HONG KONG: Violent pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong have escalated to a “life-threatening level”, police said on Monday, after a small bomb exploded and a police officer was stabbed in clashes overnight.
Peaceful rallies descended into chaos in the Chinese-ruled city on Sunday with running skirmishes between protesters and police in shopping malls and on the streets.
Black-clad activists threw 20 petrol bombs at one police station, while others trashed shops and metro stations. A crude explosive device, which police said was similar to those used in “terrorist attacks”, was remotely detonated as a police car drove past and officers were clearing roadblocks on Sunday night.
Blizzard Entertainment cuts punishment for gamer in Hong Kong protests row. A police officer also had his neck slashed by a protester. “Violence against police has reached a life-threatening level,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police Tang Ping-keung. “They are not protesters, they are rioters and criminals. Whatever cause they are fighting for it never justifies such violence.”
Hong Kong has been rocked by four months of often huge and violent protests against what is seen as Beijing’s tightening grip on the city. The unrest has plunged the city into its worst crisis since Britain handed it back to China in 1997 and poses the biggest popular challenge to Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.
Xi has warned any attempt to divide China will be crushed. “Anyone attempting to split China in any part of the country will end in crushed bodies and shattered bones,” Xi said in a meeting on Sunday with leaders in Nepal, where he was visiting, according to China’s state broadcaster CCTV.
China rejects complaints it is stifling the city’s freedoms and stresses its commitment to the “one country, two systems” formula under which the city is ruled, allowing it freedoms not enjoyed on the mainland, including an independent judiciary. China also accuses Western countries of stirring up trouble in Hong Kong.
Anti-government protesters throw a molotov cocktail toward riot police officers during a protest at Tseung Kwan O district, in Hong Kong, China, on October 13, 2019. The protests were sparked by a now-abandoned bill which would have allowed extradition to China and Communist Party-controlled courts, but have widened into a pro-democracy movement and an outlet for anger at social inequality in a city with some of the world’s most expensive real estate.
Protests have attracted millions of people but have gradually become smaller in recent weeks. Yet violence by hardcore activists has risen, prompting debate among protesters over tactics. But they say they remained united.
“Violence is always undesirable, but in the case of Hong Kong, we have no other option,” said regular protester Jackson Chan, 21.