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Government response to violent protests
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     In response to the protests in Kwai Tsing, Tsuen Wan and other districts yesterday (August 25), a Government spokesman said the following:

     In the procession and assembly in Kwai Tsing and Tsuen Wan yesterday, despite that a Letter of No Objection had been issued following discussion between the Police and the organiser, some protesters deviated from the original route during the procession, blocked roads, confronted the police, wantonly attacked police officers with things like bricks and iron rods, and hurled petrol bombs at police vehicles and officers many times, seriously breaching the public peace and posing a grave threat to the safety of police officers on duty as well as the members of the public at the scene.  Some protesters removed a national flag at Kwai Chung Sports Ground, the assembly venue, and trampled on it. The act challenges the national authority and allegedly violates the National Flag and National Emblem Ordinance. At night, some radical protesters vandalised with violence a number of shops in Tsuen Wan. The police officers attending the scene were attacked by a number of violent protesters at one point and, with the officers' lives under threat, an officer fired a warning shot into the air. The radical protesters' violent acts later also spread to various areas including Sham Shui Po, Tsim Sha Tsui and the Kowloon entrances of the Cross-Harbour Tunnel.

     The escalating illegal and violent acts of radical protesters are not only outrageous, they also push Hong Kong to the verge of a very dangerous situation. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government severely condemns these acts and the Police will strictly follow up on them. The HKSAR Government appeals to members of the public to combat violence and uphold the rule of law together so that order can be restored in society as soon as possible.
 
Ends/Monday, August 26, 2019
Issued at HKT 1:28
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