Protesters hinder access to airport, vital hub in Asia
HONG KONG — Prodemocracy demonstrators in Hong Kong began a new campaign Sunday to squeeze access to the airport, hours after one of the most tumultuous days since protests in the city began in June.
Tens of thousands of people marched through the city center Saturday despite a ban on the protest by police. Some protesters gathered around the local government’s headquarters, where they threw bricks and firebombs as police responded with tear gas, pepper spray and water cannons.
On Sunday, demonstrators began congregating at Hong Kong International Airport in a new effort to obstruct access to the critical Asian travel hub. The airport has been off limits to protesters since midAugust, when days of sitins led to assaults on two men from mainland China and hundreds of canceled flights.
With classes set to begin Monday for many Hong Kong students, schools could become the next front in the protest movement, which began with widespread anger over an extradition bill that would allow criminal suspects to be taken to mainland China. Since then, demonstrators’ demands have grown to include a call for universal suffrage and an inquiry into accusations of police brutality.
Hundreds of protesters began to converge on the airport Sunday afternoon, traveling by bus, by car and on foot from a nearby subway station. A court injunction obtained after the airport protests last month allows only ticketed passengers and airport employees to enter the main terminals. But demonstrators gathered outside near the entrances, chanting, “Fight for freedom! Stand with Hong Kong.” Some used their cars to block lanes of traffic.
“We have been protesting and occupying for months,” said Daniel Chan, 18, a college student. “Still, what we have done seems futile.”
MTR, the Hong Kong subway operator, announced Sunday that the Airport Express rail service between the airport and the city center was canceled, and trains to the city were later suspended after protesters threw debris on the tracks. Tung Chung Station, the subway stop closest to the airport, was also closed Sunday evening.
The protests forced many travelers to find alternative routes to the airport.
Students have been a major part of the protests all summer, and the beginning of classes Monday raised questions about whether the start of school would mean a lessening of the movement or whether activism would shift to campuses.
Students have planned two mass assemblies, one in the central business district in the morning and another after school at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Many high school students have also negotiated with school administrators to participate in sitins or set aside classrooms for selfstudy sessions or silent protests on the first day of school.
A top government official, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, said the administration “steadfastly opposed” the planned class boycotts, calling them irresponsible.