Hong Kong protests: Demonstrators throw molotov cocktails amid clashes with police

‘At least one person arrested’ but no reports of any injuries as thousands march during fourth consecutive month of action

Riot police officers shoot tear gas canisters against pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong on September 21, 2019 (AFP/Getty)

Pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong turned violent on Saturday after demonstrators threw Molotov cocktails and police fired teargas.

At least one person was arrested amid clashes which erupted after an afternoon march attended by several thousand people in Tuen Mun, a district in the northwest of the Chinese territory, according to AP.

Hong Kong is now in the fourth month of protests, which are held every weekend and sometimes turned violent.

The movement was sparked by mass opposition to a proposed extradition law, and subsequently expanded to include demands for greater democratic freedom.

Most of the protesters in Tuen Mun on Saturday were peaceful but some threw petrol bombs and bricks towards police who faced them down the street. They appeared to fall short of the officers and there was no indication anyone was hit.

Police with anti-riot helmets and shields responded by firing tear gas.

In the evening, protesters gathered at a shopping mall in another district, Yuen Long. More home-made incendiary devices were thrown in the street but there was no indication anyone was injured.

Elsewhere, scuffles were reported as government supporters heeded a call by a pro-Beijing member of the Hong Kong legislature to tear down protest posters at subway stations.

The events are an embarrassment for China‘s Communist Party ahead of 1 October celebrations of its 70th anniversary in power. Hong Kong’s government has cancelled a fireworks display that day, citing concern for public safety.

The protesters in Tuen Mun marched about 2 kilometres from a playground to a government office building. Many were dressed in black and carried umbrellas, a symbol of their movement.

Protesters chanted, “Reclaim Hong Kong!” and “Revolution of our times!”

Most were peaceful but some took down a Chinese flag from a pole outside a government office and set fire to it. Protesters also set up barricades to block traffic.

A government statement said protesters caused unspecified damage to the Tuen Mun light rail station and threw objects onto the tracks.

An organiser quoted by government broadcaster RTHK criticised police for sending armed anti-riot officers.

That will “only escalate tension between protesters and police,” the organiser, Michael Mo, was quoted as saying.

Hong Kong’s leader, Chief Executive Carrie Lam, has agreed to withdraw the extradition bill. But protesters are pressing other demands, including an independent investigation of complaints about police violence during earlier demonstrations.

Protesters complain Beijing and Ms Lam’s government are eroding the “high degree of autonomy” and Western-style civil liberties promised to the former British colony when it was returned to China in 1997.

The protests have begun to weigh on Hong Kong’s economy, which already was slowing due to cooling global consumer demand. The Hong Kong airport said passenger traffic fell in August. Business is off at hotels and retailers.

Police refused permission for Saturday’s march but an appeal tribunal agreed to allow a two-hour event.

Protesters in Tuen Mun also complained about a group of women from mainland China who sing in a local park. Residents say they are too loud and accuse some of asking for money or engaging in prostitution.

Those complaints prompted a similar march in July, highlighting tension between Hong Kong residents and migrants from mainland China.

Later on Saturday, protesters gathered at a mall in Yuen Long, the location where men with sticks had beaten protesters and subway passengers on July 21 in an incident that caused controversy in Hong Kong.

Some protesters threw petrol bombs on the street outside the Yoho Mall but there was no indication anyone was injured. Others started small fires in the street.

Also on Saturday, there were brief scuffles as government supporters tore down protest posters at several subway stops, according to RTHK.

That campaign was initiated by a pro-Beijing member of Hong Kong’s legislature, Junius Ho.

Near the subway station in the Tsuen Wan neighborhood, a woman who was tearing down posters threw a bag at a reporter and a man shoved a cameraman, RTHK reported. It said there was pushing and shoving between the two sides at stations in Yuen Long and Lok Fu.

Mr Ho made an appearance in the Shau Kei Wan neighbourhood but residents shouted at him and told him to leave, RTHK said.

Mr Ho initially called for protest signs to be torn down in all 18 of Hong Kong’s districts but he said Friday that would be reduced to clearing up trash from streets due to “safety concerns.”

On Wednesday, the Hong Kong Jockey Club cancelled a horse race after some protesters suggested targeting the club because a horse owned by Ho was due to run.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong airport announced restrictions on access on Sunday following what it said were calls to disrupt traffic there.

Additional reporting by AP