Hong Kong Democracy Protests: A Journal of the Final Day
Posted: December 10, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Politics | Tags: Admiralty, Audemars Piguet, Causeway Bay, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, DBS Bank, Dickson Concepts, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Federation of Students, Mong Kok, Moral and National Education 1 CommentIsabella Steger reports: Lunchtime strolls, camping gear and folding origami umbrellas in one of Hong Kong’s busiest thoroughfares will soon be a thing of the past.
As Hong Kong police prepare to clear the main occupied protest encampment in Admiralty on Thursday morning, thousands turned out to witness the final hours of the site, which pro-democracy protesters have occupied since Sept. 28.
On Wednesday afternoon, a larger than usual crowd of office workers spent their lunch break at the Admiralty site, eating, taking photographs and talking politics.
“They have built up a good micro-community here. This is a place where people who support the democracy cause but who don’t necessarily align themselves with any political party can come together.”
— Jeff Cheung, 27, who works in nearby Central district
“They have built up a good micro-community here,” said Jeff Cheung, 27, who works in nearby Central district. “This is a place where people who support the democracy cause but who don’t necessarily align themselves with any political party can come together,” he added, eating a homemade salad with two friends in the so-called study area of the encampment, where volunteers built rows of desks for students to use.
Leaders of the two main student protest groups—The Hong Kong Federation of Students and Scholarism— urged protesters to turn out Wednesday night for a last hurrah and to stay overnight if they could.
Joshua Wong, the 18-year-old leader of Scholarism, said he wouldn’t be at the front line during Thursday’s clearance operation because he needs to avoid being arrested again before his Jan. 14 court appearance. Mr. Wong was arrested in November during the clearance of the Mong Kok site. Read the rest of this entry »
Hong Kong Students Surround Government Offices
Posted: November 30, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global, Politics | Tags: Chief Executive of Hong Kong, China, CY Leung, Government of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Police Force, Mong Kok, Mong Kok District, Pan-democracy camp, Pepper spray, Protest, Special administrative region 2 Comments
Police Use Pepper Spray, Batons to Stop Protesters’ Advance
HONG KONG—Isabella Steger, Biman Mukherji and Phred Dvorak reporting: Police deployed pepper spray and used batons to push back thousands of protesters trying to block government offices, the latest escalation of the pro-democracy movement that entered its third month with no signs of resolution.
“We will continue our fight for democracy. We will keep up the pressure on the government.”
— Oscar Lai, a spokesman for Scholarism
The Hong Kong Federation of Students and Scholarism, the two groups leading the demonstrations, called on crowds assembled at a protest site to surround the central government offices and the office of the chief executive, the city’s top official, aiming to block government workers from entering Monday morning. Early Monday, police beat back the crowds and cleared the road outside the chief executive’s office. At least 40 people were arrested, police said.
The HKFS stressed that protesters should stay peaceful and not use force. The student groups asked protesters to bring umbrellas, goggles, masks, food supplies and helmets to Sunday’s assembly, to protect themselves in case police responded with pepper spray or tear gas.
After the call to surround the government offices, protesters filled the roads around the complex where the buildings and Hong Kong legislature are located, skirmishing in some areas with police who used pepper spray and batons to stop their advance. Read the rest of this entry »
Clashes in Mong Kok: Protesters Arrested
Posted: November 6, 2014 Filed under: China, Global, Politics | Tags: Hong Kong, Hong Kong Federation of Students, Kowloon, Mong Kok, Pro-Democracy Leave a comment
HONG KONG — Yvonne Lee reports: Hong Kong police have arrested three men following clashes early Thursday in Mong Kok, a pro-democracy protest zone in the Kowloon part of the city.
“The pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong are in their sixth week, but there is little sign of resolution. Sunday, protesters are planning to march west from the business district on Hong Kong Island to the Chinese government’s Liaison Office.”
Local television stations showed police using pepper spray on dozens of protesters in the working-class neighborhood. The confrontation was allegedly caused by a man using a camera flash to provoke a police officer, the news channels said.
“Members of the Hong Kong Federation of Students have threatened to bring their protest to Beijing during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, as a way to gain publicity for their demand that China allow free elections in Hong Kong.”
A Hong Kong police spokesperson confirmed that three men—aged between 24 and 50—were arrested. One was arrested for suspicion of criminal damage, while the other two were arrested for obstructing police officers executing their duty. Read the rest of this entry »
[PHOTO] Van Veluwen: Hong Kong protesters from Balcony
Posted: November 2, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Asia, China, Global | Tags: Beijing, Hong Kong, Mong Kok, Photography, Prince Edward, Pro-Democracy, Van Veluwen Leave a commentCool photoblog to explore: This item from 10/4/14
Large swarm of protesters following police in Prince Edward, this was taken from my balcony. They escorted what was apparently an anti-protester out of the area before heading off down a back alley away from the group of protesters. Things are starting to get really heavy tonight and warnings are coming from those who say that Bejing will make a move tonight. It’s eerie hearing the shouts from the protest this close to home…(more)
Hong Kong Readies for Protester Vote
Posted: October 25, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global | Tags: Beijing, CY Leung, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Chief Executive, John Tsang, Mong Kok, Mong Kok District, Protest 2 CommentsCity Calm Ahead of a Vote Organized by Pro-Democracy Protest Leaders
Crowds grew Saturday at the downtown protest site, as they have during other weekends, though there were no reports of clashes between demonstrators and police as on other recent evenings.
The student-led protesters want anyone to be able to stand for Hong Kong’s first ever public ballot for chief executive in 2017. China’s government in August ruled a selection committee largely loyal to Beijing will select those who can stand, sparking the protests.

