Hong Kong flash-mob rallies erupt as anger mounts over shot protester
HONG KONG: Flash-mob rallies broke out in Hong Kong on Wednesday as anger mounted over police shooting a teenage protester who attacked officers in a dramatic escalation of the violent unrest that has engulfed the territory for months.
Large crowds of demonstrators held unsanctioned marches through the commercial centre and then in multiple districts throughout the evening, when police fired brief volleys of tear gas in one neighbourhood, chanting anti-police and antigovernment slogans.
Hundreds of students also staged a sit-in at the school of Tsang Chikin, 18, who was shot in the chest by a policeman as he and a group of masked protesters assaulted officers with umbrellas and poles.
The international finance hub has been left reeling from the shooting, the first time a demonstrator has been struck with a live round in nearly four months of increasingly violent prodemocracy protests.
Tuesday witnessed the worst clashes of the summer as China celebrate 70 years of Communist Party rule with a massive military parade in Beijing. The spiralling violence underscored seething public anger against Beijing’s rule and shifted the spotlight from China’s carefully choreographed birthday party.
Running battles raged for hours across multiple locations as hardcore protesters hurled rocks and petrol bombs. Police responded for the most part with tear gas, rubber bullets, and water cannon.
As criticism rose, police launched a spirited defence of their colleague saying he feared for his life and the safety of his colleagues.