Hong Kong protesters mark 5th anniversary of Umbrella Revolution in face of water cannons
- 5 years ago
Protesters in Hong Kong took to the streets in big numbers yet again over the weekend.... to demand greater democracy.
This weekend's demonstrations were especially significant for the protesters as it marked the fifth anniversary of the Umbrella Movement, which first called for democratic reforms in the Chinese-controlled territory.
For more on this and other news around the world, let's turn to our Kim Da-mi.
Da-mi, tell us more about these latest protests. Reports say they turned violent again.
Yes, they did. And we'll talk about that in just a moment.
But let's start with umbrellas, which once acted as shields against Hong Kong police five years ago, they were back in force over the weekend.
The 2014 Umbrella Movement was the city's first ever homegrown pro-democracy movement, but the 79-day long protest failed to win any concessions from China on the right to free and fair elections.
To mark the Umbrella Movement, some 300-thousand protesters returned to the same location, central Hong Kong,...urging the government to respond to its five demands, including ending police brutality.
But unlike the Umbrella Movement, the demonstrations were not so peaceful.
Calling the rally illegal, Hong Kong police fired tear gas and water cannons against demonstrators who vandalized government buildings and set small fires across districts.
Dozens of people were reportedly arrested.
But Hong Kong protesters were not alone.
Pro-democracy movement activists also rallied in 72 other cities, including Seoul, Sydney and Berlin.
China is now gearing up to celebrate its 70th year of Communist power on Tuesday,...however, demonstrators' cry for greater democracy is expected to amplify with another mass march planned in Hong Kong on Beijing's special day.
This weekend's demonstrations were especially significant for the protesters as it marked the fifth anniversary of the Umbrella Movement, which first called for democratic reforms in the Chinese-controlled territory.
For more on this and other news around the world, let's turn to our Kim Da-mi.
Da-mi, tell us more about these latest protests. Reports say they turned violent again.
Yes, they did. And we'll talk about that in just a moment.
But let's start with umbrellas, which once acted as shields against Hong Kong police five years ago, they were back in force over the weekend.
The 2014 Umbrella Movement was the city's first ever homegrown pro-democracy movement, but the 79-day long protest failed to win any concessions from China on the right to free and fair elections.
To mark the Umbrella Movement, some 300-thousand protesters returned to the same location, central Hong Kong,...urging the government to respond to its five demands, including ending police brutality.
But unlike the Umbrella Movement, the demonstrations were not so peaceful.
Calling the rally illegal, Hong Kong police fired tear gas and water cannons against demonstrators who vandalized government buildings and set small fires across districts.
Dozens of people were reportedly arrested.
But Hong Kong protesters were not alone.
Pro-democracy movement activists also rallied in 72 other cities, including Seoul, Sydney and Berlin.
China is now gearing up to celebrate its 70th year of Communist power on Tuesday,...however, demonstrators' cry for greater democracy is expected to amplify with another mass march planned in Hong Kong on Beijing's special day.