19 arrested over clashes at Hong Kong protests
Print Edition
HONG Kong’s Secretary for Security, Lai Tung-kwok, yesterday said 19 people were arrested on Friday during clashes between Occupy Central protesters and anti-Occupy people.
Clashes took place at Mong Kok and Causeway Bay, two major commercial areas, from Friday afternoon to early yesterday morning, leaving some citizens and police injured.
Responding to criticism that police had been slow to deal with the clashes, Lai said that as the crowd grew bigger in Mong Kok, fights broke out in different locations, making it more difficult for police to handle.
Of the 19 people arrested, eight are suspected as having triad backgrounds, said Lai.
“We do not approve of any of this violence. Hong Kong is a lawful society. Every citizen in Hong Kong should abide by the law. Nobody wishes to see what happened yesterday,” he said, adding that the police would take a patient approach to enforcing the law.
Chinese people from all walks of life have denounced the illegal gatherings of the Occupy Central movement.
Professor Chen Duanhong of the Peking University Law School said that the Occupy Central organizers, out of certain political purposes, are using rhetoric such as “civil disobedience” as a disguise to instigate people to trample on the law.
“As an export-oriented economy, Hong Kong needs a stable and safe market environment,” said Wang Luguo, a businessman in neighboring Guangdong Province. “Who’s going to pay the price for the current situation? I think ordinary Hong Kong residents and businesses will pay in the end.”
Li Zhensheng, a villager from Rongzhong in southeast China’s Fujian Province, expressed anger at the protests. “Hong Kong is a free society but should have rules,” said Li.
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