'Campus situation dangerous, 100 still holed up'

'Campus situation dangerous, 100 still holed up'

Police maintained a tight control, carrying out checks on anyone who entered the area. Photo: RTHK

A teen walks out of the campus accompanied by some school principals. Photo: RTHK

Priscilla Ng reports

The president of Polytechnic University, Teng Jin-guang, said on Wednesday that it's believed around 100 protesters are still holed up in the besieged campus, and around 20 of them were students of the institution.



A handful made their way out of the campus during the day, saying the conditions inside are so bad that it's no longer possible for them to stay put.



Speaking to reporters after making a brief inspection of the university, Teng said the campus situation was getting dangerous.



"The campus is in a chaotic condition with dangerous chemicals. Hygiene conditions are also deteriorating," he said. "We believe that these conditions pose a significant risk to the people in the campus."



While he said the police have not imposed a deadline for protesters to leave the university, the campus is simply too dangerous for anybody to stay.



Some of the demonstrators had made dangerous attempts to flee the university, even trying to crawl through the sewers. On Wednesday, two people again took the drainage tunnel to try and escape.



But both of them were arrested by police along with three others who were suspected of helping them.



Teng urged those remaining on the campus not to risk their lives, saying the university will do all it takes to ensure they are being treated fairly and humanely by officers, as long as they make their way out peacefully.



A few of them came out of the campus accompanied by school principals. They told RTHK that food is quickly running out, and the hygiene situation on campus is so bad that they can no longer stay.



A group of parents were seen waiting at the footbridge which links East Tsim Sha Tsui and PolyU. One of them, surnamed Chung, said her child was inside the campus.



Chung said police had told her and other parents that they would be allowed to go in and persuade their kids to leave. This was later contradicted by police, however, at their daily press briefing.



Secretary for Security John Lee also urged the remaining protesters to give themselves up.



Under the current arrangement, those over the age of 18 will be arrested immediately on suspicion of rioting. Those under 18, meanwhile, will only have their personal details taken down by police before they are allowed to go home.



Education sector lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen said around 300 children from the campus have had their details recorded by police. He told reporters he had not heard of any cases so far that involve child protesters being arrested.



Meanwhile, security remained extremely tight around the PolyU campus, with police stationed at exits. Some officers were also seen guarding the openings to drainage tunnels to make sure demonstrators didn't escape through the sewage system.



Only people who work or live nearby were allowed to cross the police cordon, and only after police checks. Even a restaurant worker going out to throw rubbish was stopped and officers looked at what he was carrying. A footbridge in the vicinity remained a no-go area.



Despite the curbs, some people turned up to praise the police for their work. "You've worked hard, be careful, sir," said one middle-aged office worker.



Many people were wearing masks to protect themselves as tear gas was used heavily during the earlier stand-offs between officers and protests.



Things were quiet outside the university in the morning and there were no paramedics or people waiting near the footbridge link to the campus.



Some clothes, snacks and drinks had been placed on the ground. A number of shops remained closed, adding to the desolate atmosphere that prevailed in the area.