Hong Kong police fire pepper ball rounds at protesters in the city's commercial district ahead of a debate over a law that bans insulting China's national anthem
Hong Kong riot police issue a warning as they plan to clear away people gathered in the Central district of downtown Hong Kong on May 27, 2020, as the city's legislature debates over a law that bans insulting China's national anthem.
A few hundred protesters chanted slogans during a lunchtime rally in the city's Central district but dispersed when officers fired multiple rounds of irritant-filled pellets, AFP reporters on the scene said.Protest calls went out Tuesday night, urging people to surround the legislature buildings and block roads in an attempt to derail the proceedings, but they didn't materialize.
The bill makes it illegal to insult or abuse the “March of the Volunteers.” Those found guilty could face up to three years in prison and a maximum fine of HK$50,000 . Anti-China sentiment has been on the rise in Hong Kong since 2014 protests, known as the Umbrella Revolution, that stemmed from the Chinese government’s decision to allow direct election of the city leader only after it screened candidates.The move by Beijing was seen as curtailing democracy in Hong Kong, a former British colony that was handed back to China in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” framework that promises the city freedoms not found on the mainland.
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