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Hong Kong Residents Protest Government Ban on Masks

VOA News

   Brian Padden contributed to this report.

   Protests broke out Friday in Hong Kong immediately after the city's
   government banned people from wearing masks at public demonstrations.

   Protesters, including some wearing masks, fanned out across the city,
   leading to rallies, as well as violent clashes.

   Carrie Lam, Hong Kong's chief executive, announced the ban earlier
   Friday, invoking a British colonial-era emergency powers act that was
   last used to quell riots in in 1967. Lam said the new regulation, to
   take effect Saturday, is a "prohibition of the face covering" and is
   intended to "target rioters or those that resort to violence."

   Following the announcement, thousands of demonstrators gathered in the
   city's central business district and other areas, shouting "Hong Kong
   people, resist!''

   Groups of angry protesters attacked pro-Chinese businesses, vandalized
   subway stops, and set street fires, causing police to respond with tear
   gas fire.

   Police said an officer fired a live shot in self-defense after he was
   attacked by protesters in the northern Yuen Long district.

   More rallies are expected over the weekend.

   The new law threatens anyone wearing masks at protests with up to one
   year in prison. Hong Kong residents can still wear masks in the street,
   but under the new law, they must remove the masks if asked by police.

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