Yuen Long MTR Station Limps Back To Normalcy

While services at the Yuen Long MTR station were back to normal by Thursday morning, scars of a standoff between anti-extradition protesters and policemen the night before were still visible inside the concourse.

About a thousand people staged a peaceful sit-in on Wednesday evening – exactly one month after a group of men clad in white t-shirts attacked passengers – to voice their anger at what they called police inaction over the assault.

The police had arrested 28 people so far over the brazen attack but none have been charged.

The protest on Wednesday night morphed into violence as groups of protesters tried to set up a road block and was chased away by police. The protesters retreated to the station and barricaded the station entrance.

Some of the protesters sprayed the station with foam from fire extinguishers, and others used a fire hose to wet the floor. Some also spray-painted “don’t forget 721” in Chinese inside the station – indicating the date of the attack. Barricades were built using metal fences, rubbish bins and other objects.

Police did not enter the station and the protesters left before midnight avoiding any escalation of violence.

By Thursday morning as the commuters returned, the graffiti on the walls had been already covered with white paint. But the fire safety equipment and the rubbish bins were not replaced.

The MTR Corporation had earlier issued a statement saying the company had made a report to the police, as protesters had broken the law when they damaged the facilities inside the station, adding their behaviour was unacceptable and regrettable.