Hong Kong Legislature Shuts Down Amid Demonstrations

Protests against an extradition bill reading in Hong Kong have intensified since starting on Wednesday, 12 June, leaving at least two people seriously injured in central city clashes between protesters and the police.

The protests started when Chinese lawmakers were set to discuss a controversial piece of legislation that could potentially allow the government to extradite dissidents in Hong Kong back into China.

While Hong Kong is technically a Chinese territory, for all intents and purposes it is allowed to operate as an independent country.

Protestors – mostly young or college-aged, and seen wearing helmets and goggles – have been demonstrating outside of the Legislative Council buildings since Tuesday night, 11 June.

The following morning tens of thousands more arrived in the area, blocking off access to the area and bringing traffic to a standstill.

Over 5000 police in riot gear were deployed to guard the building, at which point they fired off tear gas then used pepper spray and rubber bullets to disperse the growing crowd. At least 79 people were injured in the ensuing violence; two were seriously injured and required hospitalisation.

The scenes are uncannily similar to the Umbrella Movement democratic demonstrations that rocked Hong Kong in 2014.