China cracks down: Hong Kong’s top cop overshadows embattled leader Lam
GREG TORODE, JAMES POMFRET and DAVID LAGUE, of Reuters, report on the key role Commissioner of Police Chris Tang is playing in China’s efforts to quell unrest in Hong Kong…
China parliament advances Hong Kong security law as US tensions rise
Hong Kong/Beijing, China/Washington DC, USReuters China’s parliament approved a decision on Thursday to go forward with national security legislation for Hong Kong that democracy activists in the city and Western countries fear could erode its freedoms and jeopardise its role as a global financial hub. China says the new legislation will aim to tackle secession, […]
Riot police shield Hong Kong legislature as protests gather against anthem bill
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong deployed riot police around the Legislative Council on Wednesday as activists called for protests against a bill to criminalise disrespect of the Chinese anthem, amid soaring tensions over perceived threats to the city’s freedoms. Protests have returned to the streets of Chinese-ruled Hong Kong after Beijing proposed national security laws last […]
“It doesn’t matter if it’s Christmas” – Hong Kong pro-democracy activists keep up protests
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong anti-government protesters marched through Christmas-decorated shopping centres on Wednesday, chanting pro-democracy slogans and forcing one mall to close early, as police fired tear gas to disperse crowds gathering on nearby streets. The protests have turned more confrontational over the festive season, though earlier in December they had been largely peaceful after […]
Protester emerges to urge Hong Kong police not to enter university
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong police said they would enter Polytechnic University on Thursday after a two-week siege drove most protesters out, but just before midnight, a masked man emerged and asked them to halt their plan. Security teams from the university had scoured the maze of buildings at the campus, a focal point in recent […]
Hong Kong democrats romp to local election landslide after months of protests
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong’s democrats romped to a landslide and symbolic majority in district council elections after residents turned out in record numbers on Sunday to vote following six months of anti-government protests in the embattled city. In a rare weekend lull in the unrest that has rocked the financial hub, democratic candidates across the […]
Hong Kong pro-democracy candidates ride record turnout to early lead
Hong KongReuters Pro-democracy candidates in Hong Kong took a significant early lead in district council elections after residents turned out in record numbers on Sunday to vote following six months of anti-government protests. The elections are seen as a test of support for the city’s pro-Beijing chief executive, Carrie Lam, who has faced intense pressure […]
Hong Kong violence prompts reminder that China troops close at hand
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong police shot and critically wounded a protester and a man was set on fire on Monday in violence that prompted leader Carrie Lam to denounce “enemies of the people” and drew a chilling warning from a senior Chinese newspaper editor. Protesters threw petrol bombs at police after a weekend of clashes […]
Hong Kong leader invokes emergency powers to quell escalating violence
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong’s embattled leader Carrie Lam on Friday invoked colonial-era emergency powers for the first time in more than 50 years in a dramatic move intended to quell escalating violence in the Chinese-ruled city. Lam, speaking at a news conference, said a ban on face masks would take effect on Saturday under the […]
Hong Kong on edge ahead of sensitive Chinese anniversary
Hong KongReuters Hong Kong’s metro stations and roads re-opened on Monday, after a chaotic weekend that saw police fire water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters who set fires and threw petrol bombs outside government offices and across central districts. Residents of the former British colony awoke to roads, shop fronts and buildings […]