HK protesters defy police crackdown to resist China’s tightening grip
Protesters resisting China’s tightening grip over Hong Kong have gathered in defiance of thousands of riot police who locked down parts of the city and barricaded the legislature, where Beijing’s allies pushed a bill to criminalise disrespect of China’s national anthem.
The heavy police presence and arrests of more than 300 people, many of whom appeared to be simply shouting slogans, reflected a deepening level of dissent in the city and authorities’ determination to stamp it out by force.
With Hong Kong’s role as a global financial centre increasingly clouded, Chinese President Xi Jinping is escalating a crackdown and advancing plans to end the strife-torn city’s autonomy and hasten its full integration into China.
Beijing’s rapid moves in Hong Kong have been denounced by the United States and allies, but Washington took its first clear diplomatic steps yesterday.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo notified Congress that Hong Kong no longer should be considered autonomous, a declaration that could have farreaching ramifications in its trading relationship with the United States and could lead to other U.S. actions including sanctions.
Under a law passed by Congress last year, Pompeo was required to issue a determination on Hong Kong’s autonomy. ‘‘No reasonable person can assert today that Hong Kong maintains a high degree of autonomy from China, given facts on the ground,’’ Pompeo said in a statement.
In Hong Kong, preemptive arrests of democracy activists, stop-and-search inspections of passersby and the tight security presence helped authorities mostly stave off planned large-scale rallies. Yet public fury continued to build over the anthem bill and, most notably, Beijing’s plans to impose a farreaching national security law on the former British colony.
By Wednesday afternoon, local time, protests flared in the main business district as office workers and young protesters shouted ‘‘Free Hong Kong!’’ and slurs at riot police, who responded by shooting pepper spray and pepperball projectiles, leaving demonstrators and other people choking on the sidewalks. – Washington Post