Police Blame Protesters For Lan Kwai Fong Shutdown

The police have denied they ruined the Halloween celebrations in Lan Kwai Fong on Thursday night, blamed anti-government protesters who they said had hijacked the festivities.

The officers also said at their media briefing that an RTHK reporter who was shoved and pepper sprayed twice in the face in that area must have put himself in the firing line.

Police claimed they barred entry into Lan Kwai Fong after getting reports that some people planned to throw petrol bombs at them and they spotted some people with Guy Fawkes masks.

Moreover there was violence already in Mong Kok and Prince Edward and these factors forced officers to clamp down in the area for safety, said Senior superintendent Ng Lok-chun,

He also cited the 1993 stampede in Lan Kwai Fong as a reason for cutting the celebrations short.

Referring to the incident where an RTHK reporter had to be hospitalised after getting pepper sprayed in the face for asking for an officer's identification number, the senior superintendent said the journalist could have walked into the middle of police action.

The situation was chaotic at the time and officers never target reporters intentionally, he said.

The police also gave an ambiguous reply as to why a person in Mong Kok was pepper sprayed at close quarters by a policeman after an argument. The video of the incident had gone viral on social media and human rights activists had accused the officer responsible of violating guidelines.

Asked why the officer used the weapon at close range, senior superintendent of operations Wong Wai-shun said "how close or far the person was depends on how close he is to our officers".

"The key is whether we can spray it onto the person and let it work ... it's about whether the pepper spray can stick to the man," said Wong.

Asked about the regulations, he said the aim is to make the person feel pain and discomfort to stop them continuing their action. Police issue warnings before such actions, but he did not want to cooperate with us, said Wong.

As for a reported attack on a social worker, who was left bleeding after a baton attack in Mong Kok, chief superintendent John Tse said reporters and social workers ought to keep a safe distance as it's hard for police to know who is who during chaotic scenes.