A number of prominent pro-democracy activists including Joshua Wong and three lawmakers were detained by Hong Kong police on Friday, seeking to rein in demonstrations that have plunged the city into its worst political crisis for centuries.
Wong, who five years earlier was one of the leaders of the “Umbrella” pro-democracy movement, is the most prominent activist to be detained as protests escalated in mid-June over concerns that China is exercising higher control over the town and squeezing its liberties.
He was charged on June 21 with incitement and involvement in an unlawful assembly outside police headquarters.
Agnes Chow, another senior member of his group Demosisto, was also detained by police.
Other arrested activists included Athea Suen, a former student union leader at the university, as well as three lawmakers pro-democracy — Cheng Chung-tai, Au Nok-hin, and Jeremy Tam.
According to their political parties, Au and Tam were present at some demonstrations and faced charges including obstructing police officers.
A day before the fifth anniversary of China’s decision to curtail democratic reforms in the former British colony, police also blocked plans for a mass demonstration on Saturday.
In the latest protests, the bespectacled Wong, who was 17 years old when he became the face of the student-led civil disobedience movement in 2014 that blocked major roads for 79 days, was not a prominent figure with no identifiable leaders.
After serving a five-week term for contempt of court, he was released from prison in June.
Wong and Chow have been freed on bail and the case has been postponed until November 8, but they will be subject to travel constraints and a night curfew.
“Under the chilling effects generated by Beijing and Hong Kong governments, we are strongly aware how they arrest activists no matter whether they behave progressively or moderately,” Wong told reporters.
“All we ask for is just to urge Beijing and Hong Kong governments to withdraw the bill, stop police brutality and respond to our calls for a free election.”
On June 21, thousands of protesters blocked police headquarters protesting against a now-suspended extradition bill that would allow people to be sent to China for trial in courts controlled by the Communist Party.
Over three months of disturbances has developed into calls for higher democracy under the formula of “one country, two systems,” by which Hong Kong has been governed since the British rule’s 1997 surrender. The formula ensured liberties on mainland China that were not enjoyed.
Protesters accuse China of interference, claiming to have continuously eroded the liberties and autonomy of Hong Kong.
The accusation is denied by China. It denounced the demonstrations and warned that Hong Kong, a major economic center, was damaging the economy.
It also accused foreign powers of encouraging the protests, especially the United States and Britain, and warned against foreign interference.
Andy Chan, a Hong Kong National Party pro-independence founder banned last September, was detained on Thursday at Hong Kong airport on suspicion of engaging in protests and assaulting police, police said.
In a motion that has constructed momentum without government figureheads, Wong’s pro-democracy group, Demosisto, said the arrests were an effort to scapegoat people.
“The arrests were apparently a political operation,” Demosisto said on its Facebook page. “It will only make the government misjudge the public, leading to a deadly situation that is more difficult to resolve.”
The Civil Human Rights Front, former protest organizer, canceled a mass demonstration scheduled for Saturday after police denied authorization.
On Friday alone, Reporters revealed that Chief Executive Carrie Lam had earlier requested the permission of Beijing for a scheme to relieve tension, proof of the extent to which China controls the reaction of the Hong Kong government to the disturbances.
Since the protests started, nearly 900 individuals have been detained. There have been frequent clashes between demonstrators and police who have frequently used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds in the midst of excessive force allegations.
With demonstrators and officials locked in an impasse and Hong Kong facing its first recession in a century, speculation has risen that the city government can impose emergency laws, giving it additional powers over detentions, censorship and curfews.
From February 2016, public information showed on Friday, Hong Kong’s July retail sales fell the most.
Hong Kong leader Lam, who has become a lightning rod for the rage of demonstrators, said this week that the state would consider using “all laws” to avoid violence.
Hong Kong was a long way from using emergency powers, a senior Chinese parliament official said Friday to journalists.
On Thursday, China introduced new soldiers to Hong Kong in what it said was its garrison’s regular rotation.