Enough is enough. Those bizarre and ridiculous lingering protests by a handful of demonstrators in the heart of the city's banking district need to be stopped - one way or the other.
After all, this has dragged on for almost two years, creating a nuisance for nearly everyone. Innocent people working in the vicinity and pedestrians are forced to endure the daily drumming and slogan shouting along the streets of Central, by a small group claiming to be victims of the Lehman Brothersminibonds saga.
These protests outside major commercial buildings and bank headquarters have reached an unacceptable level, with no end in sight.
Such selfish acts have prompted a group of people - who describe themselves as practitioners in the financial industry - to place advertisements in several Chinese-language newspapers, denouncing the noisy protests and seeking a return of the "international financial center."
The situation is spinning out of control. As the ads say, Hong Kong has switched from an international financial center to a melting pot of funeral parlors.
Some protesters have strung up large black banners and flags to attract attention, while others have turned the sidewalks into funeral parlor altars with ghostly black-and-white pictures of finance officials.
Still others have even resorted to throwing "hell" money, banging on gongs, and shouting their demands through loudspeakers.
These selfish acts boil down to just one word - greed. There has to be some sort of responsibility. After all, I dare say that for many of those now claiming to be victims, their prime motivation in investing in the first place was greed.
Recently, a fairly good deal has emerged with the banks, under which holders of the Lehman Brothers structured products can get up to 96.5 percent of their money back. This should be treated as a friendly gesture by the banks who want to settle the dispute. Nowhere else in the world would banks make such an offer.
But the radical protests have shown no sign of abating, with political parties still camping outside major buildings. Recently, activists from the youth branch of the Civic Party bivouacked outside the Cheung Kong Center to protest high property prices.
Chong Hing Bank managed to obtain an injunction against two disgruntled minibond victims, banning them from protesting outside the bank's branches, as they were scaring away customers.
Everyone has the freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, but others' freedom should also be respected. Justice should be served both to the victims and the financial practitioners, who need a quiet place to work.
This is only fair. And who can blame them for making a public plea in a form of adverts to put an end to these protests?
Enough is enough.
Order needs to be restored in Central, so people can carry on with their business peacefully.
