We only started protesting after police fired tear gas, some say

Roy Ho, 31, had not planned to join the protest. He was eating dinner in Tin Shui Wai when he saw the scenes from Central on television - police firing tear gas at peaceful, unarmed students.

"I knew after watching the news that I had to come out and support the students this time," Ho said, as he rallied with protesters on Harcourt Road, where tear gas had been fired on Sunday.

Ho was one of many people prompted to join the protests by what they saw as aggressive police action, tactics which also drew strong criticism from members of the legal community.

In a statement yesterday, the Bar Association said the use of tear gas against unarmed civilians was "excessive and disproportionate" and unjustified.

Simon Young Ngai-man, a law professor at the University of Hong Kong, shared the concern, saying the police must "justify their use of force".

The Hong Kong Journalists' Association, and about 2,400 social workers who signed a petition, also condemned the police actions.

Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor insisted that "appropriate force" had been used, while assistant police commissioner Cheung Tak-keung said "minimum force" had been employed.