Protesters wear number cards during a protest in Hong Kong, Sunday. Dozens of people on Sunday joined Hong Kong’s first authorized protest against the government since the lifting of major COVID-19 restrictions under unprecedentedly strict rules, including wearing a numbered badge around the neck.
Louise Delmotte/AP
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Louise Delmotte/AP
Protesters wear number cards during a protest in Hong Kong, Sunday. Dozens of people on Sunday joined Hong Kong’s first authorized protest against the government since the lifting of major COVID-19 restrictions under unprecedentedly strict rules, including wearing a numbered badge around the neck.
Louise Delmotte/AP
HONG KONG – Dozens of people on Sunday joined Hong Kong’s first authorized protest since lifting key restrictions on COVID-19 under unprecedentedly strict rules, including wearing a numbered badge around the neck.
The rules introduced by the police, citing security reasons, come as the financial hub is pushing for a return to normal after years of anti-virus controls and political turmoil.
During a pandemic, protests are rare due to COVID-19 restrictions. Additionally, many activists have been silenced or jailed after Beijing imposed a national security law following mass protests in 2019. Critics say the city’s right to freedom of assembly The promise once promised when Hong Kong was returned to China by Britain in 1997 has been eroded.
Sunday’s protest against a proposal to renovate and build garbage facilities was the first of its kind approved by police after the city repealed mask wearing and physical distancing restrictions. social way.
But organizers must comply with police requirements such as taking measures to ensure the number of participants does not exceed the expected 100 and requiring proof of “reasonable reason” from Masked protesters during the event. At the height of the anti-government movement in 2019, the Hong Kong government invoked emergency powers to ban the wearing of masks at public gatherings so that protesters could be identified by the authorities. illegal behavior.
On Sunday, about 80 people expressed opposition to the plans in Tseung Kwan O, a residential and industrial area, organizers said. They had to walk in a fenced moving line in the rain amid a dense police presence.
Theresa Wang described the new restrictions as “a bit odd” but said they were still tolerable as the city was adjusting to the “new Hong Kong”.
“I’m not happy but we have to accept. We have to accept what is legal now,” said the 70-year-old retiree, adding that she hoped the protest would be a sign for found the government to be more open to discussion. .
Protester Jack Wong said he did not want to wear a badge with a number. Police said earlier this request was to prevent lawbreakers from participating in the march.
“But if it’s a request, what can I say? I don’t want to comment further. You know what I mean,” he said.
In approval, the police also asked the organizers to ensure that there would not be any conduct that could jeopardize national security, including displaying anything riotous.
Cyrus Chan, one of the organizers of the march, said protesters contacted police about their promotional materials and slogans. He said officers had previously told him that participants should not wear all-black. Protesters often wear black during the 2019 protests.
“Strict for sure,” Chan said. “We hope this is just an individual case. We hope to show them that Hong Kong society is capable of peaceful marching and that they don’t need to set so many conditions to restrict us. “
Earlier this month, the Hong Kong Women’s Workers’ Association had planned a march calling for labor and women’s rights but canceled it at the last minute without specifying a reason.
A few days later, the association said on its Facebook page that the police had invited them to follow-up meetings after approval and that they had made every effort to amend the agreement. But it still could not launch the protest as it wished, it wrote at the time.
One pro-democracy group alone said the national security police had warned four of its members not to take part in the union’s march.
