Protesters Defend Use Of Petrol Bombs

Anti-government protesters were in broad agreement that the use of petrol-bombs are ‘acceptable’— with some saying the police are to blame by escalating their use of force.

The use of molotov cocktails has been on the rise in recent weeks, with protesters mostly targeting police stations or government buildings rather than living targets.

However, the use of the incendiary devices appear to be on the rise – with at least a dozen thrown towards government headquarters at Tamar within minutes.

Most exploded harmless around huge water barriers that have been set up around the complex, but one appeared to have struck a water-cannon truck that had been deployed to disperse protesters from the area after the petrol bombs were thrown.

The fire was put out quickly, causing no obvious damage to the vehicle.

However, several petrol bombs were also thrown in the direction of police officers on Hennessy Road near Three Pacific Place on Sunday afternoon. No one was hit, and officers fired tear gas in retaliation.

One of the black-shirted protesters, Justin, said he thinks the use of petrol bombs is acceptable. He says it’s the police who have escalated their level of force by deploying water cannons.

"It depends (on) the force from the Hong Kong government. If they use the plastic bullet, water cannon, what can the protester do? They have no choice to increase their force”, he said.

Another masked protester refused to give his name, but told RTHK he is 21 years old. He stressed that the petrol bombs were typically used on inanimate objects, not people.

"I don't think they are trying to aim for the police or anyone, they just throw it in the stairs... give us some time to retreat or something”, he said.