Letters | Hong Kong police are the true defenders of a city rocked by protests

Hong Kong protesters have been getting increasingly confrontational since 2010. The police used textbook tactics to disperse the crowd on June 12 and thereafter

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Anti-extradition demonstrators throw projectiles at police officers on Harcourt Road in Admiralty on June 12. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 8:00am, 29 Jun 2019Updated: 8:00am, 29 Jun 2019

The police’s role as the true protector of Hong Kong’s style of democracy has become more difficult, with protesters becoming increasingly violent since 2003.

In 2003, those marching against the legislation of Article 23 were peaceful. In 2005, Korean farmers came to Hong Kong and received worldwide media coverage for the ways in which they attacked the police. Hong Kong protesters learned from the Korean farmers.

Between 2010 and 2012, Hong Kong protesters became more confrontational, using sit-ins and blocking roads, and the police responded by making large-scale arrests.

In 2014, during the “umbrella movement”, protesters became violent almost from the start, storming the Legislative Council. The police use of tear gas was a shock to Hongkongers. The ensuing stalemate caused 79 days of blocked roads and disruption to the general public.

In the case of the Mong Kok riot in 2016, the police initially decided not to use tear gas or other less-than-lethal weapons in the hope that the crowd would quiet down. However, the crowd became emboldened and attacked the police with increased ferocity.