People listened to talks between student leaders and senior government officials as they were broadcast live at a protest site in the Mong Kok district of Hong Kong, PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
Some local citizens—who have taken to wearing blue ribbons—are angry that students have shut down parts of the city over the issue. On Saturday night there were reports that some blue ribbon demonstrators had attacked journalists covering their counter protests in Kowloon.
“I agree with the students’ goal. Who doesn’t want a democratic society?”
Radio Television Hong Kong and Television Broadcasts Ltd. issued statements complaining their journalists had been pushed and kicked by blue ribbon protesters. Police haven’t made any arrests.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying reiterated Saturday he won’t resign, saying the protesters’ demands aren’t in accordance with the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution. Read the rest of this entry »
Hong Kong has too many poor people to allow direct elections, leader says
Posted: October 20, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global, Law & Justice, Mediasphere, Politics | Tags: Election, Hong Kong, Mong Kok, Pro-Democracy, protests, Umbrella Revolution, Universal suffrage 1 CommentWould You Like Pepper With That? Hong Kong Protesters Return to Mong Kok District
Posted: October 17, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global | Tags: Hong Kong, Hong Kong Federation of Students, Mong Kok, Occupy Central, Paula Bronstein, Protest 1 CommentHONG KONG—Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators swarmed back to a protest site Friday night that police had cleared earlier in the day, clashing with officers yet again on the streets of a city struggling to find a way out of a deepening political crisis.
“Apparently their action has triggered more people to occupy Mong Kok again. It’s totally congested with protesters who are forced by police to block the sidewalks and we couldn’t move at all.”
— Lisa Wan
Crowds swelled in the city’s Mong Kok district, one of Hong Kong’s three main protest sites, chanting “open the way” as police in riot gear linked hands to block people from crossing into the area’s main streets. People who were being held back by officers spilled onto side streets and onto already-packed sidewalks, as crowds shouted and jeered.
[Follow Pundit Planet’s EXCLUSIVE coverage of the Hong Kong Protests]
Police used pepper spray on several protesters and detained a number of people, including acclaimed international photojournalist Paula Bronstein. A representative for Getty Images said Ms. Bronstein was on assignment for Getty to shoot the protests in Hong Kong and was awaiting more information.

