Hong Kong protests: Polytechnic University stand-off between student demonstrators and riot squad shows no end in sight

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South China Morning Post
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Dozens slip through police lines during the night by using ropes to descend from a footbridge to a highway and ride away on motorcycles

South China Morning Post |
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Several protesters escape by abseiling down to a highway from a campus footbridge and were picked up by motorcycles and driven away.

The stand-off between protesters barricaded inside Hong Kong Polytechnic University and riot police threatening mass arrests continued into the early hours of Tuesday.

About 40 injured activists were allowed to leave the campus to get treatment, although they might still face charges later. Others, except for accredited journalists, were told they would be arrested once they stepped out.

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A police source said those who surrendered without a fight could expect lenient punishment, but all entrapped protesters had to answer to the law.

With police showing no intention of storming the campus and activists unwilling to give up, a stalemate ensued.

Former Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing and University of Hong Kong legal scholar Eric Cheung Tat-ming entered the PolyU campus with a police escort at around 11pm.

When asked about the visit, Tsang said he was there to “help those who want to leave”.

Earlier attempts by various groups to negotiate a peaceful solution failed. University board directors, teachers, parents and lawmakers trying to enter the campus were turned back by officers.

Stand off between protesters and police continues at Poly U on Monday

At nightfall, thousands of supporters of the protesters gathered in Jordan and Tsim Sha Tsui and tried to relieve the police siege by force.

They battled riot officers in the bustling streets of central Kowloon throughout the night, with tear gas and petrol bombs exchanged at rapid intervals.

Those who stayed on the campus in Hung Hom also tried to break out and leave en masse. But they were quickly met by rounds of tear gas fired by police guarding several entrances.

In the evening, dozens managed to slip through the police line and escape. Under cover of night, they used ropes to descend from a campus footbridge to a highway and were picked up by motorcycles and driven away.

Police have made mass arrests since the stand-off started on Sunday.
Photo: SCMP/ Sam Tsang

The intensity and scale of Monday’s clashes paled in comparison with the violence on Sunday, but as of 10pm, 116 people had been injured and sent to hospitals, according to the Hospital Authority.

Police arrested at least 400 people since Sunday evening – nearly a tenth of the 4,500 arrests they have made since the unprecedented civil unrest broke out in June.

By Monday night, several hundred activists and some first aiders were still trapped inside the campus.
 
Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, the city’s No 2 official, on Monday said the nature of the movement had changed from opposing the now-withdrawn extradition bill to “destroying Hong Kong”.
 
 
Many besieged activists were teenagers or secondary school students. Their anxious parents staged a sit-in near the campus in Tsim Sha Tsui East as the stand-off showed no sign of easing.
 
A mother burst into tears as she searched Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Jordan looking for her son, a Form Six student. His teacher and friends earlier told her the boy had been seriously injured after taking part in the conflict at PolyU. It was not clear if he left the campus.
 
“He was at home [on Sunday] before I went to work. I have no idea where he went but he did not come back,” she said. “He’s only 17 and he might not recover if no treatment is done. I prefer that he gets arrested than seeing him die.”
 
The hospital said it had no record of her son’s admission.
Riot police make arrests as clashes break out for a second day between anti-government protesters and riot police at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in Hung Hom.
Photo: SCMP / Winson Wong

Meanwhile, on the campus, Jasper Tsang and Eric Cheung first met a group of volunteers and some of those they had helped, and offered to leave together with them.

Cheung said that while they could not guarantee the activists would not be arrested after they stepped out of the campus, he said they could ensure their personal safety.

“I don’t think this retreat is a surrender. If there is any arrest, I’d also question what evidence the police have,” Cheung said.

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Tsang added: “I can guarantee that if we leave together, you won’t face any rough treatment.”

The group later said they needed to have a discussion among themselves first.

The stand-off also means the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, which links Hong Kong Island to Kowloon, will remain closed. It has been down for days after protesters set fire to toll booths and overhead bridges.

Secretary for Transport and Housing Frank Chan Fan said the government would ask ferry operators to run services between Hung Hom and Wan Chai, as well as between Kowloon City and Wan Chai, free of charge.

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