Hong Kong Protesters Resume Chorus of Opposition to Extradition Bill

Tens of thousands of Hong Kong people rallied for a second day on Sunday in an area popular with mainland Chinese shoppers, as deep-seated anger and frustration at the government’s handling of an extradition bill refuses to dissipate.

Demonstrators marched in heat of about 87 degrees in Sha Tin, a town between Hong Kong island and the border with China, as the protests sweep outwards from the heart of the financial center into surrounding neighborhoods.

Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” formula that guarantees its people freedoms for 50 years that are not enjoyed in mainland China, including the liberty to protest and an independent judiciary.

Beijing denies interfering in Hong Kong’s affairs, but many residents worry about what they see as an erosion of those freedoms and a relentless march toward mainland control.

Millions have taken to the streets over the past month in some of the largest and most violent protests in decades over an extradition bill that would allow people to be sent to mainland China for trial in courts controlled by the Communist Party.

Hong Kong’s embattled leader, Carrie Lam, has said the bill is “dead,” but opponents say they will settle for nothing short of its formal withdrawal.

Some protesters at Sunday’s event waved banners appealing to President Donald Trump to “Please liberate Hong Kong” and “Defend our Constitution.”

Some marchers beat drums, while others waved British and American flags, with banners calling for independence for Hong Kong flying from makeshift flagpoles.

The protests have fueled the former British colony’s biggest political crisis since China regained control of Hong Kong, and pose a direct challenge to authorities in Beijing.

Critics see the now-suspended extradition bill as a threat to the rule of law. Protesters are also demanding that Lam step down and want an independent investigation into complaints of police brutality.

On Saturday, a largely peaceful demonstration in a town close to the Chinese border turned violent as protesters hurled umbrellas and hardhats at police, who retaliated by swinging batons and firing pepper spray.

The government condemned violence during Saturday’s protests against so-called “parallel traders” from the mainland who buy goods in bulk in Hong Kong, to carry into China for profit.

It said that during the last 18 months it had arrested 126 mainland visitors suspected of infringing the terms of their stay by engaging in parallel trading, and barred about 5,000 mainland Chinese also suspected of involvement.

Earlier on Sunday, hundreds of journalists joined a silent march to demand better treatment from police at protests.