- Title: Over 100,000 Hong Kongers brave rain to join anti-government rally
- Date: 18th August 2019
- Summary: HONG KONG, CHINA (AUGUST 18, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PEOPLE GATHERING IN VICTORIA PARK PEOPLE WALKING INTO VICTORIA PARK VARIOUS OF MASS GATHERING AT VICTORIA PARK PEOPLE STANDING WITH YELLOW UMBRELLA (SOUNDBITE) (English) VICE CONVENER OF CIVIL HUMAN RIGHTS FRONT, WONG YIK MO, SAYING: "Well, you know, this movement has been going on for weeks, for 11 weeks and yet, our demands has still not been heard by the government. Today, our theme is to stop the collusion of the police and gangs, organized crimes that will destroy Hong Kong." PEOPLE HOLDING UMBRELLAS AND SITTING IN VICTORIA PARK PEOPLE HOLDING SIGNS READING (English and Chinese): "Hold on to five demands to the end" (SOUNDBITE) (English) VICE CONVENER OF CIVIL HUMAN RIGHTS FRONT, WONG YIK MO, SAYING: "I do not know what is enough. All I know is they start to react because they (China) see the severity in Hong Kong that, even Beijing threatens to send armies so I think I will urge Beijing to really rethink before they take next action." PEOPLE DRAWING UP THEIR UMBRELLAS VARIOUS OF PEOPLE STANDING IN HEAVY RAIN PEOPLE WALKING PEOPLE WALKING AND HOLDING PLACARDS (SOUNDBITE) (English) 41-YEAR-OLD HONG KONG PROTESTER, APRIL NG, SAYING: "You see government use violence and the thing is getting worse. But, I think you can see this is peaceful and when have the stand point we should express ourselves. It is our responsibility." (SOUNDBITE) (English) 39-YEAR-OLD HONG KONG PROTESTER, JOHNNY CHEUNG, SAYING: "Well, if you compare about what the police brought to us and what we brought to them is, you can't compare. How can you compare this kind of eggs to tear gas? That's totally unbalanced so, I support them (the protesters)." PEOPLE WALKING CHILDREN AND THEIR GUARDIANS SITTING WITH PROTEST SIGNS PROTEST SIGNS ON FLOOR VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WALKING WITH PLACARDS
- Embargoed: 1st September 2019 10:34
- Keywords: law China mass Victoria Park gathering extradition bill protesters Hong Kong protest
- Location: HONG KONG, CHINA
- City: HONG KONG, CHINA
- Country: Hong Kong
- Topics: Fundamental Rights/Civil Liberties,Government/Politics,Editors' Choice
- Reuters ID: LVA001ASQTPHJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:At least 100,000 anti-government protesters joined a mass rally in Hong Kong on Sunday (August 18), filling major thoroughfares in heavy rain in the eleventh week of what have been often violent demonstrations in the Asian financial hub.
The turnout for the rally could show whether the movement still has broad-based support after the ugly scenes witnessed during the past week when protesters occupied the city's airport, for which some activists apologized.
Anger over a now-suspended bill that would allow criminal suspects in Hong Kong to be extradited to mainland China erupted in June, but the rising unrest is fuelled by broader worries about the erosion of freedoms guaranteed under the "one country, two systems" formula put in place after Hong Kong's return from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
Demonstrators are seeking complete withdrawal of the extradition bill, a halt to descriptions of the protests as 'rioting', a waiver of charges against those arrested, an independent inquiry and resumption of political reform. They have also called for the resignation Hong Kong's Beijing-backed leader, Carrie Lam.
(Production: Ebrahim Harris, Joyce Zhou, James Redmayne, Stefica Bikes, Juarawee Kittisilpa) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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