Category Archives: Hong Kong

Police fire teargas and pepper spray as Hong Kong protests continue

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Riot officers confront crowds gathered in Causeway Bay shopping district

Hong Kong police have used teargas and pepper spray on thousands of protesters as demonstrations enter the 17th week in the city’s most serious political crisis in decades.

The protest, which was not sanctioned by police, was scheduled to start at 3pm local time (0800 BST) in the Causeway Bay shopping district, but dozens of riot police began guarding the area hours before. They stopped and searched a number of young people dressed in black.

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Teargas and water cannon fired at Hong Kong protesters – video

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Teargas and water cannon was fired at Hong Kong protesters by police during a large rally marking the fifth anniversary of the umbrella protests on Saturday 28.

Earlier in the day, activists put posters and banners on the 'Lennon wall' a series of messages through the city calling for democracy 

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‘Hong Kong can’t go back to normal’: protesters keep Umbrella spirit alive

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Police fire teargas at rally marking five-year anniversary of pro-democracy movement

Large numbers of police were on the streets of Hong Kong on Saturday night as officers conducted stop and searches on public transit lines and questioned residents wearing black, the colour adopted by protesters, after a mass rally dispersed to mark the fifth anniversary of the pro-democracy “umbrella movement”.

Protesters changed into civilian clothes in alleys and behind walls of umbrellas in districts close to government headquarters, where earlier police fired a water cannon filled with dye and abrasive liquid from behind defensive barriers.

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Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam faces public anger in ‘dialogue session’

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Openly critical audience call for independent inquiry into police brutality and handling of pro-democracy protests

Hong Kong’s embattled leader has endured a barrage of criticism at a town hall meeting that laid bare anger coursing through the city after months of huge, sometimes violent pro-democracy protests.

Carrie Lam faced more than two hours of grilling at a public “dialogue session” on Thursday night, the first time her pro-Beijing administration has sat down with its critics in 16 consecutive weeks of unrest.

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No drones, drinking or dissent: China lays down law ahead of 70th anniversary

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As Beijing prepares to mark founding of PRC with a massive military parade, the Chinese leadership faces its most difficult chapter since 1989

Kites. Balloons. Pigeons. Drones. Alcohol. The list of things that have been banned in the run up to the 70th anniversary of the founding of China keeps growing.

As Beijing seeks to ensure the special day on 1 October goes off without a hint of a hitch, motorists have been told they must not refuel their cars or motorbikes on their own. There must be no use of walkie-talkies and other devices using radio waves. During rehearsals for a military parade to mark the day, those living near Tiananmen Square have been instructed “not to approach the windows” and to keep their curtains closed. In neighbouring Shanxi province, police and other public security staff have been forbidden from drinking spirits since 15 September.

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Revealed: how TikTok censors videos that do not please Beijing

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Leak spells out how social media app advances China’s foreign policy aims

TikTok, the popular Chinese-owned social network, instructs its moderators to censor videos that mention Tiananmen Square, Tibetan independence, or the banned religious group Falun Gong, according to leaked documents detailing the site’s moderation guidelines.

The documents, revealed by the Guardian for the first time, lay out how ByteDance, the Beijing-headquartered technology company that owns TikTok, is advancing Chinese foreign policy aims abroad through the app.

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Video of police beating protester sparks outrage in Hong Kong

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‘Protect the children’ group contradicts police claims officers were only kicking a ‘yellow object’

A video showing Hong Kong police officers beating a man who had been attempting to protect young protesters has given rise to another wave of outrage at police.

Two widely shared videos filmed over the weekend show a man in a yellow high-vis vest laying on the ground while being repeatedly kicked and hit by a group of officers.

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Teargas, flames and barricades: Hong Kong’s weekend of protest – in pictures

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Protests in Hong Kong show no signs of abating as demonstrators took to the streets in the 16th consecutive weekend of unrest. Tensions are escalating in the run-up to a significant political anniversary for Beijing, and riot police fired teargas, pepper spray and bean bag rounds on protesters who vandalised metro stations and set improvised barricades ablaze.

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Hong Kong protesters trample Chinese flag as protests continue – video

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Protesters in Hong Kong trampled on a Chinese flag in a shopping mall and lit a fire on a main street as pro-democracy demonstrations took a violent turn  again. The day’s action began peacefully as protesters filled a mall in the Sha Tin district but police ended up firing teargas at protesters who used umbrellas to protect themselves

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Hong Kong police and demonstrators clash as tensions escalate

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Confrontations come in run-up to 70th anniversary of People’s Republic of China

Protesters and police have clashed in Hong Kong in another weekend of unrest as tensions escalate in the run-up to a significant political anniversary for Beijing.

