December 26, 2019, 04:17 PM
Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam has doubled down on her rhetoric this holiday season by condemning the city's anti-government protesters’ actions.
Lam said they have "ruined" Christmas Eve celebrations for "many members of the public and tourists coming to Hong Kong".
Ruined Christmas for all
Referring to the protesters as "a group of reckless and selfish rioters", Lam said in a Facebook post published on Wednesday evening (Dec. 25), that their "illegal acts have not only dampened the festive mood but also adversely affected local businesses".
She added that the government will try its best to "uphold law and order, and restore peace in Hong Kong".Silent night protests
Protesters took to shopping malls in “silent night demonstrations”, chanting pro-democracy slogans and singing the unofficial Hong Kong anthem.
As the months-long protests continue to drag on, certain protesters coarsened their rhetoric -- the crowd at Tsim Sha Tsui shouted "Hong Kong independence, the only way out!".
The slogan was previously chanted at a pro-Uighur rally last Sunday, Dec. 22.
Riot police had then responded by raising the ”blue flag” that signified the gatherings were an illegal assembly, before forcefully dispersing them.
Clashes broke out in the Harbour City shopping mall in Tsim Sha Tsui between black-clothed protesters and plain-clothes police
— Aaron Mc Nicholas (@aaronMCN) December 24, 2019
Christmas Eve in Hong Kong pic.twitter.com/5CaSAKT5DI
https://twitter.com/lokinhei/status/1209488473415016448
In the midst of the chaos, a protester was captured on camera falling off a balcony while running away from police.
https://twitter.com/studioincendo/status/1209448416893378560
South China Morning Post (SCMP) also reported that protesters at Harbour City shopping mall in Tsim Sha Tsui had attacked people they suspected of being undercover cops.
Tear gas was released at the crowds at major shopping districts Tsim Sha Tsui and Mongkok in an attempt to disperse them as well.
LOOK: Tear gas canisters shot on Christmas Day in Mongkok, known as a prime shopping destination in Hong Kong | via @myjeffersonian pic.twitter.com/kIZhO5lmZW
— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) December 25, 2019
At around midnight, police fired tear gas on Carnarvon Road to disperse crowds. Staff and diners at a restaurant nearby covered their noses to avoid the smell.
— SCMP Hong Kong (@SCMPHongKong) December 24, 2019
Video: SCMP/Karen Zhang pic.twitter.com/cPUTaZ7XTr
Protesters also set fire to an exit at the Mong Kok MTR station, prompting MTR to announce that the station, as well as Tsim Sha Tsui station, would close, SCMP reported.
Nevertheless, despite the clashes with the police, protesters still got to enjoy Christmas in their own way.
#LIVE: This famously #antiELAB diner is welcoming friends, especially those arrested in the movement, to celebrate Christmas. Hundreds are queuing outside. Many have told me although the food is less than brilliant, this is the warmest Christmas ever to them. #HongKongProtests pic.twitter.com/jp66t726vI
— Ezra Cheung (@ezracheungtoto) December 25, 2019
#LIVE: This free Christmas banquet has obviously garnered a lot of support. A pro-democracy Chinese medicine petitioner group has also left packages of Chinese medicine remedy outside the shops as Christmas gifts. #HongKongProtests pic.twitter.com/ZFEdzKf8Rd
— Ezra Cheung (@ezracheungtoto) December 25, 2019
While protests first broke out in June to protest against the now-abandoned extradition bill, the movement subsequently morphed into a broader call for greater police accountability and democratic rights.
"Selfish rioters"
This was not the first time Lam has called protesters "selfish" -- she previously used the term on Nov. 11 when they launched a campaign to disrupt the city's traffic.
Protesters had called for the city-wide effort in response to university student Alex Chow falling to his death in a car park -- the first death directly related to the protests.
The city was mired in chaos the following few days as the campaign continued.
Hong Kong had been largely peaceful since the landslide local election that saw pro-democracy candidates -- some of them with no prior political experience -- take over 17 out of 18 districts councils.
However, protests escalated over the festive season.
Image via Philip Fong/AFP
Top image via Carrie Lam/Facebook & Philip Fong/AFP
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