History repeated – Mong Kok riot similar to deadly Hong Kong unrest of 1966, says former top policeman
Trouble in both instances was instigated by disillusioned young people, he points out
The mayhem on Monday night was reminiscent of the 1966 riots in Hong Kong, said a former senior policeman who witnessed the deadly unrest 50 years ago.
“The Mong Kok riot and the chain of events that led to the turmoil in 1966 had many things in common,” said James Elms, a police inspector in the 1960s who retired in 1996 as a senior superintendent.
He noted that both incidents were characterised by mass participation of young people, who mostly responded to their peers’ call for action. They were similarly disappointed at government policy as well as the political system at the time in which they lived, the 72-year-old said.
“The young people might not have the same objectives from the outset but they all took the same action later,” said Elms, citing another resemblance across the generations.
He believed at least some of the attacks this week were premeditated, as was the case five decades ago.
READ MORE: Lessons from 1966
The riot in the 1966, triggered by the colonial government’s decision to increase ferry fares, resulted in one death and the arrest of more than 1,800 people. Unrest a year later, stemming from mounting tensions between the colonial government and leftists, caused greater casualties and claimed 51 lives. Some 1,936 people were convicted for offences committed during the 1967 riots.