HONG KONG , SEP 28 -
Violent clashes between Hong Kong riot police and students galvanized
tens of thousands of supporters for the city's pro-democracy movement
and kick-started a plan to lock down the heart of the Asian financial
center early on Sunday.
Leaders and supporters of Occupy Central with Love and Peace rallied to
support students who were doused with pepper spray early on Saturday
after they broke through police barriers and stormed the city's
government headquarters.
"Whoever loves Hong Kong should come and join us. This is for Hong
Kong's future," publishing tycoon Jimmy Lai, an outspoken critic of
China's communist government who has backed pro-democracy activists
through publications that include one of the city's biggest newspapers
as well as donations, told Reuters.
Occupy demanded that Beijing withdraw its framework for political reform in the former British colony and resume talks.
Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a formula known as
"one country, two systems." that guaranteed a high degree of autonomy
and freedoms not enjoyed in mainland China. Universal suffrage was set
as an eventual goal.
But Beijing last month rejected demands for people to freely choose the
city's next leader, prompting threats from activists to shut down
Central, Hong Kong's financial district. China wants to limit elections
to a handful of candidates loyal to Beijing.
"It's high time that we really showed that we want to be free and not
to be slaves ... we must unite together," Cardinal Joseph Zen, 82,
formerly Catholic Bishop of Hong Kong, told Reuters.
This demonstration, which has drawn thousands of protesters armed with
goggles, masks and raincoats in preparation for a violent confrontation
with police, is one of the most tenacious acts of civil disobedience
seen in post-colonial Hong Kong.
Roads in a square block around the city's government headquarters,
located in the Admiralty district adjacent to Central, were filled with
people and blocked with metal barricades erected by protesters to defend
against a possible police crackdown.
Some of Hong Kong's most powerful tycoons have spoken out against the
Occupy movement, warning it could threaten the city's business and
economic stability.
The latest protests escalated after demonstrators broke through a
cordon late on Friday and scaled perimeter fences to invade the city's
main government compound in the culmination of a week-long rally to
demand free elections.
Student leaders said about 80,000 people participated in the rally. No independent estimate was available.
TENSIONS ESCALATE
The clashes were the most heated in a series of anti-Beijing protests
that underscore the central government's challenge to stamp its will on
Hong Kong.
Some observers have likened the protests to those that culminated in
the bloody crackdown on pro-democracy students in and around Beijing's
Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Police arrested more than 60 people, including Joshua Wong, the
17-year-old leader of student group Scholarism, who was dragged away
after he called on the protesters to charge the government premises. He
was still being detained early on Sunday, along with fellow student
leaders Alex Chow and Lester Shum.
His parents said in a statement the decision to detain him was an act of "political persecution".
Wong has already won one major victory against Beijing. In 2012, he
forced the Hong Kong government to shelve plans to roll out a pro-China
national education scheme in the city's schools when the then
15-year-old rallied 120,000 protesters.
Students issued rallying cries during the protests, calling for their
leaders' release. But divisions between the students and Occupy quickly
emerged as arguments broke out and some students accused the civil
disobedience movement of hijacking their protest.
"I came here tonight to support the students, but now I feel like I've
been used ... They made that decision without asking us," said Sharon
Choi, 20.
Occupy organizers had previously indicated they planned to blockade the
financial district on Oct. 1, China's National Day holiday. The rally
will now take part in the Admiralty district to build on the momentum of
week-long student rallies and protests in the area.
"Rather than encouraging the students to join, we are encouraged by the
students to join," said Benny Tai, one of the three main organizers of
the pro-democracy movement.
"We are touched and moved by the work of the students.
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