Hong Kong police fire water cannon on protesters

DPA, 25TH AUGUST, 2019- Hong Kong police fired water cannon on anti-government protesters in an unprecedented move on Sunday, after an initially peaceful march through a residential district in the western Kowloon peninsula took a violent turn.

Two crowd-control vehicles were dispatched after protesters earlier took control of a major road, where thousands stood behind barricades and shielded themselves from police tear gas with umbrellas.

The vehicles chased protesters for several hundred metres before they dispersed into surrounding side streets and a nearby mall.

Tseun Wan is best known for its tower-block housing estates and new office blocks, but on Sunday its streets descended into chaos as protesters threw a number of petrol bombs and bricks at riot police.

A police officer fired a gun into the air at around 8 pm after he was surrounded by eight to 10 protesters, according to a district council protest monitor.

The clashes were some of the most intense yet in Hong Kong since protests began on June 9 against a legislative bill that would have allowed for criminal extradition to mainland China, which has a separate legal system from Hong Kong.

Protesters braved the heat and smog on Saturday, only to march through intermittent heavy rains on Sunday.

As demonstrations enter their 12th week, protesters said they are still as determined as ever to protest against the government as they see themselves taking a last stand against political repression from China.

Hong Kong is a former British colony that returned to Chinese rule in 1997, and its unique identity and semi-autonomous status remain important rallying points for protesters.

Many believe the city has seen a decline in civil and political rights since the failure of the 2014 democracy protests known as the Umbrella Movement.