'Authorities Are Opening Fire On Hong Kong'

Democratic Party leader Wu Chi-wai said on Saturday that the arrests of more than a dozen high-profile pro-democracy figures were an attempt to silence the pro-democracy camp, and that the authorities "were opening fire on Hong Kong".

Media tycoon Jimmy Lai, veteran pro-democracy activists Martin Lee and Albert Ho, and former legislators Cyd Ho and Leung Kwok-hung were believed to be among those arrested on Saturday morning in relation to several anti-government protests last year.

Wu said it is no coincidence that the mass arrests come as mainland and Hong Kong officials are repeatedly stressing the need for the SAR to enact national security legislation.

He added that he believes the moves show how worried Beijing is that the pan-dems will gain more political power after September's Legco elections.

"I would say they are opening fire on everybody in Hong Kong to ensure that Hong Kong is under their control, in particular they are talking about the enactment of Article 23," Wu said.

"Hong Kong people have to seriously look into the situation and the only thing we can do is get together and fight back."

Council Front legislator Claudia Mo said the authorities are trying to "terrify and terrorise the opposition".

"The Hong Kong government led by Carrie Lam is trying very hard to introduce a reign of terror in Hong Kong," she said.