Hong Kong police clear barricades at protest sites

Police officers and pro-democracy demonstrators face off near the government offices in Hong Kong. (AFP PHOTO / Laurent FIEVET)

HONG KONG: Dozens of Hong Kong police began clearing barricades early Monday (Oct 13) at protest sites where pro-democracy demonstrators have been holding more than two weeks of rallies, paralysing parts of the Asian financial hub.

The police, who were dressed in high visibility jackets but not wearing riot gear, began removing barricades at Admiralty district, according to TVB. Police were also gathering at a secondary site in Mongkok, according to television reports.

Police had said there was no protest activity going on at the site and wanted to take back government property, reported TVB.

"I'm not here to disperse the protesters," TVB quoted a police officer as saying. "We're removing things that are blocking the roads, and taking back government property."

Photos of the scene showed protesters, wearing goggles and face masks, facing off with police. Protesters were also seen putting up barricades again, after police removed them.

Pro-democracy demonstrators put up barricades near the government offices in Hong Kong, after police removed some of the barricades at protest sites. (AFP PHOTO / Laurent FIEVET)

Some demonstrators in Admiralty early on Monday wielded umbrellas, which have become emblematic of the Hong Kong movement, to guard against any police pepper spray.

"I'm angry because this umbrella movement belongs to the Hong Kong students. The police (should not be) our enemy but our friends," Kim Kwan, a 21-year-old student, told AFP, decrying Monday's intervention.

Demonstrators calling for Beijing to grant full democracy to the former British colony have brought parts of Hong Kong to a standstill over the last fortnight, prompting clashes with elements who oppose the blockades and widespread disruption.

Despite repeated orders to disperse, the rallies have taken on an air of permanence, with tents, portable showers and lecture venues - drawing thousands of people in recent evenings.

On Sunday, the city's embattled leader Leung Chun-ying said the protesters had "almost zero chance" of changing Beijing's stance and securing free elections.

After police were criticised for unleashing tear gas on the rallies in late September, the city's chief executive said that if the government had to clear the protests sites, police would use a "minimum amount of force".