September 2014, the scenes in Central and Admiralty became more dramatic, as the police employed tear gas, pepper spray, and batons in their attempts to disperse the protesters. The use of tear gas was a significant move in Hong Kong, as it had not been used in

19177-409: The table". The Plowshares organization temporarily closed GCSB Waihopai by padlocking the gates and using sickles to deflate one of the large domes covering two satellite dishes. Electronic civil disobedience can include web site defacements , redirects , denial-of-service attacks , information theft and data leaks , illegal web site parodies , virtual sit-ins , and virtual sabotage . It

19328-417: The tactic was applied to Boycott when the alarm was raised about the evictions. Despite the short-term economic hardship to those undertaking this action, Boycott soon found himself isolated – his workers stopped work in the fields and stables, as well as in his house. Local businessmen stopped trading with him, and the local postman refused to deliver mail. The movement spread throughout Ireland and gave rise to

19479-420: The tax-gatherer, is the very man I have to deal with—for it is, after all, with men and not with parchment that I quarrel—and he has voluntarily chosen to be an agent of the government. How shall he ever know well that he is and does as an officer of the government, or as a man, until he is obliged to consider whether he will treat me, his neighbor, for whom he has respect, as a neighbor and well-disposed man, or as

19630-524: The term "civil disobedience" has always suffered from ambiguity and in modern times, become utterly debased. Marshall Cohen notes, "It has been used to describe everything from bringing a test-case in the federal courts to taking aim at a federal official . Indeed, for Vice President Spiro Agnew it has become a code-word describing the activities of muggers, arsonists, draft evaders, campaign hecklers, campus militants, anti-war demonstrators, juvenile delinquents and political assassins." LeGrande writes that

19781-646: The term civil disobedience, approved of the armed insurrection of John Brown . He also notes that some major civil disobedience campaigns which have been classified as non-violent, such as the Birmingham campaign , have actually included elements of violence. Non-revolutionary civil disobedience is a simple disobedience of laws on the grounds that they are judged "wrong" by a person's conscience, or as part of an effort to render certain laws ineffective, to cause their repeal, or to exert pressure to get one's political wishes on some other issue. Revolutionary civil disobedience

19932-480: The term to Boycott , and eventually led to legal reform and support for Irish independence. Egypt saw a massive implementation on a nation-wide movement starting 1914 and peaking in 1919 as the Egyptian Revolution of 1919 . This was then adopted by other peoples who campaigned against European colonial rule from 1920 onwards. Zaghloul Pasha , considered the mastermind behind this massive civil disobedience,

20083-402: The test site. Howard Zinn writes, There may be many times when protesters choose to go to jail, as a way of continuing their protest, as a way of reminding their countrymen of injustice. But that is different than the notion that they must go to jail as part of a rule connected with civil disobedience. The key point is that the spirit of protest should be maintained all the way, whether it

20234-446: The third deliberation day, the Occupy Central participants voted on electoral reform proposals put forward by various pro-democracy groups, with the objective of determining which should be put to a plebiscite. Five proposals were put to the attendees and the three most popular selected. The proposal by student groups Scholarism and Hong Kong Federation of Students which allowed for public nomination, received 1,124 votes – 45 percent of

20385-455: The time of his arrest, was not yet a well-known author, and his arrest was not covered in any newspapers in the days, weeks and months after it happened. The tax collector who arrested him rose to higher political office, and Thoreau's essay was not published until after the end of the Mexican War. Civil disobedients have chosen a variety of different illegal acts. Hugo A. Bedau writes, There

20536-537: The time. According to the trio, they did so in order to bear legal responsibility and uphold the rule of law, as well as to affirm their principles of love and peace. OCLP was disbanded by the founders upon surrendering to the police. They also urged occupiers to leave for their own safety, citing their fear that the government use the police to stamp its authority on them. The OCLP leaders planned to pursue their cause through community work and education. Kong, Tsung-gan (pseudonym of Brian Patrick Kern) (2017). Umbrella:

20687-488: The transition project at Hong Kong Baptist University , said: "It's very clear from surveys that the vast majority of the people voting in this referendum are doing it as a reaction to this white paper – particularly because they see it as threatening the rule of law ... That's not negotiating on the one country two systems principle, that's demolishing it." The OCLP has pointed out the participants in Occupy Central could be guilty of "obstructing, inconveniencing or endangering

20838-426: The two parties disagree, it will be very troublesome to coordinate and difficult to operate". A compromise was finally reached that greatly expanded the powers of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, making it a permanent legislature with the power to enact most laws and to review those for approval by the NPC. The NPCSC currently has 175 members, and consists of a chairman , vice chairpersons ,

