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PART VI CONCLUSIONS
111
and the conclusions of the Committee, and it was through this wide and dangerous gap that the demonstrators marched on the evening of the 5th and 6th, to receive from passers-by support and encouragement for their banners and their slogans.
405. From the evidence before us, it looks as if the motives of the demon- strators varied widely, but the press reports on the Star Ferry issue and the petitions organized with considerable publicity by Mrs. ELLIOTT had fostered an atmosphere of unrest, and had helped to focus on a particular facet of public concern those feelings of insecurity and discontent which are bound to exist amongst the under-privileged in any big city. Although the increase proposed was insignificant in itself, some sections of the public saw in it a symbol of inflation with possibilities of greater hardship in making ends meet and greater financial insecurity. The contribution made to later events by these factors lay in the high- lighting of public tension and in providing the demonstrators with a cause— resistance to price increase-and a vocabulary-chain reaction'-'inflationary spiral' etc.
406. The 'Hunger Strike'. SO Sau Chung decided to turn his appearance before us into an exhibition, consequently we were unable to rely on oral evidence from him as to his motives and attitude. But it is clear from the words painted on his jacket, from the published newspaper and radio interviews and from the evidence of his supporters that the motives for his demonstration were, initially, opposition to the Star Ferry fare increase and support for Mrs. ELLIOTT's campaign. Later, in the interview with Mr. BERNACCHI, it seems that he took advantage of his suddenly elevated position in the public eye to give expression to his general political views.
407. The early demonstrators. Whereas SO's demonstration was directly motivated by the Star Ferry affair and Mrs. ELLIOTT's campaign, the connection is less direct in the case of the other demonstrators: and many of them admitted that, although they acquired their knowledge of and concern over the proposed increase from newspaper reports, they first showed a direct interest in the matter when they saw SO or read about him in the papers. The further removed the contact from the original demonstrator, the further did the motives for joining in the demonstration move away from opposition to ferry fares-and curiosity and an urge for excitement became stronger reasons than opposition to fare increases: e.g. one demonstrator told us he had not heard of Star Ferry increases until he saw the procession.
408. Mood of the crowd. The interest and curiosity of passers-by-a normal feature of Hong Kong life-were a prominent feature of the early demonstrations and there is little doubt that the public had some sympathy for people, who, in spite of normal Chinese reticence, felt strongly enough to demonstrate in public. The public approbation and particularly the interest of press reporters in their