Guns pulled in Hong Kong protest
Police draw weapons, flaunt water cannons
HONG KONG — Hong Kong police on Sunday drew their weapons and brought out water cannon trucks after protesters attacked officers with sticks and rods, escalating the summer protests that have shaken the city’s government and its residents.
The day’s main showdown took place on a major drag in the outlying Tsuen Wan district following a protest march that ended in a nearby park. While a large crowd rallied in the park, a group of hardline protesters took over a main street, strewing bamboo poles on the pavement and lining up orange and white traffic barriers and cones to obstruct police.
After hoisting warning flags, police used tear gas to try to disperse the crowd. Protesters responded by throwing bricks and gasoline bombs toward police. The result was a scene of small fires and scattered paving bricks on the street, rising clouds of tear gas, and green and blue laser lights pointed by the protesters at the police.
The protesters eventually abandoned their position. Two water cannon trucks and a phalanx of police vehicles with flashing lights joined riot police on foot as they advanced up the street. They met little resistance. Television footage showed a water cannon being fired once, but perhaps more as a test, as it didn’t appear to reach the retreating protesters.
Officers pulled their guns after protesters chased them down a street with sticks and rods, calling them “gangsters.”
Some protesters said they’re resorting to violence because the government has not responded to their peaceful demonstrations.
“The escalation you’re seeing now is just a product of our government’s indifference toward the people of Hong Kong,” said Rory Wong, who was at the clash after the march.
One neighborhood resident,
Dong Wong, complained about the tear gas.
“I live on the 15th floor and I can even smell it at home,” he said. “I have four dogs, sneezing, sneezing all day. … The protesters didn’t do anything, they just blocked the road to protect themselves.”
Protesters have taken to the semiautonomous Chinese territory’s streets for more than two months. Their demands include democratic elections and an investigation into police use of force to quell the protests.