Stop Protesting And Talk, Urges Tam Yiu-chung

Hong Kong's member of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, Tam Yiu-chung, on Thursday called on anti-extradition protesters to halt their demonstrations and communicate with the government instead.

On an RTHK radio programme, Tam said a small number of protesters have been using violent means to express their views and if the public continue to tolerate and sympathise with such behaviour, it will only encourage more violence.

"Continuing to protest like this is not the solution. If the protests stop, some things can be communicated to the administration. I think the government fully understands the views of protesters by now," he said.

Tam, a former chairman of the DAB, was asked whether the party's support for the police will lose them votes in next year's Legco elections. He responded by saying that not everyone sees the police as their enemy.

"I think the police are very important for maintaining social order and not everyone dislikes them. You try and think what the situation will be like if the whole police force goes on strike," he said.

On Wednesday, Tam joined hundreds of Hong Kong lawmakers, NPC and CPPCC members for a meeting in Shenzhen where Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office chief Zhang Xiaoming reportedly told them that Beijing trusts the SAR government and the police to resolve the SAR's current turmoil.