Tear Gas Fired As TST Rally Descends Into Chaos

Police officers have fired tear gas and used batons against protesters gathered near the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront as an unauthorised rally quickly descended into chaos on Sunday afternoon.

Several hundred people had gathered outside the Space Museum on the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront for the rally, which began at 3pm on Sunday. Police moved in about half an hour after the rally began.

Police used batons on protesters who threw objects at them before firing tear gas close to the junction of Nathan Road and Salisbury Road, where cars and buses were stuck with the drivers unable to leave the scene. A small number of protesters had earlier occupied the intersection

In one case, a man in a wheelchair was apparently struck with pepper spray. Police officers poured water into his eyes as the people who were with the man berated them.

Police said they used minimum force to disperse protesters who had brought traffic to a standstill and used umbrellas and hard objects to attack officers. They urged bystanders to leave the area and residents to stay indoors with their windows shut.

Protesters moved away from the scene from about 4pm. Some set up barricades in a stand-off with police on Peking Road, where many shops closed their doors.

Another group moved towards Hung Hom and To Kwan Wan, blocking several lanes of Ma Tau Wai Road. Riot police arrived at about 5pm and took several people away. Small, scattered groups of protesters were seen in Jordan and Mong Kok.

Police again issued a tear gas warning sign at about 5pm, near Chungking Mansions on Nathan Road. It wasn't clear what prompted the warning. The police water cannons were also spotted heading down Nathan Road in Yau Ma Tei before reversing away.

A number of people, most of them young, were take away by police.

More than 30 police in riot gear were on the scene up to an hour before the scheduled start of the protest. They searched the bags of people in the area, many of whom were clad in black.

Some people shouted abuse at the police and police were seen warning one man, who accused them of breaching the Basic Law.

Protest organisers said the event was intended in part as a show of solidarity with the Muslim community. At a similar unauthorised protest last Sunday, a police water cannon fired blue-dyed liquid at the Kowloon Mosque, after which the police and the government apologised.

Chris, a business consultant who joined the protest, said she took part because she wants the government to set up an independent inquiry into the policing of recent protests, something it has so far refused to do.

She was also angered by the granting of an injunction on Friday preventing the release of personal information on police officers and their families.

"Again it's injustice, inequality," she said. "Why do we have to disclose everything when they've got special protections. It's bullying. The government's protecting the bullies.

"If they've done nothing wrong, what's wrong with disclosing what they're doing, their jobs, their families. If they've done nothing wrong they should be proud of what they're doing."

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