Hong Kong mall clash ends in bloody knife attack and bitten off ear

[webfact]

Hong Kong mall clash ends in bloody knife attack and bitten off ear

By Jessie Pang and Clare Jim

 

Riot police officer holds up a banner, outside a shopping mall in Tai Po in Hong Kong, China November 3, 2019. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

 

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong anti-government protesters crowded a shopping mall in running clashes with police on Sunday during which a man with a knife slashed several people and apparently bit off part of a local politician's ear.

 

A human chain in Cityplaza, in the eastern suburb of Taikoo Shing, turned into a face-to-face conflict with police, running up and down escalators where families with young children had been window shopping just minutes before and watching skating on the ice rink.

 

Police said protesters had vandalised a restaurant in the mall after a peaceful chanting of slogans in the 22nd straight weekend of protests by Hong Kong people furious at perceived Chinese meddling in the former British colony which returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

 

Several people were wounded, with one man in a white tee-shirt, believed to be the knifeman, being beaten with sticks by protesters. Another man lay in a pool of blood on the pavement outside the mall.

 

Democratic district councillor Andrew Chiu was among the wounded, blood dripping from his ear. Democratic Party lawmaker James To told reporters the knifeman had bitten off part of Chiu's ear and slashed other people.

 

He said the other wounded were in more serious condition than Chiu who was seen on TV holding the piece of his ear in a plastic bag with bloody hands.

A kitchen knife lay on the ground outside the mall.

 

Police made several arrests as protesters shouted "black police!", a reference to their perceived brutality. The standoff lasted into the night, with residents jeering police from the roadside and balconies of nearby apartments, chanting "leave now" and more colourful Cantonese expletives.

 

Police fired tear gas, outside the East Hotel in Taikoo Shing, to try to break up the crowds. They then left.

 

"These police are not what they used to be," said Julie, 24, giving police the middle finger. "They come in here and push us around. It is not right."

Police fired pepper spray at reporters when they got too close. One journalist was arrested.

 

“This is out of control. This was a peaceful protest. And these people are just local residents, we live around here,” said Desmond Fong, 28, who works in marketing. He was out shopping for sneakers when the protest erupted.

 

Taikoo Shing is an office and high-rise apartment development dating back to the 1970s, with the newer office, bar and restaurant district of Quarry Bay next door. Police said they were investigating the knife attacks.

 

CLEAN-UP AFTER SATURDAY'S VIOLENCE

There were also running battles, vandalism and scuffles in and around malls in the New Territories towns of Tai Po, Tuen Mun and Sha Tin, where police fired pepper spray as protesters hurled abuse. Protesters built a street barricade in Tai Po.

 

Pro-democracy protesters battled police across the main island on Saturday, furious at Communist Party leaders in Beijing and perceived Chinese meddling with Hong Kong's promised freedoms, which China denies.

 

They have vandalised Hong Kong businesses seen as being pro-China and in July daubed China's Liaison Office, the key symbol of Chinese sovereignty, with graffiti.

 

Cleaners swept up broken glass at the Hong Kong office of China's official Xinhua news agency on Sunday, one of the buildings vandalised as activists hurled petrol bombs and set fire to metro stations.

 

Xinhua condemned the attack by what it said were "barbaric thugs" who broke doors and security systems and threw fire and paint bombs into the lobby.

 

"The practice of the black rioters once again shows that 'stopping the violence and restoring order' is Hong Kong's most important and urgent task at present," a spokesperson for Xinhua said in a Facebook post.

 

Police fired tear gas, rubber bullets and a water cannon at protesters on Saturday and early Sunday as the violence spilled from Hong Kong island across the harbour to Kowloon. One of the protesters' key demands is an independent probe into perceived police brutality.

 

There have been several injuries during five months of unrest, including a protester shot in the chest and a policeman slashed in the neck, but no deaths since the protests began in June.

 

Hong Kong returned to China under a "one country, two systems" formula which guarantees its freedoms for 50 years. China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) has a garrison in Hong Kong but troops have remained in barracks since the protests began.

 

Protesters last month targeted a PLA barracks with lasers prompting troops to hoist a banner warning they could be arrested. Senior PLA officers have said violence will not be tolerated.

 

(Reporting by Joyce Zhou, Farah Master, Donny Kwok, Twinnie Siu, Simon Gardner, Clare Jim and Jessie Pang; writing by Nick Macfie; editing by Peter Graff/ Jason Neely/Susan Fenton)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-11-04

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[Samui Bodoh]

I have tremendous sympathy for the Hong Kong people.

