Key figure behind Yuen Long march Max Chung arrested for ‘organising unlawful assembly’ after hundreds of thousands join protest banned by Hong Kong police
- Yuen Long resident Chung taken away by police after he attends forum at Victoria Park
- Chung proposed march after bloody attacks at Yuen Long MTR station last Sunday when more than 100 men attacked protesters and passers-by
Police have arrested a proponent of Saturday’s march in Hong Kong for organising an unlawful assembly, which hundreds of thousands of protesters were estimated to have joined despite it being banned by the force.
Max Chung Kin-ping, 39, was among the 14 people the police have so far arrested for the protest in Yuen Long. The others were arrested unauthorised assembly, possession of offensive weapons and common assault.
Chung was taken away by police after he attended an RTHK forum at Victoria Park, according to Michael Mo Kwan-tai, the march co-applicant.
After losing an appeal on Friday against the police objection to the march in Yuen Long, Chung said he would still go ahead alone and would not ask people to follow him.
But he added at the time: “Of course, if some people want to buy sweetheart cakes or do something else such as taking a walking in Yuen Long, as a Yuen Long resident, I absolutely welcome [them].”
And at a press briefing on Saturday night, Chung denied the protest was a march.