A protest began in Hong Kong Sunday evening when students started to gather in the streets. These students are a pro-democracy group that have been threatening to protest schools openly since the government has decided to control who runs for office. When the government did not respond to the student's demands they took to the streets.
Since Sunday the protest has grown exponentially. It has grown to the point where they are blocking traffic, emergency vehicles, and public transport. Police officers have been trying to stop the protest from growing by using rubber bullets, tear gas, and force. However, their efforts have been in vain. The protesters numbers have been growing. Growing to try to change the mind of the government officials. However, their protest have not phased the minds of government officials. The riot is still in full swing.
To read more about this protest you can read it on the CNN website or you can follow this link:
http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/28/world/asia/china-hong-kong-students/
The political crime that I will be focusing on for this article is oppositional crime. Now Helfgott defines oppositional crime as those people who "have strong ideological beliefs that conflict with government interests" (Helfgott, p. 331). The students and protesters that gather in the streets of Hong Kong are protesting the governments choice to control the appointment of office.
The specific oppositional crime that the protesters have committed is political dissent and it can be expressed in many ways, "political protest, acts of civil disobedience, or other expressions of opposition" (Helfgott, p. 331). The protesters of Hong Kong are protesting the government and they are refusing to obey the orders of the police force. These people are protesting something that they do not agree with. However, they are doing so in a manner that is threatening the lives of the people within the crowd and breaking the law by disobeying the orders of the police.
References
Helfgott. "Political Crime." 9 (2002). Web. <https://bblearn.nau.edu/bbcswebdav/courses/1151-NAU00-CCJ-341-SEC001-6366.NAU-PSSIS/Helfgott_Chapter_9.pdf>.
Watson, I. (n.d.). Hong Kong says riot police have pulled back as protesters jam city streets - CNN.com. Retrieved February 7, 2015, from http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/28/world/asia/china-hong-kong-students/
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