Hong Kong teachers rally in thunderstorm at start of weekend of protests

Several thousand Hong Kong school teachers and supporters braved thunderstorms on Saturday to start a weekend of anti-government protests, despite fears that police could adopt tougher tactics to drive activists off the streets. </s> The Latest: Hong Kong rallies spill over to Australia

HONG KONG (AP) — The Latest on protests in Hong Kong (all times local):

Protests in support of a pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong have continued in Melbourne, Australia, while a pro-China march has been held in Sydney.

The Melbourne rally on Friday night turned ugly, with police moving in to separate some 100 pro-China protesters from those sympathetic to Hong Kong as low level violence flared. Saturday's protest in the southern city was peaceful.

Among the pro-Hong Kong demonstrators were members of China's Tibetan and Uighur ethnic minorities, as well as Vietnamese groups.

A pro-China march in Sydney included at least 200 protesters descending on the city's Town Hall chanting "Long Live China" and singing the Chinese national anthem.

Pro-Hong Kong rallies have also been held this week in Adelaide and Brisbane.

Another weekend of protests is underway in Hong Kong, with teachers rallying to support students and other protesters.

An overflow crowd filled a public square in the financial district on Saturday, holding signs that read "Protect the next generation."

Teachers say they want the government to answer the protesters' demands and stop using what they called police violence to disperse demonstrators.

Hong Kong's protests are in their 10th week and show no sign of relenting. A series of rallies and at least one march are planned for this weekend.

The movement's demands include the resignation of the city leader, democratic elections and an independent investigation into police use of force.

Mainland Chinese police are holding drills in nearby Shenzhen, prompting speculation they could be sent in to suppress the protests. </s> Pro-democracy protesters walk during a march organized by teachers in Hong Kong Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019. Members of China’s paramilitary People’s Armed Police marched and practiced crowd control tactics at a sports complex in Shenzhen across from Hong Kong in what some interpreted as a threat against pro-democracy protesters in the semi-autonomous territory. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

HONG KONG (AP) — Pro-democracy protesters marched on one side of Hong Kong’s famous harbor on Saturday to demand the government heed their demands. Across the water, a pro-government rally called for an end to the often violent protests.

The dueling demonstrations highlighted the political divide in the semiautonomous Chinese territory, which for 10 weeks has been rocked by protests that show no signs of relenting.

“The government right now doesn’t listen to the people, and the police are too violent,” said Bobby Tse, a 76-year-old retiree who watched the pro-democracy march from a bridge. “It didn’t used to be like this. We didn’t have to protest every week. But now even though we have protests every week, the government still gives no response.”

At the pro-government rally, speakers on a stage said they love both Hong Kong and China and asked the protesters why they are afraid of China. Supporters gave a thumbs-up to police officers and posed for photos with them. Leo Chen, a 47-year-old driver, said he came out because he wants peace in his city of 7.4 million people.

“Before, everyone in Hong Kong helped each other, it was very harmonious,” he said. “Now to see it become like this, I’m not happy, so I’ve come out to show a little strength.”

Earlier Saturday, thousands of schoolteachers marched to the official residence of Hong Kong’s leader, Carrie Lam, to show support for the protesters, who have taken to the streets since early June and include many students.

Carrying signs that read “Protect the next generation” and umbrellas to ward off intermittent downpours, the teachers tied white ribbons to a metal fence near Government House. They said the government should answer the protesters’ demands and stop using what they called police violence to disperse demonstrators who have taken over streets and besieged and defaced government buildings.

“We want to protect our students, our youngsters, so teachers are willing to come out and speak for the youngsters, and also, to stand by them so they are not alone,” said Fung Wai-wah, president of the Hong Kong Professional Teachers’ Union, which organized the march.

The movement’s demands include Lam’s resignation, democratic elections and an independent investigation into police use of force. A rally in Victoria Park has been called for Sunday by a pro-democracy group that has organized three massive marches through central Hong Kong since June.

“Even though we’re all scared of getting arrested, we have to keep going,” said Minnie Lee, a 31-year-old logistics worker who joined the pro-democracy march. “What we are fighting for is democracy and our rights. We’re not doing anything wrong. If we stop now, things will only get worse.”

Tensions rose briefly after the march, with riot police deployed to chase down a group of pro-democracy protesters they said were assembling illegally outside their station, shining laser pointers and throwing eggs.

Officers formed a line on a nearby street, thumping their batons on their shields before charging.

But by that time, most protesters had already melted away into the city’s densely populated Mong Kok district, leaving officers to face angry local residents, who told them to leave and accused them of being members of crime gangs. The police eventually left without firing tear gas.

Members of China’s paramilitary People’s Armed Police force have been training this week across the border in Shenzhen, fueling speculation that they could be sent in to suppress the protests. Officers didn’t appear to hold major drills on Saturday, but could be seen doing jumping jacks and stretching inside a sports stadium. Dozens of army-green armored carriers and trucks were parked inside and outside the facility.

The Hong Kong police, however, have said they are capable of handling the protests.

