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The July 1 march passes through Causeway Bay in 2015. Photo: Sam Tsang

Hong Kong police to deploy 2,000 officers amid jitters over ‘black mask’ rally outside Beijing’s liaison office

Force worried over Friday’s localist protest outside Beijing’s liaison office on day that annual July 1 protest march takes place

July 1 march

Jitters over security prompted by a separatist call for a “black-mask protest’’ outside Beijing’s headquarters in Hong Kong will see more than 2,000 police deployed on Friday as the city marks the 19th anniversary of its return to Chinese sovereignty.

As many as 100,000 people are expected to take part in the annual July 1 march organised by the Civil Human Rights Front – an umbrella group of pro-democracy organisations.

However, as political tensions continue to simmer in the wake of 2014’s Occupy protests and violent disturbances in Mong Kok earlier this year, police concerns are focused on a planned protest by so-called “localists” – a small but vociferous assortment of people who advocate varying degrees of political independence for Hong Kong — outside Beijing’s liaison office in Western.

Police called on protest organisers, who have called on people to wear black masks and clothing, to contact them as soon as possible, warning police “will take swift action” against anyone who threatens public order.

Localist groups are shunning the traditional – much bigger – July 1 march, the theme of which will be a call for Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying to step down, trashing it as a symbolic, ritualistic waste of time.

The Civil Human Rights Front event will see thousands march from Victoria Park in Causeway Bay to the government’s headquarters in Admiralty.

This year’s event will take on added significance with the front’s rally being led by bookseller Lam Wing-kee, who made ­explosive revelations about his months-long detention on the mainland, raising questions about the government’s ability to protect Hong Kong people from the reach of the mainland’s security apparatus.

Police are worried about scenes like this during the Mong Kok riot in February. Photo: Bloomberg

Three localist groups, the Hong Kong National Party, Hong Kong Indigenous and Youngspiration, have dismissed the demonstration as a “meaningless ritual” and are urging people to protest outside the liaison office.

The convenor of Youngspiration, Baggio Leung Chung-hang, said they could not agree with the front’s call for Leung Chun-ying to resign.

“We believe the bookseller saga worries Hong Kong people more,” the activist said. It was understood they would not seek police approval for their action as they regard it as an act of civil disobedience.

In a post on its Facebook page, the National Party, which advocates Hong Kong’s independence, said the rally would be “a black bloc protest against the Chinese invasion of Hong Kong”

The post says: “Black bloc is a tactic for protests in which participants wear black clothing and masks in a bid to conceal their identities and avoid prosecution by making it difficult to distinguish between participants.”

Hong Kong Island police senior superintendent Tse Kwok-wai said: “The police will not tolerate any illegal act”.

“In the event of any ... act that [constitutes] a breach of the peace, the police will take swift action to prevent public safety and order from being compromised.”

About 1,700 officers, mostly from the Police Tactical Unit, will fan out to monitor the march from Victoria Park to Admiralty and the protest outside Beijing’s liaison office, according to sources.

It is understood another 500 officers would be on standby in police stations and police headquarters and would be sent out in case of unrest, they said.

One source said crime squad officers would also be present along the march’s route and at the protest in Western.

Another source said police would enhance stop-and-search operations to stop radical protesters from carrying offensive weapons.

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