Hundreds of thousands take to streets of Hong Kong

By Sibel Morrow

ANKARA (AA) – Hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong residents took to the streets Sunday in demonstrations two weeks after a victory in local elections buoyed the movement, which has led to months of protests, reported local media on Sunday.

On the eve of the six-month anniversary of the protests, the Hong Kong police gave the Civil Human Rights Front a permit to hold a march, where they chanted slogans like “Fight for Freedom” and “Stand by Hong Kong.”

Protest organizer Eric Lai said the high turnout in the march would show the world and Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, that people are resilient and will continue their fight for freedom and democracy.

Eleven people were arrested before the march, and police said they seized weapons that they feared could be used during the rally.

According to official data, some 6,000 people have been arrested in Hong Kong since June.

The pro-democracy protests against a bill to legalize extradition to mainland China began in June and saw violence between protestors and the police in the city, which has been under the control of China since 1998.

The bill to amend the extradition law was finally withdrawn on Sept. 4, but protesters have moved onto other demands.