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Hong Kong falls silent as authorities delay extradition bill debate Hong Kong falls silent as authorities delay extradition bill debate
(about 1 hour later)
Hong Kong fell silent on Thursday as protesters restocked on supplies of water, helmets and other protective equipment after the city’s Legislative Council confirmed it would not meet on Thursday to hear the second reading of the controversial extradition bill that has prompted massive street protests. Hong Kong fell silent on Thursday as protesters and police maintained a wary eye on each other, a day after the violent clearing of thousands of demonstrators from the streets over proposed extradition legislation that could see suspects sent to mainland China.
On Thursday morning only a handful of people remained on the streets, milling about as a widespread cleanup around the city’s legislature took place. Many roads had reopened around the central business district, but Pacific Place mall next to the legislature remained closed. Government offices in the financial district were closed and would be for the rest of the week. Officials said debate on the controversial extradition law that has prompted mass demonstrations would not be held on Thursday, and government offices in the financial district were closed. Small groups of defiant protesters remained, attempting to reclaim crucial areas while others appeared to be restocking for the protests, looking for places to hide protective equipment and other supplies.
Ken Lam, a protestor in his 20s who works in the city’s food and beverage industry said he would remain on strike until the bill was scrapped. Roads previously blocked by demonstrators and police were reopened and evidence of the protests – piles of trash of broken goggles, bottles, and umbrellas – were shunted to the side of the road where sanitary workers cleaned them up. Dozens of police patrolled the central Hong Kong area. Several shops in a mall near the site of the protests were shut.
“I don’t know what the plan for protesters is today, we will just go with the flow, but we think the turnout will be smaller than yesterday and it will be peaceful, after what happened yesterday,” he said. Global backing for protest rights as Trump hopes Hong Kong can ‘work it out’
Banks based in the central district – the financial heart of the city – emphasised it was “business as usual” but many offered staff, where possible, the option of working from home. Demonstrators were shocked by the violence of the previous day, when police charged on protesters, firing rubber bullets and tear gas on them. At least 72 people were hospitalised, two of which were in serious condition.
HSBC, whose ground-level public space at its headquarters had previously been a focal point for protests, said it was operating as normal, but gave staff the option of working remotely. A few dozen protesters remained on an overpass near the government complex, which includes the Legislative Council, where lawmakers will debate the proposed bill to allow transfers of alleged criminals to mainland China. The law, which critics say Beijing will use to target political enemies in Hong Kong, has brought up to a million Hong Kongers into the streets to protest.
“As a precaution, we shut two outlets early where the protests were taking place. Our priorities are the safety of our employees and supporting our customers,” the bank said in a statement.
Speaking on Wednesday evening, Hong Kong’s leader, chief executive Carrie Lam, condemned protesters for “dangerous and life-threatening acts”. Lam, who is championing the proposed extradition law’s passage, noted that some young people in the crowd had expressed their views peacefully, but said the protests had devolved into a “blatant, organised riot.”
“Since this afternoon, some people have resorted to dangerous, or even potentially fatal, acts. These include arson, using sharpened iron bars and hurling bricks to attack police officers, as well as destroying public facilities,” she said.
Her comments came after riot police used rubber bullets, batons and teargas against people in Hong Kong protesting against the bill that would tighten Beijing’s grip on the semi-autonomous territory.
Through tears, Carrie Lam says that she did not sell out #HongKong and that she believes the government has been doing the right thing all along. https://t.co/3Q6rl13yK8 pic.twitter.com/UQjhC0CsrfThrough tears, Carrie Lam says that she did not sell out #HongKong and that she believes the government has been doing the right thing all along. https://t.co/3Q6rl13yK8 pic.twitter.com/UQjhC0Csrf
Unable to drive away the crowds paralysing the central business district on Wednesday, authorities were forced to delay a debate over the bill. On Thursday the Legislative Council secretariat said an announcement on the timing of the debate would “be made once the President determines the time of the meeting.” The group, blocked by police, stood quietly and held up laminated signs that said, “Retract” and “Go Hong Kong”. Occasionally the group broke out into a chant, calling for the law to be pulled. Protesters said they did not know what the plan was for the day.
Chinese state media said in editorials on Thursday that the protests were “hammering” the city’s reputation, with outbreaks of “lawlessness” undermining the rule of law. “Some people had to go back to work,” said Mike Tsang, 23, a recent graduate, who was in the group of demonstrators. He hoped more people would come later in the day. “We are coming here to show the police we won’t give up,” he said.
The English-language China Daily said the new amendments were in line with international conventions but “the opposition camp and its foreign masters seem willing to oppose it for their own purposes at the expense of the city’s rule of law, public safety and justice”. Nearby another group was sorting bags of helmets, face masks and other supplies, and trying to find places around the city to hide the items for when the protesters return, most likely when the debate over the bill is rescheduled. “Today we are safe,” said one of the protesters.
“It is lawlessness that will hurt Hong Kong, not the proposed amendments to its fugitive law,” it said. But others were still worried that the government was using the announcement as a ruse to throw off the demonstrators. A group of young demonstrators, university students, huddled in a shopping mall near the government buildings, texting contacts to mobilise a group to gather outside the Legislative Council and block any lawmakers in favour of the bill from entering.