Hours earlier, before dawn Friday, protesters voluntarily left the Mong Kok encampment after hundreds of officers descended on the site and ordered the crowds to pack up and leave. Police were able to reopen traffic on one of the major thoroughfares in the area for the first time in days. But later in the morning, protesters started to rebuild their camp, again closing one lane of traffic. Tents re-emerged and trolleys of water and food were carted in as police lined the block and watched.
By Friday evening, thousands of protesters were again trying to fully close the entire street as police struggled to keep them at bay. Traffic was snarled throughout the area, and police tried to move demonstrators out of the way of city buses that had been caught up in the standoff. Read the rest of this entry »
Hong Kong Protests: The Power of Ridicule
Posted: October 15, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global | Tags: Beijing, Chief Executive of Hong Kong, China, CY Leung, Hong Kong, Leung Chun, Mong Kok, Occupy Central, Pro-Beijing camp 1 CommentFor Hong Kong Protesters, Ridicule Proves an Effective Formula
On the streets of Hong Kong, protesting students have found a novel way to assail their opponents. They sing “Happy Birthday.” As the WSJ’s Andrew Browne writes in this week’s China’s World column:
Lusty choruses of the song—in English—rang out in the working-class neighborhood of Mong Kok last week when thugs descended to try to break up the sit-in demonstrations there. The crowds would engulf a hostile interloper and strike up the melody.
It was musical mockery; the equivalent of the medieval pillory designed to publicly embarrass and humiliate. Read the rest of this entry »
[PHOTO] Kin Cheung: Walking through Tunnels on Barricaded Road in Hong Kong
Posted: October 12, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Mediasphere | Tags: Beijing, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Federation of Students, Hong Kong government, Mong Kok, Occupy Central, Pan-democracy camp, Photography, Pro-Democracy, Twitter, Universal suffrage 1 CommentWalking thru tunnels on barricaded road Hong Kong, great shot of it by Kin Cheung in @in_focus http://t.co/2S8IUNEgpl pic.twitter.com/DHHEw4SvMo
— Alex Ogle (@Alex_Ogle) October 11, 2014
6 Questions You Might Have About Hong Kong’s Umbrella Revolution
Posted: October 6, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global, Mediasphere | Tags: Demonstration (people), Hong Kong, James Nachtwey, Mong Kok, Mongkok, Pan-democracy camp, Photography, Wong brothers 2 Comments
Democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong. Students and pro-democracy citizens being attacked and shouted at by anti-demonstration group in Mongkok. Pro-police rally. Joshua Wong, 17-year-old protest leader.
by James Nachtwey
Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Protesters Split After Call to Retreat
Posted: October 5, 2014 Filed under: Asia, China, Global, Mediasphere | Tags: Beijing, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Federation of Students, Hong Kong government, Mong Kok, Occupy Central, Pan-democracy camp, Protest, Sunday 3 CommentsAmid Few Leader Directives a Mood of Resignation
HONG KONG—An absence of clear directives from organizers threw pro-democracy protests into confusion as some demonstrators called a retreat from two stronghold protest areas on Sunday evening.
“We are not afraid of the government and we are not afraid of the police. We just don’t want to see any more violent acts against residents.”
Many protesters ignored the call to decamp to the city’s main protest site near government offices, which came as the clock ticked closer to a government ultimatum to clear the streets.
But the division in the ranks appeared to drain strength from the crowds.
“They don’t represent me. It’s my own decision to come here to demonstrate and I’ll stay until the government answers our calls.”
— A 22-year-old university graduate, who identified himself only as Tin
In Mong Kok, a working-class neighborhood, police appeared to control the barricades leading to a crucial intersection where protesters had set up camp and where some of them seemed ready to make a last stand. One speaker said, “Tonight we’re outnumbered. We’re going to lose.”
“Frankly, I haven’t been able to sleep well… I’m worried that we will be on the verge of more serious incidents if this continues.”
— Hong Kong Financial Secretary John Tsang
