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Students raise their fists during a rally at the Chinese University of Hong Kong campus in Hong Kong, Monday, Sept. 22, 2014. AP Photo/Vincent Yu

HONG KONG -- Thousands of Hong Kong college and university students boycotted classes Monday to protest Beijing's decision to restrict voting reforms, the start of a week-long strike that marks the latest phase in the battle for democracy in the southern Chinese city.

The strike comes as dozens of the city's tycoons and business leaders paid a rare group visit to Beijing to meet with China's communist leaders, who want to bolster support from Hong Kong's pro-establishment billionaire elites for the central government's policies on the semi-autonomous city.

Student organizers are dismayed over Beijing's decision in August to rule out open nominations for candidates under proposed guidelines for the first-ever elections for Hong Kong's top leader, promised for 2017.

Discontent over democratic reform is especially acute among Hong Kong's young people, who worry about their prospects amid widening inequality they blame on billionaire tycoons whose companies control vast parts of the economy and who have Beijing's ear.

In July, more than 500 protesters were arrested during an overnight sit-in, following a rally that drew more roughly 100,000 people.

The National People's Congress, China's legislature, insists election candidates be vetted by a committee. Many of the tycoons visiting Beijing are part of a similar body that selects Hong Kong's leaders.

Hong Kong's democracy battle has led to increasing tension and division, with activists threatening to stage a mass "occupation" of the Asian financial hub's central business district as early as Oct. 1 as part of a civil disobedience campaign to press their demands.

China took control of the former British colony in 1997, agreeing to let it keep civil liberties unseen on the mainland and promising that the leader can eventually be chosen through "universal suffrage." But Beijing's insistence on screening candidates for patriotism to China has stoked fears among democracy groups that Hong Kong will never get genuine democracy.

"The student strike will mark the turning point of the democratic movement," Alex Chow, secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, told about 13,000 students from 24 schools rallying at the Chinese University of Hong Kong's suburban campus. "We will not have illusions in the government anymore, but we'll have faith in ourselves. We are willing to pay the price for democracy."

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Students demand democracy in Hong Kong strike

Students and teachers attend a rally during the class boycott at the Chinese University of Hong Kong today. Photograph: Tyrone Siu/Reuters.

Students from various universities clench their fists during a demonstration at the Chinese University in Hong Kong today. Photograph: Bobby Yip/Reuters.

Thousands of students braved sweltering heat in Hong Kong today to demand greater democracy as they launched a week-long boycott of classes, underscoring a restive younger generations determination to challenge the Chinese Communist Party.

Wearing yellow ribbons, students from more than 20 universities and colleges packed into the grounds of picturesque, bay-side Chinese University where they were greeted by banners that said: The boycott must happen. Disobey and grasp your destiny.

The former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997 with a high degree of autonomy, but Beijing last month rejected demands for people to freely choose the citys next leader, prompting threats from activists to shut down the central finance district as part of their pro-democracy campaign.

We demand the government responds to our call to endorse civil nominations, said Alex Chow, leader of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, one of the organisers of the boycott who also called on Hong Kong to reject fake elections.

Some of the student leaders wore black T-shirts with the words democracy now.

Students converged on a long boulevard at the university, with some carrying umbrellas to protect them from the baking sun, and many chanting united we stand and democracy now.

Leading academics in Hong Kong have voiced support for the boycott, with some offering to record lectures and post them online for students who miss school to watch later.

As long as the spirit of democracy stays alive, we cannot and will not be defeated, said Chan Kin-man, a co-founder of the Occupy Central movement that has threatened to blockade the heart of the Asian financial centre to demand full democracy.

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Hong Kong students boycott classes, demand democracy

housands of students braved sweltering heat in Hong Kong on Monday to demand greater democracy as they launched a week-long boycott of classes, underscoring a restive younger generation's determination to challenge the Chinese Communist Party. Photo by Reuters

Dressed in white and wearing yellow ribbons, students from more than 20 universities and colleges packed into the grounds of picturesque, bay-side Chinese University where they were greeted by banners that said: "The boycott must happen. Disobey and grasp your destiny."

Managing the former British colony is proving a challenge for Beijing, which is worried that calls for democracy could spread to cities on the mainland, threatening the Communist Party's grip on power.

Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997 as a "special administrative region" (SAR) with a high degree of autonomy and freedoms not enjoyed on the mainland under a formula known as "one country, two systems".

But Beijing last month rejected demands for people to freely choose the city's next leader, prompting threats from pro-democracy activists to shut down the Central financial district.

"We are willing to pay the price for democracy. No one can take away people's entitled right. No one. Not the SAR government and of course not the NPC," said Alex Chow, leader of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, one of the organisers of the boycott, referring to China's National People's Congress.

Chow, 24, who wore a black T-shirt with the words "freedom now", has said he was inspired by a high school teacher who began crying as he played a clip of China's bloody crackdown on pro-democracy student demonstrators in and around Beijing's Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989.

The protest was peaceful but the mood at the university was defiant as demonstrators demanded nominations for Hong Kong's next leader in 2017 to be open to everyone. China's leaders want to ensure only pro-Beijing candidates are on the ballot.

Chow's federation put the number of students attending the rally at about 13,000, describing the turn-out as "inspirational". There was no independent or police estimate.

The Occupy Central movement that has threatened to shut down the business district will likely be encouraged by the turnout. The students' ability to mobilise such a large crowd makes their support an increasingly important driver of Hong Kong's burgeoning civil disobedience movement.

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Hong Kong students demand democracy

Incoming Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama put himself before the citizens of Fiji and gave them the opportunity to decide the future of Fiji.

It is decades since I was on a family holiday in Fiji but I can report it's still a beautiful place and the people are still friendly. And now that Fiji has voted for democracy, the best Aussies can do for Fiji is to continue holidaying in even greater numbers.

Last Wednesday's election and the transition from military government and return to democracy could not have gone much smoother. There are a lot of dictators around the world who will never give up power. Putting the recent history behind, it has to be said that it is to the credit of the incoming Prime Minister, Frank Bainimarama, that he put himself before the citizens of Fiji and gave them the opportunity to decide the future of Fiji. He won 32 seats out of 50. Many Indo Fijians voted for Bainimarama; an outcome that the Opposition needs to consider in the future.

There were two significant catalysts to this shift to democracy. Firstly, a switch in Australian policy towards Fiji announced by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop in February 2014 and the decision by the Fiji government in March 2014 that it would hold elections by the end of September. The last Fijian election was 2006 and until this year, elections were twice promised but not implemented.

Needless to say, democracy is not a one-day wonder: Fiji will need to continue and improve the practice of democracy. The next step will be the opening of the new Parliament which will give the opposition a legitimate platform. All sides of politics in Fiji will need to adapt to the new democratic standards; the opposition needs to behave responsibly and to establish itself as a viable alternative to the government. The government's challenges include the need to bring civil society into the democracy tent and lessen restrictions on the media.

Once again, Bishop has demonstrated that she is a quality minister. Two things stand out. Firstly, the February policy change involved taking a punt that Fiji would move towards democracy. It was clear from the outset that no one really knew how well the voting would be conducted and no one was sure what would happen if the government lost office. It was a classic case of taking a risk to get a worthwhile outcome. And secondly, rather than shunning Fiji, she worked with the Fiji government and put in place the resources needed to complement Fijian efforts to run an election at short notice. In both cases, the approach turned up trumps for everyone.

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The Multinational Observation Group (the MOG) was co-ordinated by Australia and we managed the involvement of more than 90 international observers through the Secretariat staffed by Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Training staff. Australia was co-leader with Indonesia and the India and, separately, we also funded Australian experts to work inside the Fijian election office.

The observation work was not just on election day. We wanted to know what was happening on the ground well in advance of the election so we could understand the context for the vote. The task was to monitor and report back; the MOG was not running the election and it was not a commentator on politics. It was however, not shy in saying that its final report would not only suggest improvements for the future but it would point out what needed to be done before the election.

The preparation was comprehensive. Young Australian staffers were dispatched to remote islands to talk to local people about the election and people like former Kiwi MP, Wyatt Creech was walking the back blocks of Fiji for weeks before the election. Where there were complaints or otherwise, they were passed on to MOG.

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Keep holidaying in Fiji for democracy's sake

Reflections on Democracy Promotion
To mark this year #39;s International Day of Democracy, we interviewed IFES Vice President for Programs Michael Svetlik about the evolution of the democracy move...

By: IFES87

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Reflections on Democracy Promotion - Video