Using a specific issue as pretext for a general protest is a classic Chinese political tactic. The 1989 protests that led to the Tiananmen massacre began with a memorial gathering for Hu Yaobang, the disgraced Chinese Communist Party General Secretary. Last week's huge march in Hong Kong against new antisubversion laws (known as Article 23) fit the pattern--with crowds estimated at 500,000, it was the largest pro-democracy protest in China since 1989--as does a rally planned for this week at the city's Legislative Council offices. "It's not just about Article 23," notes Allen Lee, a Hong Kong delegate to China's National...
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