As the remarkably civil and violence-free pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong continue, negotiations at the mediation table are scheduled to resume between student groups and the government this week.  The negotiations will be televised live.

Despite police actions to clear the streets of Hong Kong, accusations of police brutality, and a lack of negotiating response from the government, student protesters have been observed to be keeping their tempers and avoiding provoking the police, while filmed incidents of police beatings and other actions have made the Hong Kong forces look bad internationally.  All of this has combined to put pressure on Hong Kong’s government to resume negotiations with the remarkably well-organized and restrained protesters.

Leonard Cheng, a university president who is acting as chief moderator for the talks, expressed doubt that they will be productive, however, noting that student rhetoric includes statements indicating that any sort of compromise (short of full free democratic elections) would be considered defeat, and that even as it agreed to negotiations, the government implied the students were the puppets of “external forces” and that a harder line would be coming if students did not abandon the streets.

The protesters are seeking full control over their upcoming elections, and the demonstrations erupted when China, which took over administration of Hong Kong in 1999 with the promise that it’s political and economic freedom would continue, announced that only approved candidates could run for office.  Most external observers consider it very unlikely that China will allow the protesters even a symbolic victory, considering the implications it would have for China’s other territories.