Tag: Hong Kong

‘It’s humanitarian’: the medics helping Hong Kong’s protesters

by Yan ZHAO HONG KONG, China (AFP) — In the early days of Hong Kong’s protests, Jonathan put out a call on a messaging app seeking fellow medics to aid demonstrators — within a day, 4,000 people had volunteered. Nurses, doctors, medical students and ordinary people with first aid training all clamored to join what has become a small volunteer corps helping treat people on the frontlines of protests that have engulfed the city for […]

China tells US diplomats in Hong Kong to stop interfering

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China demanded Thursday that US diplomats based in Hong Kong “stop interfering” in the city’s affairs, after reports that they met with pro-democracy activists, prompting a furious response from Washington. China’s foreign ministry had expressed “strong dissatisfaction” with US authorities, citing local media reports that a US official from Hong Kong’s US consulate general had met with a local “independence group”. In a statement Thursday, the ministry urged the diplomatic office […]

US upgrades Hong Kong travel warning as airport protest planned

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Washington on Thursday warned US citizens to “exercise increased caution” when traveling to Hong Kong, as protesters announced three days of new demonstrations at the city’s airport. The financial hub has been rocked by two months of unrest, initially triggered by opposition to a planned law that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China. The demonstrations have evolved into a wider movement for democratic reform that has seriously disrupted the […]

Hong Kongers harness traffic cones, kitchenware to battle tear gas

by Catherine LAI HONG KONG, China (AFP) — As a tear gas canister clatters onto a street in Hong Kong, a pro-democracy protester wearing heat-proof gloves and carrying a traffic cone sprints from the crowd to put it out. Police have ramped up their use of the crowd control measure as two months of rallies in the global financial hub have turned increasingly violent, peaking with 800 rounds fired on Monday in what protesters called […]

Hong Kong protesters gather for ‘laser show’ rally

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — As Hong Kong buckles under increasingly violent clashes between protesters and police in a deepening political crisis, hundreds gathered at the harbourfront on Wednesday night for a markedly different kind of protest: a laser show. Both police and protesters have used intense beams of light against each other, turning often violent episodes into surreal scenes fit for a disco or science fiction. Demonstrators have aimed lasers towards riot police, irritating […]

China warns Hong Kong protesters of ‘dangerous abyss’

by Eva XIAO BEIJING, China (AFP) — China warned Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters Tuesday that “those who play with fire will perish by it”, a day after the most widespread unrest of the two-month crisis. In its harshest warning yet, Beijing said the immense strength of the central government should not be underestimated, while police in the semi-autonomous city announced they had arrested almost 150 people in connection with Monday’s violence. The global financial center […]

Cancelled flights on Tuesday, Aug. 6

(Eagle News)–Several flights on Tuesday, Aug. 6, were cancelled due to bad weather and because of the protests in Hong Kong. Below is a list based on information from the Manila International Airport Authority: Cancelled due to public protests in Hongkong Cathay Pacific CX 912 MNL-HKG CX 976 MNL-HKG CX 939 HKG-MNL Cancelled due to bad weather at destination Philippine Airlines PR 425/426 MNL-FUKUOKA-MNL PR 418/419 MNL-BUSAN-MNL Cebu Pacific 5J 325/326 MNL-LEGAZPI-MNL CebGo DG 6041/6042 […]

China reiterates support for Hong Kong’s embattled leader

BEIJING, China (AFP) — China’s ruling Communist Party once again underlined its wholesale support for Hong Kong’s embattled leader on Tuesday as she struggles to contain increasingly violent anti-government unrest. The two-month crisis has become the biggest threat to Beijing’s rule of the semi-autonomous southern Chinese city since its handover from the British in 1997. One of the protesters’ key demands is for Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam to stand down. But, a day […]

Clashes, travel chaos in Hong Kong as leader warns city on brink

  by Elaine YU / Yan ZHAO Agence France Presse HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong riot police clashed with pro-democracy protesters for a third straight day Monday as the city’s leader warned the global financial hub was nearing a “very dangerous situation”, and a rare strike caused transport chaos. Clouds of tear gas billowed across the working-class district of Wong Tai Sin on Monday afternoon as the city buckled under rare general strike, […]

Asia markets sink as the Chinese yuan tumbles

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian markets plummeted Monday as the Chinese yuan fell sharply, days after US President Donald Trump’s vow to impose fresh tariffs on goods from China sent trade war fears soaring. Trump’s announcement, which came on Thursday, means virtually all of the $660 billion in annual merchandise trade between the world’s two biggest economies will be subject to punitive tariffs, with the latest duties due to take effect September 1. The […]

Hong Kong protests pushing city to ‘very dangerous situation’: leader

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong’s embattled pro-Beijing leader on Monday accused pro-democracy protesters of trying to “destroy” the city in a dramatic escalation of rhetoric as the financial hub is rocked by two months of rallies and clashes. Two months of protests and clashes with police have pushed the semi-autonomous southern Chinese city to a “very dangerous situation”, chief executive Carrie Lam said, as she struck a defiant tone as strikes and travel […]

Pro-democracy push causes transport chaos in Hong Kong

by Jerome TAYLOR / Elaine YU HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Peak-hour morning train travel and international flights in Hong Kong were thrown into chaos on Monday as pro-democracy protesters launched an attempted city-wide strike to ramp up pressure on the financial hub’s embattled leaders. Activists descended on key subway stations during the morning rush hour, deliberately keeping open doors to stop trains departing, causing long queues and triggering occasional scuffles between angry commuters and […]