Chinese soldiers in Hong Kong warn protesters as emergency rules fail to quell unrest

[webfact]

Chinese soldiers in Hong Kong warn protesters as emergency rules fail to quell unrest

By James Pomfret and Jessie Pang

 

Riot police detain a protester during an anti-government rally in central Hong Kong, China October 6, 2019. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

 

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Chinese soldiers issued a warning to Hong Kong protesters on Sunday who shone lasers at their barracks in the city, in the first direct interaction with mainland military forces in four months of anti-government demonstrations.

 

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) garrison in Kowloon district warned a crowd of a few hundred protesters they could be arrested for targeting its troops and barracks walls with laser lights.

 

One officer shouted through a loudhailer in broken Cantonese - the main language of Hong Kong - "Bear consequences for your actions."

 

The stand-off with the PLA came after rallies attended by tens of thousands of protesters earlier on Sunday ended in violent clashes in several locations. Police fired tear gas and baton-charged the crowds, while some demonstrators threw bricks and petrol bombs at police as night fell.

 

Hong Kong's protests saw the first arrests on Sunday under emergency laws that ban protesters from hiding their faces. David Doyle reports.

 

Protesters concealed their faces in defiance of colonial-era emergency laws invoked by the authorities on Friday, which banned face masks. Protesters face a maximum of one year in jail for breaking the mask ban.

 

Police made their first arrests under the new rules, detaining scores of people. Officers tied their wrists with cable and unmasked their faces before placing them on buses. Some protesters lay in foetal positions on the ground, their wrists tied behind their backs, after being subdued with pepper spray and batons.

 

"The anti-mask law just fuels our anger and more will people come on to the street," Lee, a university student wearing a blue mask, said on Sunday, as he marched on Hong Kong island.

 

"We are not afraid of the new law, we will continue fighting. We will fight for righteousness. I put on the mask to tell the government that I'm not afraid of tyranny."

 

Chinese military personnel standing on the roof of the PLA's Osborn Barracks in Kowloon Tong district held up a sign in English and Chinese which read: "Warning. You are in breach of the law. You may be prosecuted."

 

The troops in fatigues also shone spotlights on the crowd and used binoculars and cameras to monitor protesters. The protesters, several thousand of whom passed the barracks, eventually dispersed.

 

In August, Beijing moved thousands of troops across the border into Hong Kong in an operation state news agency Xinhua described at the time as a routine “rotation”.

 

But the PLA has remained in barracks since protests started, leaving Hong Kong’s police force to deal with the massive and often violent protests in the Asian financial hub.

 

The PLA's top brass has warned violence is "absolutely impermissible".

 

MORE VIOLENCE

Authorities had braced for major protests on Sunday, fearing a recurrence of Friday night's violent protests which saw the Asian financial centre virtually shut down the next day.

 

Only hours after Hong Kong's embattled leader Carrie Lam invoked emergency powers last used more than 50 years ago, mask-wearing protesters took to the streets on Friday, setting subway stations on fire, smashing mainland China banks and clashing with police.

 

The rallies on Sunday on Hong Kong island and across the harbour in Kowloon had been largely peaceful until police moved to disperse the crowds, saying they were participating in unlawful assemblies, blocking major roads, and ordered protesters to leave immediately.

 

Hong Kong's four months of protests have plunged the Chinese-ruled city into its worst political crisis in decades and pose the biggest popular challenge to Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power six years ago.

 

What started as opposition to a now-withdrawn extradition bill has swelled into a pro-democracy movement against what is seen as Beijing's increasing grip on the city, undermining its "one country, two systems" status promised when Britain handed Hong Kong back to China in 1997.

 

China dismisses the accusation, saying foreign governments, including Britain and the United States, have fanned anti-China sentiment.

 

Protesters on Sunday chanted "Hong Kongers, revolt" and "Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong", as riot police monitored them from overhead walkways and footbridges, some taking photographs and filming the marchers.

 

Protesters handed out face masks to encourage people to defy the ban. As the day wore on protesters started to target subway stations and China banks, just as they did on Friday, which forced the unprecedented closure of the city's metro railway.

 

A branch of China Construction Bank (Asia) near Prince Edward train station was vandalised on Sunday with "No China" sprayed on its wall. A metro station in the nightlife district of Wan Chai had a sheet draped over it which read: "This way to HELL".

 

Protesters set a fire at the Mong Kok MTR station, with a placard nearby reading: "If we burn, you burn with us".

 

The current "precarious situation", which endangered public safety, left no timely solution but the anti-mask law, Matthew Cheung, Hong Kong's chief secretary, wrote on his blog on Sunday. He urged people to oppose violence ahead of grassroots district council elections set for Nov. 24.

