HK protesters make last stand as police close in on besieged uni

Hong Kong

HUNDREDS of pro-democracy protesters were surrounded by riot police on Monday inside a besieged Hong Kong college campus, as almost six months of intensifying anti-government unrest appeared headed for a bitter and perhaps bloody climax.

The police even warned of using live ammunition as they called on demonstrators to drop their weapons and leave in an orderly manner.

Police also blocked exits to try to coax exhausted protesters out of the Polytechnic University on Monday, after a night of clashes with students. When some attempted to escape, officers forced them back with tear gas and rubber bullets, and made dozens of arrests. As night fell, and with explosions and black smoke emanating from the grounds, police repeated demands for the demonstrators to surrender.

At rallies across the city, people expressed support for the trapped students. "Save PolyU, save the students!" they chanted. In the densely packed streets adjoining the university, demonstrators using umbrellas as shields edged towards police lines and were repulsed with tear gas.

In a new setback for Carrie Lam, Hong Kong's High Court ruled on Monday that the government's use of a British colonial-era emergency ordinance to ban face masks at public gatherings was unconstitutional. Mrs Lam had introduced the measure to aid police in identifying protesters and effectively expand powers of arrest.

China will not simply sit back and watch if months of protests in Hong Kong develop into an "uncontrollable" situation, Beijing's ambassador to Britain said on Monday. "I think the Hong Kong government is trying very hard to put the situation under control," Liu Xiaoming told a London press conference. "But if the situation becomes uncontrollable, the central government would certainly not sit on our hands and watch. We have enough resolution and power to end the unrest." WP, AFP

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