“I can tell you we’re confident the police have the capability to maintain law and order,” Yeung Man-pun, commander of the Kowloon City district, said Friday when asked about the possibility of a deployment of mainland security forces.

Outside of Hong Kong, demonstrations were held in support of both the pro-democracy movement and China.

In Australia, at least 200 protesters descended on Sydney Town Hall, chanting “Long live China” and singing the Chinese national anthem, while a protest in support of the pro-democracy movement continued in Melbourne.

The Melbourne rally had turned ugly on Friday night, with police moving in to separate some 100 pro-China protesters from those sympathetic to Hong Kong. Saturday’s protest in the southern city was peaceful.

In Taiwan, people held a flash mob demonstration in Taipei, the island’s capital, in support of the Hong Kong protests.

Associated Press writer Ken Moritsugu, videojournalist Yves Dam Van and news assistant Phoebe Lai in Hong Kong and videojournalist Dake Kang in Shenzhen, China, contributed to this report. </s> RABAT (Reuters) - At least 15,000 teachers protested peacefully in the Moroccan capital Rabat late on Saturday to demand better working conditions, witnesses said.

Chanting “Liberty, dignity, social justice” the teachers gathered in front of parliament where they planned to spend the night ahead of a rally called by leftist opposition parties, unions and civil society organizations.

Police arrived with water cannon trucks but did not interfere immediately, negotiating with protesters to go home. Authorities offered to send busses to drive them home, some teachers said.

There was no comment from the police or the government.

The teachers were protesting against temporary contracts on which they have been hired. They are demanding full benefits and pensions like full-time public servants. </s> Hong Kong's summer of discontent looks set to continue sizzling as organisers of yesterday's massive but peaceful rally said there would be another demonstration on Aug 31, and some students said they would boycott classes when the new term starts next month.

Mr Jimmy Sham, convener of the Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF), the group behind the larger protests since June 9, said it has applied for another march from Chater Garden in Central to Beijing's liaison office on the western side of Hong Kong Island on Aug 31.

Aug 31 is "the fifth anniversary of the National People's Congress's undemocratic and restrictive decision on universal suffrage in Hong Kong", the CHRF said.

Worries of more aggressive police tactics plagued student protesters and many told The Straits Times of their fears, but said they still intend to heed calls to boycott classes in September.

Ms Tse Ngo Yi, 25, a part-time sophomore at Education University of Hong Kong, said she would stay at protest venues for "as long as possible", adding: "My parents fully support my decision."

Mr Jeffrey Wong, 23, a final-year student at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said he will skip classes, if necessary, to pressure the government to respond to the people's demands, including the withdrawal of the now-suspended extradition Bill. "They think that once the summer holidays end, we will have to go back to school, but today's turnout shows that they are mistaken."

However, others, like Hong Kong Baptist University student Ken Tsui, 23, are thinking twice about participating on the front lines. He told ST that the police have stepped up stop-and-search measures against young people. While it would not deter him from joining rallies, he tries not to stay out late.

"I'm ashamed to say that because it feels like I'm not giving my full support to the others, but I'm afraid for my safety as more than 700 people have been arrested."

The police have made some 750 arrests since the June 9 protests.

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology's associate professor Dixon Sing recounted that more than 100 people were arrested on Aug 11, and this has prompted front-line radicals to consider "the overall risks for mounting either a Hong Kong-wide protest or to concentrate in one area".

"The risks for both strategies would have been elevated because in the past they believed that if they have enough manpower to spread around, they can wear down the police. This tactic has proven to have failed given last Sunday's massive arrests," Prof Sing said.

Still, hundreds lingered in Harcourt Road late last night, after police issued a warning for thousands of them to disperse. The police said the protesters had "shot hard objects at the Central Government Complex with slingshots and aimed laser beams at police officers".

Earlier yesterday, protesters gathered at Victoria Park in Causeway Bay for the rally initiated by CHRF. The Front said 1.7 million turned up for the police-approved static rally despite the heavy rain. While police did not approve an accompanying march, thousands packed key roads from North Point to Central on Hong Kong Island. The weekend's protests were the first largely peaceful rallies in 11th straight weekends of demonstrations.

Police, however, put the turnout at Victoria Park at 128,000 people, at its peak, yesterday.

"Today has been peaceful, which is exactly what Carrie Lam asked for," Mr Sham said, referring to the Chief Executive. "Carrie Lam must respond to the five demands in order to show Hongkongers peaceful and rational expression can be heard, accepted and met... If she continues to turn a deaf ear, she is instigating more radical struggles."

A government spokesman noted that while the rally was largely peaceful, there were inconveniences caused to the public after protesters occupied key roads. </s> Thousands of protesters on Saturday marched through a Hong Kong town to demand action against suspected triad gangs who beat up pro-democracy demonstrators last weekend.

The rally in the New Territories close to the border with mainland China went ahead despite a police ban over concerns about reprisal attacks.

Huge crowds spilled out of the town's main station and into surrounding streets where police maintained a large presence but kept their distance. Many shops were shuttered.

Some protesters chanted anti-police slogans such as "black police" and "know the law, break the law."

