2014-11-26
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Hong Kong Police in Mong Kok prepare to clear out pro-democracy protestors, Nov. 25, 2014.
RFA
Hong Kong police moved in the early hours of Wednesday morning to clear pro-democracy protesters encamped on a major highway since late September, arresting two of the Occupy Central movement’s most prominent student leaders and clearing away tents and barricades.
Clashes continued through the night as police deployed thousands of officers in riot gear to help enforce a court order brought by the transportation industry.
Lines of Occupy Central protesters wearing construction hats, goggles, masks and wielding umbrellas against helmeted riot police with shields and batons in the early hours of Wednesday on Shantung Street in Mong Kok.
Some threw trash and empty water bottles, as the crowd chanted angrily, lit up by constant camera flashes, while every scuffle was filmed by dozens of cameras, large and small.
Protesters, including Hong Kong Federation of Students (HKFS) spokesman Lester Shum and Scholarism leader Joshua Wong, were carried away unresisting for continuing to obstruct a section of the busy Nathan Road shopping street following megaphone warnings that those who remained could be held in contempt of court.
“If you resist you face possible imprisonment,” the police warned the crowds through a megaphone. “We warn you to immediately stop resisting,” only to be met with jeers and slogans.
Police had earlier deployed tear-spray on crowds gathered in Argyle Street, forcing them to retreat, although many occupiers had already begun packing up tents and personal belongings when court officials arrived on Tuesday.
Warning
Police on Wednesday warned protesters against trying to re-establish barricades in areas already cleared.
“Police reiterate that if anyone blocks reopened roads or other roads, police are duty bound to take resolute actions to safeguard public order and public safety,” the city’s police department said in a statement.
Police arrested 148 people during the past two days of clearance operations in Mong Kok, a spokesman told reporters on Wednesday.
“[The arrests were] on suspicion of contempt of court, illegal assembly and similar charges,” he said.
