Hong Kong protest sees hundreds of thousands call for city’s leader to step down

Our live coverage has ended. You can read more about the protests here.

Close to 2 million people descended on Hong Kong’s streets on Sunday, Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), the organizers of the protests, estimate.

According to CHRF, those numbers are unprecedented. Police estimated that the 338,000 people followed the protest’s original route.

In a statement released by the group Sunday night, CHRF said demonstrations will continue until the government withdraws the extradition bill in its entirety, releases arrested protesters and withdraws all charges, retracts the characterization of the protests as a “riot” and forces Chief Executive Carrie Lam to resign.

“Should the government refuse to respond, only more Hong Kongers will strike tomorrow,” CHRF said.

Joshua Wong, the young leader of Hong Kong’s 2014 “Umbrella” movement, will be released from prison on Monday, according to his pro-democracy political party Demosisto.

The news broke amid historic demonstrations against a China extradition bill Sunday night.

Wong, who spent much of 2017 in prison for his role in the protests and was sent back last month for contempt of court, has called for the scrapping of government proposals aimed at easing extradition of wanted suspects to mainland China.

In an opinion piece penned for Time magazine earlier this week, Wong said that Hong Kong’s extradition law would be a “victory for authoritarianism everywhere” and urged the United States to act.

“As American security and business interests are also jeopardized by possible extradition arrangements with China, I believe the time is ripe for Washington to re-evaluate the U.S.–Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992, which governs relations between the two places. I also urge Congress to consider the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. The rest of the international community should make similar efforts,” Wong wrote.

“Do You Hear The People Sing?,” a song from musical Les Misérables and the anthem of Hong Kong protests in 2014, has resurfaced in demonstrations over the controversial China extradition bill.

A large group of demonstrators belted out the song in unison under a footbridge next to the police headquarters Sunday afternoon in Hong Kong. Crowds circling the singers cheered: “Encore!” 

The rousing chorus: “Do you hear the people sing?/Singing the songs of angry men?/It is the music of the people/Who will not be slaves again!” is sung in the musical as students prepare to launch an anti-monarchist rebellion in the streets of Paris.

In recent years it has been picked up as the soundtrack for demonstrations from Ukraine to the US.

Faced with yet another huge protest over her handling of the China extradition bill, Hong Kong’s leader Carrie Lam issued a rare apology Sunday night. 

Hours after the demonstrations started, the government said in a statement that Lam had admitted “deficiencies” in the government’s work had led to “substantial controversies and disputes in society, causing disappointment and grief among the people.”

Full statement from a government spokesman:

Over the past two Sundays, a large number of people have expressed their views during public processions. The Government understands that these views have been made out of love and care for Hong Kong. 
The Chief Executive clearly heard the views expressed in a peaceful and rational manner. She acknowledged that this embodied the spirit of Hong Kong as a civilised, free, open and pluralistic society that values mutual respect, harmony and diversity. The Government also respects and treasures these core values of Hong Kong. 
Having regard to the strong and different views in society, the Government has suspended the legislative amendment exercise at the full Legislative Council with a view to restoring calmness in society as soon as possible and avoiding any injuries to any persons. The Government reiterated that there is no timetable for restarting the process. 
The Chief Executive admitted that the deficiencies in the Government’s work had led to substantial controversies and disputes in society, causing disappointment and grief among the people. The Chief Executive apologised to the people of Hong Kong for this and pledged to adopt a most sincere and humble attitude to accept criticisms and make improvements in serving the public. 

Large numbers of young protesters have regrouped on the same street they were expelled from by police just days earlier, with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Sitting peacefully on Harcourt Road, black-clad protesters said they were considering staying for hours or even overnight on the usually busy street.

Harcourt Road runs through the middle of Hong Kong’s affluent Admiralty district, alongside the city’s Legislative Council building. It was one of the main sites of 2014’s Occupy protests.

The mood Sunday was completely different to earlier in the week, with a tiny almost invisible police presence and relaxed crowd, almost none of whom were wearing face coverings or helmets and other safety gear.

Outside the central government offices a large crowd called for Carrie Lam to resign but even there the mood was far less hostile than Wednesday and no one was obviously equipped for renewed skirmishes with police.

While the mood could change, Hong Kongers appear to have not only come out in great numbers, but shown they can do so completely peacefully.

Near the glitzy Pacific Place mall, piles of white flowers have been left stacked beside the road and on the concrete divider in memory of a protester who died on Saturday morning.