Public anger has been raging since last Sunday when a gang of men in white t-shirts, armed with poles and batons, set upon anti-government protesters and bystanders in Yuen Long station. Forty-five people needed hospital treatment.

Protesters say that paid gangs from the local area were responsible for the attacks and accuse the police of not protecting them. Police say they have already made a dozen arrests.

The New Territories is a more rural area of Hong Kong where many of the surrounding villages are known for links to the triad and their staunch support for the pro-Beijing establishment.

Read more: Hong Kong protests: Is the government losing control of law and order?

Saturday's rally marked the eighth consecutive week of protests in the former British colony. The demonstrations first erupted last month in opposition to plans by the local government to allow the extradition of suspected criminals to China.

The mainland's justice system is widely criticized as lacking independence and respect for human rights.

Those marches saw more than a million people take to the streets, prompting the territory's leader, Carrie Lam, to put the proposed bill on hold.

Since then, the movement has grown to include demands for direct elections, the dissolution of the current legislature, an investigation into police brutality and less Chinese interference in Hong Kong affairs.

The movement's leaders have however failed to persuade Beijing or Hong Kong's leaders to change course amid clashes with police and the storming of Hong Kong's parliament in early July by some protesters.

The United Kingdom handed Hong Kong to China in 1997 as part of an agreement that included Beijing's pledge to respect the territory's semi-autonomous status until 2047.

Each evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here. </s> Beijing: Over a million people marched through Hong Kong city streets on Sunday evening in a massive protest against a bill that would allow people to be extradited to mainland China.

Violence erupted after midnight, as thousands of students attempted a sit-in outside Hong Kong’s legislative council after the march, but were dispersed by police in riot gear using pepper spray and batons.

The organiser's estimate of 1.03 million people marching the three kilometres from Victoria Park would make it the biggest protest since the former British colony was returned to China in 1997.

At handover, China and Britain had agreed Hong Kong would operate under "One Country, Two Systems", allowing Hong Kong's limited government control over immigration, borders and a separate legal system. </s> Teachers protest for better work conditions in Rabat, Morocco, on Sunday (Reuters photo)

RABAT — About 10,000 teachers staged a new protest in the Moroccan capital Rabat on Sunday to demand permanent jobs, hours after police had used water cannon to disperse an overnight demonstration.

The teachers, many of whom had spent the night in the streets of Rabat after the first event, marched from the education ministry to the square in front of Parliament where police had intervened after midnight to prevent them from spending the night in the main Mohammed V Avenue.

They want an end to renewable contracts in favour of permanent jobs that offer civil service benefits, including a better retirement pension.

Morocco, which has avoided the turmoil seen by other countries during and after the Arab Spring of 2011, regularly sees protests though they rarely draw several thousands or involve confrontations with police.

The protest was organised by an alliance of leftist opposition parties, main unions, civil society organisations and university students. The teachers have been striking for three weeks in a row.

The protesting teachers were threatened by the ministry to return to the classroom or be sacked.

“We are not intimidated by the threats of the education ministry’s because we came to claim our right to be integrated in the civil service and defend the public school,” Abdelilah Taloua, a young teacher, told Reuters.

About 55,000 teachers have been hired under the new contract system since 2016 out of 240,000 teachers in total.

The government insists that teachers working by contracts have the same starting salary of 5,000 dirhams (around $520) like regular teachers.

Morocco has come under pressure from international lenders to trim the civil service wage bill and strengthen the efficiency of the public sector. </s> Anti-government protestors in Hong Kong stormed into the Legislative Council building on Monday and painted the walls of the main debating chamber with graffiti, reports said. The protestors also hung a British colonial-era flag on the main podium.

Dozens of demonstrators broke through the glass door of the Legislative Council building, while shouting slogans and spray painting messages on the walls, BBC reported.

A black and white banner hoisted in the debating chamber read in Chinese: “Bow to protect rule of law. Oppose extradition,” reported AFP.

Earlier, the police had held signs warning they would use force if protesters charged the glass exterior walls of the building. They later warned that anyone who breached an internal metal gate would be arrested. According to Reuters, riot police fired pepper spray to disperse the crowd.

Thousands of people in Hong Kong took to the streets on Monday for a rally to mark the 22nd anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover from British to Chinese rule. This was the latest in a series of protests against the extradition bill that could allow people in Hong Kong to be sent to China for trials. The Hong Kong government has agreed to suspend the bill indefinitely, but rallies have continued amid calls for Chief Executive Carrie Lam to resign.

The protests on Monday were mostly peaceful, but a breakaway group of protestors moved to the government building around noon and began ramming the glass door with a metal trolley, but the protestors later dispersed. In the evening, some of them returned to Monday evening, some then returned to Legislative Council building and began pulling off external fencing and entered the building. Protestors then managed to open a gate inside the building and gained access to the chambers.

The Hong Kong police gave an ultimatum to protesters who seized the Legislative Council, warning that they would use “appropriate force” if they are met with resistance while clearing the area, AFP reported.
Thousands of school teachers join the 11th weekend of anti-government protests in Hong Kong.