Violence back in HK after interim peace

Violence flared up again in Hong Kong over the weekend after days of calm, as rioters returned to and rampaged through the streets of Kowloon.

The radicals restored their previous "flash mob" tactics — assemble rapidly, and create mayhem on the spot. They vandalized shops, blocked roads and attacked innocent bystanders.

The city has enjoyed only about a fortnight of peace before the violence returned. The protesters stopped violent actions before and after the District Council elections on Nov 24, in which the opposition camp won 385 of 452 seats in a landslide victory.

On Sunday night, hundreds of masked rioters gathered in Whampoa, a densely populated area southeast of Hung Hom, and proceeded to trash restaurants and shops — including popular brands Genki Sushi, Yoshinoya, and Best Mart 360 — that they believe support the government and the police.

The rioters also smashed subway stations and traffic lights in the area. The rioters also set fires to an exit of the Whampoa MTR station. The railway operator, MTR Corp, was forced to close the Whampoa station at 8 pm.

Those rioters deviated from a public procession of hundreds of anti-government protesters in Tsim Sha Tsui. During the protest, some hurled smoke bombs into the crowd, causing public fear and chaos.

The police had to fire tear gas to disperse the crowd, and they made arrests in both areas.

In the early hours of Sunday, a 53-year-old local resident was hit in the head with a manhole cover by a masked rioter in Mong Kok. The man was hospitalized with serious head injuries, police said.

The victim was attacked while he was clearing barricades that a group of rioters had set up on Nathan Road near Mong Kok. His cellphone was also stolen. Police are investigating the case as an assault and burglary.

The police condemned the protesters' violent acts and pledged to bring the offenders to justice.

Newly promoted Police Commissioner Chris Tang Ping-keung said he was sad to see renewed outbreak of violence in the city. The force had no other options but to resume anti-riot operations as the rioters have resorted to street violence again, he said during a local radio program Sunday.

The demonstrators' violent acts, including arson and attacks on innocent people, could be lethal, he said.

Last month, a sanitation worker was killed by a brick thrown by a radical protester after he joined a group of people who were clearing the makeshift barricades set up by the rioters.

Also on Sunday, more than 20 gasoline bombs and offensive weapons were found and removed from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, two days after police disposed of about 4,000 gasoline bombs and a large number of other dangerous items that radical protesters had left on the campus.

PolyU authorities said in a statement they had asked fire services and other relevant government departments to assess whether another overhaul is needed to ensure campus safety.

The continued violence has cast a shadow on the city's future prospects, and some in society are voicing concerns about a potential brain drain. Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, the city's No 2 official, said it is imperative that peace and order return to the city if Hong Kong wants to retain talents.

Hong Kong should immediately rebuild the confidence of the international community, even though there is no massive brain drain yet, Cheung wrote in his weekly net blog on Sunday.