Anti-government protests are continuing unstoppable in the Chinese region of Hong Kong. After six months asking for democracy, on November 10th, the demonstrations touched a new, dangerous peak. The events were marked by a serious act by the police, which shot an unarmed student. The shot was captured on video and sent around the world, raising awareness about the dangerous levels of violence that have been reached.
Despite the main blows of violence coming from the police, protesters have been accused of being the first cause of this, and the main perpetrators of pushing Hong Kong to the edge of collapse. Furthermore, the tensions continue with the police firing tear gas at the protesters, who have begun to defend themselves with petrol bombs.
The 11th of November marked the second day of total paralyzation of the city. The protesters called for more democracy from China, which has not given them the independence from the country that they no longer feel citizens of. While asking for their freedom from a China that is trapping them, the number of wounded people in clashes is raising.
In fact, only at the beginning of this week, at least 128 people were injured, according to the reports of The Guardian. The conditions of the 21-year-old student shot in the bust by the police are improving, but at the same time, another serious accident saw a 57-year-old man doused in flammable liquid and set on fire. The political crisis has entered a new phase since the death of a demonstrator on Friday, the first linked to police action.
Moreover, Hong Kong’s leader, Carrie Lam, called the protesters “extremely selfish” for their actions against the city, accusing them of being enemies of the people. In fact, Beijing has authority over Hong Kong as part of the “one country, two systems” plan, established when the former British colony was handed over to Chinese control. Nevertheless, the city doesn’t want compromises.
Furthermore, Carrie Lam, who has ignored the requests of the protesters, is proving to be the first enemy of her own people, who have tried to be heard since June without any response. In the streets of Hong Kong, violence has become the only tool to have the remote possibility of being heard.
