Police cleared hundreds of pro-democracy demonstrators from newly occupied streets in Hong Kong’s Mong Kok protest site Thursday morning, a day after the dispersal of their two-month occupation of Nathan Road.
After protesters spent the night a short distance east of Nathan Road, police charged at around 4.30 (23.30 Wednesday Turkish time), using force to push them off the road and onto the footpath.
“They [police] are being very aggressive. They have hit many of us,” a 21-year-old protester who gave his surname as Sun told The Anadolu Agency.
Police have also been carrying out identity checks in the area, even questioning people waiting at bus stops, pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily reported Thursday.
The tactics have sometimes resulted in heated exchanges and in one case, a woman said she was out shopping when she was pinned to the ground and passed out.
Some people complained about being yelled at by officers, some of whom allegedly hit pedestrians they considered to be walking too slowly.
Over the last two days, more than 100 people – including student leaders, have been arrested.
Joshua Wong, the 18-year-old leader of Scholarism, appeared in court Thursday following his arrest during the clearance of Nathan Road the day before.
He was released on bail but barred from entering the Mong Kok protest area after being charged with obstructing a public officer, with his trial adjourned until January 14.
Video footage of Wong’s arrest in which a policeman charges to grab him has sparked outrage.
His release comes a day after that of 17 people arrested during Tuesday’s clearing of Argyle Street in Mong Kok, who were also released on bail but forbidden from returning to the area.
The twelve men and five women, aged between 19 and 69 years, were charged with obstruction of official duties and assault.
A 14-year-old student arrested at the protests was brought to juvenile court that same day, but not charged.
Prosecutors, however, have applied to take guardianship of the boy from his parents on the grounds of negligence.
While the judge kept the minor under his parents’ supervision until at least the next court date, set for January 12, observers saw the move as an attempt to intimidate parents into forbidding their children from joining the protests.
Among those arrested are seven suspended policemen, who were detained in connection with the beating of a prominent pro-democracy protester in October during efforts to clear an underpass near the Admiralty protest camp.
Civic Party protester Ken Tsang was filmed being beaten for several minutes after being led away from the site in handcuffs.
The protesters’ central demand is for the 2017 chief executive election to be open to all candidates. The central government, backed by the Hong Kong executive, proposes candidates are screened by a pro-Beijing committee.
The barricades, around Nathan Road and Argyle Street, had been closed to traffic for nearly two months. Injunctions were granted by the High Court for the occupation sites to be cleared after local businesses complained of a loss of revenue.
Last week, bailiffs cleared part of the Admiralty site around government offices before turning their attention to Mong Kok, a working class district across Victoria Harbour, on Tuesday. A third site at Causeway Bay is unaffected by court orders.
In the past, the use of force against the protesters has produced a public backlash, with people flocking to the protest sites to show their solidarity with the demonstrations and their distaste for police tactics.
But support for the occupation has been slipping in recent weeks with surveys showing the public favors an end to the disruption.
www.aa.com.tr/en
