Tear gas fired in Hong Kong with no end in sight to protests

POLICE FIRED tear gas yesterday inside a train station and in several other Hong Kong neighbourhoods where protesters occupied roads in another weekend of antigovernment demonstrations.

Protesters hurled bricks at officers and ignored warnings to leave before tear gas was deployed in the Sham Shui Po area, police said, calling a march there an “unauthorised assembly”. Nearby, protesters wearing gas masks gathered outside a police station in Cheung Sha Wan as officers wearing their own protective gear looked down at them from a tall wall around the station.

Tear gas was also deployed in central Hong Kong on both sides of Victoria Harbour, in the Tsim Sha Tsui area on the Kowloon side and in Wan Chai on Hong Kong Island. At one point, protesters blocked the entrance to a plaza to prevent police from entering. At Tsim Sha Tsui police station, authorities said, one officer was taken to the hospital after he sustained burns on his legs from a petrol bomb thrown by a protester.

A train station in Kwai Fong filled with smoke after about a dozen police officers fired tear gas inside. It was not clear how many protesters were inside the

station at the time, but it has been rare for officers to fire tear gas indoors.

Earlier, a large group of mostly young protesters marched down the middle of Hennessey Road, a main shopping drag in the Causeway Bay area, as a rally was held in nearby Victoria Park. Many wore face masks to shield their identities, and a few had helmets. Others just carried backpacks over the black T-shirts that have become their uniform.

“We hope the world knows that Hong Kong is not the Hong Kong it used to be,” said one protester, Louisa Ho. “China is doing more and more to pressure Hong Kong, its people, and its organisations.”

Hong Kong has seen nine weeks of protests, with no end in sight. The movement’s demands include the resignation of the Chinese territory’s leader, democratic elections, the release of those arrested in earlier protests, and an investigation into police use of force against the protesters.

AP Protesters use traffic cones to cover the tear gas canisters fired by riot policemen during the anti-extradition bill protest in Hong Kong yesterday. Police fired tear gas late Sunday afternoon to try to disperse a demonstration in Hong Kong as protesters took over streets in two parts of the Asian financial capital, blocking traffic and setting up another night of likely showdowns with riot police.