Now, perhaps more than ever, Martin Lee Chu-ming believes patience is a virtue. It is something he says the Democrats need in abundance to tide the difficult times ahead.
'Patience is the virtue at these times,' the leader said in an interview with the South China Morning Post. 'The fight for democracy is not going to be over in a matter of months or years. It's going to be a long-drawn battle. If we can't keep our calm, we can ruin things.' The chairman of the Democratic Party was speaking inside the office granted him as a member of the Legislative Council. His position at the helm of the party he formed in 1994 and which he is leading in a second term of four years is not threatened. However, he admitted it was a 'fair statement' to say the party was at the crossroads.
On the one hand, there are growing feelings of frustration and helplessness among the 13 core members sitting in Legco over their ability to influence government policies.
On the other hand there are serious doubts about the wisdom of going back to street-fighting when the community has no deep sympathy for radical and extreme protests.
Tensions over the party's strategies flared after a group of young turks lobbied unionist Lau Chin-shek to bid for the post of vice-chairman of the party last month.
Mr Lau defeated the incumbent Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, who has been seen as a symbol of the moderate political line. Although the result was decided by a small margin of votes, the message was clear. A faction of younger members was not happy with where the party has been going since the handover.