Police fire tear gas, protesters respond with petrol bombs in HK as government fears economic impact

Staff writer News Corp Australia Network

Police say anti-government protesters set fire to shops and hurled petrol bombs in response.

And the government has warned that the protests are hurting Hong Kong’s economy.

“It seems that it is extremely difficult to achieve the forecast of zero to one per cent growth,” Financial Secretary Paul Chan warned, citing the impact of the ongoing protests.

There was a stand-off as dusk began to fall in the Chinese-ruled city, with pro-democracy protesters and bemused tourists gathered on the pavements of the shopping and hotel artery of Nathan Road, which police had earlier cleared in slow-moving cordons.

Riot police stood by outside the Chungking Mansions high-rise warren of South Asian restaurants and backpacker hostels, shields and batons at the ready. Protesters shouted obscenities in colourful Cantonese at “black police”, referring to perceived overuse of force.

“Fight for Hong Kong!” protesters shouted, “five demands, not one less”, a reference to demands for universal suffrage and an independent inquiry into police actions, among other things.

Police later moved away, leaving protesters, pedestrians and tourists alike to take over the street under the neon lights. Then one water cannon moved in, firing high into the air and down side-streets.

The number of protesters had grown by the minute earlier in the afternoon, streaming down Nathan Road to the water’s edge, in front of the dramatic backdrop of Hong Kong island, but many fled after the tear gas and pepper spray were fired.

Ambulances took one man away on a stretcher.

In a blog published, Financial Secretary Paul Chan warned that the city may post negative growth this year because of the protests.

“It seems that it is extremely difficult to achieve the forecast of zero to one per cent,” he wrote.

Among the demands from protesters are an independent inquiry into the police, an amnesty for the more than 2,500 arrested and fully free elections — all of which have been refused by Beijing and chief executive Carrie Lam.