230 Protesters Arrested In Hong Kong As Pro-democracy Movement Shows Signs Of Resurgence
Hong Kong authorities reported 230 arrests on Sunday as small pro-democracy protests broke out in several shopping districts in the city. Democratic lawmaker Roy Kwong was among those arrested, and was later hospitalized after being pushed to the ground and restrained by police. The demonstrations and arrests come after Hong Kong late last month extended disease control restrictions that included a public ban on gatherings, and amid increasing concerns that ongoing pandemic response measures could be used as cover for the further repression of pro-democracy activism. Reuters’ Clare Jim and Jesse Pang report:
Hundreds of riot police were deployed to disperse the protesters on Sunday, with some members of the media caught up in the chaos that evoked memories of the sometimes violent unrest that rocked the global financial hub last year.
Police said the arrested were aged between 12 and 65 and their offences included unlawful assembly, assaulting a police officer and failing to produce proof of identity.
[…]Footage [live-streamed from Mong Kok of police pushing back reporters and activists showed protesters being subdued on the ground, scuffles and people bleeding.
Police fired pepper spray at journalists and activists, and conducted stop and search operations on members of the public and media.
[…] Police in riot gear told protesters they were staging an illegal assembly and violating anti-virus measures that bar gatherings of more than eight people. …
h/t lily