[Global Times-Global Network Report Special Correspondent to Hong Kong Yang Sheng] Due to the past two days of the weekend, fierce conflicts and illegal rallies broke out in many districts in Hong Kong. Extreme protesters and thugs used a lot of violence to block airport traffic, and even continued to challenge Hong Kong's rule of law and social order with dangerous behaviors such as arson. On the afternoon of the 2nd, the Hong Kong police force said at a press conference that Hong Kong is experiencing a "catastrophe of justice and calamity."
Assistant Director of Police (Action) Mai Zhanhao, Superintendent of the Police Public Relations Section Xie Zhenzhong, Senior Superintendent of the Organized Crimes and Triad Investigation Section Li Guihua, and Senior Superintendent of the Police Public Relations Section (Media Liaison and Message) Jiang Yongxiang met with the media at 4:00 this afternoon. Hong Kong Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief (Headquarters) Chen Qingyong will also attend together.
According to Assistant Director of Police (Operation), Mai Zhanhao, the extremist protesters and thugs threw at least 100 petrol bombs on the evening of August 31. That night, the police fired a total of 241 tear gas bombs, 92 rubber bombs, a bag of bullets, and 10 sponge bombs.
Mai Zhanhao showed the media the gasoline bomb mob used by the thugs. Global Times-Global Network's special correspondent to Hong Kong, Yang Sheng/photo,
Deputy Fire Chief (Headquarters) Chen Qingyong said that on the 31st, eight fire cases were received, two involving gasoline bombs dropped at the government headquarters and police headquarters, and one was burned in Hennessy Road. Because the road was blocked by demonstrators, firefighters needed to walk 200 meters to the scene, which affected the firefighting operation that night. The local fire affected a nearby hotel. Fortunately, the hotel's fire protection system performed normally and effectively prevented the spread of the fire. Mai Zhanhao said that a fire outside the Hennessy Road police headquarters on the evening of the 31st caused multiple lanes to be blocked by fire, and the thugs threw a large amount of flammable materials into the fire.
htmlOn the evening of August 31, a Global Times-Global Network reporter found at the scene outside the police station that when someone tried to put out the fire, a thug still threw debris and flammable materials into the fire. The scene was filled with smoke, the smell was pungent and the temperature was hot. More than two explosions were heard. It was suspected that flammable and explosive materials were detonated in the fire. Before the arrival of firefighters and police, there were a large number of journalists and onlookers at the scene, except for the protesters, and the protesters' behavior had seriously threatened the personal safety of the people present.At the press conference, Chen Qingyong further stated that there were 6 fires on September 1, one burned debris outside the Tung Chung MTR Station and the other dropped a gasoline bomb in Tin Shui, causing the burning of private cars in the ambulance station. Others threw bricks, stones, iron branches, etc. into the railway tracks during the airport walking to Dongchong, which affected passenger safety and was irresponsible. Once the train derailed, the consequences of the train were serious.
Chen Qingyong also introduced that someone in the Tung Chung subway station destroyed the fire control panel and fire-fighting equipment, soaked the lobby, and someone removed and improperly used the fire hose system. If a fire alarm occurs, the citizens will not be able to get the due protection. The Fire Department condemned the behavior and reminded the citizens to stay away, not to watch, and reminded reporters to pay attention to safety when working.
Superintendent of the Police Public Relations Section Xie Zhenzhong introduced at a press conference that a total of 159 people were arrested last Friday to Sunday, including 132 men and 27 women, aged between 13 and 58, involving illegal assembling, assaulting police officers, obstructing police officers from performing their duties, and possessing offensive weapons. From June to the present, the police have arrested a total of 1,117 people in the law enforcement operation. On the afternoon of August 31, the arrested person who committed riots in Causeway Bay has been brought to court in the West Kowloon Magistrates Court. In addition, the 13-year-old and 33-year-old men arrested at Prince Station were also brought to court in the Juvenile Court and the Kowloon City Magistrates Court respectively.
Xie Zhenzhong said that no two police officers were injured last week. One sheriff was beaten with an iron rod by a thug at the junction of Filming Road and Lock Road on August 31. He hit the face, bleeding from his nose and bruised, and was discharged from the hospital. Another police officer was shot in his calf by a slingshot at the junction of Gloucester Road and Georgia Street and was red and swollen. He is currently discharged from the hospital. According to Xie Zhenzhong, two police officers were surrounded near the Victoria Park at around 9 o'clock that night. Someone attempted to steal the police gun, and the two police officers fired guns to the sky and issued warnings.
At the press conference, Xie Zhenzhong also clarified two things circulated on the Internet.
There are media reports and online rumors that on August 31, a police officer in the Golden Clock "disguised" the protesters threw gasoline bombs, and there was a "pistol" on his waist bag. In response, Xie Zhenzhong said that the allegations against the police were serious factual errors. He emphasized that the items similar to guns carried by the thugs in the photo were not firearms used by the police. The police acted completely in accordance with the law during the operation, and would not throw gasoline bombs. He condemned some people to maliciously blackmail the police force as a despicable act.
Xie Zhenzhong emphasized that a thug holding a suspected air gun and throwing a gasoline bomb may constitute a criminal offense. When someone uses a suspected firearm to point the police, the police officer cannot tell the authenticity immediately, and he does not know if there is any live ammunition inside. He stressed that it is necessary to point out solemnly that when someone pointed a gun at anyone, the police will use corresponding force to stop it in response to the situation on the scene, otherwise the consequences will be far more serious than imagined.
In addition, there are rumors that someone died in the MTR Prince Station. In response, Xie Zhenzhong said that this was a random accusation and that the station was closed to deal with the violation. The Medical Bureau has also stated that there were no death cases. "It is easy to spread rumors and difficult to dispel rumors." Xie Zhenzhong strongly condemned the allegations that have been false and very indignant, saying that this is a destruction of the relationship between the police and the public, and "I don't know where the intention is." He called on citizens to find out the facts when they receive information.
Mai Zhanhao continued to add to the situation where protesters disrupted airport traffic and MTR stations on Sunday. He said that at noon that day, demonstrators gathered in the passenger terminal building, and then scattered outside, setting up roadblocks with iron horses, trolleys, etc., and smashing the glass cabinet of the fire-fighting equipment, which violated the airport ban, or was contempt of court. Mai Zhanhao said that some protesters threw iron branches and debris into the railroad tracks, and even broke into the rails, causing service to be suspended, resulting in a large number of passengers taking the elderly and taking the children to hike into the airport.
Mai Zhanhao said that on September 1, demonstrators set fire twice, including burning national flags, debris, conical plastic roadblocks, with flames up to three meters high. The masked thug broke into MTR station and sabotaged citizens. At Tung Chung Station, demonstrators suspected that citizens were filming videos and lynched, "the act of sabotage was like a plague spreading and losing their rationality." According to reports, the protesters used hammers to smash the control room, ticket machine, entrance and exit machine, CCTV, platform curtain door, etc., and also walked into the control room for damage, opened the fire water stop, and soaked the lobby. In the past two days, more than 90 MTR stations have been damaged to varying degrees, and some train services have been blocked. Mai Zhanhao criticized the protesters' behavior and had nothing to do with justice and damaging order. He stressed that "any word that whitewashes atrocities is indulgence."