 

However, I have lived in Asia for a very long time and know that sooner or later (I am surprised that they haven't already) China will say "Enough!" and send in the proverbial tanks; anyone remember Tienanmen Square?

 

It will be an ugly, ugly sight.

 

 

 

[DoctorG]

1 hour ago, Samui Bodoh said:

I have tremendous sympathy for the Hong Kong people.

 

However, I have lived in Asia for a very long time and know that sooner or later (I am surprised that they haven't already) China will say "Enough!" and send in the proverbial tanks; anyone remember Tienanmen Square?

 

It will be an ugly, ugly sight.

 

 

 

I fear that you are correct.

[Colabamumbai]

More power to the people I know another country that could use a protest. 

[Chazar]

Maybe they could have a mouthful word in Prayuts  ears  too?

[animalmagic]

The police do not target the press!

 

[neeray]

1 hour ago, Samui Bodoh said:

I have tremendous sympathy for the Hong Kong people.

 

However, I have lived in Asia for a very long time and know that sooner or later (I am surprised that they haven't already) China will say "Enough!" and send in the proverbial tanks; anyone remember Tienanmen Square?

 

It will be an ugly, ugly sight.

 

 

 

I believe China will be forced to continue using restraint. The Tiananmen Square era did not have digital pictures and live streaming video like exists today. This time, it's a fish bowl.

[yellowboat]

1 hour ago, Samui Bodoh said:

I have tremendous sympathy for the Hong Kong people.

 

However, I have lived in Asia for a very long time and know that sooner or later (I am surprised that they haven't already) China will say "Enough!" and send in the proverbial tanks; anyone remember Tienanmen Square?

 

It will be an ugly, ugly sight.

It would seem that the protesters and China want the same thing, deflate Hong Kong.  China loves seeing it marginalized while protesters are having trouble making ends meet.  The losers will be the property magnets and other ultra rich that neither side likes at all.  Carry Lam will be let go fairly soon, and will probably live in a place where she can hide from the 2 million people who hate her.   Just hope she doesn't like your neighborhood.  

 

China will crackdown if the protests spread over the border.  Until that happens, they will let the Hong Kong Government figure it out, as it is suppose be autonomous. 

[nobodysfriend]

They ( China ) will provoke the Protestors to violent actions ( self defense ) so that they have an excuse to send the Army in .

[saengd]

3 minutes ago, nobodysfriend said:

They ( China ) will provoke the Protestors to violent actions ( self defense ) so that they have an excuse to send the Army in .

That would suit the protesters agenda nicely because it would show China as being in the wrong, it is however the last thing that China wants to do.

[ncc1701d]

1 hour ago, nobodysfriend said:

They ( China ) will provoke the Protestors to violent actions ( self defense ) so that they have an excuse to send the Army in .

Some have been saying this for 5 months now... not going to happen. They are more likely to let it play out until the people are sick of being in recession and turn on the violent protestors. And since most protests start off non violent and turn violent - it will mean an end to most protests. No city in China is following Hong Kong’s “lead” and the violent protests aren’t affecting greater China in any way whatsoever.

[Eric Loh]

4 hours ago, yellowboat said:

China will crackdown if the protests spread over the border.  Until that happens, they will let the Hong Kong Government figure it out, as it is suppose be autonomous. 

I think you got this spot on. The protests have withered down from the hundred of thousands blocking major roads to isolated localized incidents involving much smaller groups. Except for the retail industry, the rest of the economy is still vibrant. I would think the government has manage this phase of the civil unrest relatively well and bearing any mis-steps that can bring the people back to the streets and that include sending the soldiers from China to HK; they will continue with this policy and allow the general sentiments to prevail. Already most HK citizens felt that the protests have gone too far and caused long term damage. 

[smileydude]

4 hours ago, saengd said:

That would suit the protesters agenda nicely because it would show China as being in the wrong, it is however the last thing that China wants to do.

Agree.  The last thing China wants to do is alienate their own rising middle class/entrepreneurs by heavy handed methods.  It would probably be easy to develop and invest in their own internationally recognized and efficient financial and banking centers in major Chinese cities so that the significance of HK can be bypassed and left to decline in relevance.

[the guest]

The result of the legacy of the meddling British. No doubt China will have to adopt a more stern approach and send in the Army. They are quite good at restoring order, which is more than I can say for the so-called HK authorities.