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'Worrying Uncle' makes sense

(China Daily) Updated: 2014-10-09 08:00

A 40-year-old Hong Kong engineer, who has been given the name "Worrying Uncle", became well-known on the Internet because of a video clip, in which he appealed to all pro-"Occupy Central" youngsters to remain sane and go home. His sincere words represent the righteous voice of Hong Kong residents who love their city, and should be heard by all protesters, says an article on the news portal gmw.cn. Excerpts:

What put this "worrying uncle" in the spotlight in the recent "Occupy Central" farce was his exhortations were those of a concerned parent and responsible citizen. In a two-minute video clip filmed on the morning of Sept 30, he stressed the prime purpose of making it was to urge the protesting students to retreat to safe zones and go back to their parents.

Moreover, besides criticizing the illegality of the "Occupy Central" movement, he made another valid point as none of the three major initiators, Benny Tai Yiu-ting, Chan Kin-man and Chu Yiu-ming, have involved their families in it. Instead of manipulating youngsters to pursue a fantasized and self-proclaimed goal, they should get their feet on the ground and start with enlarging the electorate base, he said in the video.

Such appeal, seeking the best of public well-being from a civilian perspective, thus makes perfect sense of his online popularity among both Chinese mainland and Hong Kong netizens.

Sensible protesters began leaving the protests on Sunday and the re-opening of two affected schools on Monday indicate that genuine communication and the exchange of different viewpoints are the key to Hong Kong's development in the future.