Wild protests continue in Hong Kong as demonstrators attack Chinese traders

Thousands of demonstrators in Hong Kong clashed with police on Saturday in a town near the boundary with mainland China, where protesters rallied against the presence of Chinese traders.

Protesters seized on another grievance following major unrest over an extradition bill when they threw umbrellas and hardhats at police, who retaliated by swinging batons and firing pepper spray.

“Our lovely town has become chaos,” resident Ryan Lai, 50, said shortly before the protest turned violent.

Read also: China vows to sanction U.S firms selling arms to Taiwan

“We don’t want to stop travel and buying, but please, just make it orderly and legal,” he added, referring to so-called “parallel traders” who buy large volumes of duty-free goods in the town, to be carried into mainland China and sold.

“The extradition bill was the tipping point for us to come out. We want Sheung Shui back.”

The traders have long been a source of anger among those in Hong Kong who blame them for fueling inflation, driving up property prices and dodging taxes.

Later, police urged protesters to refrain from violence and leave. By about 8:30 p.m. (1230 GMT), most had retreated as police in riot helmets and wielding large shields swept through the town to clear the streets.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now