 

Four months of protests have pushed the Asian financial hub to the brink of its first recession in a decade. Financial Secretary Paul Chan in a blog on Sunday said despite recent obstacles, the banking system remained sound and the financial market was functioning well.

 

"Hong Kong will not implement foreign exchange controls. The Hong Kong dollar can be exchanged freely and capital can come in and out freely. This is the solemn guarantee of the Basic Law," said Chan.

 

(Reporting by James Pomfret, Jessie Pang, Donny Kwok, Poppy McPherson, John Ruwitch, Greg Torode and Anne Marie Roantree; Writing by Michael Perry; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Raissa Kasolowsky)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-10-07

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[Cryingdick]

A good look to the future for those that hate the USA and hope China becomes the dragon throne of the world. 

[Chazar]

8 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

A good look to the future for those that hate the USA and hope China becomes the dragon throne of the world. 

I get tired of  people slagging off the USA  but  given the choice Id  rather  have the USA  any day over  China. ps Im English.

[Tug]

They are toast no one is willing to stand up to China very sad another population wanting democracy snuffed out

[Cryingdick]

 

[Chomper Higgot]

1 hour ago, Tug said:

They are toast no one is willing to stand up to China very sad another population wanting democracy snuffed out

It’s worse than that, China’s response to Trump’s call for China to investigate Biden was ‘China will

not get involved in US Domestic issues’.

 

Read: And China expects the US mot to get involved in Chinese ‘domestic’ issues.

 

Chilling news for HK, Taiwan, nation’s in dispute with China over territory and any other issue China wishes to declare ‘a domestic issue’.

 

 

 

[Bundooman]

1 hour ago, Chazar said:

I get tired of  people slagging off the USA  but  given the choice Id  rather  have the USA  any day over  China. ps Im English.

Others just get tired of the USA's interference world-wide, together with its so-called 'president'

If you don't want criticism - change the system.

But the US population doesn't want to.

Choices made...……...……….

[sungod]

Oh gone on then, I'll say it. The lady in the photo getting cuffed is rather pretty ????

[Cryingdick]

1 hour ago, Bundooman said:

Others just get tired of the USA's interference world-wide, together with its so-called 'president'

If you don't want criticism - change the system.

But the US population doesn't want to.

Choices made...……...……….

 

I guess you missed the part where he says he is British.

[Cryingdick]

6 minutes ago, sungod said:

Oh gone on then, I'll say it. The lady in the photo getting cuffed is rather pretty ????

 

Thailand is so lucky to have people such as you.

Edited October 7, 2019 by Cryingdick

[ylmiri]

3 hours ago, Chazar said:

I get tired of  people slagging off the USA  but  given the choice Id  rather  have the USA  any day over  China. ps Im English.

"I get tired of people slagging off the USA....." blah , blah, what you need is a young Chinese lady with smooth silky soft skin that you see among those tourists in Thailand. What you doing in Thailand? you should be in China.

[Vacuum]

32 minutes ago, sungod said:

The lady in the photo getting cuffed is rather pretty

[ylmiri]

27 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

 

Thailand is so lucky to have people such as you.

 

30 minutes ago, sungod said:

Oh gone on then, I'll say it. The lady in the photo getting cuffed is rather pretty ????

Yes, you see the white silky soft skin,  they are all in Hong Kong and China and they speak better English than Thai ladies, what are you doing in Thailand? You should be in China, China is the place. It doesn't matter what policy China is pursuing , it's the women you want isn't it?

Politic comes later, the women first. No? If I have plenty of money I will travel all over China sampling all the goodies.

Don't waste your time you don't have time to come back again don't you realize that? Already tied down with Thai woman in Thailand? Oh, no.

[neeray]

2 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

It’s worse than that, China’s response to Trump’s call for China to investigate Biden was ‘China will

not get involved in US Domestic issues’.

 

Read: And China expects the US mot to get involved in Chinese ‘domestic’ issues.

 

Chilling news for HK, Taiwan, nation’s in dispute with China over territory and any other issue China wishes to declare ‘a domestic issue’.

 

 

 

I hope the Chinese weren't eating rice when Trump made that ridiculous request.

[Benmart]

2 hours ago, Bundooman said:

Others just get tired of the USA's interference world-wide, together with its so-called 'president'

If you don't want criticism - change the system.

But the US population doesn't want to.

Choices made...……...……….

Exactly. The choice has been made by my countrymen, and tired or not, he is the President of the United States of America, and you are not.

[PJPom]

I hate to say it but it will happen, China is not going to idly sit and watch the city be trashed by “ protesters “.

The violence and damage is being inflicted by a hard core group who do not seem to be fighting for democracy, anarchy seems to be their intent.

Democracy is an ideal, much like Communism, marvellous in theory but sadly lacking in practice.

[DefaultName]

They were all happy when Britain did what it said it would and handed it back to China.  Still happy now?

