Chaos erupted in central Hong Kong Monday as dozens of masked men rushed barricades at the city’s main pro-democracy site, sparking renewed accusations that authorities are using hired thugs to disperse demonstrators.
Groups of men, many wearing surgical masks, descended on the front lines of the rally at Admiralty near Hong Kong’s central business district, triggering clashes with protesters, just hours after police had moved in to take down some barriers.
Demonstrators, who have come under attack from organised crime gangs known as triads at another flashpoint demonstration site in Mongkok, shouted: “Weapons! Weapons!” and “Arrest the triads” as police struggled to impose order.
Pro-democracy lawmakers rounded on the authorities over the clashes.
“This is one of the tactics used by the communists in mainland China from time to time. They use triads or pro-government mobs to try to attack you so the government will not have to assume responsibility,” Democratic Party lawmaker Albert Ho told AFP.
“It seems that the police have duly removed some of the barricades to make way for the suspected triads to get through to the peaceful protesters,” Civic Party lawmaker Claudia Mo told AFP.
One lawmaker on the scene of the clashes in Admiralty voiced concern over how the situation had “degenerated”.
“From what I can see the police were helping the anti-Occupy actions more than the peaceful protesters,” said the Civic Party’s Kenneth Chan.
Taxi drivers had also converged on the site with their cars, demanding the barricades be removed and other anti-Occupy groups chanted “Occupy is illegal”.
Anti-Occupy protesters mainly dissipated as the afternoon wore on, while pro-democracy demonstrators rebuilt their barricades using everything from bamboo poles to sticky tape.
But as police announced they would soon move to clear more “obstacles” at both the Admiralty site and a secondary site in the shopping hub of Causeway Bay.
“We will not eliminate the possibility of using minimal force or arrest actions,” police senior superintendent Hui Chun-tak told reporters.
He said that three men had been arrested, one for assault and two for carrying offensive weapons.
Source: Prothom Alo
