Violence is not the solution

There is a worrying trend of more and more violence protests.  Both the protesters and the establishment are hardening their positions and resorting to more violent actions.  

There is more and more palpable anger in the community, particularly amount some of the more extreme groups.  There is indeed a lot of institutional injustice in Hong Kong.  Political dominance by the pro-Beijing factions. Financial exploitation by the big corporations.  Poverty among the less educated.  Lack of opportunity for the young.   Forced nationalistic education.   Examination driven education.  Selective enforcement of the law.   Privilege for the rich and well-connected.  The list is endless and people are justifiably angry.  

But violence is not the solution for Hong Kong.  The situation is not so dire that justifies violent revolution.  It might have been the case at the end of the Ching Dynasty in China.  But not here and now in Hong Kong.   

Violent anger destroys the angry person from the inside.  It hurts the angry person more than the one causing the anger.  Violence destroys the credibility of the angry person.  It destroys Hong Kong. Non-violent methods take longer to work and give less satisfaction in the short time.  But ultimately they may cause more fundamental, longer lasting changes.   

In the mean time, I believe the government is responsible for much of the anger in society.  It is also responsible for not tackling the deeper problems, together with the rich corporations, the legislators, people who enjoy the benefits from the inequality.  They are also the ones with the power to change society.  Even then, all these still do not justify the violence, hence we should condemn the violence.  But that does not mean the government should not bear much of the blame.  Blaming the perpetuators of the violence without addressing the deep seated iniquity will not solve the problem.  It will just make the hatred worse.

I pray that God comforts the angry and shows them that He understands and will judge wisely.  That the evildoers will be punished.  I also pray that God will move those who has the power to do good, or evil, to do the right thing.  That those who are hurting others will realise what they are doing is wrong, and repent.