Lawyers question police clearance of Mong Kok protest site
Lawyers and demonstrators lambasted the police's clearance of the Mong Kok protest site - an exercise in which at least 148 people were arrested.
Lawyers and demonstrators lambasted the police's clearance of the Mong Kok protest site - an exercise in which at least 148 people were arrested in what pan-democrats called questionable circumstances.
In Mong Kok, officers cleared road blocks located outside the area stipulated by the injunction.
The swift intervention by police in Mong Kok, just five minutes after the bailiffs started their work, stirred the emotions of protesters, who said the minibus drivers' association that launched the injunction had reneged on a promise to remove objects rather than people.
More surprising to the protesters was the presence of about 100 "helpers", said to be authorised by the association.
Student Wil Mak said the rule of law had been trampled on.
"If [police] want to clear us, they could announce we're [breaking the law] and make arrests. There is no need to use the injunction order to hide their intention," he said.
The Federation of Students said the action showed that Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's administration "attempted to borrow the name of the injunction to carry out what is in effect a clearance".
Legal-sector lawmaker Dennis Kwok said police had failed to comply with the court's instruction. "I think the police action has not followed the procedures ... to explain the gist of the injunction order to the people at the scene, before they start the arrests."
Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung said police were entitled to carry out their duties in accordance with other ordinances aside from those stipulated in the High Court.
"If there is any person who takes the view that the bailiffs are not performing their duty properly, I am sure they can take the matter to the appropriate venue," Yuen said.
He added that the plaintiff of the injunction could authorise people to help clear the site.
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Seventeen people arrested during the police clearance on Tuesday night and during the early hours yesterday appeared in Kowloon City Court. Two men - a student, 19, and an unemployed 20-year-old - were charged with assaulting a police officer. The others, aged 19 to 69, were charged with obstructing public officers. All were granted bail of HK$100 to HK$500 on condition they would not enter an area enclosed by Dundas Street, Shanghai Street, Mong Kok Road and Fa Yuen Street before they return to court on January 14.
Occupy co-organiser Benny Tai Yiu-ting avoided a small-claims action as the plaintiff, Kwun Tong district councillor Marco Ma Yat-chiu, wrongly stated his tour bus company name in a claim of HK$450 lost business.