The state-owned tabloid The Global Times blamed “radical opposition forces” and “the western forces behind them” for hyping up and politicising the amendments. “Playing with uncontrolled street politics is to push Hong Kong to backwardness and disturbance,” it said. “This is not a wise direction for Hong Kong.” “Our only chance is to stop the lawmakers from coming in,” said Jason Fong, 19, who said lawmakers could go in today, stay overnight and hold the reading of the bill on Friday.
Protesters worry Beijing will exploit the law to extradite political opponents and activists to the mainland, where they would be subject to a Chinese justice system criticised by human rights activists. Several said they believed demonstrators would come back and had been putting out calls to friends and acquaintances through Facebook and Instagram, but also encrypted platforms like Telegram.
The violence marked an escalation in the biggest political crisis to hit the city in years. After the police crackdown, a group of protesters made a failed attempt to storm government offices. In several cases, crowds charged at armed officers, throwing bottles and other debris.
Hospital authorities told broadcaster RTHK that 72 people had been taken to hospital and two were in a serious condition. Pictures and videos on social media appeared to show people wounded by rubber bullets or bean-bag rounds, which police fired from shotguns.
Police chief Stephen Lo defended his officers, saying they had shown restraint until “mobsters” tried to storm parliament.
Street protesters dig in for Hong Kong's 'last battle'Street protesters dig in for Hong Kong's 'last battle'
“These violent protesters kept charging at our line of defence, and used very dangerous weapons, including ... throwing metal barricades at us and throwing bricks,” he said. Telegram posted on Twitter yesterday, as police were clearing protests, that it was facing a “powerful DDos attack”, referring to a distributed denial of service attack.
But Amnesty International said police “took advantage of the violent acts of a small minority as a pretext to use excessive force against the vast majority of peaceful protesters.” Speaking on Wednesday evening, Hong Kong’s leader, chief executive Carrie Lam, condemned protesters for “dangerous and life-threatening acts”. Lam, who is championing the proposed extradition law’s passage, noted that some young people in the crowd had expressed their views peacefully, but said the protests had devolved into a “blatant, organised riot”.
Activists have vowed to keep up the pressure against the extradition bill. College student Louis Wong said the demonstrations had so far been a success. “Since this afternoon, some people have resorted to dangerous, or even potentially fatal, acts. These include arson, using sharpened iron bars and hurling bricks to attack police officers, as well as destroying public facilities,” she said.
“This is a public space and the police have no right to block us from staying here,” Wong said. “We’ll stay until the government drops this law and (Chinese President) Xi Jinping gives up on trying to turn Hong Kong into just another city in China like Beijing and Shanghai.” Lam added: “To use a metaphor, I’m a mother too, I have two sons,” she said. “If I let him have his way every time my son acted like that, such as when he didn’t want to study, things might be OK between us in the short term.
Lam said she had never “felt guilty” over the issue and believed she was doing the right thing. She said she felt “worried and sad” about the young protesters.
“To use a metaphor, I’m a mother too, I have two sons,” she said. “If I let him have his way every time my son acted like that, such as when he didn’t want to study, things might be OK between us in the short term.
“But if I indulge his wayward behaviour, he might regret it when he grows up. He will then ask me: ‘Mum, why didn’t you call me up on that back then?’”“But if I indulge his wayward behaviour, he might regret it when he grows up. He will then ask me: ‘Mum, why didn’t you call me up on that back then?’”
Amnesty International said police “took advantage of the violent acts of a small minority as a pretext to use excessive force against the vast majority of peaceful protesters.”
The crackdown on the protests represented a major escalation of police action against demonstrators. Hospital officials told public broadcaster RTHK that at least 72 people had been hospitalised, of which two were in a serious condition. Pictures and videos on social media showed police firing rubber bullets and bean-bag rounds from shotguns, tear gassing protesters in their faces, as well as beating some with batons.
Man-Kei Tam, director of Amnesty International Hong Kong said: “This excessive response from police is fuelling tensions and is likely to contribute to worsening violence, rather than end it.”
How are you being affected by the Hong Kong protests?How are you being affected by the Hong Kong protests?
In an interview with Hong Kong broadcaster TVB, Lam denied she was “selling out” the city. Lam has the support of Beijing, which has repeated its support for the bill as important for fighting crime. In an an English-language editorial, the state-run China Daily defended the bill but “the opposition camp and its foreign masters seem willing to oppose it for their own purposes at the expense of the city’s rule of law, public safety and justice”.
“It’s time to let lawmakers with different opinions express their views under the legislative process,” she said. “On whether to retract or push it through ... our consideration is this: There is no doubt this issue is controversial. Explanation and dialogue are useful but perhaps that has not entirely dispelled worries.” “It is lawlessness that will hurt Hong Kong, not the proposed amendments to its fugitive law,” it said.
State-owned tabloid The Global Times opposition groups and the “western forces behind them” for politicising the proposed legal changes. “Playing with uncontrolled street politics is to push Hong Kong to backwardness and disturbance,” the editorial said. “This is not a wise direction for Hong Kong.”
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