HONG KONG -- Defiant masked protesters rampaged, police fired tear gas, and a teen was wounded by gunfire hours after Hong Kong's leader banned masks at rallies, invoking rarely used emergency powers to quell four months of anti-government demonstrations.
Challenging the ban, which went into effect today, thousands of protesters crammed streets in the central business district and other areas Friday night, shouting "Hong Kong people, resist!" Two activists filed legal challenges on grounds that the ban would instill fear and curtail freedom of assembly, but a court denied their request for an injunction.
Pockets of angry protesters attacked Chinese bank outlets and shops, vandalized subway stations and set street fires across the city, prompting police to respond with tear gas in many areas.
An officer fired a single shot from his gun in self-defense after he was attacked by protesters in the northern Yuen Long district, said police spokeswoman Yolanda Yu. She said a male was wounded, but that police didn't know exactly how he got shot.
A police official, who requested anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the news media, said the wounded boy is 14. A Hospital Authority spokesman said the teen was in serious but not critical condition.
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The teen became the second victim of gunfire since pro-democracy protests began in June and just three days after an 18-year-old protester was shot by a riot police officer at close range.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam said at a news conference Friday that the mask ban, imposed under a colonial-era Emergency Ordinance that was last used over half a century ago, would be "an effective deterrent to radical behavior."
"We must save Hong Kong -- the present Hong Kong and the future Hong Kong," she said. "We must stop the violence. ... We can't just leave the situation to get worse and worse."
She insisted the semiautonomous Chinese territory was not in a state of emergency but wouldn't rule out a further toughening of measures if violence continued.
She dismissed suggestions that she should resign, saying it would be unhelpful at a time when Hong Kong is in "a very critical state of public danger."
Teresa Cheng, the secretary for justice, said the government would send the new face-mask regulation for review by the legislature, which has the power to block it. But the pro-Beijing majority is unlikely to do so.
The ban will apply to public gatherings of more than a few dozen people. But enforcing the ban could prove difficult given their near ubiquity in the movement. Face masks are a common feature among the crowds of protesters, both for security and safety.
Face masks have become a hallmark of protesters in Hong Kong, even at peaceful marches, over fears of retribution at work or of being denied access to schooling, public housing and other government-funded services.
Many are concerned their identities could be revealed to the extensive state-security apparatus that helps keep the Communist Party in power in mainland China, where high-tech surveillance including facial-recognition technology is ubiquitous.
Many protesters also wear gas masks and respirators, as do first-aid responders and journalists, to protect themselves from tear gas that the police deploy to disperse crowds.
Lam's ban applies to all public gatherings, both unauthorized and those approved by police. It makes the wearing of any face coverings, including face paint, punishable by one year in jail. A six-month jail term could be imposed on people who refuse a police officer's order to remove a face covering for identification. Masks will be permitted when wearers can prove they need them for work, health or religious reasons.
'WE ARE NOT AFRAID'
Thousands of masked protesters marched before Lam spoke Friday. The rallies spread to many areas as protesters vowed not to be cowed. Many blocked traffic, smashed up shops and public properties, and set fires at streets and subway exits before the protests ended today.
"Will they arrest 100,000 people on the street?" said a protester who gave his surname as Lui. "The government is trying to intimidate us, but at this moment, I don't think the people will be scared."
A protester who identified himself as Ernest Ho noted that Hong Kong police wear masks "and they don't show their pass and their number."
"So, I will still keep my mask on everywhere," Ho said.
As word of the ban spread Friday during lunchtime, hundreds of people blocked a major road in downtown Hong Kong.
"This ban is ridiculous," said Wilson Lee, a 29-year-old paralegal. "It just shows the government's incompetence and refusal to listen to any of our concerns. They are just making things worse."
Protesters -- some in heels or suits -- left high-rise offices to join the march. Almost all of them wore masks.
Penny, 35, who said he had worked in finance for 10 years, challenged police to use force against workers like him marching in the city center.