While demonstrators were encouraged to wear black on Sunday, many also pinned white flowers to their chests in his memory.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, while holding banners opposing the China extradition bill, the man fell from a podium in Hong Kong’s Admiralty district.

He was rushed to hospital but died soon after, Hong Kong police said. Many of the exact circumstances that led to his death still remained unclear Sunday night.

But protesters were clearly prepared to honor his memory.

A second memorial was set up near the Legislative Council offices on Harcourt Road on Sunday, complete with the yellow raincoat which became a symbol of Wednesday’s protests.

“He sacrificed a lot for us,” 16-year-old school student Athena told CNN.

The sun has set in Hong Kong and there is still no end in sight for a mass demonstration that has brought the city’s streets to a standstill.  

The suspension of a controversial bill that would allow extradition to China was not enough to stop protesters from turning out in huge numbers. Organizers estimate the crowds could be even bigger than last Sunday, when as many as 1.03 million people rallied in the city.

Instead of being assuaged by the postponement of the extradition bill, demonstrators seem to be more energized than ever. They’re demanding that the bill be scrapped entirely and that Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam step down over her handling of the issue.

Chants of “Lam resign” and “withdraw the bill” could be heard reverberating across the sea of peaceful protesters as night fell.

Many of those demonstrating are also outraged over perceived police brutality during Wednesday’s protest, which Lam described as a “riot.”

Lam has promised to “keep improving and serve the citizens,” acknowledging many people were angry and upset, but whether her apology will be enough to assuage protesters remains to be seen.

It’s gone 9 p.m. (9 a.m. ET) in Hong Kong and still many of the streets are packed with protesters.

In the city’s Admiralty area, the final stop on the protest route, thousands of people continue to stream down the main street, as songs and chants fill the air.

Many are holding their phones aloft, creating a sea of bright shining lights. The mood is jubilant, even celebratory, despite slow progress and huge crowds.

Earlier as an ambulance approached, the crowd was forced to part, squeezing onto sidewalks and huddling tightly together.

After the ambulance had successfully passed a huge cheer erupted from the crowd.

One of the organizers of Sunday’s protest have told CNN they had “never seen such a big crowd” in Hong Kong. 

Bonnie Leung, of the Civil Human Rights Front, told CNN that her team is counting the number of people at check points around the city and an estimate is expected at 10 p.m. local time (9 a.m.ET). 

Despite the large crowds there is a relatively minimal police presence, with officers directing traffic, but no sign yet of helmets or gas masks. 

Sunday’s march has been mainly peaceful, with many families with children taking part. 

Kevin Yam, from Hong Kong’s Progressive Lawyer Group, told CNN the protest size could yet be even larger than last Sunday’s record breaking gathering – when protest organizers estimated more than a million people took to the streets. 

“If the cops have opened up many more roads than last week and all the protesters are still stuck and the train stations are still overfilled that’s a real sign,” he said.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam has issued a statement apologizing to the citizens of Hong Kong amid mass protests calling for her resignation.

In a statement Sunday, Lam said that she would listen to criticisms from the voters in “the most sincere and humble manner.”

Tens of thousands of protesters are still on the streets of Hong Kong calling for Lam’s resignation over her handling of the China extradition bill crisis, as well as deep resentment over her decision to call Wednesday’s protest a “riot.”

Lam said that she promised to “keep improving and serve the citizens,” acknowledging many people were angry and upset.

But it has yet to be seen if Lam’s apology will be enough for the thousands of deeply dissatisfied protesters.

Two 16-year-old students who came to the protest on Sunday said that they had come to speak up for the dozens of people who were injured in last week’s protest.

“We are coming today to fight for justice for those students that were arrested and injured,” Valerie said, asking not to give her last name.

81 people were taken to hospital with injuries after Wednesday’s clashes between police and protesters. Many signs on Sunday’s march have denounced police brutality.

“This is our spirit. We are here together we are not here for riot to express our opinion,” her friend Athena said.

Methodist priest Pastor Francis said he had told his congregation to come out to the protest on Sunday, helping provide food and aid to the demonstrators.

He said he holds the government accountable for hurting young protesters on Wednesday and is joining calls for Lam to step down.

Anger is on display outside the Legislative Council buildings, where a large group of protesters have gathered in front of police.

Emotions are running high following Wednesday’s violent scenes, in which as many as 5,000 riot police clashed with protesters.