[sungod]

4 hours ago, Cryingdick said:

 

Thailand is so lucky to have people such as you.

Thanks for that bud, I try not to disappoint.

 

What do you bring the party?

Edited October 7, 2019 by sungod

[Chazar]

7 hours ago, Bundooman said:

If you don't want criticism - change the system.

did you miss the Im Enlgish part  then?

[DrTuner]

11 hours ago, Chazar said:

I get tired of  people slagging off the USA  but  given the choice Id  rather  have the USA  any day over  China.

Unfortunately it was the US consumers that fueled the rise of China that cleverly exploited their low cost workforce to produce crappy goods that they lapped up. It's a bit of a case of somnamnaa and will be hard to put back into the bottle now.

Edited October 7, 2019 by DrTuner

[tonbridgebrit]

Okay, the above Youtube video is from the South China Morning Post. This is one of Hong Kong's biggest newspapers, and bear in mind that Hong Kong still has freedom of speech and media. After all, all foreign media outlets (the BBC, CNN, etc) are still allowed to report freely in Hong Kong.

In the above news footage, you can see demonstrators/rioters vandalising an MTR station. MTR is Hong Kong's underground. You can also see people setting up a fire at the entrance of an MTR station.


Now, what does this mean ? When a group of demonstraters/rioters turn up outside an army barracks in Hong Kong, IF they do start a fire outside the main entrance of the army barracks, well surely, people feel that it's only normal if the soldiers are tempted to start firing bullets at the those who are starting the fire ? The 'arsonists' ??

[tonbridgebrit]

18 hours ago, Chazar said:

I get tired of  people slagging off the USA  but  given the choice Id  rather  have the USA  any day over  China. ps Im English.

Britain is doing a Brexit. Whatever happens, I don't want my nation drifting towards America, I don't want my nation being in a free trade zone with the USA. Given the choice, I'd much rather be in a free trade zone and customs union with Europe rather than America.
Them Americans, they're mainly a bunch of British who are in the USA, but that don't mean to say that I want to be in the same country or aligned with them.

And yes, I'm from Tonbridge, I'm a Kent man, the Garden of England, I'm proud of that. Nobody can take that away from me.

Edited October 7, 2019 by tonbridgebrit

[beautifulthailand99]

China is happy for this to escalate you may even have agent provocateurs upping the ante with the violence and destruction of property. Soon they will go in and go in hard and do a Tiananmen Square and the rest of China will cheer it on and the world will do nothing. Meanwhile servile Thais crawl on their knees and just take it for they have never tasted the sweet taste of freedom.  

[VitaminC]

...

[VitaminC]

.................................................

[tonbridgebrit]

I've noticed the videos above, and these videos show the rioters carrying out extreme violence.

Everybody, before you watch the above videos, do realise you are about to watch stuff that is not good. Yes, people are animals, watching such stuff harms the mind. Such stuff should be censored.

[tonbridgebrit]

On 10/7/2019 at 3:51 AM, sungod said:

Oh gone on then, I'll say it. The lady in the photo getting cuffed is rather pretty ????

 

On 10/7/2019 at 4:19 AM, ylmiri said:

"I get tired of people slagging off the USA....." blah , blah, what you need is a young Chinese lady with smooth silky soft skin that you see among those tourists in Thailand. What you doing in Thailand? you should be in China.

You want another photo of that Chinese bird ? Here it is. Notice that the other Chinese woman in the denim shorts is not good-looking.
Do people realise that some of the women you see in Hong Kong are women who were born and raised in mainland China ??

[ylmiri]

28 minutes ago, tonbridgebrit said:

 

You want another photo of that Chinese bird ? Here it is. Notice that the other Chinese woman in the denim shorts is not good-looking.
Do people realise that some of the women you see in Hong Kong are women who were born and raised in mainland China ??

"Notice that the other Chinese woman in the denim shorts is not good-looking"- well, I am not sure about that, how a piece of bread looks depends on how hungry you are.  They all look good enough to me. I am afraid I need to go to China.

[ylmiri]

The Chinese are always good at killing their own people.

I would like to say to the Hong Kong people on their little wind swept rock they call home is that you dealing with people who don't understand democracy or freedom to them "Power" is the name of the game.

Being naive you will die.

Hong Kong together with Taiwan should return to motherland and get ready to fight your real enemy, The United States of America. Is America a democratic country? Well, ask Naom Chomsky, he will tell you.

[beautifulthailand99]

8 hours ago, tonbridgebrit said:

I've noticed the videos above, and these videos show the rioters carrying out extreme violence.

Everybody, before you watch the above videos, do realise you are about to watch stuff that is not good. Yes, people are animals, watching such stuff harms the mind. Such stuff should be censored.

Probably Chinese trolls with videos of PRC Agent Provocateurs softening up the world the coming violent cull.