Riot police fired teargas, pepper spray and bean bag rounds on protesters who vandalised metro stations and set improvised barricades ablaze in several flashpoints across the city.

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‘Never surrender’: Hong Kong’s protest graffiti – in pictures

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It has been more than 100 days since anti-government protesters took to the streets of Hong Kong, calling for the complete withdrawal of a controversial extradition bill, an independent inquiry into police brutality, the retraction of the word ‘riot’ to describe the rallies, and genuine universal suffrage. Even though the Hong Kong government formally withdrew the controversial bill this month, many protesters have vowed to continue the fight until all their demands are met. Expressing their opinions on the streets, many young protesters have left their imprints on the roads, walls and buildings by spray-painting slogans and symbols that resonate with their discontent against the government

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Pro-China supporters tear down Hong Kong’s ‘Lennon Walls’

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Action against symbol of democracy protests could lead to renewed trouble on city’s streets

Groups of pro-China supporters have pulled down “Lennon Walls” of anti-government protest messages in Hong Kong, raising the possibility of clashes with democracy supporters and another weekend of trouble.

By mid-morning on Saturday, dozens of demonstrators vowing support for Beijing had started to tear down the large mosaics of colourful posted notes calling for democracy and denouncing perceived Chinese meddling in the former British colony.

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Hong Kong protests: tech war opens up with doxxing of protesters and police

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Campaigns to expose personal details of those on both sides of protests skyrocket, with nearly 1,000 cases being investigated

Hong Kong has seen an unprecedented wave of doxxing – the malicious spread of private information online – since anti-government protests began in early June.

Social media forums such as LIHKG, a Reddit-like website, and encrypted apps such as Telegram have played a critical role in organising the leaderless protest movement but are now being used to share names, photos, phone numbers, ages and the occupation of individuals on both sides of the protest line.

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Huang Xiangmo: judge to reveal why she froze $140m of Chinese businessman’s assets

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Anna Katzmann said Huang could only use the money to pay debt to ATO or for living or legal expenses

A judge will today reveal her reasons for slapping a $140m asset freezing order on controversial businessman and political donor Huang Xiangmo after an application by the Australian taxation office.

At an urgent hearing in Sydney on Monday, federal court judge Anna Katzmann ordered Huang not to dispose of assets worth up to the $140.9m claimed by the ATO, including more than $6m worth of property in Sydney and an apartment in Hong Kong.

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Hong Kong protests: government fails to find PR firm to rescue battered image

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Eight companies turned down opportunity because it would harm their reputations

The Hong Kong government has tried but failed to secure help from any of the global public relations firms it has approached to salvage the financial hub’s tarnished reputation, as anti-government protests continued to wreak havoc months into its deepest political crisis in decades.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam told a group of business people in the city in late August that the government had approached eight global PR companies to help it relaunch Hong Kong, but four “immediately declined because that would be a detriment to their reputation to support the Hong Kong government now,” according to a transcript of her speech published by Reuters last week. Two more declined later, she said.

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Hong Kong anti-government protesters take to the hills – in pictures

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Thousands of Hong Kong pro-democracy activists used torches, lanterns and laser pens to light up Lion Hill on 13 September. Pro-democracy protesters have continued demonstrations across Hong Kong, calling for the city’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, to immediately meet demands including an independent inquiry into police brutality. The evening of 13 September marked the start of the mid-autumn festival, traditionally a time for thanksgiving, spending time with family, and praying for good fortune.

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Hong Kong police fire water cannon at protesters throwing petrol bombs – video

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Officers also fired teargas at the demonstrators, who had gathered outside the government office complex on Sunday. The latest violence came after tens of thousands defied a police ban and marched toward the seat of the government, chanting: ‘Five demands, not one less.’ For the past three months, Hong Kong has been gripped by the most serious political crisis in decades, triggered by a proposal to allow extradition to mainland China

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Police fire teargas and water cannon at Hong Kong protesters

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Demonstrators surround government complex, throwing rocks and molotov cocktails

A peaceful rally in Hong Kong has descended into chaos as police fired teargas and water cannon at protesters who hurled petrol bombs, set fires and clashed with residents.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators defied a police ban and marched on the seat of the government calling for greater democracy in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

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Hongkongers sing God Save the Queen in plea for UK support – video

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Hundreds of Hong Kong protesters sang God Save the Queen and waved the union flag as they rallied outside the British consulate on Sunday to demand the UK ensures China honours its commitments to the city’s freedoms. The Sino-British joint declaration, signed in 1984, laid out a ‘one country, two systems’ formula

‘We will not surrender’: Hongkongers rally for support outside UK consulate

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