Despite warnings from Beijing, there have again been major rallies in Hong Kong. Up to 1.7 million people walked the streets of the metropolis on Sunday. Unlike in the past, the protests ran peacefully this time around.
At the central rally in the city center of the former British colony, the Victoria Park was completely filled on Sunday. Even on the streets around there is hardly a get through, reported reporters from Hong Kong. People were not deterred by heavy rain, loudly demanding freedom and democracy.
The rally was called by the Covenant Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), which had already stopped plans by the Beijing-based city government for a extradition law with earlier protests. Meanwhile, the protest is increasingly directed against Beijing directly. Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997 by the United Kingdom. As a Special Administrative Region, it actually guaranteed extensive special rights until 2047. Many are afraid of it now.
Protest movement continues strong
The demonstration was used as a gauge of what support the protest movement in the 7.5-million-inhabitant city still has. Last week, she was under attack for flogging at Hong Kong’s airport, where protesters fired at a Chinese reporter.
The police did not say how many people took to the streets on Sunday. According to media estimates, it should have been at least one million. The CHRF spoke of 1.7 million participants.
The Alliance kept calling the crowd to stay calm. One of the organizers, Bonnie Leung, said, „We hope we can show the world that Hong Kong’s people can be completely peaceful.“ When a heavy rain began, people opened their umbrellas and stopped. Nobody went home because of the rain.
Beijing’s threatening backdrop
In recent days, Beijing has built a threatening backdrop. With harsh comments in the state-run press and images of troop movements near Hong Kong, there is international concern over military intervention, such as in 1989 in the bloody crackdown on democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. China’s Party and Party leader Xi Jinping has not yet commented on developments in Hong Kong. On October 1, the People’s Republic wants to celebrate its 70th anniversary.
The demonstrations have been going on for more than two and a half months. The criticism was initially directed in particular against Hong Kong’s Prochinese head of government Carrie Lam. On Sunday there were also posters showing them with Hitler’s beards. In addition, demonstrators demanded free elections and an independent investigation of police violence in earlier demonstrations. But there were also calls for independence from the crowd.
The movement is carried mainly by younger people. The majority of the demonstrators were also under 30 on Sunday, as they had been on a march of tens of thousands the day before. For fear of riots, many shops were closed. However, the march and rally were peaceful. Several thousand prochinese demonstrators gathered in a park on Saturday. The police spoke of more than 100,000 participants. But there are big doubts about that.
Brussels calls for dialogue
The European Union urged both sides to dialogue. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said: „It is crucial that restraint be exercised, violence denied, and urgent steps taken to de-escalate the situation.“ The protest movement also has voices calling for the West to do more to secure fundamental democratic rights to do in Hong Kong.