"If the police dare to shoot us in Central during midday, come on and do it. Don't be a coward," he said, using only his first name for fear of retribution. "If Carrie Lam wants a police state, that is fine. We are not afraid."
Others expressed fears that Lam's move was only the beginning of what would be an increasingly repressive crackdown on dissent.
"This is only the first step. In the coming weeks and months, [the government] will continue to use more force to push protesters not to voice any opposition," said Justin, 27, a corporate finance worker wearing a respirator, yellow construction helmet and goggles with tailored dress pants and a fitted shirt.
Critics contend that the ban merely conceals a crackdown on the right to protest. Students have regularly worn masks while joining hands before school and during lunchtime. These human chains are often covered by the local news media, and the masks provide anonymity to youngsters worried about repercussions.
"Political reasons should not be presented as something done on behalf of students," Ip Kin-yuen, a pro-democracy lawmaker who represents the education sector said at a news conference Friday.
"This is adding fuel to the fire," Fernando Cheung, a pro-democracy lawmaker, said of the mask ban. "The result is clear. This will mark the beginning of riots in Hong Kong."
Michael Tien, a pro-Beijing lawmaker, said Hong Kong "should be prepared for the worst."
Tien said he urged Lam and authorities in Beijing to offer a concession to the protest movement along with the ban, which he characterized as pushed by the police.
"While giving the police the anti-mask law they wanted, secure from them the acceptance of an [independent investigation] into the force," he said. "Now, it's all stick and no carrot."
Ronny Tong, a member of Hong Kong's executive council and a legal adviser to Lam, said the decision was made because "something had to be done" after the Tuesday shooting.
"There's lots of limitations all around, in terms of the kinds of decisions that the Hong Kong government can make. We just have to cross our fingers and hope that this decision can work," he said. "This is not being done with ill will, it is being done with the best interests of Hong Kong at heart."
EMERGENCY ORDINANCE
Analysts said the use of the Emergency Ordinance set a dangerous precedent. The law, a relic of British rule enacted in 1922 to quell a seamen's strike and last used to crush riots in 1967, gives broad powers to the city's chief executive to implement regulations in an emergency.
"If the anti-mask legislation proves to be ineffective, it could lead the way to more draconian measures such as a curfew and other infringement of civil liberties," said Willy Lam, adjunct professor at the Chinese University and no relation to Carrie Lam.
Eric Cheung, a principal lecturer at the University of Hong Kong Faculty of Law, said the use of the ordinance to enact the law was alarming.
"It sets a very bad and dangerous precedent in bypassing all of the normal legislative processes. It means you can now pass a law without any consultation, without any debate, without any public participation or voting by the Legislative Council," he said.
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said Lam's government should avoid aggravating tensions and that "political dialogue is the only way" out. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, the world's oldest leader, said Carrie Lam should resign and predicted Beijing would send in its military to end the crisis.
Lam bristled at a suggestion that the mask ban nudged Hong Kong closer to authoritarian rule. She insisted she was not acting under orders from Beijing, which she visited this week when Communist Party leaders celebrated 70 years in power on Tuesday.
Yang Guang, a Chinese spokesman for Hong Kong affairs, expressed support late Friday, saying it was time for stern measures to end the conflict.
Protests started over a now-shelved extradition bill, which would have allowed suspects to be sent to mainland China for trial, but the movement has snowballed into an anti-China campaign as anger swelled over what many view as Beijing's interference in Hong Kong's autonomy.
Protesters have widened their demands to include direct elections of the city's leader and police accountability.
More than 2,100 people have been detained so far, including 204 charged with rioting, which carries a penalty of up to a decade in prison.
Information for this article was contributed by John Leicester and Eileen Ng of The Associated Press; by Keith Bradsher, Daniel Victor and Tiffany May of The New York Times; and by Shibani Mahtani, Timothy McLaughlin and Tiffany Liang of The Washington Post.
A Section on 10/05/2019