Protesters holding microphones and speaking to crowds and television reporters in Mong Kok and in the shopping district of Causeway Bay tried to get crowds to leave and join protests at the Admiralty government offices, the epicenter in the 10-day wave of protests. Read the rest of this entry »
FONG FLASHBACK: ‘Prettier, Tastier Jell-O’: Fragrant, Foral Osmanthus Jelly
Posted: September 2, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Asia, China, Food & Drink | Tags: Asia, Cheung Chau, China, Different Company, Flower, Hong Kong, Mong Kok, Osmanthus, Osmanthus fragrans, Perfume Leave a commentOne of the many things I love about being in HK is the discovery of novel flavors. Like osmanthus! Its fragrant, sweet-smelling flowers (native to east Asia) are often dried and gently folded into florally nuanced desserts like osmanthus jelly, which also often contains wolfberries (goji berries – so it must be healthy!) and usually serves as a finishing touch after a belly-swelling dim sum session. Think of it as a refined, prettier, tastier Jell-O…(read more)
NASA Photograph of Distant Planet? Lab Photo of Microorganism? Or Chinese Dessert?
Posted: August 29, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Asia, Food & Drink, Space & Aviation | Tags: Asia, China, Deb Fong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Fong, Mong Kok, Photography, The Fong Report, Yau Tsim Mong District Leave a commentSee more here…
[THE FONG REPORT: pundit from another planet]
Pundit Planet’s News Processing Plant
Posted: August 24, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Asia, China, Food & Drink, Mediasphere | Tags: Butcher, Deb Fong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Fong, Kowloon West, Meat, Mong Kok, Mong Kok District, Mong Kok Wet Market, Photography, Yau Tsim Mong District 1 CommentJust kidding. This isn’t really our News division (though it does accurately depict our editorial style) it’s actually a photograph of butchers in a Mong Kok wet market by our Hong Kong Deputy Bureau Chief and Asia Photo Editor-at-Large Deb Fong.
From Wikipedia’s description of Mong Kok:
Mong Kok (also spelled Mongkok), is an area in the Yau Tsim Mong District in Kowloon West,Hong Kong. Mong Kok was part of the Mong Kok District before the district was merged in 1994. The Prince Edward area occupies the northern part of Mong Kok.
The district is characterized by a mixture of old and new multi-story buildings, with shops andrestaurants at street level and commercial or residential units above. Major industries in Mong Kok are retail, restaurants (including fast food) and entertainment.
With its extremely high population density of 130,000/km2 or 340,000 per square mile, Mong Kok was described as the busiest district in the world by the Guinness World Records…(more)
[The Visual Feast of Hong Kong: Through the Lens of Hong Kong Fong]
[also stop by and visit Deb at Hong Kong Fong]
© 2014 deb fong photography
Related articles
- The More Humble Side of Hong Kong: Sketches of Mong Kok (hongkongfong.com)
- The More Humble Side of Hong Kong: Sketches of Mong Kok (punditfromanotherplanet.com)
- The Visual Feast of Hong Kong: Through the Lens of Hong Kong Fong, Part 2 (punditfromanotherplanet.com)
The Visual Feast of Hong Kong: Through the Lens of Hong Kong Fong, Part 2
Posted: August 10, 2014 Filed under: Art & Culture, Asia, China | Tags: Asia, Beach, Bun Festival, Cheung Chau, China, Chinese New Year, Hong Kong, Hong Kong Fong, hongkongfong, Mong Kok, Pak Tai, Photography, Piu Sik, Stanley, travel 5 CommentsGreetings from Hong Kong Fong! Continuing in my new role of China Deputy Bureau Chief and Hong Kong Photo Editor for Pundit From Another Planet, and following my inaugural PFAP post, The Visual Feast of Hong Kong: Through the Lens of Hong Kong Fong, Part 1, I now share with you Part 2.

Reflecting on Hong Kong and Chinese New Year celebrations

Quiet deliberation before the boisterous Chinese New Year parade

Winged dancers perform for thousands at the Chinese New Year parade

An unguarded moment amidst adoring fans, after a traditional Chinese opera performance at the temporary West Kowloon Bamboo Theatre

The ICC skyscraper (replete with its own CNY-specific light facade), punctuating the skyline near the West Kowloon Bamboo Promenade

The Piu Sik (Floating Colours) Parade, during which children appear to ‘float’ through the narrow streets of Cheung Chau Island

Burning incense at Pak Tai Temple on Cheung Chau Island

Massive incense sticks perfuming the air outside Pak Tai Temple

Mother-and-daughter tableau at the Cheung Chau Bun Festival