20989-547: The violent incident at the Legislative Council during the meeting for funding the northeast New Territories new town. Lai reminded the participants to consider their own personal safety and legal liability. On 24 March 2013, Wang Guangya , director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office , when asked if he believed the Occupy Central plan would be beneficial to the city, said "I think Hong Kong compatriots don't want to see Hong Kong being messed up. Hong Kong needs development." At

21140-404: The vote. People Power's proposal came in second with 685 votes, while the three-track proposal by the Alliance for True Democracy consisting of 27 pan-democracy lawmakers got 445 votes. The civil recommendation method proposed by 18 academics got 74 votes and Hong Kong 2020 's proposal came in last with 43 votes. A total of 2,508 votes were cast in the poll. All three selected proposals included

21291-510: The voting, which was just 50% of the total votes. A notable use of the constitutional interpretation power occurred in 1999 over the right of abode issue in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in Lau Kong Yung v. Director of Immigration . The NPCSC interpreted the Basic Law of Hong Kong in accordance with the position taken by the Hong Kong government with respect to the eligibility of permanent residency in Hong Kong. In 2014,

21442-554: The work of the State Council , the Central Military Commission of the PRC , the National Supervisory Commission , the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate . It has the power to annul administrative regulations, decisions and orders of the State Council that go against the Constitution and other legislative acts of the NPC and itself, and to annul local regulations or decisions of

21593-617: Was a native middle-class, Azhar graduate, political activist, judge, parliamentary and ex-cabinet minister whose leadership brought Christian and Muslim communities together as well as women into the massive protests. Along with his companions of Wafd Party , who have achieved an independence of Egypt and a first constitution in 1923. Civil disobedience is one of the many ways people have revolted against what they deem to be unfair laws. It has been used in many nonviolent resistance movements in India ( Mahatma Gandhi 's campaigns for independence from

21744-519: Was also taken up by many movements of civil disobedience, which drew from the concept of rebellion to voluntary servitude the foundation of its instrument of struggle. Étienne de La Boétie was one of the first to theorize and propose the strategy of non-cooperation, and thus a form of nonviolent disobedience, as a really effective weapon. In the lead-up to the Glorious Revolution in Britain—when

21895-465: Was eventually renamed "Essay on Civil Disobedience". After his landmark lectures were published in 1866, the term began to appear in numerous sermons and lectures relating to slavery and the war in Mexico. Thus, by the time Thoreau's lectures were first published under the title "Civil Disobedience", in 1866, four years after his death, the term had achieved fairly widespread usage. It has been argued that

22046-572: Was evicted, rather than resorting to violence, everyone in the locality should shun them. Following this Captain Charles Boycott , the land agent of an absentee landlord in County Mayo , Ireland , was subject to social ostracism organized by the Irish Land League in 1880. Boycott attempted to evict eleven tenants from his land. While Parnell's speech did not refer to land agents or landlords,

22197-506: Was focused on the illegitimacy of laws claimed to be "divine" in origin, both the "divine rights of kings" and "divine rights of man", and the legitimacy of laws acknowledged to be made by human beings. Following the Peterloo massacre of 1819, the poet Percy Shelley wrote the political poem The Mask of Anarchy later that year, that begins with the images of what he thought to be the unjust forms of authority of his time—and then imagines

22348-541: Was likely to materialise. OCLP commissioned the University of Hong Kong Public Opinion Programme (HKUPOP) to run a poll on three proposals – all of which involved allowing citizens to directly nominate candidates – for presentation to the Beijing government. It ran from 20 to 29 June 2014. A total of 792,808 people, equivalent to over one fifth of the registered electorate, took part in the poll by either voting online or going to designated polling stations. The proposal tabled by

22499-431: Was making a choice. He admits that government may express the will of the majority but it may also express nothing more than the will of elite politicians. Even a good form of government is "liable to be abused and perverted before the people can act through it". If a government did express the voice of most people, this would not compel the obedience of those who disagree with what is said. The majority may be powerful but it

22650-781: Was met with condemnation by eight major local business groups. A statement to that effect was signed by the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce , the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce , the Federation of Hong Kong Industries , the Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong and the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong , among others. In June 2014, Executives and brokers including tycoons Li Ka-shing and Peter Woo , and also

22801-600: Was operating at the behest of foreign "anti-China forces" and would damage Hong Kong's standing as a financial capital. Zhang Junsheng , a former deputy director of Xinhua News Agency in Hong Kong, denounced the poll as "meaningless". The state-run Global Times mocked the referendum as an "illegal farce" and a "joke". The region's chief executive, Leung Chun-ying , offered this rebuke: "Nobody should place Hong Kong people in confrontation with mainland Chinese citizens." Mainland censors meanwhile scrubbed social media sites clean of references to Occupy Central. The poll also prompted

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