Dozens of Hong Kong protesters appear in court on rioting charges
HONG KONG: Dozens of Hong Kong anti-government protesters appeared in court on Wednesday (Sep 25), c..
HONG KONG: Dozens of Hong Kong anti-government protesters appeared in court on Wednesday (Sep 25), charged with rioting and other offences over violent clashes two months ago near China's main representative office.
The case was adjourned until Nov 19 after prosecutors said they needed more time to study 35 hours of video, including police, online and CCTV footage.
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Police fire tear gas on protesters taking part in a demonstration against what activists say is police violence in Hong Kong, Jul 28, 2019. (Photo: AFP/Anthony Wallace)
The 44 defendants were to be released on bail, lawyers said.
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Police clashed with thousands of protesters in the former British colony on Jul 28 as they sought to defend the Hong Kong Liaison Office, a symbol of Chinese rule, from the crowds.
Officers fired tear gas, rubber bullets and sponge grenades.
The mostly young activists in hard hats and gas masks dismantled street signs and fences which they used to form makeshift barricades to slow police advances. This is now a common tactic, met by the same response, almost every weekend.
A week earlier, on Jul 21, they had daubed slogans on the walls of the Liaison Office and thrown paint bombs at it.
Violence has hit parts of the former British colony at different times over the last three months, but life goes on as normal most of the time.
But pictures of petrol bombs and street clashes broadcast worldwide present a huge embarrassment for Beijing before the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic on Oct 1.
FIVE DEMANDS
The protesters are furious at what they see as creeping Chinese interference in Hong Kong, which returned to China in 1997 under a "one country, two systems" formula intended to guarantee freedoms that are not enjoyed on the mainland.
China says it is committed to the arrangement and denies meddling. It has accused foreign governments including the United States and Britain of inciting the unrest.
Hong Kong riot police firingRead More – Source