"One of the main organisers of the Occupy Central Movement, Chan Kin-man, on Tuesday made a public appeal to protesters to consider either retreating from occupied roads or to continue protesting in a smaller area.
Professor Chan said it was necessary to minimise the disturbance that the movement was causing the general public in order to gain support for the pro-democracy movement in the long term.
In a newspaper article, the sociology professor said he hoped protestors will reflect on what they wanted to acheive (sic) through their actions.
Professor Chan asked if they want to continue fighting for Beijing to change its conservative framework for political reform in Hong Kong, or to gain support from more citizens to prepare for a long-term pro-democracy movement.
He said chances that Beijing could have a change of heart were slim and public opinion has clearly turned against the Occupy movement.
Professor Chan said the priority now should be to minimise the disturbance the movement was causing to people's daily lives in order to win their support.
He said protestors should consider retreating from some protest sites.
Professor Chan went on to say that if some pan-democratic lawmakers were willing to resign to trigger a by-election to serve as a de facto referendum, the protestors should consider retreating immediately.
The Federation of Students, which has taken over the leading role in the Occupy protests, did not give a direct response to Professor Chan's proposals.
Its Secretary-General, Alex Chow, said the Federation has to first discuss the issue with protestors before deciding on a response.
But he noted that retreating was only one of the many ways to gain public support.
A recent survey by the Chinese University of Hong Kong found that more than two thirds of respondents thought it was time for the occupiers to retreat."
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