bc magazine

Your Rights v Police Powers

The increasing suppression of freedom of speech, the blocking of the press by the police to prevent their actions being recorded, scrutinised and exposed when illegal is fast turning Hong Kong into a police state.

There has been nothing public from the ineffectual buffoons in Legco to instruct the police to act in this manner. So one can only assume the harassment is on the instructions of Cy Leung and his Beijing puppet masters.

With this random stop, search, arrest, assault – it’s important that you know your rights and what the police are legally allowed to do. Not that, as we have seen, the police obey the law.

It’s called the Hong Kong Civil Liberties Union Protestors Rights Handbook – but it’s worth reading by anyone as it offers a good simple explanation of your basic legal rights when dealing with the police. Download a pdf copy here

The police have extensive powers, the two most relevant sections of the Police Force Ordinance are Chapter 232, section 54 entitled ‘The Power to stop, detain and search’ and Chapter 232 section 50 entitled ‘Arrest, detention and bail of suspected persons and seizure of suspected property’.

Several tweets have quoted police officers in Mong Kok as saying that if they see the same id card in their random stop and search harassments – then that person will be arrested.

The attraction of Mong Kok is wandering the streets full of wonderful street food and restaurants while trying to decide what’s to eat or buy… if that’s now been deemed illegal then it looks like a slow death for Mong Kok shops by police intimidation of their customers. I love the red bean pancakes and other pastries at the Kee Tsui Cake Shop 奇趣餅家, 135 Fa Yuen Street, but going there to buy them each week I now face the prospect of being arrested.

Or perhaps this is part of the bigger plan by the government, property tycoons and the Urban Renewal Authority to destroy the Mong Kok we love and replace it with more generic shopping malls targeting mainland tourist shoppers.

謝曬皮 Tse Sai Pei The Incapable – The ‘Fakeness’ of the Pan-Dem Camp

謝曬皮 Tse Sai Pei The Incapable political cartoon on the fakeness of the pan-dem camp, stealing the hard effort of the ordinary protesters

https://www.facebook.com/tsesaipei/photos/a.135262153287542.31239.134709906676100/408110466002708/?type=1

Umbrella Movement: Police Destruction of Education – 11 December, 2014

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-11-December/46302237_KWCNMr#!i=3757096969&k=GZP97Mk

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The PTU hack down the Umbrella Square study area, a place built with love for the futures of Hong Kong students.
Click on the photos to see more images

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/UM-Study-Area-Clearance/46305965_PrwsHm#!i=3757093955&k=sBjGzt5

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/UM-Study-Area-Clearance/46305965_PrwsHm#!i=3757088501&k=NJbLFfP

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/UM-Study-Area-Clearance/46305965_PrwsHm#!i=3757091414&k=8zzQwpm

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-11-December/46302237_KWCNMr#!i=3757098023&k=vRn2VwJ

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-11-December/46302237_KWCNMr#!i=3757097083&k=cChZx6h

Umbrella Movement – 9 December, 2014

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-9-December/46232250_ZDzLGQ#!i=3750075014&k=XrvtchR

After a very blustery night, the wind has eased, the sun is out and it’s a beautiful morning in Umbrella Square.
Click on any photo to see the full gallery of images

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Editorial – 3 December, 2014

If this is a ‘proper’ (only water, no food or supplements) hunger strike – and that will take some extreme bravery from those involved – then at some stage CY Leung and the HK Government face a massive problem. Do they arrest and force feed the three involved, or do they let them stave to death live on social media and in-front of the world’s press, creating martyrs across Hong Kong and China.

In failing to negotiate, listen and address the real and underlying causes of the protestors – which have nothing to do with the Basic Law, but centre ultimately around the erosion of hope – the government is failing its citizens. Hence the desire to be able to have a say in who’s in charge. If CY Leung and the rest of the government had been doing a good job in recent years in looking after the needs of all Hongkongers, how they’d been chosen/elected would be irrelevant.

Aspiration, hope and hard work have long been the driving force across all strata of Hong Kong. The knowledge that no matter where you were born, hard work would allow you to improve your lot and the only limit to your aspirations was your own ability and effort. Many people’s hopes are focused on simple things like having their own home (rented or bought), being able to offer their children a good education and life… others want to achieve more.

These hopes, aspirations and sheer hard work are the engine room that drive Hong Kong and make it one of the greatest places in the world to live. Sadly the nepotism, greed and incompetence of those regulating Hong Kong’s engine room – politicians and their tycoon cronies is starving it of air and fuel and hope is slowly dying.

Erecting barriers to stifle hope, helps no one – it just destroys the city. CY Leung’s arrogance, incompetence and stupidity have put himself in a lose lose situation – let’s hope that 689’s own ego won’t allow him to go down in history as the man who destroyed Hong Kong.

Miso Zo – The Spirit of the Gadfly

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Miso-Zo/45916996_7t2NVR#!i=3736666929&k=tDFqsWQ

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Miso-Zo/45916996_7t2NVR#!i=3736665314&k=Xds6544

Fresh from a series of large scale paintings about the Umbrella Movement, artist Miso Zo’s latest project is a mixed media installation entitled The Spirit of the Gadfly.
Take a walk down to Umbrella Square to have a look.

