Government Clearance                                                                            

Hong Kong’s government began clearing some barriers blocking the city center for the past seven weeks without any physical opposition from pro-democracy protesters who erected them.

Court bailiffs and security staff wearing white gloves moved to enforce an injunction against student-led demonstrators blocking an entrance of Citic Tower in the Admiralty district.

The protesters earlier moved some barriers themselves to reinforce those at the main protest site nearby on roads outside the government’s headquarters, where hundreds of demonstrators remain camped out in tents.

Read more in the Bloomberg News story by Frederik Balfour.

Photographer: Lam Yik Fei, Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

"Unrealistic" Demands                                                                       

Demonstrators stay camped outside the Central Government Offices as the Occupy protest enters its seventh week in Hong Kong on Nov. 10, 2014.

Hong Kong’s government has ruled out talks with pro-democracy protesters, and is preparing to enforce a court ruling to clear the streets, the city’s No. 2 official said.

Student leaders made “unrealistic” demands in the first round of talks last month, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam told reporters today. There’s no need for protest leaders to seek direct talks with Chinese officials in Beijing, she said.

Lam’s comments indicate a firmer stance by the government after a court yesterday upheld injunctions against some protest sites, potentially setting the stage for renewed efforts to forcibly clear the streets. Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters are facing increased pressure to end demonstrations now in their seventh week, amid signs of dissent within their ranks and a poll suggesting waning public support. 

Read more on Lam's comments in the Bloomberg News story.

Photographer: Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

Of Talk and Resolution                                                                

Pro-democracy protesters watch a live televised talk between pro-democracy student leaders and the Hong Kong government outside the Central Government Offices in the Admiralty district in Hong Kong on Oct. 21, 2014.

Student leaders met with Hong Kong government officials in televised talks to air their concerns after blocking roads and clashing with police for almost a month.

The talks failed to yield any breakthrough on ending the occupation. The government said it is considering submitting a report to China relaying the demands and concerns of the protesters. Such a report would provide Beijing with a “reference” on the demonstrators’ opinions, rather than attempt to modify an Aug. 31 ruling by China on Hong Kong’s leadership elections, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam said yesterday at the talks.

Photographer: Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

Night in Mong Kok                                                             

Hong Kong police clashed with about 9,000 protesters in the Mong Kok district overnight after authorities cleared barricades, and student leaders asked the government to hold promised talks by Oct. 22.

Police used batons, shields and pepper spray last night as they sought to reclaim roads filled with a crowd they estimated at 9,000. The made 26 arrests for alleged assault, causing damage, misconduct in public areas, resisting arrest, disrupting police services and possessing weapons, according to a statement on the Hong Kong government’s website. Some of the areas they reclaimed were later retaken by protesters.

Read the Bloomberg News report by Cathy Chan, Jasmine Wang and Frederik Balfour.

Photographer: Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

Newspaper Besieged                                                 

Lam Yik Fei photographed the Oct. 16 issue of Hong Kong newspaper the Apple Daily as it rolled off the presses, featuring a front page report on the alleged police beating of demonstrator and Civic Party member Ken Tsang, the subject of a four-minute news video that is unraveling more than two weeks of efforts to win back the hearts and minds of Hong Kong citizens.

Back at Apple Daily publisher Next Media Ltd., masked men and women have besieged the printing plant of the pro-protest newspaper, delaying delivery of the Apple Daily and other papers printed at the site. The group has been obstructing trucks and trying to inspect the newspapers, said Mark Simon, commercial director for Next Media.

“They basically stand and yell,” Simon said. “They block our trucks from coming out, which delays us getting to the streets.” Simon said that he believed the protests were likely organized by people in mainland China.

Photographer: Lam Yik Fei/Bloomberg

Confrontations at Occupy                                                  

Tensions escalated in Hong Kong yesterday as a mob tried to tear down barricades erected by pro-democracy protesters near the city’s business district, and student leaders vowed to defend front lines under threat of police moves to clear them.

Hong Kong police said yesterday they will remove road blocks in two areas, having reopened seven road sections earlier in the day. Alex Chow, leader of the city’s student federation, said it was redeploying its resources to defend the barricades at the main protest site, some of which were being reinforced with bamboo poles typically used for scaffolding in the city.

Read the Bloomberg News story by Jasmine Ng, Clement Tan and Alfred Liu.

Photographer: Lam Yik Fei, Brent Lewin/Bloomberg