Though police tonight are restrained, and not equipped with shields, security around the government complex remains tight.

Many of those arriving at the Legislative Council building are carrying large photographs of bloodied protestors from the demonstration earlier in the week.

Chants of “shameful bad police” and “shelve the evil bill” can be heard from within the crowd.

Hong Kong is a city built for business.

Seized by the British after the first Opium War ended in 1842 and used as a base for trade in drugs and other products, in the late 20th century Hong Kong became a leading global financial center and gateway to the giant Chinese economy.

The handover of the city to China in 1997, however, prompted fears that model would collapse.

Two years before that looming date, Fortune magazine ran a notorious cover warning of the “death of Hong Kong,” lamenting that the “the world’s most aggressively pro-business economy” was being handed to Communist China.

It’s a death knell that’s been repeated countless times but never come true.

Yet the controversial bill which sparked today’s protest could change this for one simple reason.

This time the challenges facing Hong Kong are seen as a direct threat to its business community.

Read more analysis here

The sun has set in Hong Kong and there is still no end in sight for the mass demonstration which is filling the city’s streets.

As the crowd passes through Wan Chai’s district, bar owners and patrons are cheering the protesters on.

Many are holding signs, and tv screens usually tuned to sports are showing live feeds of the march. There were huge cheers for one restauranteur who came onto a first floor balcony and held up a sign saying “you’ve worked hard, add oil Hong Kongers!”

The mood here is jubilant, with frequent spontaneous cheers rippling through the crowd and constant chants of “Lam resign” and “withdraw the bill.”

Continued protests in Hong Kong couldn’t come at a worse time for Chinese President Xi Jinping and his government, who are still struggling with the fallout from a trade war with the United States and a faltering domestic economy.

In Chinese state media, the tone has been defiant. A spokesman for the country’s foreign ministry even blamed the US for the chaos in Hong Kong.

The reality, however, is that Beijing will be wary of the possibility that ongoing protests could damage Hong Kong’s business sector – especially at a time of growing pressure on China’s economy.

Hong Kong is allowed economic freedoms that are restricted to the rest of the country, which, tied with an unbiased court system left over from the UK colonial period, have led to many large Western businesses basing their lucrative China operations out of the city.

There is no end in sight to the trade war between the US and China after negotiations collapsed in early May and new tariffs were imposed by both sides on hundreds of billions of dollars of exports.

The Chinese government maintains it is not afraid of a trade war but there are already signs that the economy is continuing to slow.

As more US businesses begin to look at investments outside of China, Hong Kong’s role as the country’s most economically liberal city is more important than ever.

Read more analysis here.

With the hugely controversial China extradition bill suspended indefinitely on Saturday, many wondered if last week’s demonstrations had achieved their purpose.

But for protesters and organizers alike, the battle was far from over.

Here are some of the reasons why the streets of Hong Kong are packed once again today:

In over five years of covering protest marches in Hong Kong, I have never seen one take over as much of the city as today’s has.

The crowd in Wan Chai has spread across over four blocks, moving like a huge black mass towards Admiralty, chanting “withdraw” and “resign” as they go.

Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam has said the extradition bill was her policy and driven by her administration, rather than Beijing.

The pressure for her to go after this will be immense.

There’s no official word on size yet, but early indications suggest crowd numbers are in the tens of thousands, possibly even larger.

The city’s downtown areas, including Central, Admiralty, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay are all packed with demonstrators. Many streets along the protest route have come to a complete standstill as crowd numbers continue to surge.

The city’s subway system has also been impacted, with trains forced to avoid calling at overcrowded stations.

Kevin Yam, from Hong Kong’s Progressive Lawyer Group, told CNN the protest size could yet be even larger than last Sunday’s record breaking gathering – when protest organizers estimated more than a million people took to the streets.

“If the cops have opened up many more roads than last week and all the protesters are still stuck and the train stations are still overfilled that’s a real sign,” he said.

As the demonstration continues in the blazing Hong Kong summer heat, protesters have set up makeshift first aid stations.

Providing food and water, and using homemade signposts, these small volunteer stations have been a reoccurring feature at Hong Kong protests for years.

At Wednesday’s demonstration, groups of volunteers organized provisions of plastic masks and eye guards to protect from tear gas, while others handed out water bottles.

On Sunday, first aid station volunteers were back at it again, handing out free water and sunscreen.

