Hong Kong protests: More rallies planned for the weekend at the airport, Tai Po and Sham Shui Po
Events are being organised on popular local forum LIHKG
Anti-extradition bill Protesters appear at the arrival hall of the Hong Kong International Airport on July 30.Netizens are planning to stage a peaceful anti-extradition bill sit-in this weekend at the Hong Kong International Airport’s Terminal One Arrival Hall without seeking police permission, according to two posts on the local forum LIHKG.
The three-day rally, which is set to begin at 1pm on Friday, aims to gather both frontline protesters and those who prefer to stick to “peaceful, rational, and non-violent” means. The post said the move will give frontline protesters a break from clashes with the police and give them the chance to devise new strategies for the ongoing anti-extradition bill movement.
Organisers also urged the police to stop using “violence” to suppress peaceful rallies and demonstrations. They also want the government to respond to the five demands they have been calling for.
Participants were also reminded to not enter, damage or charge the restricted areas in the airport, and to “be water,” a famous saying by late martial arts star Bruce Lee which has become a clarion call of protesters to change the form of the movement according to circumstances.
No protest signs or slogan chanting will be allowed, added the LIHKG member known as WillCmm, because the demonstration has not been authorised by the police. “This demonstration will also be an experiment to test whether illicit assemblies with a high turnout would be possible [in the future], or as effective as the legal ones.”
Meanwhile, other protesters have planned to host two marches in Tai Po and Sham Shui Po on August 10 and 11 respectively, pending letters of no objection from the police. Both are tentatively scheduled to start at 3pm.
The Tai Po march plan to set off from the Lennon Tunnel near Tai Po Market Station and end at The Hong Kong Jockey Club Tai Po Kwong Fuk Road Off-course Betting Branch. The one in Sham Shui Po is scheduled to begin at Maple Street Playground and finish at Sham Shui Po Sports Ground.
Organisers of both marches are calling for a response to the same five previous demands from the government. Protesters joining the march in Sham Shui Po are also invited to voice their concerns about the alleged excessive force used by the force, and the indiscriminate violence deployed by alleged triad gangsters in recent protests.