HK: PROTESTS, CLASHES CONTINUE
Hong Kong riot police spent much of Sunday skirmishing with groups of masked pro-democracy protesters who held flashmob gatherings at various places.
HONGKONG: Hong Kong riot police spent much of Sunday afternoon skirmishing with groups of masked pro-democracy protesters who held flashmob gatherings in multiple location although crowds were smaller and less violent than recent weekends.
Rallies erupted in multiple neighbourhoods with some protesters blocking roads, throwing objects onto train tracks as well as spraying graffiti and smashing the windows of some pro-China businesses.
Police made dozens of arrests as they rushed to intercept activists but the clashes were less sustained than earlier this month when the city was virtually shut down by the most intense unrest of the four month protest movement.
In the district of Mongkok, riot police burst from an unmarked van that had screeched up to a blockade made of bamboo scaffolding poles and quickly chased down multiple protesters who were pinned to the ground and detained. In the same neighbourhood saw crowds of protesters beat a middle aged woman because she had helped police clear barricades.
Protester mobs have increasingly turned on their ideological opponents in recent weeks - while Beijing loyalists have attacked democracy activists throughout the summer.
Early on Sunday pro-democracy protesters hauled a four-metre statue known as “Lady Liberty” to the top of a famous Hong Kong mountain. The statue depicts a female protester in a gas mask, protective goggles and helmet, an umbrella in one hand and a black flag in the other, proclaiming the protest slogan “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times”.