The atmosphere at the protest has so far been relaxed, with little sign of the violence that marred Wednesday’s demonstrations.

But there is still clear anger towards the city’s police force.

On seeing police vans travel over the crowd on a bridge in Admiralty, the crowd breaks out in a loud chorus of boos.

The city was brought to a standstill Wednesday, when tens of thousands of mostly young protesters blocked the route leading to the Legislative Council buildings, where lawmakers were due to debate the extradition bill.

As many as 5,000 riot police were deployed to break up the crowd, leading to violent clashes and allegations of police brutality.

Videos from Wednesday’s protest showed police spraying tear gas directly into protester’s faces and beating them with batons.

Many of today’s protesters are holding signs condemning police action. Protest organizers meanwhile have called on authorities to drop charges against the 11 people arrested during protests Wednesday.

Hong Kong has a long and storied history of political protest, beginning in its days as a British Colony, and continuing past its handover to Beijing in 1997 writes Antony Dapiran.

Hong Kong residents are not able fully to elect their own government and the city’s leader, Chief Executive Carrie Lam, is granted a mandate not from the general populace but from the 1,200 business leaders, professionals and other elites who form the “election committee” that elected her.

Yet, Hong Kong residents do enjoy freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of assembly.

From the Leftist riots of the 1960s to an uprising that fought a “brainwashing” National Education system, some of the biggest protest movements in Hong Kong’s recent history share a common theme: The desire to safeguard the city’s unique identity.

The issues that threaten that identity – whether by curtailing the precious rights and freedoms the city enjoys, or chipping away at its cultural heritage – provoke the most visceral reactions from residents.

You can read more about Hong Kong’s history of protest here

Many young families are among the crowds coming out to protest against the extradition law.

Hong Kong resident Connie Cheung said it had been important for her 9-year-old son Joshua to come out today.

“We need to fight for Hong Kong,” she said.

Connie said that Sunday’s march was her family’s third protest in eight days, after having come out on both Sunday and Wednesday to call for the bill to be withdrawn.

“We’re helping Hong Kong win this battle because China is making us go to jail,” Joshua said.

Sunday’s march began in the early afternoon, but as the sun begins to set protest numbers continue to swell, as hundreds pour out of packed train stations to join the march.

Such is the size of today’s march that that entire streets have been brought to a standstill, with some demonstrators even taking to sitting down due to the gridlock.

Many had expected only a small number of people to attend today’s march following yesterday’s decision by the government to suspend the controversial extradition bill.

Outside the Legislative Council building in Admiralty, protesters are chanting for Chief Executive Carrie Lam to step down.

Hong Kong protesters showed no signs of fatigue on Sunday despite this being the third time in just over a week that many have hit the streets.

Protest organizers estimated that one million people came out last Sunday to demonstrate against the extradition treaty, about one in seven of the city’s population.

When the government didn’t back down, tens of thousands of mostly young people came out again on Wednesday, surrounding the city’s government headquarters and forcing legislators to postpone a debate on the bill.

Resulting clashes saw as many as 5,000 riot police fire 150 rounds of tear gas, rubber bullets and bean bag rounds in an attempt to disperse protesters.

Organizers of Sunday’s protest are now calling on authorities to drop charges against the 11 people arrested during Wednesday’s demonstration, amid widespread criticism of police tactics.

Protesters in Hong Kong have spent days demonstrating against a proposed extradition law. Though it was suspended Saturday, many fear that could be reintroduced at a later date and are calling for it to be shelved completely.

Here’s what you need to know about the bill:

Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Hong Kong as campaigners look to keep the pressure on the government, despite a move by the city’s embattled leader to suspend a controversial extradition bill.

On Saturday, Chief Executive Carrie Lam, the top official in Hong Kong, said passage of the bill would be suspended and a second reading due to take place this month canceled.

The announcement though has failed to quell public anger.

In a clear sign of continued dissatisfaction thousands have joined today’s march to demand the bill be shelved completely and for the city’s leader to step down.

Large numbers of protesters began to gather in the city’s Victoria Park just after midday Sunday, donning black and wearing white ribbons on their chests.

Many carried bunches of white flowers to honor a man who died after falling from a building on Saturday while holding banners opposing the extradition bill.

“We buy the white flower to hope that he can rest in peace,” said 23-year-old Michael, who works in concessions and only gave his first name. Like many others around him, he carried a sign saying “Freedom is Not Free.”