Fifty-three demonstrators arrested after ignoring ban on gatherings to mark one year of protests

More than 50 people were arrested in Hong Kong on Tuesday night after thousands of protesters took to the streets in defiance of a police order to mark the first anniversary of the anti-government movement.

Police riot units used pepper spray and repeatedly charged at crowds in an attempt to disperse protesters gathered near the business district of Central, occupying roads and blocking traffic until well after midnight.

China’s national security law has reinvigorated a protest movement that began with opposition to an extradition bill

When Freeman Yim stepped out to join a peaceful demonstration against a controversial extradition bill on 9 June last year, he never knew it would be the start of a drawn-out movement that would plunge Hong Kong into the deepest crisis in its history.

“We weren’t fighting for much, we just wanted Hong Kong to remain Hong Kong and not turn into just any Chinese city,” he said. “We want to have dignity and basic rights. As the Chinese national anthem says, not to become slaves.”

China has effectively torn up the treaty it signed with the Thatcher government – yet the UK’s response is feeble

To understand how wide Beijing now casts its security net in Hong Kong, consider the case of Martin Lee. Now in his 80s, Lee is a distinguished barrister, a politician and a lifelong defender of civil liberties. He has never committed an act of violence or advocated that others do so.

Last month, in an early sign of what was coming, Lee was arrested at his home. Fourteen other prominent Hong Kong citizens were taken into custody that day and charged with taking part in illegal demonstrations. He has pointed out that he was already facing 14 similar charges in mainland China, and had the extradition law that triggered last year’s protests in Hong Kong been adopted he could have been sent for trial in China under a system that not even the Chinese Communist party’s (CCP) most generous supporters could describe as adequate. The CCP regards rule of law and separation of powers as threats to its power. Law, for the party, is one instrument among many that can be used to eliminate opponents – who can be anyone from dissenting public intellectuals to prominent businessmen.