Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement effectively lost its ability to fight in the legislature after 15 pro-democracy opposition lawmakers, protesting the expulsion of four other lawmakers, submitted letters of resignation en masse from the city's Legislative Council on Thursday.
Along with restrictions on protests against either the Chinese or Hong Kong governments, the pro-democracy camp finds itself beset from all sides.
"We will each return to our local communities and contribute to the democratic movement from different places," Wu Chi-wai, chairperson of the Democratic Party, Hong Kong's largest pro-democracy party, told reporters on Thursday.
No clear plan has been formed for the pro-democracy camp to rally at next September's Legislative Council election.
Anti-government protests on the streets had long been a vital way for Hong Kong residents to voice dissent. However, authorities currently ban public gatherings of five or more people on the grounds of preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The national security law that came into effect in June sunk the knife in deeper. There is heightened risk of arrest for taking to the streets in protest. Calling on foreign countries for support is also difficult as it could be deemed as an illegal action.
In 2003, mass protests by the pro-democracy camp forced the Hong Kong government to withdraw an unpopular national security bill. The camp managed to maintain a certain presence in the legislature, although it is dominated by pro-Beijing lawmakers.
But with the mass departure of opposition lawmakers, "The Council's ability to instill checks on the administration has been lost for good," the Apple Daily, Hong Kong's pro-democracy newspaper, pointed out.
Even if the pro-democracy lawmakers who submitted resignations manage to regain their seats in next year's election, it is certain their activities will be largely restricted by the new conditions imposed by Beijing, including a pledge of loyalty to the Hong Kong government.
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