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Miso-Zo/45916996_7t2NVR#!i=3736658405&k=2L8sXqw

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Umbrella Movement – Mong Kok Clearance 26 November, 2014

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-MongKok-2611/45963951_w2XXLJ#!i=3722576140&k=L58M6cm

In a rare display of common sense the bailiffs and the police decided not to allow the plaintiffs hired help to clear Nathan Road. The red hatted, I luv HK wearing shirted ‘helpers’ were dressed to inflame and several people previously seen wearing blue ribbons and assaulting protestors were recognised. A violent confrontation was thus avoided. Not that the police were above shoving journalists and whoever was on Nathan Road as they marched down the street – clearing people first and obstacles second, a reverse of yesterday’s Argyle Street clearance. No bailiffs were in evidence, as the police marched aggressively down the road accompanied by the now familiar yellow towers hosting tear-spray armed police.

At the start of clearance student leaders Joshua Wong and Lester Shum were dragged off and arrested by police, although they appeared to be doing nothing more than standing there waiting for the clearance to commence, as was everyone else. The announcement regarding arrests was only made two-thirds of the way down Nathan Road, so the arrest of the leaders looks like a targeted move.

The red caps didnt like having their photo taken – turning away to hide their faces. It’s rumoured the 200 clearance helpers were paid $1000 each.

Click on any of the photos to access the full gallery of today, apologies that the duplicates are not edited out – a little too much going on.

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-MongKok-2611/45963951_w2XXLJ#!i=3722643095&k=mCLV2bg

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http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-MongKok-2611/45963951_w2XXLJ#!i=3722620173&k=gZxm9dz

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-MongKok-2611/45963951_w2XXLJ#!i=3722625905&k=Bx9Nk35

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http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-MongKok-2611/45963951_w2XXLJ#!i=3722612621&k=vqDHFfX

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-MongKok-2611/45963951_w2XXLJ#!i=3722584501&k=XTbmQ5M

Umbrella Movement – Argyle Street Clearance – 25 November, 2014

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Mongkok-2511/45944108_fjsGQm#!i=3720331606&k=hfbz3Kq

The bailiff’s moved to enforce the court injunction on Argyle Street in Mongkok today 25 November, 2104. The first part of the day, the removal of the barricades and obstructions passed smoothly if slowly and disorderly. The massed ranks of the media and onlookers perhaps proving more of a hindrance than the small number of protestors. It took several hours for the obstructions to be removed as the bailiff’s took a few bits away, stopped conferred took a few more. As the mainly rubbish and junk was removed the police line slowly advance into the short occupied section of Argyle Street where a stand-off as to what would happen next ensued.

There were lots – 4 on top of the MTR entrance with me and at least 4 more they spoke and shared information with on the road – of plainclothes mainland police or intelligence (identified by listening to their conversations) videoing and looking to identify anyone who looked like a protestor / spoke to protestor / appeared to be against the police action.

After the bailiffs tried to move forward through the massed ranks of people, someone – he didn’t identify himself or his position in English – announced in Chinese and English that the bailiffs had officially requested help from the police to enforce the injunction. (So what were the police doing helping them earlier if they hadn’t been asked to?). A further announcement of arrests with multiple criminal charges if obstructions continued was made. Then the bailiffs all moved to the back and three ranks of plainclothes police ahead of lines of uniformed officers moved aggressively into the ranks of protestors, media and onlookers. Why are plainclothes police being used? Most of the plainclothes officers were actively hiding their identities and warrant cards – either by not wearing them or hanging them under clothing.

As the plainclothes police moved in, several aggressive arrests were made and as those arrested were passed backwards it was easy to see from my high vantage point the police beating them unnecessarily. If you have 6 guys carrying a persons arms and legs why do you need a couple more hitting and kneeing in the head and ribs?

The altercations and scuffles over the final bit of the Argyle Street clearance were precipitated by the actions of the police – again why were plain clothes officers in black vests with no visible id being used instead of uniformed officers? The needlessly violent arrest of a few – none of whom, that I saw, resisted arrested – by police has triggered the evening’s actions across Mongkok – perhaps that was the plan. The use of pepper spray and a water/vapour version of tear gas (which doesn’t such a negative visual impact in the media as tear gas does) is ongoing across Mongkok with police indifferent as to who is sprayed – protestor, journalist or innocent passer-bye.

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Mongkok-2511/45944108_fjsGQm#!i=3720380749&k=7cHkgGH

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Mongkok-2511/45944108_fjsGQm#!i=3720391721&k=9TFjv2p

All new helmets, gloves and other equipment for the PTU

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Mongkok-2511/45944108_fjsGQm#!i=3720394944&k=2JKBQsP

The photos link through to the gallery of today’s events – currently unsorted, my apologies for that. Click to see more

http://bcmagazine.smugmug.com/Bcene-photos/2014/Umbrella-Movement-Mongkok-2511/45944108_fjsGQm#!i=3720303316&k=H6MtRF8