Police ‘sandwiched in political storm’ during Hong Kong’s violent extradition bill protest defend operation while former officers brand tactics ‘feeble and a failure’
- Commissioner of Police Stephen Lo says officers adopted restrained and tolerant attitude that allowed protesters to express their opinions
- But critics say force failed to learn lessons from previous disturbances and had no courage to use weapons or take swift action
In deciding their strategy on Wednesday, the police’s priority was to secure Hong Kong’s legislature and government buildings first rather than remove protesters violently demonstrating against a controversial extradition bill, a senior inside source told the South China Morning Post.
“Political problems must be solved by a political means. If we’d dispersed the protesters today, they will come back tomorrow and the day after, if the fundamental problem is not solved,” the source said. The bill would allow the transfer of fugitives from Hong Kong to places it does not have a current arrangement with, including mainland China.
“Our core duty is to defend the legislature and the government headquarters to make sure the administration functions. We only fight back when attacked. But it is not fair for us to be sandwiched in a political storm.”
The operation was questioned by government officials and the force’s own officers, with at least one of them describing the lack of decisiveness in handling the protesters early on – well before their numbers grew – “a total failure”.
But Commissioner of Police Stephen Lo Wai-chung said that the force had adopted a restrained and tolerant attitude all morning, allowing protesters to express their opinions.
